Is Everything That Feels Bad Actually Bad? A FB Fight And An Infantile Philosophy
The narrative on the internet, and pretty much everywhere, is that you should never make your dog uncomfortable. If you glance at FB you’ll find endless arguments and accusations. The common theme is that aversives are never necessary. Pain, fear, discomfort are all bad and trainers that incorporate any of that into their training are also bad.
Those trainers are also made to sound as though that’s all they use. This has put those trainers in a position where many of them are publicly caving to the idea that punishment is bad and softening their language or “sugar coating” things in order to defend themselves from the on-slot of attacks.
So what is the truth? Is fear and pain bad? Is it always bad? Is punishment bad? Punishment, by definition, is anything that reduces a behavior. So by definition even offering food or petting could be a punishment if the dog tried to avoid it by modifying their behavior. What is best for the dogs? What actually saves dogs’ lives and keeps them in their homes?
If you’ve ever wondered what the truth is, it’s your lucky day, because that’s exactly what I do. So here is a summary of my most recent FB argument after a fairly popular UK trainer caved to the mob.
Love the show? Sign up to access our new exciting Xtra content! This content is unique and is ONLY available to our paid subscribers.
Subscriptions are only $3/month! You can also just sign up to make a small donation monthly if you want to support the podcast. Or, if you can’t do that right now, just hit subscribe in your favorite app and tell a friend about the show!
Any support in any form from our listeners is sooo appreciated! We count on listeners like you to help us keep putting out content. Visit the link below to subscribe or donate.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2124912/support
I want to hear from you! Email me directly to ask your questions and suggest topics for the podcast.
[email protected]
Visit our social media for free training videos and to connect with us!
https://www.facebook.com/diamondk9dogtraining
Minute-by-Minute Breakdown
- 00:00 – Kati Peppe opens Off Leash and Unfiltered and asks listeners to subscribe.
- 01:00 – She criticizes ‘idiot forums’ and says trainers with real dogs don’t spend time arguing online.
- 02:00 – Kati says she lost respect for a popular UK trainer after that trainer ‘caved’ to critics.
- 03:00 – She calls the positive-only crowd’s depiction of balanced trainers as purely punitive a straw man.
- 04:00 – Kati objects to rebranding pain as ‘discipline’ to placate critics and manipulate vocabulary.
- 05:00 – She rejects the claim that all discomfort or punishment is inherently bad for dogs.
- 06:00 – Kati refused to placate the mob and publicly commented in defense of balanced training.
- 07:00 – She challenges replies that humans understand surgery pain but dogs supposedly cannot, calling that viewpoint stupid.
- 08:00 – Kati notes dogs sometimes need painful medical procedures like CCL repair or foreign object removal.
- 09:00 – She observes many critics respond emotionally and irrationally when pressed for rational explanations.
- 11:00 – Proper punishment must be contingent on behavior so dogs learn they control the consequence.
- 12:00 – Kati argues pain, fear, and discomfort are tools that, when used properly, are necessary.
- 15:00 – She criticizes humanizing dogs and claims occasional discomfort doesn’t traumatize them long-term.
- 23:00 – To stop unwanted behaviors, owners may need to make dogs uncomfortable without causing harm.