CANINE
Making the Case for Space
Sadly, breed stereotyping is commonplace in the world at large, with pit bulls, Rottweilers,
Dobermans, Staffordshire bull terriers and German shepherds getting especially short shrift, but it works in reverse too. Tonya Wilhelm tells the tale of the inverted prejudice she experienced with her dog-reactive golden retriever, Theo, who everyone assumed would be friendly and affectionate
Despite the common belief that all goldens are “friendly,” Theo was not at all friendly with other dogs
Theo’s guardian, author Tonya Wilhelm, was able to keep Theo below threshold when on walks, other dog owners notwithstanding
I
t was five o’clock in the morning and I loaded up my pockets with tasty treats, poop bags, and an air horn. With a forced smile on my face and a quivering voice, I said to my golden retriever, Theo, "Are you ready to go for a walk?" Next, I placed Theo's head collar on and gave him a yummy piece of beef. I slowly opened the door and peeked around outside, with Theo still inside behind me. I looked down the street in both directions as far as I could see. I took a deep breath, and said, "Let's go," as I took a quick step outside. In an upbeat voice, I jollied Theo up and hit the pavement. There was a great park with lots of space just across the street, and Theo loved walking there. We were "on." Theo was paying attention to me, and we were having a good time sniffing the vole holes and playing training games. I suddenly noticed a woman about 50 feet away with her dog. Theo and I stepped off the path and into the open grassy area. As the woman and her dog moved closer, I continued to play with Theo, running through some of his tricks and training skills. He was focused on me and responding well. As the woman closed the gap between us, I took Theo further into the grass away from the walking path. To my dismay, the woman and her dog started 36
BARKS from the Guild/March 2016
into the grass toward us, instead of continuing down the path. I kept moving Theo farther and farther into the grass, not making eye contact with the woman. But she kept getting closer, with her dog pulling hard at the end of the leash. Finally, as I reached the end of the grass and hit the tree line, I asked Theo to sit, stay while I put my body in front of his to block the woman. I stretched out my hand in traffic cop mode, and called to her, "He's not dog-friendly, please stop!" She looked shocked and said, "I didn't know goldens could bite." True story. As a dog trainer and dog enthusiast, I often hear the breedbiased advice that gets bandied about. That breed is “mean,” you need a “firm hand” when training that breed, don't trust that breed with cats, and so on. But what is not talked about as often is that even the "friendly” breeds can have issues. The pendulum swings both ways. All too often, people will see a dog they assume is friendly and social and rush up to him and his owner. They often do not stop to ask if they can say hello or pet the dog, they just go in for the reach or hug. Or they may bound in with their dog in tow, assuming the two dogs will hit it off, without even thinking twice. Theo passed in 2009, but when he was in my life I was on pa-