My sister has done an amazing job with her dog.

He is the sweetest most loving little guy in the entire world and the whole entire family adores him. This Saturday I was on care-duty for Tebow the dog, which basically just me going over and taking him for a quick walk for bathroom time and to get his wiggles out.

I have forgotten that this once small Labradoodle puppy, was not so much a puppy any more. I looked away for half a second and almost fell flat on my rear when he bolted for a nearby stick.

The first 15 minutes of our walk was a battle. I was ignored while Tebow drug me down the road and chased anything that looked interesting.

Then, I remembered the Dog Whisper episodes (which I love!) where Cesar Millan tells his audience that he “rehabilitates dogs, and trains people”.  I went through the checklist of everything I could remember from Dog Whisper and realized I was doing everything completely wrong. So I changed. I didn’t change what I was doing really. We were still walking, but I allowed myself to be in control to be “in the moment”. As I transformed, so did Tebow.

Here are a few things that I learned about people, dogs, leadership on my walk:

1. Keep your expectations consistent. Don’t run one minute and expect to snail walk the next.
2. Be in control. No one likes to follow a scaredy cat (literally).
3. Make eye contact. It builds trust and confidence.
4. In moments of stress (lawn mowers, children, other dogs) accept the circumstances, but find your own peace.
5. Work together. Everything is a lot more enjoyable when you aren’t pulling in two different directions.

Have you ever had a “Dog Whisper” moment? Sometimes animals can be great teachers

I  really love Cesar Millan’s story. It’s here if you’re interested.
(Thanks Jeff Pennypacker for sharing this link)