Keep in mind that Ruff Love is written by Susan Garret.... she's a world competitor in agility, and really knows how to get a dog to bond. If I wanted to be the LIFE of my dog, literally have the world revolve around me, this would be the program I'd use.

This book is mainly aimed at performance dogs, but can be modified to pups, aggressive dogs, and destructive distractible dogs (etc). I think the best way to describe it is a very strict, structured NILF like program, meant to create/enhance/proof a bond between owner and dog. It's positive training. (S.G. is a marker trainer), and the only thing I can say i DO NOT like about the book is the encouragement to use a halti head collar.

If you re-read Ruff Love, you'll see that it provides enough exercise for even the most active dog.... hard to beat the activity needs of a working line border collie, like the dogs Susan Garret has!!

The dog is only in a crate when not training for the first 'stage' of the Ruff Love program, it quickly graduates to longer and longer periods of time left out.

I used some (ok, maybe lots) of ideas from Ruff Love when I first got Koenig. He was a 1yr old Dutchie, with no basic OB, and no manners...on leash, with dogs, with people, or in a home. He was whacko. Out of control. Now, just over a year later, I've got a nearly perfect house dog, and a dog with great SchH potential.


Oh- and that '6 month' number may only last a week with an adult dog, that is bonding quickly!!! It's just a guideline.

Edited by Kelly Byrd (08/29/2011 11:43 PM)
Edit reason: ETA: magic 6 month mark

Haven't read the book, but this is not a new concept in dog training, especially with people who have TOP level competition as their goal. If the only thing interesting, fun, etc in a dogs life is you and the training you do with the dog, then you can create a dog who thinks all good things revolve around you, who is overjoyed to work with you, because they don't have anything else to look forward to or compare it to.

Susan's opinions are actually very similar to the info you'll find at Leerburg. The initial period that seems strict is all about providing structure to your dogs' lives, rather than letting them run loose and amuse themselves. She doesn't have her dogs living in crates for their whole lives though, they become house dogs that run loose and play together.

Ruff Love uses the same principles that Ed does, where dogs have to earn the right to free time in the house. It's not an isolation program, it is a way of raising pups that makes the right behavior easy for them to achieve.

 Quote: Bob Scott

Why not just tether the dog to you while it's out of the crate? I'm thinking that will develop a better relationship with you then keeping in in a crate other then to piss and train.

Giant ditto.

I wish I had discovered tethering the dog to my belt decades before I did.

What a huge jump-start to bonding, potty-training, learning the dog's body language .... just no downside, IMHO.