Hurricane Matthew Makes Landfall in Florida, Lucky Dog Lessons

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• Hurricane Matthew Makes Landfall In Florida

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  Hurricane Matthew is shaping up to be one of the strongest hurricanes the United States has seen in several years. We’ll talk to Weather Channel Senior Meteorologist Jonathan Erdman about the storm and what makes it so dangerous and unique.

• Celebrity Animal Trainer On Working With Shelter Dogs

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  We talk a with celebrity animal trainer about his efforts to rescue and train shelter dogs.

• Animal Trainer Offers Advice For Training Rescue Dogs

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  Despite sometimes getting a bad reputation, dogs from shelters are just as trainable as other canines, and celebrity animal trainer Brandon McMillan wants to make sure pet owners have the right tools to create happy households.

  McMillan hosts the television show “Lucky Dog,” where he rescues unwanted or out of control dogs from animal shelters and brings them to his training facility to transform them into well-behaved pets. He’s assembled the most important lessons in his book “Lucky Dog Lessons: Train Your Dog in 7 Days.”

  The most important lesson, said McMillan, is understanding that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work. The techniques that help a middle-aged, work-oriented German shepherd that’s been abused by a previous owner might not work for a young lap dog. It’s important pet owners understand their dog’s breed, age and personal history, and craft a strategy from there.

  “Without a game plan you really can’t train an animal,” McMillan said. “That’s where I think a lot of people will fall on their face with animal training. They don’t have a game plan, they all approach it the same way, they’re like, ‘Oh, I got a dog, I’m going to teach it to lay down.’”

  It’s probably best to start with the basics, McMillan said, noting there are seven fundamental commands that we ask pets on a daily basis: sit, stay, down, come, off, heel and no. Anything beyond that, he said, are likely repetitive.

  “Less is more in the dog training world,” McMillan said. “You want these seven commands because it’s basically the ABCs and 123s of dog training. It’s like grades kindergarten through 12 for your dog. Once dogs have basic obedience, you can teach them anything at that point.”

  Dog owners also need to realize their commands aren’t polite requests. An order to sit isn’t something that’s to be negotiated.

  “We’re parents through our dogs,” said McMillan. “And just like parents to kids, you’re not asking your kid to do the homework. It is mandatory when you have a kid, you must do your homework, you must do your chores, you must go to school, you must stay out of trouble. These are not requests.”

  The tone of voice can go a long way, too. Yelling oftentimes shut dogs down. McMillan suggested using a “mafia voice,” a convincing way of talking that is firm and direct.

  “You don’t want to use the volume of your voice, you want to use the conviction of your voice,” McMillan said.

  And much like your car, you can’t let small problems linger, said McMillan. Some innocent mouthing or harmless jumping as a puppy can lead to more serious consequences down the road if they aren’t corrected.

  But all of this training might not be possible if pet owners don’t first establish a strong relationship with their dog and build trust. This is especially important for shelter dogs, said McMillan.

  “You can’t fault them because they had a bad first chance,” McMillan said. “It’s our goal to give them a good second chance.”