Dog training that goes beyond sit and stay
Dog's Best Friend helps owners, pets build bonds
Chas Rooney, who is holding a papier mache dog mask a friend bought for him while touring Europe, is the owner of Dog's Best Friend, an obedience training facility in the Elmbrook Veterinary Clinic. Photo By C.T. Kruger
In more than 25 years in business, Chas Rooney estimates he's trained about 7,000 dogs - and twice as many canine owners.
"It's not enough to get dogs to listen to me," said the proprietor of Dog's Best Friend. "Trainers must have well-developed people skills as well, so they can reach dog owners and communicate to them how they can get the most out of relationships with their pets."
With no two personalities alike - be they dog or human - Rooney long ago shunned cookie-cutter training methods in favor of a customized, reinforcement-based approach.
"I use variations and combinations of five reinforcement methods," he said. "Positive involves giving dogs treats, toys or anything that will make them want to obey; neutral is repetitive conditioning, like homework; assertive is catching the dog in the act of committing a small mistake and correcting it on the spot; preventive teaches the dog to recognize 'no;' and negative is something that will cause a dog discomfort, like a choke collar or spraying water in its face. One should only own a dog to love it, so I only use negative reinforcement as a last resort, in case a pet is violent or prone to running out in the street and endangering itself. "
Dog's Best Friend conducts obedience classes in both group and private settings, and also offers specialty courses that include training dogs to perform tricks, hunt and carry out search and rescue missions.
The classes are offered daily - a fact, Rooney said, that further distinguishes his Brookfield-based business from the competition.
"Unlike most dog trainers, Dog's Best Friend is a full-time, professional dog-training facility," he said. "This is my career. Because it's all I do, I can train better and faster than those who only train on the side.
"Once a pet's been trained, their personality comes to life and the owner can experience an incredible relationship that involves so much more than just walking their dog and cleaning up after it."
If you would like to suggest a business to be featured in the Business Spotlight, send an e-mail to news@cninow.com or call (262) 446-6643.
JUST THE FACTS
BUSINESS: Dog's Best Friend
ADDRESS: 150 Janacek Road, Brookfield
PHONE: (414) 476-5511
ONLINE: DogsBestFriend.net
OWNER: Chas Rooney
INCORPORATED: 1986
TYPE OF BUSINESS: animal care
PEARLS OF WISDOM: "The potential relationship between humans and dogs is awe-inspiring when proper, clear and simple, intuitive training and communication is taught, learned and put in place."
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18 COMMENTS
klachey - Jan 20 at 11:53 AM - Report Abuse
chasvrooney - Jan 26 at 10:19 AM - Report Abuse
It is also important to note that I am no longer 18. I have had 26 years to temper my approach to human/dog interaction; and I will be the first to say that negative re-enforcement should be avoided at all costs unless physical harm or abandonment of the dog are at stake.
I am proud that I have grown beyond the more alpha wild tendencies of my past.
I invite the humane society to observe the methods and teaching styles that I use now and not judge on the strict past adherence to dominance that I was more prone to adhere to in the past.
anmacl - Feb 24 at 1:03 PM - Report Abuse
Negative reinforcement is the removal of an unwanted stimulus in response to a positive behavior. Its intended purpose is to increase that behavior. For example, in BF Skinner's original experiment he would play a loud noise continuously until the desired behavior was achieved, at which point the sound was turned off. A pinch collar or shock collar could be used for negative reinforcement if the painful stimulus is being applied continuously and removed when a dog performs a desired task, but I highly doubt this is how Chas is using them. "Harsh yanks" cannot be used for negative reinforcement, so it is more likely that Mr. Rooney is using positive punishment in his training and just calling it negative reinforcement.
Positive punishment is used to decrease negative behavior and involves presenting an aversive stimulus, like a shock or a pull, when a negative behavior occurs. A great example would be harshly pulling back on a dog's collar when the dog lunges at someone.
If you have an aggressive dog please contact your vet and see if they have any suggestions rather than sending the dog to Chas. My vet was happy to recommend a qualified behaviorist who understood operant conditioning and knew how and when to use positive and negative reinforcement.
chasvrooney - Feb 24 at 5:35 PM - Report Abuse
Second, I was unaware that my ability to spell reinforcement was any indicator of my knowledge of skills.
Finally, it is common knowledge that dog training is not a regulated or recognized occupation in the United States. Therefore the term and definitions of such terms are also not regulated or set. The right for me to use the term "Negative Reinforcement" to describe any form or technique that is designed to cause any form of unpleasantness to the dog is just as valid as anmaci belief that the use of a pinch collar or shock collar can be used over an extended period of time to cause painful stimulus until the dog performs a desired task. I quote anmaci's exact words, "A pinch collar or shock collar could be used for negative reinforcement if the PAINFUL stimulus is being applied CONTINUOUSLY and removed when a dog performs a desired task..." The thought of continuously applying a painful stimulus to a dog over a period of time sickens me. Anybody who wishes to use this concept, whether they call it negative reinforcement or operant conditioning, should be ashamed.
cjsjss - Jan 26 at 5:02 PM - Report Abuse
Thank you!
cjsjss - Jan 27 at 2:53 PM - Report Abuse
work for my dog, if I would not have found Chas my dog would have been one of the most aggressive dogs you would of ever met. I am so glad that I found Chas through my vet Elmbrook Vet, who highly recommended Dog's Best Friend and now I have one of the nicest dogs for my son who is using him as a service dog. So please do your research and hire Chas as your dog trainer!
Anniebird - Feb 03 at 7:22 PM - Report Abuse
JoeKewle - Feb 06 at 10:59 AM - Report Abuse
stephandnick - Feb 07 at 7:39 AM - Report Abuse
Our dogs are part of our family, and we trust Chas 100% to help our dogs become better-adjusted. We would *never* entrust our dogs to an abusive trainer. Chas has only used a form of negative reinforcement on a few occasions when our dog has been in a highly agitated state of mind. We have 100% confidence in Chas's judgment, and have seen a huge change in our dog's behavior. Chas's training program, including his only-when-absolutely-necessary use of negative reinforcement, has improved our dog's quality of life immeasurably.
LabradorBob - Feb 15 at 10:12 PM - Report Abuse
shylasmom - Feb 28 at 6:22 PM - Report Abuse
Rkels - Mar 05 at 7:13 PM - Report Abuse
daisyludale - Mar 15 at 5:09 PM - Report Abuse
Chas is a true dog professional and trains dog owners to understand how and why the training techniques work and experiencing the effectiveness is very rewarding. Teagan and I now have enjoyable walks with no pulling my arm out of the socket. We can now invite guests into our home without them being jumped on or having their shoes or socks nibbled. Although we still have a few bad habits to correct, I am confident that before Teagan’s first birthday, she will be the well behaved best friend we always dreamed of. We are so very proud of her. Thank you Chas.
RShirk - Mar 21 at 6:59 PM - Report Abuse
chasvrooney - Mar 22 at 5:49 PM - Report Abuse