Like learning to ride a bicycle for the first time

Yesterday morning I was drinking coffee and thinking about dog training as usual, when a concept popped into my mind. This is the idea that learning to ride a bicycle is a lot like learning to handle a dog. As a trainer, I am often brought dogs who are in fact “broken”; the brakes are out of adjustment or missing entirely, the wheels are weak and cannot stand the strain of even rolling over the smallest of bumps, and sometimes it seems like there are no tires, or perhaps the chain has not been oiled in years. This is a big part of what makes me a great trainer, I can fix that bike and get it working properly again. I take it for a test ride and wow; what a difference! When the dog goes back to the owner, however, sometimes there is confusion as the dog does not perform for them in the same way they just did for me.

The owner takes the reigns, or leash, or treat bag; and erringly expects to get the same results that I just got; but they don’t. It almost seems like in a moment or a day or a week the “bicycle” is broken again. It feels like the brakes are too sensative, the tires too fast, and the familiar sounds it used to make, in particular the squeaks; are gone. This is when I have to explain, that although I can get the “bicycle” working properly, the owner still needs to learn how to “ride” them. Now some owners merely need to adjust their techniques after getting on a seemingly “new” bicycle. They are not used to properly functioning brakes, tires, and a chain that does not make it difficult to pedal because it is coated in rust like a piece of the Titanic buried at the bottom of the sea. It takes time for them to adjust their muscle memory, their technique, and come to a new understanding of how much more capable their new bike is than it was before. Through minimal coaching, these people make adjustments at a rapid rate, and soon they are riding down the steepest hills with a a sense of confidence they have never felt before. Other times, it takes more time.

Sometimes, the owner has never learned how to ride a bike properly on two wheels, without the training wheels. These people get on even the most perfectly tuned and functional bicycle and as soon as they get on it, they fall off. They do not understand why the bike is not riding the same as when I demonstrated it to them, and it frustrates them. In these cases, we have to go back to the basics. We have to help them understand the feeling you get when the bike is in motion in perfect balance. I can suggest books, videos, and spend countless hours; but only one thing will ultimately determine who will succeed and who will fail……practice. Yes, this is the main thing, there must be practice, just like it took us to learn to ride a bicycle as children.

Most of us can remember how mystifying riding a bike on two wheels felt at first. We were afraid of falling down, or perhaps we at first lacked the strength to go up hill and could only ride down. Maybe we had a small bike upon which we felt secure because it had the training wheels on the whole time. Now we are riding the big “two wheeler”, with the big wheels and there is no way to have training wheels on a bike of this size. At a certain point we have to go for it, all the while knowing most likely we will fail. If we are smart we practice on the grass or soft dirt, before moving onto pavement. We do not attempt the big hill at the end of the block or the jumps we saw the other kids flying over in the park around the corner. We taker our time, somewhere quiet where we can focus, and we practice.

Frustration does not help, comparing yourself to others will only make you angry. “Why can’t I ride down the hill like those kids, I am just as strong and smart and capable as they are?”. The truth is, we simply need to practice more, for all we know they were once like us. We need to master the basics; the turns, the brakes, the dismount, and the acceleration. We need to master the FEELING of how it is to be in balance while in motion. We need to develop a TRUST in that feeling before we can progress. Depending on how much experience we have had in the past, especially if we are used to always riding with training wheels, this may take a while. What are the training wheels in dog training? They are the things we depended on to get our dog through the day, but were ultimately preventing the dog from reaching its highest goals. Just like training wheels, they served their purpose for some time and helped us feel in control, but ultimately they were limiting our freedom.

So what now Eric, I get it this is like riding a bike, but how does this help me get my dog to be like your dogs? For that I have to tell you something you probably did not know. I was once just like you. I at one point had no clue how to ride a bike, or train a dog, in short I was probably worse at handling animals in general than you could have ever been. With time, however, and a lot of scrapes, bruises, and close calls along the way, I eventually mastered it. I eventually got to that place that I know you will get to as well; the place where I was effortlessly flying over the jumps, down the steepest hills, and up the tallest mountains, all with a smile on my face. SO……next time you find yourself struggling, just pretend you are that little kid you once were, learning to ride a bike; have patience, be kind to yourself and know, though you may fall down, if you can get back up on that bike again, in time you will get better. Most of all remember, it is a feeling you just know when you know, and only once you know how it FEELS, can you truly master it.