FEATURE
The Essence of Behavior Brings Out the Best in People and Animals
By Meg Harrison
ersonality extremes are what most of us deal with on an everyday , ongoing basis . I am not just talking about the dogs ; we will get to people later . Tempering these extremes can be a major part of our day , but it does not have to be . There are three times to use flower essences : 1 ) before there is a problem ; 2 ) when nothing else has worked on the problem , and 3 ) at all times in between . One of our goals is to create feelings of safety , cooperation , and mutual respect . Yes , I used the “ F ” word — feelings . After 48 years of working with essences , animals , and people , my take-away is that if all of us involved do not “ feel ” better at the end of a session ; no one is benefitting .
Compliments Being the fourth trainer , groomer , pet sitter is a great compliment so long as we are the last ! Right ? My son called our horse training business The Buck Stops Here . Clever , accurate , and a compliment because most everything we did complemented the horse , the owner , and their actions . We picked our battles so we could win the war – no one ever arrived at our place because training and relationships were progressing smoothly . They came in as train wrecks ; at their wit ’ s ends , or in a word : unhappy .
Serious play got us further down the road to success than any fancy protocol or expensive equipment . Every individual is unique and requires open exploration of what would work for that particular personality . As a result , we were known to be unconventional and yet with the quickest , permanent results . Encouraging exploration , creativity , making the environment work on our behalf is part of that process . Foremost is feeing safe in that environment . Not as we would have it be ( quiet , non-stimulating , no triggers , only natural smells , etc .) but as it is : clanging doors , snappy neighbors , howling winds , embers in the air , and emergency sirens .
Goals can be as simple as taking three minutes to get stressed dogs in crates to evacuate ahead of an impending disaster or a 30-day lesson plan preparing for high stakes competition . Allow me to explain how
52 Building Better Trainers Through Education Photo : Shutterstock