For supporters of the Yellow Dog Program who think that someone ought to tie a yellow ribbon around my neck to warn other people to stay away from me, alas that could backfire for the same reason it could backfire in dogs.
That said, I’m the first to admit that my take on this easily could be biased by my work. I’m not a big fan of the Rub-Their-Noses-In-It approach to training that advocates putting dogs in situations that cause them behavioral pain to teach them to accept it for our own convenience. As a veterinarian, I’m also not a fan of putting animals who are physically vulnerable in situations that might cause them to hold their bodies in defensive positions that could stress healing fractures or surgical wounds, and/or cause them to secrete stress hormones that could undermine the healing response or exacerbate other medical problems.
As always, for me it boils down to a question of priorities.
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