I am not a dog whisperer

Sit!

Sit!

Siiiiiiit!

SITTTT!!!

I lie on the floor, my finger on the shutter release, the flash system hums softly and I wait.

Sometimes the poor dog actually sits down. Out of desperation, because he simply cannot understand why his master or mistress is snapping at him. Unfortunately, I experience this situation quite often, especially in the studio. The reasons for this are quite different. Of course, the studio is an unfamiliar environment for the animals, and sometimes even well-trained dogs find it difficult to concentrate. Maybe the strange smells and sounds even frighten them. And it's obvious that a puppy is not yet familiar with commands. In such cases, the only thing you can do is try to reach your goal, i.e. beautiful photos, with a lot of patience and enough treats.

But then there are also the dogs that have obviously never attended a dog school. Either because the owners think it is unnecessary or they believe they can teach their dogs themselves. Often the result is that the four-legged friends only keep up with the commands for a fraction of a second or ignore them altogether. In the worst case, they even try to use gentle force. That's when I stop and show them a few tricks I learned with Ronja at dog school. Of course, I can't work miracles in the short time available. I am not a dog whisperer!

This situation is very challenging for me because I am expected to deliver a usable result in any case. Thanks to Photoshop, I always manage somehow, but it costs me a lot of unnecessary time. I feel most sorry for the dogs. The questioning look, because even after the hundredth repetition they still haven't magically understood the command. In the photo studio, however, I depend on the dog knowing at least the simple basic commands. In contrast to the outdoor shooting, everything takes place on a few square metres.

That's why I ask you, dear dog owners, to take your dogs to a dog school. A basic course is enough. Or take a few lessons with a trainer. You will see that this will improve communication with your animals in the long term. And it also makes my work easier :-)

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