Never underestimate what your dog (or cat) can or will do when they want something badly enough.
"The Mischief Maker" is about Homer, a little dog that only wanted his owner’s time and attention but ended up feeling grumpy all the time because his favorite human was exasperated and exhausted by his persistent attempts to get it.
The clearly frazzled owner had no idea that every frown, verbal correction, and physical attempt to stop Homer only encouraged the little dog to keep trying.
When the pet initiates interaction, negative feedback has the power to reinforce behavior we may not want. Remember Homer’s story. He always took the initiative, was willing to try, try, try regardless of his owner’s expectations or opinions, resulting in a handful of disturbing new skills his owner never would have paid a professional to train.
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