Oh, ugh.

I don't usually use my blog to complain about other people's training methods, but here's something that strikes me as beyond unbelievably stupid.  This child has been taught to POKE his dog (a la you know who) in order to discourage puppy nipping.

 Notice how after he pokes the dog, the boy then pounds him on the head?  Nice lesson.  And a good way to encourage your child to get himself bitten.

You know exactly how this will turn out.  At some point, that little puppy is going to turn into a rowdy adolescent and retaliate for being poked.  Then he'll be given up (or worse) for something that was COMPLETELY NOT HIS FAULT.  But let's imagine that doesn't happen and (miraculously) the puppy somehow learns that poke = stop biting.  What has that little boy learned about how to treat other animals?  What has he learned about tolerance and understanding vs. getting his way?  What is he learning about how to appropriatey deal with frustrations?

Ugh.

To restore your sense of sanity, here's something lighter and way more positive (thanks to Dog Matters for sharing on FB):