Prior to my behavioral work, most of my experience with dogs revolved around search and rescue dogs and service dog work. And there is one key concept in these lines of work that many people don’t talk about: its called INTELLIGENT DISOBEDIENCE. Let me explain. When a blind person instructs his seeing eye dog to cross the street when there is a car, that dog will disobey and block the person from entering the street. In search and rescue work, if the dog is on a scent but the handler calls him off, the dog should disobey and stay on the scent. All this to say, these relationships (and they are indeed relationships) are based on cooperation and trust, not necessarily obedience. A more common example that I see daily is when we ask our dogs to come, but then we realize that the dog is sniffing pretty hard and may be looking for a spot to pee. Most owners will pause and let the dog continue doing their business knowing that that particular form of disobedience has a purpose.
In my opinion, obedience work is overvalued. I know that obedience has its place, but I put more value on a dog who is capable of making good decisions on their own WITHOUT me having to tell them. And yes, I am okay if my dog disobeys me for good reason. I welcome a cooperative relationship with my dogs, especially when I walk in the wild places of Alaska.
