Enlightened Dog Training: Become the Peaceful Alpha Your Dog Needs and Respects by Jesse Sternberg
‘Our dogs are literally our reflections; they absorb our unconscious “baggage.”
Canadian author Jesse Sternberg teaches mindfulness and is a meditation instructor and master dog trainer. He is the founder of the Peaceful Alpha Project that promotes what he teaches and coaches, locally in Toronto as well as globally on the Internet.
Jesse captures our attention and respect with his opening Prologue – ‘It was 6:30 a.m. on a Friday morning, and I was already in the zone. The crisp air of a Canadian autumn left a sting on my cheeks form the walk into work with y furry business partner, the inspiration behind everything: my beloved four-year-old sheepdog Maydel. At that time of day, I felt perfectly comfortable allowing my sleepy companion to roam the sidewalk behind me unleashed. She followed me loyally, ignoring the garbage wrappers, squirrels, and joggers that used o tempt her with far too much excitement for my liking. I trusted her, and she trusted me. I made a point of not watching her like a hawk. Had I done that, my body language would have told her that she was doing something wrong and resonated the feeling of fear. This would have accomplished nothing but diluting my peaceful Alpha power.’ After reading this book, the essence of Jesse’s coaching approach is evident in this brief encounter.
As a professional dog trainer, Jesse states, ‘My approach – to introduce my clients into the realm of animal consciousness, resource-guarding theory, territory management, hypnotic training exercises, and, of course, the Secret Language of Dogs….spreading light, leveraging the Law of Attraction, introducing cutting-edge meditation techniques, and attempting to lead like a gentle soul.’ And it is this one-on-one personal communication technique that makes Jesse’s coaching so accessible. He offers unique training techniques for soothing anxiety, healing neuroses, overcoming aggression issues, transforming tension into harmony, communicating nonverbally with your dog using the signals dogs use with each other, addressing problems with leash training and guarding resources and territory, and how to strengthen your human-animal bond, communicate with actions, and command with respect and love. Some fine line drawings illustrate the lessons.
This little book is as beneficial to the growth of the dog owner as well as to the dog being trained – a very well written and valuable new way to approach dog training.
