The holiday season can be a lot of fun, but there are chores involved. For example, decorating can be a lot of work, especially if you want to do it right. But with some helping hands — or maybe 32 paws — you can get the house looking festive pretty quickly. A dog training school in Hungary made a cute little video that brings just such a scenario to life.
Dogs and people have been friends for thousands of years. From the original wolf-like dog, selective breeding as produced a dizzying assortment of different types of dog, from tiny Chihuahuas to elongated Dachshunds to colossal Great Danes. “Working dogs” have had tasks as diverse as guarding sheep, helping with hunting, guiding the blind, and sniffing for contraband. Dogs are very receptive to training: they naturally aim to please and are brainy enough to learn and retain their lessons.
Sometimes training a dog turns out to be unexpectedly difficult and that’s where this dog training school comes in. They specialize in the “mirror method,” a modification of “model-rival training” that attempts to work with a dog’s instincts rather than against them. The basic idea is that because dog packs are surprisingly complex little societies, dogs are amenable to learning by observing. The dog trainer is assisted by a “model-rival” who models the desired behavior while serving as a rival for the trainer’s attention. The dog will then compete with the rival by learning the behavior.
The highly-trained dogs in this video are told to be good while their human parents are out. The dogs promptly get to work on a little surprise for them: putting up all the Christmas decorations! These furry elves work like crazy to get lights strung, presents under the tree, and more. They’re just finished when the humans come home to a house that’s had a total Christmas makeover.
Did you enjoy this cute and festive little video? Wish your dogs would do all the Christmas decorating for you? Let’s hear from you in the comments at Facebook. Don’t forget to like and share!
