Grumpy Dogs & Grumpy Dog Classes

Is there anyone who never gets grumpy, even just a little? I think we can all wake up and be out of sorts but not know why. Or something happens during the day, or someone says something in passing that deflates us, changes our mood. Sometimes we don't know why we get mood changes, other times it's way more obvious.

The same goes for dogs, they are not robots and unfortunately they are not saints even I feel they are depicted in our society as should be - there's a whole new blog on that one!

Grumpy dogs happen, some dogs are very mild about it and get over it quickly and others carry their mood around with them constantly. So what can we do to help those dogs switch out of their grumpy mood.

One of the options that has been around for a while and I believe was probably started by a very well known and much admired dog behaviourist, is grumpy dog class. I am not going to name this person as I admire their work but on this one point I struggle. I get the idea, put all the grumpy dogs in one class, make it safe by muzzling them and keeping them on very short leashes. Then you can teach/preach to a whole lot of people at the same time. Everyone is in the same boat so they all empathise and sympathise with each other - I guess it's a bit like an AA (alcoholics anonymous) type meeting - everyone tells everyone else how they ended up in this predicament and then they are coached into understanding how (with help) to make the necessary adjustments to achieving a life without the unwanted behaviour.

I think the grumpy dog classes must be tough on the dogs; everyone is eye