There once was a time when gravity was considered a force and space and time were considered absolute. Then, a new physics came along based on a deeper understanding of energy so that now gravity is seen as a “virtual” force of energy with time and space being relative. Being well along in the quantum revolution we recognize that nothing is as it first appears. Similarly, Natural Dog Training argues that there is a new way of understanding the nature of dogs based on the assumption that the irreducible essence of anything is energy. No matter how logical any intellectual rationale may be, for example, after Newton it once seemed completely reasonable and logical that gravity was an actual physical force of attraction, but then Einstein noticed some anomalies with that notion: for example, when someone falls off a building they gradually accelerate rather than instantly accelerate, unlike a bar of metal in a magnetic field. And so from this simple observation Einstein was prompted to investigate further until it led him to understand the nature of the universe on a far deeper level. NDT believes animal behaviorism is likewise poised on the precipice of a new paradigm wherein everything about a dog can best be understood in terms of energy.
The premise of Natural Dog Training then, is that dogs are social by nature; nothing is “broken” and so nothing needs to be “fixed”. When a dog fails to adapt to an owner’s lifestyle, it is because of a denial in the owner of their pet’s fundamental nature, not because of the dog. Dogs perceive the world and respond to it according to its laws, rather than according to human reason. What is most natural about the dog, its wildest essence, is good. This essence is the dog’s predatory heritage from its ancestor, the wolf. By appealing to this fundamental aspect of a dog’s mind, a dog’s cooperative and loving nature becomes the most pronounced aspect of its character.
