Those Things Are So Prong, Part 2

CONTENT WARNING: Animal Abuse

I’m a dog trainer in a chain store. One of our unwavering policies is that we do not use negative reinforcement in class — no choke or prong collars, no rolled-up newspapers, no electric shock, etc.

I have been training for this company for ten years. I agree to cover for another trainer who went on medical leave. My first class is a private lesson. I walk in and see a Doberman no older than six months old wearing a heavy prong collar on her neck. The dog jumps up, and the man yanks on the leash, pulling the dog off its feet and sending it crashing to the ground.

Client: “Who are you?”

Me: “Hi, I’m [My Name]. I’m taking over for [Previous Trainer].”

Client: “I didn’t agree to this.”

Me: “I understand, but she is on leave right now, so I am stepping in so that all of her classes can continue uninterrupted.”

Client: “Fine. Get on with it.”

Me: “Thank you. Please switch her collar so—”

Client: “No.”

Me: “Sorry?”

Client: “I said no. [Previous Trainer] said this was fine.”

Me: “It’s actually against the agreement you signed when you enrolled. We don’t—”

Client: *Shrugs* “I don’t give a f*** what you think is in the agreement. I’m not doing it.”

Me: *Also shrugs* “Okay, you can leave.”

The man gives me a shocked look, glancing at his wife before standing and getting so close that my nose is almost in his chest. I smile. I’ve been small my whole life; large men don’t scare me.

Client: “She’s a service dog. She’s exempt.”

Me: “Why would you have a fully-trained service dog in basic classes?”

The man yanked the dog again and left.

I contacted management, corporate, and the previous trainer. Management and corporate both agreed that I was correct and said that there was no exception. The previous trainer didn’t respond to the email, but I was offered her position full-time a few days later. I can only assume she either didn’t tell management she had agreed to that collar being used and she was fired, or she quit after being caught breaking such a serious policy.

For weeks, the man flooded our customer support line with complaints about me: everything from my uniform being dirty (it wasn’t) to swearing at him while he and his wife were grocery shopping at another store (also false) to trying to sleep with him to get him to come back to class (LOL). Management told him in no uncertain terms that they knew he was lying, and he was not welcome back in any of our locations until he retracted his lies and apologized to me. I have been at this location for over a year now and have not heard a word from him.

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Those Things Are So Prong