If you have been to our house, you will have noticed that our dogs like to bark at the door.  When the door opens they review who it is and respond accordingly.

If it is somebody new, they'll have a sniff and try to get a fuss.

If it's somebody they recognise, this thought process goes through their head - 'Did they fuss me before / do they give me attention'.

They then have two reactions.

1. They did fuss = lie at their feet and get more fuss.

2. They didn't fuss = walk away and ignore them, they are of no use.

These are learned behaviours.

We all have them, particularly around food, the triggers that I spoke about yesterday.  Until you recognise what they are and how to process them, it doesn't matter what diet you follow, you will always struggle.

The good news is that they can be changed, in the same way that we are having a dog trainer come to the house today to help us.

When the door goes, the dogs wheel spin their way through the house to get to the door to see who is there as fast as they can.  Our social worker is a little concerned about this, if we had small children in their way.

The dog trainer will give us the skills to change their behaviour, we're not expecting it to be easy.  They have been launching at the door for their whole lives but it will be worth the work.

It will need constant reinforcement of the good behaviour.

This is one of the ways we help or Team Achieve members gain control of their eating habits.  They reinforce their good habits and don't dwell on the mistakes.

Darren 'Ceasar' Checkley

P.S.  Today's Daily Lent Challenge - It's a beautiful day, get outside for a walk, aim for at least 30 minutes.  Have a run if you want to work a bit harder.