I am honestly sickened with this fantasy world where trainers that push the positive-only and force-free agenda to the extreme, brag about offering your dog “stress free training” while working with dogs who are already mentally overwhelmed. If it wasn't such a serious issue, it would be laughable. It is an emotive based slogan, not a solution. And worse, it keeps dogs stuck in the very problems we’re trying to help them escape.
This propaganda is even being pushed by some vets now. “We provide stress free care and medical assistance for your pet.” Really? Try saying that to a dog getting a thermometer shoved up its backside, a syringe punched into its muscle, or going through medical procedures or surgery that leaves them in pain or serious discomfort for days or even weeks!
There is nothing “stress free” about necessary medical intervention. It is just another emotive slogan designed to tug at pet owners hearts while pretending reality doesn’t exist.
Here’s the truth that nobody in the “all positive, no pressure” bubble wants to say out loud:
- Nothing changes without stress.
- Nothing heals without stress.
- Nothing meaningful is learned without stress.
We know this from science, not opinion. Managed stress has shown to strengthen the immune system, sharpen cognition, and build emotional resilience in both dogs and humans. It is the same biological mechanism that helps athletes get stronger, helps people recover from trauma, helps us work through fears, and helps kids grow into confident adults. Stress (the right kind) is what creates competence and builds self confidence.
Think about it in human terms.
A child doesn’t learn to swim by sitting on the edge of the pool wrapped in towels. A student doesn’t build mastery without struggling through hard lessons. An athlete doesn’t grow by avoiding resistance. Fear doesn't simply disappear without confronting it. Growth demands effort, discomfort, challenge , the exact things these “stress free” trainers insist we must avoid with dogs.
It makes no sense.
Real behavioural change requires a dog to work through pressure, not be sheltered from it. Fear doesn’t disappear because we choose not to confront it. Insecurity doesn’t resolve because we keep everything “comfortable.” Confidence is built by confronting difficulty, navigating stress, and coming out the other side stronger.
- This is how character forms.
- This is how resilience develops.
- This is how dogs, humans, and ALL living creatures learn, that by working through stress they can overcome anything they put their minds to.
So when a socalled professional warns you that “stress will damage your dog and your relationship,” and that's why we offer "stress-free" training, understand that they’re lying to you and pushing a feel good narrative that protects human emotions, not canine wellbeing. That mindset is exactly why so many dogs today are anxious, fragile, and unable to cope with real life. Wrapping them in cotton wool doesn’t keep them safe. It keeps them weak.
Used properly, stress does not break a dog.
- It builds them.
- It strengthens them.
- It frees them to become the best version of themselves.
© Mark Singer
