Training Equipment and Methods
The National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors, Inc. (NADOI) was founded in 1965 to elevate the standards of the dog instructing profession, to aid both dog and human in the solution of the many problems associated with dog ownership, and to certify competent instructors as having attained the skills and knowledge necessary to serve those ends.
Because both dog training and dog obedience instructing are an art as much as science, the skilled instructor must be able to make judgments and adjustments based on the needs of each individual student/dog team. To constrain the instructor by forbidding the use of specific tools and techniques because they might be misused by a minority is to make his or her job that much more difficult, and may cause delay or even failure in training the dog. For this reason, NADOI endorses neither equipment nor training methods and does not support any guidelines or standards which limit or prohibit the use of specific equipment or training methods.
NADOI is strongly opposed to cruel or unnecessarily harsh training methods. It is, however, the position of NADOI that the humaneness of equipment and training methods is dependent upon the skill and knowledge of individual trainers and that limitation or restriction regarding the use of certain equipment or training methods is detrimental to the purpose of and goal of NADOI.
Approved by the Board of Directors, November 2002. Updated December 2019
Breed-Specific Legislation
The National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors, Inc. (NADOI) strongly opposes breed specific legislation which targets or discriminates against certain dogs based only on their breed or appearance. Such laws are unfair because they assume that a dog may be dangerous simply because of breed. In fact, it is almost always the behavior of the owners of these dogs which makes them a danger to others.
Since 1965, NADOI has worked to help people train their dogs to be well behaved. Also, NADOI educates dog owners about their responsibility not only to their dogs but to their communities. Ordinances against dangerous dogs, unattended and loose dogs, nuisance barking, and other objectionable dog behaviors should be enacted and aggressively enforced. These laws, unlike breed specific laws, force all dog owners to be responsible for the behavior of their dogs.
Approved by the Board of Directors, June 2004.
Mandatory Spay/Neuter Legislation
NADOI opposes mandatory spay/neuter (MSN) legislation. The stated intent of such legislation is to reduce the number of dogs in shelters and euthanized. However, the volume of animals in shelters and euthanized has been dropping for decades. MSN has not proven effective in places where it has been tried.
Spaying and castrating are surgical procedures with risks and drawbacks. The decision to sterilize a dog should rest with the owner in consultation with his/her veterinarian. Education, dog training, the availability of low-cost spay/neuter clinics, and enforcement of leash laws are the most effective ways to reduce shelter populations.
Approved by the Board of Directors, April 2008, Rio Rancho, NM.
Dog Obedience Instructor Licensing
NADOI has become aware of proposed legislation in some states to establish licensing and educational standards for individuals providing dog training to the public.
The Board of Directors stands firm with our original mission from our founding in 1965 which is to certify dog obedience instructors of the highest caliber, to provide continuing education and learning resources to all instructors, and to promote humane, effective training methods and competent instruction.
NADOI believes that rather than costly or unfair legislation, the public would be better served by aggressively enacting or enforcing existing animal abuse/neglect legislation.
If such legislation does become law, then the NADOI Board will continue involvement with the process to ensure to the best of our ability that any licensing and educational standards will enable our members to continue the use of a broad choice of methods and tools.
We will impress on bill sponsors that in our many years of experience, it has been shown that dog obedience instructing is an art as much as science. The skilled instructor must be able to make judgments and adjustments based on the needs of each individual student/dog team. NADOI fully understands that the humaneness of equipment and training methods is dependent upon the skill and knowledge of individual trainers. Therefore, NADOI is strongly opposed to cruel or unnecessarily harsh training methods and persons using such methods should be addressed with existing animal abuse legislation.
Our comprehensive exam process to gain certified membership holds applicants to high standards and continues to hold all members to high standards in business and training practices. We will share our process with the sponsors so they will have a clearer picture of the complexity in what is required for our field.
In our 50 years of certifying instructors, we have seen strong biases towards and against training methods and philosophies. We will work to make sure these biases are evident to legislators.
NADOI has worked with other groups to produce objective guidelines in the dog training and instructing field. We will continue to collaborate with others as this moves forward.
Approved by the Board of Directors December 2016 Reaffirmed April 2017
Least Intrusive Minimally Aversive (LIMA)
The term LIMA (Least Intrusive Minimally Aversive) is a controversial topic of discussion in the dog training world with many organizations developing their own definition. However, true LIMA, as originally defined by Steven Lindsay, does not condone or prohibit any specific type of equipment used humanely. NADOI relies on the professionalism of their highly trained, certified instructors to make training decisions based on the unique needs of each dog / handler team within the guidelines of our Training Equipment and Methods position statement.
“According to the least intrusive and minimally aversive (LIMA) model, aversives are ranked in terms of their relative severity and intrusiveness, requiring that the trainer apply a less aversive technique before advancing to a more aversive one (see Compliance in Volume 2, Chapter 2). Adhering to this model and selection process ensures that the least necessary and sufficient aversive procedure is used to produce the intended behavioral objective.” — Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training by Steven R Lindsay, Vol. 3: Procedures and Protocols, Chapter 1 p29.
Books by Steven Lindsay
- Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Vol. 1: Adaptation and Learning by Steven R. Lindsay and Victoria Lea Voith
- Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Vol. 2: Etiology and Assessment of Behavior Problems by Steven R. Lindsay
- Handbook of Applied Dog Behavior and Training, Vol. 3: Procedures and Protocols by Steven R Lindsay
