Dog Training Zone

Effective communication with your dog maintains the pecking order in your home and ensure that you remain the top dog. Allowing your dog to dominate you in any way is unhealthy for your dog (as well as potentially dangerous for you, particularly if you have a big dog).

Failure to understand your dog’s behaviour and how to properly train your dog is the cause of dissatisfaction with their dog. Some people will even give up on their dogs and could even abandon them in some instances. All because they failed to properly communicate and undersrtand their dog. What a terrible tragedy!

Actually, your dog really does communicate with you for much of the time you spend together. So not learning to understand your dog’s body language is similar to living your life with someone who speaks another language, and never learning to communicate with that person by learning any of that other language.

Two way communication with anyone in your life is obviously important, and especially with your dog who does “speak another language”.

Dogs love to play, but their primary concern is often their position in your “pack”. Dogs will always make attempts to get to the top dog position if you allow this to go on.

Some dogs do this as a game to see how much they can get away with, (my Kara is like this). Other dogs can actually take this issue very seriously, and may threaten any “pack” member who doesn’t defer to them - sometimes even including their owner. Large dogs often like to jump up and stand with their front paws on the owner’s shoulders. This can be a friendly gesture, but is often actually a posture of dominance.

A better greeting to encourage your dog to use is to have your dog sit and then for you offer a greeting to your dog. In this way, the dog has assumed a subordinate posture, and you retains your leadership role and your position as the “top dog”. And your dog loves this exchange with you. The important thing is that your dog understands his/her position in the “pack”.

One of the most tragic misinterpretations of body language I’ve heard about involves what’s called the canine grin. Many dogs, when they are happy and excited, pull their lips back in a happy grin, which is actually a submissive gesture. They are simply very happy, but some owners have actually misinterpreted this submissive grin as a snarl and, heaven forbid, a few have even had the dog euthanized because of what they thought was aggression in their dog.

Isn’t this tragic? And all because the owner hasn’t taken the time and trouble to understand what their dog is actually trying to communicate to them.

I’m sure you’re in the category of people who can understand what your dog is saying, just like me.

On a lighter note, I was only talking to a friend recently (also a dog lover - she has four Jack Russell crosses) about how we often know just what our dog is saying. I was telling her how Jet, my Staffie holds her own with other dogs. In fact, it’s a pretty brave dog who will take my Jet on.

Some time ago, when Jet and I were walking past a house in our street where there is a large Japanese Fighting Dog, it escaped and decided to have a domination fight with Jet. I couldn’t believe it, but Jet won!!! (if you don’t know what Japanese Fighting Dogs look like, they’re about four times the size of Jet).

Anyway, ever since then, when we walk past, that dog races to its gate and starts to bark. Then Jet stops, looks directly at the dog, barks non-stop for several seconds and then turns and keeps walking.

I said to Isadora, my friend, that Jet’s saying to the dog: “Now, you listen to me … I thought I got this straightened out with you before - Don’t you mess with me!” Isadora laughed, but understood completely. She commented that people who don’t have dogs would probably think we were mad to think that we know what our dogs are saying!

(c) 2005, Brigitte Smith, Healthy Happy Dogs

Brigitte Smith is a dog lover with a special interest in holistic health and wellness for dogs. For your free dog health report, click here: http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com

For info on innovative dog training that works, click here: http://www.HealthyHappyDogs.com/BrainWork

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So you’re the proud owner of a brand new puppy. Now the fun begins and you have many years of companionship ahead of you. Unfortunately you are also the not so proud owner of soggy carpets and wet floors - right? Obviously you must quickly start house training your dog before your floors are completely ruined. Well how do you stop it? It’s now time to properly housebreak that new puppy.

Housebreaking your dog may sound painful, and time consuming, but relax it’s really not that difficult. All dogs’ have a natural tendency to want to keep their living area clean. So firmly establishing, in your pets mind, that this is his home will help solve the problem all by itself. Normally this takes time but there are several ways you can “speed up” this process.

First you want to be sure your pet is healthy to start with or your training may be all for naught. If you have not taken your pet to the vet already, make an appointment immediately to get them checked over. Your vet will check for overall healthiness and for any conditions that might make potty training difficult - such as cystitis and kidney or bladder problems. While your pet is visiting the veterinarian, ask the Doctor to check for worms and parasites by way of a fecal exam. Normally the vet will do this anyway but it is always best to ask - just to be sure!

Please bear in mind the truthfulness behind moms’ wisdom — “You are what you eat.” A poor quality dog food or snacks from your plate will contribute to a poor nutritional state with your pet. In addition, it can cause even digestive problems resulting in loose stools. This will just contribute to your puppy’s inability to control him/her self.

The number one factor in housebreaking your pet is very close supervision. Dogs, and puppies, learn by repetition so this is absolutely necessary. When your dog shows signs of needing to relieve him/her self immediate action must be taken to get the animal to its designated “bathroom” area. Above all else consistency in this training is absolutely critical. Just because it’s cold or dark outside is no excuse and is totally unacceptable as your pet doesn’t care — all it knows is it has GOT to go! This close supervision, during housebreaking, is necessary as it gives you the opportunity to learn your dog’s special quirks.

These may be the need to urinate, or potty, right after eating, or it could simply be certain actions your puppy takes just prior to soiling the floor. Without this close supervision you will miss these actions and not understand how to respond in the future. But more importantly, it allows you to correct a situation while it is still fresh in the dogs mind. Even though dogs are very intelligent creatures their short term memory is not a strong point and correcting them after several minutes have passed serves no real purpose except to confuse your pet.

Another key to housebreaking is to give your dog a limited amount of space. Using baby gates across doorways or a pet crate will help confine the dog to a certain area while helping the new puppy to recognize this as his living space. The natural tendency of dogs is to go outside of their living space to urinate. By making this association for your pet it will make your job a lot easier. Lining this living space with old news papers is an excellent idea, especially at first, as it facilitates a much easier cleanup if any accidents occur. Common sense should tell you that some surfaces are more pet-friendly than others so try to confine your new pet to areas with tile or vinyl floors. These are much easier to clean and they do not retain odors like carpets do. If at all possible avoid letting them have access to any carpet or hardwood floors as they will retain odors and can be extensively damaged by an errant pup. This was the mistake we made with our first puppy and he ruined on area of our hardwood floor.

Always remember to limit the amount of water your dog has access to at the end of the day otherwise you’ll be making a walk with your pet during the middle of the night. It is strongly advisable to take a quick walk outside at regularly timed intervals during training so it helps your pet to set their own internal schedule. Be certain to use a consistent keyword to tell your pet why you are out in the yard such as “potty” or “toilet” or anything of your choosing. Do NOT return indoors until they have relieved themselves. Always remember to give lots of praise when your dog relieves itself in the appropriate places such as on newspapers or outdoors and be consistent in your training as this is the key to success. This heaping on of praise, at the appropriate times, is the basis for all dog trainins success.

If your pet does have an accident indoors you must immediately correct the animal. Then clean the area using some non-ammonia based cleaner and an Enzyme based deodorizer. If you do not thoroughly clean, and deodorize, the area removing all odors the animal will repeat the behavior again - in the now marked area!

By following these simple rules your floors and your new pet will be able to coexist peacefully. In addition, you and your pet will get through this with relatively little stress while building a good bond between you. It will also help set the tone for additional dog training with your pet!

All about the poodle breeds and dog care in general. No sales hype just facts and information you can use to help with dog training, proper dog nutrition, dog clothing and dog jewelry. Michael A. Domeck is a trainer and a mentor working with students from all walks of life. Visit: http://www.poodle-lovers.com to learn more.

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Using a crate to train your dog is one of the best methods available. Crate training works well because it ties in with the natural instincts of your dog. By using this method of training you will have a clean home and a dog which behaves properly. The most important thing to understand about crate training is that a dog will want to avoid urinating in the place where it sleeps. It will see the crate as being its home.

The first thing you want to do when crate training your dog is to use a consistent schedule. This will allow the dog to relieve itself in the righ place instead of a place where you don’t want them to. It is also important to reward the dog when they behave properly, but not get angry when they don’t do what you want. It takes time for a dog to learn, and you will need to have patience when trying to train them. When you are not at home, you will want to keep your dog in a closed off space.

The space should have a bed, clean water, and toys so that the dog doesn’t become lonely or aggravated. Crate training works differently than just confining a dog to a certain room. When you use crate training you will want to place the dog within the crate when you are not watching him. While this may sound abusive at first, it is important to remember that dogs naturally like being in confined spaces. They are den animals. The dog will begin to think of the crate as being his home, and will not relieve himself there.

After the dog has been in the crate for a while, you will want to take them to the location where it is allowed to relieve itself. Once it does, reward him with a treat or praises. You want the dog to associate relieving itself in the right place with rewards. This will give it an incentive to continue behaving properly. Don’t allow the dog to stay in the crate for a long time, as it will be forced to relieve itself in the crate and this is something that neither of you want. It could will reverse all the training you’ve given the dog.

The dog should only be put in the crate while you’re present. The dog should be allowed to go to the rest room every 40 minutes, accept at night. The dog should be placed on a leash when you take him out. Give him about three to five minutes to finish. If the dog doesn’t relieve itself, you should quickly take him back to the crate. If the dog does relieve itself, rewared him with treats or a walk.

Michael Colucci is a technical writer for Free Dog Training and Dog Care

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