Separation anxiety is a disorder that not only occurs in human beings, but also in dogs. You may find that your dog exhibits certain behaviors when he or she is left alone. This goes beyond simply whining or looking a bit sad when you leave. Instead, it is a dramatic response that occurs almost every time you leave the house. Owners may find that their dog cries, howls, chews, digs, pees or defecates inside the house even if when they are trained not to do so. They may also scratch, claw and bark.
While professionals don't totally understand why this occurs, it is important that owners realize that the dog is really feeling panicked because the owner is leaving, and they dog or puppy is not out to be mean or to punish their owner for leaving. Some things which heighten the likelihood of separation anxiety include your dog or puppy not having spent a lot of time alone or if you or your family are gone for long period of time. For example, if you go on vacation and then come back your dog may panic when you leave the house again, because they aren’t sure when you might come back.
If your dog has had a real bad experience, for example getting hit by a car or prior abuse, then they may not want you to leave their side. If there has been some big changes in the family, such as you taking a new job and you now have a different schedule, if you have recently changed cities or if your son or daughter goes off to college, this may cause mental anxiety for your dong.
Crate training your dog can be very beneficial for him or her, as well as for yourself. It will require you to commit some time and focus as well as energy to successfully do it. However, once you are able to, you will find that a crate gives your dog or puppy a fantastic spot of their own that is warm and welcoming. It also will allow you to protect parts of your home that you don't want your dog or puppy bothering while you are away. It also gives you a method that is safe to transport your dog while they are in the car. If you are going on vacation, and you want to take your pet, if your dog is crate trained, you can keep them in crate while you're at someone else's home or while you are at the hotel.
If you train your dog the correct way, they will be happy to spend time in the crate or at least they will not hate it. Crates come in different types of materials. Some are plastic, others are made from metal. They also vary in size. You will want it to be large enough that your dog has room to lay down, standup and turnaround. You can find a good quality crate at many of your major pet stores.
The amount of time that it will take to crate train your dog will depend on the amount of effort that you commit to it, as well as your dog’s personality and their past experiences. If your dog has been abused, it might take longer. Whether or not your dog has ever been trained before, and your pet's own personal temperament will also effect how long training will take.
For many dogs, thunder and lightning can be incredibly frightening. If ignored, these fears are not likely to improve but only get worst. Therefore, it is important that you acknowledge them and try to help your dog deal with them as best as you can.
Many times, when a dog is frightened by thunder or other loud noises, their first instinct is to run away from it. Sometimes this can be OK. However, other times this can be dangerous. They may run into a car or into another dangerous place. That is where you, as the owner, needs to step in and try to help them deal with their fear in a much more safe manner. You'll want to pay close attention to your dog and see how they react when loud thunder or other sounds bother them. If they tend to jump into your bed or hide under the porch, make sure that they have access to those places so that they are able to run somewhere safe when they do get scared. Even out when you are t home, encourage them to go to those places, so when you are not there, they know where to go.
Another thing that you can do to help is try to provide a distraction when the loud noises occur. You will want to do this when you first notice your dog is beginning to panic or act distressed. Participate in an activity with them that you know he or she enjoys and that will take their mind off of the loud noises. If they like to play with a ball or if they have a favorite toy, make sure you reward them for interacting with you during this time with either praise or treats.
A dog can be a really great traveling companion. They will listen to all of your jokes and banter without complaining. They won’t argue with you about which way to go or force you to ask for directions. However, unless your dog is properly trained to ride in your vehicle with you, it can make for an annoying ride or one that is even dangerous for you and your dog. Your dog needs to be either properly trained to ride in the car or either restrained.
To start off, it is best to take your dog on short trips where you do not need to get out of your car. For example, taking your dog with you to McDonald's or to a fast food restaurant where you can use the drive through, is a good way of to get started and to get the dog acclimated to riding in a car. This will give your dog some exposure to riding in the car with you without having to get out or without you leaving them in the car by themselves.
If your dog is not yet trained, you want to make sure that your dog is in their crate or is strapped in using a pet harness, which is generally anchored into a seatbelt. After you have broken in your dog a little bit with shorter trips, it is OK to start taking them on longer ones. However, you will need to ensure that you are properly prepared. Pack a bag for them that will include treats, water and food. You also may want to bring some toys, any medication that they need or any other necessary products. Make sure that if the trip is especially long, that you stop and take some breaks so that your dog can get out, go to the bathroom, drink some water and stretch their legs a bit.
Remote dog training collars are all the rage right now thanks to some TV adverts and clever magazine placements. But, are they really worth the investment, and are you doing your dog any harm?
We'll address the two questions separately, but first I want to talk about whether or not remote dog training collars are actually good for your dog.
Imagine if you were walking down the street one day with your partner, and you happened to give a beautiful young lady a second glance as she walked past you. Now imagine that suddenly you are jolted with a violent electric shock, as if from nowhere. Or, depending on the variety of training collar that your partner has secretly snuck around your neck, you might get a blast of a seriously unpleasant odour right up your nose.
Does that sound like something you'd want? Worse, what happens if your partner drops the remote somewhere and a small child picks it up and starts zapping you like a maniac? Or if she's feeling vicious one day and wants to take out some aggression on you - remote dog training collars make this very easy indeed.
In all seriousness, although this example is a bit of fun, remote dog training collars present a real problem in dog training systems. This is that the dog cannot associate his bad behavior, you and the punishment together. By telling your dog "NO" when he misbehaves, he knows that you are unhappy about what he's just done.
By randomly shocking him from across the room or even in the other room, he's more likely to go mad trying to work out what's going on. What's more, you could provoke potentially dangerous and aggressive behavior through excessive use of a remote dog training collar, and that's entirely the opposite of what you're trying to do.
Dog training begins when you dog is just a puppy, but most of the training in the early stages is training yourself rather than the dog. As dogs and humans develop that "special bond," it is important to understand that he looks to you for education and guidance. It is in a dog's basic nature to function within a social group, and it is our job to understand the stages of development of our dog so that we can give him the appropriate guidance at the appropriate time.
Birth to 4 weeks old. The puppy is only concerned with his mother as the key his survival: food, warmth, and security. His mom is the first disciplinarian, and it is at this time that he instinctively begins to accept discipline and training.
Five to seven weeks old. He is still learning from his mother to accept discipline, correction, training, and affection. This is a good time for puppies to meet people. Puppies shouldn't be taken from their mother yet as sometimes this may cause problems later in accepting human rules and discipline.
Eight weeks old. Traditionally, this is the time when puppies leave their mothers. You should take special care to make his transition as smooth as possible as this can be a traumatic period for him. As a new family member, he must be treated with love and kindness.
We own and breed Staffordshire Bull Terriers and with a total of 5 dogs in what is a VERY small house, you might imagine that we have always been interested in dog training and dog training methods.
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When training your dog, whether it's a puppy or a dog that's new to you and your family, you of course are going to need some proper equipment to help you do this effectively and safely. Someone new to the world of dog training can be very surprised and overwhelmed with the many different items available to them, including dog training leads. A novice may assume that these are just fancy leashes but in reality there are different uses for different dog training leads and it's important that you choose the right one for the training session.
One such example of specialized dog training leads are those that are called traffic leads. These are very short and thick leashes that give you virtually no extra room between you and the dog. The purpose of these types of dog training leads? Simply put, when you're in a lot of foot traffic you want your dog at the heel position at all times. Any more room on the leash and the dog is likely to start getting into other people's way, causing a disturbance, jumping on strangers, or even getting into fights with other dogs. This type of lead also gives the dog a greater sense of security because it's so close to the owner and isn't caught up in a crowd of strangers and isn't likely to be hurt by chasing after a car, getting accosted by another dog, and so on. Even though these dog training leads are meant to be very short they still come in a variety of sizes, usually anywhere from six inches for very large breeds to twenty inches for shorter breeds. Be sure that you get one that is long enough; always err on the side of caution and get one longer than what you think you need as you can always loop the extra few inches around your wrist as you walk.
Dog training leashes are not only important, they are the most popular tools for dog training as well. This is especially true if you need something that is reliable, specifically if your dog is excitable or likes to lunge. Naturally, of course, dog training leashes are used in conjunction with a collar as well. The two together provide much more stability than other reinforcements.
That being said, dog training leashes are used with different degrees of force – it all depends on your dog’s personality. The force used can range from extremely firm correction to rather mild, almost gentle prompts on the leash. As well, when using a dog training leash, it is better not to scold and harp on the dog, as the correction may be rendered ineffective.
In most cases, implementing dog training with a leash begins with teaching your dog a behavior with the leash. Once your dog shows that he under stands the command, be it to sit, stay, or heel, then you will use the dog training leash either when the dog disobeys or when he makes a mistake. At these points use the leash as a means to control and communicate with your dog.
Have you ever noticed that someone is always telling you that you can't do the things that you like to do with your dog? For instance, ever since I began my career as a dog trainer every one has told me that I should never, under any circumstances, play tug-o-war with my dogs. I was also always told to never, ever allow my dogs to sleep on the bed with me...and to never, ever feed my dogs "people food."
I could go on and on with a long list of things that we should "never" do with our dogs. Here's the funny thing, in my 18+ years of dog training, I have found that playing tug-o-war with your dog is a good thing. Letting your dog sleep on the bed with you is not going to turn him into a blood sucking vampire. Feeding him "people food" will in many cases make him healthier.
What you have to know is this. Each dog is different. Each household is different. If your dog understands that you are in charge and that it's your bed, there is no problem letting him sleep on it. In my house, I allow my dogs on the couch and on my bed. They clearly understand that I am the one in charge. If I walk into a room and tell them "OFF," they immediately jump off the couch. They don't resist. They don't defend the couch. They follow my commands. If my dogs did growl or defend the couch, they would lose that privilege.