photo courtesy Flickr.com/oakleyoriginals
Dogs are den animals, naturally preferring to sleep in enclosed spaces (this isn’t true of all dogs, but generally speaking). If properly introduced to his crate, a dog will come to treat it as his bedroom; a safe retreat from the stress of life with those crazy two legged members of his family. It is not uncommon for dogs to …read more
Want more? Check out 14 Quick and Easy Ways to Keep Your Dog Occupied
Music by Jason Shaw at Audionautix.com
photo courtesy Flickr.com/defrostca
Great! This is all well and good, but sometimes, the committed door dasher will still get out. Someone will accidentally leave the door open, and Rover will make a break for it.
When he does:
You call him. “Rover, COME!” He ignores …read more
photo courtesy Flickr.com/helloturkeytoe
How To Prevent Door Dashing
To do that, teach Rover that he has his cues all out of whack. Because at the moment, the sound of the door knob turning means “prepare to launch.” Change it to mean “stand back and you’ll be rewarded.”
Teach the “wait” command, if you haven’t already. I use wait instead of stay for door dashing because …read more
Here’s a quick tutorial for teaching your dog to wait.
Not to be confused with the stay command, Wait is a useful command to have in addition to Stay. “Stay” means “stay in that position until I release you.” Wait means “don’t move forward.”
Tomorrow I’ll post a how-to that follows up on this, for teaching your dog to wait at the front door. (Update: Here’s the article: How to Stop Your Dog From Bolting Out The Door)
…read more
Does your dog have a knack for search-and-destroy missions?
That is, does she find everything that you don’t want her to chew on, and chew on it? Check out this video for step-by-step instructions on breaking this expensive habit:
(Note: this video was designed to be watched on Youtube, so when I mention links in the sidebar, I’m talking about the Youtube sidebar. Capiche?)
Music by Jason Shaw at Audionautix.com
Does your dog have a digging problem?
Is your yard/garden starting to look like the surface of the moon? Good news: There’s actually a pretty simple solution.
You just have to realize that digging isn’t a “problem.” It’s actually a completely normal thing for a dog to do. What do you do when you’re bored? Watch TV? Read? Play games? Browse Youtube? (I’m guilty of that one)
It’s the same thing for your dog. Sparky digs because he’s bored and digging is fun. So instead of punishing the dog for this, you just have to redirect the behavior.
Check out this short video (less than two minutes long) to find out how:
Music by Jason Shaw at Audionautix.com
Photo credits:
Digging dog: Flickr.com/jkleeman
Sandbox puppy: Flickr.com/carradine65
Photo courtesy cptspock
The result?
A bunch of chewed up valuables, torn up couch cushions, dog poop in the garden, and a yard that was beginning to look like the surface of the moon. Not to mention the nasty habit he developed of lunging at visitors.
This is all kind of embarrassing to admit, because as a trainer, I was supposed to know better. Eventually I shaped up and started working with him appropriately, but the damage was done. …read more
Photo courtesy Flickr.com/meaganjean
Each of these solutions are based on the following basic process. Most behavior problems can be solved by following these three steps.
1. Dog misbehaves, so you take the Good Things away immediately the “Good Things” will vary depending on the situation. It might be attention from you, toys, or playtime.
2. Redirect the behavior by telling/showing the dog what to do instead, OR waiting until she does something good on her own.
3. The dog does what you ask, so you immediately give her the Good Things that she was after in the first place. …read more
Photo courtesy Flickr.com/marilynjane
