Petsmu

Your dog is not purposely pulling to drive you insane, but because they’re getting the wrong message from you. Yeah that’s right. You need to learn the proper dog leash training skills, so you and your dog can start enjoying more pleasurable walks, without the constant pulling and tugging. It comes down to getting the communication right between owner and dog.

You see behavior is reward driven. If your dog is constantly pulling and choking themselves to get where they want and it works….well guess what? They’ll continue with the learned behavior, making your daily walk a living nightmare.

Another reason that your dog pulls at the leash has something to do with “opposition reflex”. You pull back on the leash and your dog proceeds to pull back too. The harder you pull the harder they pull, until you get so frustrated you give them a hard jerk.

It does not have to continue to be this way. Get started with a dog leash training program and break this behavior problem before it breaks you.

Using the right tools and methods are important when dog leash training. There are many different tools out there on the market today to assist you on this endeavor. It’s important to do your research on certain types of collars available on the market today, due to being harmful to your dog if they are used incorrectly. There is also several different methods being used today, by people like you and professional dog trainers with great success. It’s just a matter of choosing the right tools and methods, and sticking with the training regiment until your dog is fully trained. Continue Reading »

Everyone likes to be rewarded for a good deed that they have accomplished, everyone likes to be praised for a good action that they have carried out & everyone likes to be made a fuss of for just being themselves. This is also true in the world of basic dog training.

The average dog generally absolutely adores four main items in his/her world:

1. Food
2. Toys
3. Walkies
4. Their Owner

The average dog generally absolutely despises four main items in his/her world:

1. Vets
2. Being Disciplined
3. Taking Tablets
4. Bathing

During basic dog training rewards are essential to praise the good behaviour but just as important, much to your dog’s distaste, is discipline to correct the bad behaviour. To reward your dog when he/she has behaved & completed a task correctly is a great routine to adopt. Your dog will learn from this so quickly, he/she does as requested & receives something nice. Your dog assimilates through repetition, so each time it’s good the dog picks up that he/she receives a treat.

Now this ‘treat’ need not always be an item of food, it could be the dog’s favourite toy. This works well with basic dog training leash control. One of the best methods that I have utilized with my own dogs during their basic dog training for walking nicely on a leash is the stop & start approach. Simply have your dog walking beside you with their focus on their toy, when he/she pulls ahead, stop, totally ignore your dog until he/she approaches you. Once your dog is settled by your side again you can permit the dog to have one small food reward, praise whilst feeding the reward.

The biggest reward on this particular basic dog training method though is the dog’s favourite toy/ball. When your dog reaches the park or field let him/her have their toy. You need to do this when the dog has been walking well, so I advise to make it a short distance to walk before you reach your destination. This way your dog’s focus will not wander too much. Continue Reading »

If you are planning to get a new puppy or you have recently purchased one, you may be worrying about how difficult it will be to house train your new puppy. Believe it or not, house training a dog really does not have to be difficult. As a general rule, most dogs are actually quite clean animals, and it is in their nature to want to keep their living space clean. You can take advantage of their natural instincts while you are house training a dog, and with just a few short steps training your new puppy can be a cinch.

The first thing that you need to do when you are house training a dog is to establish an area for your new puppy to live in. Make it a small place where there is not a great deal of room and get him used to the idea that this is where he lives. Place his bed, food, and water in this area so he knows that this is his living area. It is important that you train him that this is where he lives and that you also establish regular feeding times as well.

The next step when you are house training a dog is to set up an area where he can go to the bathroom. This needs to be somewhere other than his living area, and you need to be sure that you take him to this area each time he has to go to the bathroom. After a few times, your dog will soon associate this place with where he is allowed to use the bathroom, and in no time, your dog will start to go there on his own.

When you are house training a dog and you have established the area where your dog can use the bathroom, then you can start allowing him to have greater freedom while he is in the house. It is important while you are house training a dog that you do not let him roam the house when you are not around to supervise. There may be accidents and you need to reinforce where the bathroom area for him is when the accident happens. Only after you have fully finished house training a dog should you allow him access to various areas of the house when you are not around. Continue Reading »