DogTrainster.Com

Article Source: bestsyndication.com
Article by: Stan Cristian

Any dog lover would want to have his pet inside the house. Having to share each activity and experience inside the house with your dog makes the owner happy and a lot less lonely. Unfortunately, bringing the dog in would also mean bringing in the dog poop and urine.

That is why most dog owners make sure that their dog is potty trained at the soonest time possible. This is where dog training pads come in handy.

These pads are necessary if your floors are carpeted and hard to clean and maintain, or if you have babies and toddlers crawling just about everywhere. Just the same, even if your floors are easy to clean, you wouldn’t want to step on anything gooey, right?

A training pad is made of an absorbent material to hold dog waste and urine. The thick surface is treated with some scent which, when sensed by your pet, will make him defecate or pee on it instead of some other place.

This means that the dog’s waste shall only be confined to the pad, except if there will be leaks. The owner shall then regularly check and clean the pad to maintain an odor-free household.

To maximize the use of these pads, keep it in one particular spot of the house. This is usually placed in the kitchen or near the bathroom, for easier and faster clean ups in case of leaks and other accidents. Place it in a particular spot and lead your dog to it.

These pads often have a scent which sends signals to the dog, instructing him to pee in that location. So the next time that he feels like excreting anything, he shall only do so in the pad and not anywhere.

Lastly, do not forget to acknowledge the effort that he did. In this way, he will most likely do the same thing next time. Praise him verbally or through actions, like a pat on the head or by giving him some treats. Positive reinforcement is an effective method of training your dog.

Aside from serving as toilets for your pup, these training pads also serve as beds for some dogs. This explains why there are various designs and types of pads available. You can find round, igloo types as well as the regular rectangular ones.

Of course we want to keep our dogs warm during the cold seasons, so you might consider getting a heated pad for your pet. A temperature control enables you to adjust the degree or amount of heat as well.

Innovations in the design and technology of the training pad resulted in the creation of new and more efficient designs. Although these may cost more than the traditional pads, these new products prove to be better and more effective, making it easier for you to maintain a dog indoors.

Dog training pads are one of the lesser-known tools in dog training. While it may not be popular, it is still a very basic and helpful tool in training your dog. This aid is most useful for those who do not have a backyard or dog house for their pet, particularly apartment or flat dwellers.

As toilet or bed, these pads remain to be among the most important dog supplies, a must-have for dog lovers like you.

Article Source: examiner.com
Article by: Casey Cavalier

Either while traveling - or for every day life - the dog crate can be a great source of security and comfort for your dog.

There are two popular types of crate, a plastic travel kennel and a collapsable metal crate. You’ll know you have the right size crate if your dog can enter, stand up and turn around. There should not be so much room in the crate that your dog has extra space to sleep at one end or the other. He or she should be comfortable and that’s about it.

Bigger is not better when it comes to selecting a crate, so be sure to follow directions or ask for a store clerk’s assistance.

My dogs can spend 4-6 hours in a crate while I am out of the house. They have spent longer periods of time, but it is important to walk them before and after their stint in the crate. They should also be free to roam for the remainder of the day or evening once they are out of the crate.

I would be hesitant to crate my dogs for 8-hours a day, every day unless they were particularly resiliant and I was dedicated to walking them without fail, in exchange for their time spent confined.

Using a crate while traveling is often a necessity, and beginning the crate training process far in advance of your dog’s first trip is essential. Gradually build your dog’s time spent in the crate and never use a crate as a means of punishment.

Article Source: examiner.com
Article by: Jeff Millman

“No” (which means don’t jump on the guests).

“No” (which means don’t chew on the couch).

“No” (which means stop barking)

Sound familiar?

I see a lot of situations where people train their dogs primarily by saying one word. “No” or the dog’s name are the usual choices. For instance, “Jake!” (don’t jump on the guests), “Jake!” (don’t jump on the couch), etc.

Why is this not recommended? Here are the reasons why you should be more precise with your training requests.

1.  If you just say, “No” your dog has to understand your desire based on the context of the situation. There is too much room for interpretation and it can be confusing.

2. If that is your main form of communication, it often means that you haven’t spent the time to teach your dog the individual behaviors that you want your dog to do. For instance, if your dog constantly jumps on people, spend the time to work on “Off” and also reward the absence of the behavior (reward anything appropriate).

3. Dogs can learn very precise cues or commands, but they can’t read your mind. It is often a sign of a household that has a really confused dog and one or more frustrated people.

What Can You Do To Avoid This Problem?

1. Determine which behaviors you want to teach and teach them.

2. Do not repeat cues when teaching. Your dog can start to tune you out if you repeat cues. Read my posts on how to avoid repeating cues. Dog Training 101, Do Not Repeat Cues

3. Make sure everyone in the house uses the same cues and has the same expectations

Article Source: sacbee.com
Article by: Dr. Marty Becker and Gina Spadafori

Adopting an adult dog from a shelter is a wonderful thing to do. But sometimes people are hesitant to try it because they worry their new pet won’t be reliable in the house and can’t be made so because of the myth that “old dogs can’t learn new tricks.”

If you’re stalling on adoption or are already struggling with an adult dog that doesn’t seem to “get it,” take heart: You can teach an adult dog to do his business outside.

Before you start training, though, you must be sure that what you have is a behavior problem and not a physical problem. This is especially true with a dog that has been reliable in the past. You won’t be able to train your pet if it is struggling with an illness. So check with your veterinarian first for a complete checkup.

If you’ve ruled out medical problems, house-training an adult dog uses the same principles as house-training a puppy, except you have to be even more diligent because you need to do some “untraining,” too.

And a lot of cleaning: You must thoroughly clean any soiled area with enzymatic cleaner (available through pet-supply outlets) to eliminate the smell that invites repeat business.

You’ll need to teach your dog what’s right before you can correct him for what’s wrong. To do this, spend a couple of weeks ensuring that he has nothing but successes by never giving him the opportunity to make a mistake.

Here’s how:

• Leash him to you in the house so you can monitor his every move during his training period. If he starts to mess, tell him “no,” take him outside and give him a command for going (”hurry up,” “go potty,” etc.). Then praise him for doing right, so he starts to understand what you want.

• Put him in a crate whenever he’s not on leash with you. It’s not unfair during training to leave him in a crate for four or five hours at a stretch – assuming, of course, that he’s getting his regular daily exercise.

• Take him outside first thing in the morning, as soon as you get home from work and just before you go to bed (when you put him in his crate for the night). Always remember to give your “go” command, and praise him when he does as you wish. I find that people never seem shy about punishing their dogs, but too often forget to praise them – they take it for granted that the dog should do the right thing.

Never, ever forget the praise! If you’ve been consistent, your dog likely will get a good idea of what’s expected of him within a couple of weeks, and you can start giving him a little freedom. Don’t let him have the run of the house yet. Keep his area small, and let him earn the house, room by room, as he proves his understanding of the house rules.

Accidents happen. If you catch him in the act, tell him “no,” take him outside and give him the chance to set things right. Give your “go” command, and praise him if he does. Clean up the mess inside promptly and thoroughly, so he won’t feel inclined to refresh his smell there. Don’t punish him for any messes you find.

If you aren’t catching him, you’re not keeping close enough tabs on him. Go back to the crate and leash, and start over.

If you continue to have problems, ask your veterinarian for a referral to a veterinary behaviorist. One-on-one assistance can pinpoint the problems in your training regimen and get you both on the right track.

Article Source: newschannel5.com
Article by: Darcy Lockman

In 1973, Kay Laurence got her first dog, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel, and a life-changing piece of advice from her father. “You’d better take a training class,” he said. Thirty-five years later, Laurence is the head of the class. Based in the UK, she runs Learning About Dogs, a business that organizes conferences and offers classes all on the subject of dog training. In her latest book, Learning Games (Sunshine Books, 2008), Laurence advocates teaching dogs through play. Below, she explains both how and why.

The Nature of the Beast
“Playtime is nature’s classroom,” says Laurence. “Puppies will wrestle, stalk, rip toys, carry and explore. All of these behaviors are rehearsals for real life. Play is where life skills are learned.” For example, puppies of border collies that descended from gathering breeds will stalk each other during play to prepare for their adult role of herding sheep. Gordon Setters, traditional bird-hunting dogs, will practice for adult life by neck-snapping small stuffed toys. In nature, many of these games are guided by a trainer — the pup’s parent.

Explains Laurence: “Pack members do not teach their youngsters with leashes and praise. They play games with young learners. They set rules and decide when to let their pups succeed.” Though humans have designed their own methods of training young dogs that do not involve play, Laurence believes these techniques are not the most effective. “Traditional dog training relies on our opinion of how a dog should perform. For example, ‘a dog sits when you press its hips down.’ Unfortunately, this fails with many dogs since their reaction to pressure is often to push back.”

What Play Can Teach
“Play training seeks to induce natural responses in the dog,” says Laurence. Those natural responses can then be elicited from the dog on command, in situations where obedience is crucial to safety or well-being. For example, Laurence uses play to teach her pupils how to sit still, crucial for excitable dogs that tend to jump on visitors to your home. “Through play, we can stimulate a dog to maintain absolute stillness in anticipation.”

In a game she calls “Where’s the Mouse?” Laurence uses the canine tendency to focus intently on small prey. “When a dog spies a mouse or rabbit disappearing down a hole, it will maintain a focus on that hole for many hours. It will be able to stay perfectly still for a long period,” she says. For this game, then, Laurence puts a counterfeit “mouse” — in this case a piece of cheese or sausage — in her hand and waits until the dog fixates on it. At this point, Laurence puts the “mouse” in her pocket, leaving the dog frozen, still in excited anticipation of its feast. Laurence eventually feeds the treat to the dog, reinforcing the pup’s behavior.

Other “life skills” imparted by Laurence, her trainers and students of her methods include focus, balance, coordination, self-awareness and puzzle solving.

Try This at Home
For safety’s sake, your dog should be able to run from one location to another based on your direction. If Fido is in the street staring down an approaching car, you need to be able to convince him to run to the curb, and fast. To train your pet to move on command, Laurence suggests teaching “The Sausage Bowling Game,” appropriate for dogs 20 weeks and older. Here’s how to play:

* Begin on a non-slippery surface, showing your pup a treat in your hand.
* Make sure it watches your hand as you slowly bend and make an underhand arc, as if you were bowling in slow motion.
* Release the treat once your arm reaches the end of the arc, just as you would a bowling ball. Allow the pup to chase and then eat the treat.
* Repeat, “bowling” the treat to a different location each time. Once the dog has mastered following the arc of your arm to your location of choice, make the game harder by turning suddenly just before you release.
* With regular “training,” your dog will follow your command whether or not you’re throwing a reward.

“This uses all the elements of nature’s purpose of play,” says Laurence. “The older pack member, you, has alerted the pup to a chase situation, and the pup is instinctively drawn to join you. Every time they get to employ a natural, instinctive behavior, they enjoy it more and more. What a fabulous way to teach safety!”

About The Author: Darcy Lockman is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in the New York Times and Rolling Stone. She lives in Brooklyn, with the prettiest pug dog in the five boroughs.
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