DogTrainster.Com

Article Source: oregonlive.com

In the spirit of the season, Bark Busters, the dog training company, offers helpful tips for the estimated 44.8 million U.S. dog owners on keeping their dogs safe and happy during the holidays.

“In planning for this season’s holiday festivities, it is important to keep your pets in mind. While most of us welcome the sights, sounds and smells of the season, holidays can also be chaotic - especially for dogs,” says Lisa Holzer, dog behavioral therapist and trainer for Bark Busters USA. “Holiday festivities can disrupt a dog’s routine and present potentially dangerous circumstances. But by following a few common-sense tips, the holidays can be cheery for everyone - including the family dog.”

Christmas trees can lead to problems with curious canines. To prevent the tree from tipping, anchor it to the ceiling or wall. Hang nonbreakable ornaments near the bottom. Since tinsel can be deadly if eaten - it can twist within the intestines, causing serious problems - do not use it.

Don’t let dogs drink the Christmas tree water. Chemicals that help the tree last longer can cause severe indigestion in dogs.

Holiday plants and greens can cause health problems. Pine needles, if eaten, can puncture holes in your dog’s intestines; regularly sweep them up to avoid a trip to the emergency animal clinic. Mistletoe, poinsettias and amaryllis can be toxic, so keep pets away from them.

Many snow globes contain antifreeze, which is extremely toxic to dogs - so it’s best to keep snow globes and all antifreeze out of the reach of a happy, tail-wagging dog. If there is an antifreeze spill of any kind, send your dog out of the room while cleaning up the liquid. Dilute the spot with water and floor cleaner to make sure your dog does not lick these harmful chemicals later.

Holiday sweets are not dog treats. Candy, cookies, cakes, peppermints - and especially chocolate - can trigger life-threatening illnesses in dogs. Keep sweets out of the dog’s reach.

Make no bones about it. Turkey and chicken bones are not for dogs. They can easily break, causing choking or bone shards getting stuck in your dog’s gums. Give “dog bones” specifically designed for dogs to chew….

Article Source: newschannel5.com
Article by: Darcy Lockman

When friends and neighbors Evelyn Pang and Hilary Louie of San Francisco were 9, a dog training class was offered in their apartment building. Though neither girl had a pup of her own, both loved dogs, so they signed up for the class. Five years and many classes later, the two high school sophomores co-authored Good Dog! Kids Teach Kids About Dog Behavior and Training (Dogwise Publishing 2008).

Inspired by the belief that kids learn best from other kids, Pang and Louie wrote and illustrated their book, which incorporates expert advice on teaching kids how to read doggie body language, how to be safe around dogs and how to train Rover to do cool tricks. Says Louie: “Kids need to understand and train their dogs so that neither ends up getting hurt.” Below, the young authors share their five favorite tips for kids who live with, or around, dogs.

Tip No. 1: Know your dog’s signals

Dogs are playful, peaceful creatures. When a canine feels threatened, it will display “calming signals.” These are visual cues that communicate to nearby dogs or people that the dog doesn’t want to fight. “The fur on the back of its neck will stand up. Its tail may go down, or its head will lower,” explains Pang. When this happens, Louie advises walking away, if you are the one scaring the dog. If a nearby dog or other animal is scaring your furry friend, you should simply remove your dog from the frightening situation.

Tip No. 2: Know your own signals

If a strange dog comes running toward you, Pang and Louie advise keeping yourself safe in the following way: be a tree. “Stand still, put your arms by your sides, and your head down. Look at your toes and don’t move,” says Pang. “The dog will think you’re boring, and it will go away.” Running from a dog will signal that you’re up for a game of chase, and looking the dog in the eye may make it feel afraid, which can lead to a fight that both you and the dog don’t want.

Tip No. 3: Be consistent during training

Pang and Louie advocate clicker training, which involves reinforcing desirable dog behavior with the sound of a clicker, followed by a treat. The dog learns to associate the click with the reward and comes to understand that that the click is a compliment. But this only works if the trainer is consistent. “You have to click on time, and every time,” stresses Louie. “You have to pay attention at all times during clicker training, or your dog will think you’ve lost interest, and (the activity) won’t be fun anymore.”

Tip No. 4: Treat, don’t trick, during training sessions

Dogs in training need rewards in order to learn. What they do not need is for you to yell, or worse. “Don’t punish your dog,” emphasizes Pang. “You are its teacher, and if the dog messes up, it’s sort of like it’s your own fault. It’s your responsibility to teach them.” If things get heated, or you start to feel frustrated, take a break! You can always go back to it later or another day.

Tip No. 5: Have fun!

Pang and Louie agree that training is a game, and games should be enjoyable. “If you’re not positive, you’ll get impatient. If you’re not having fun, it’s not a game anymore,” says Louie. The girls believe that training also promotes bonding between humans and canines. It’s the best time to create feelings of closeness between people and their pets. “Your dog will feel your love during training,” says Pang. It should be like hanging out with a friend. You’re doing something together and learning together.

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.

Article Source: womansday.com
Article by: Melinda Dodd

Don’t be guilted by puppy dog eyes! Get the tips for taming bad pet behavior

Your puppy has broken into the pantry for a fifth time, and now he’s staring at you with those I love you eyes, trying to pretend that nothing has happened. As always, you find yourself thinking, I should take him to a trainer. But times being what they are, you hate to fork over the $200 (or more!) fee. Don’t worry. We’ve got everything you need to tame your savage beast.

Basic Training

Puppies have a natural curiosity and lust for life, so you have to channel that energy and make it work for you, says Kevin Behan, author of Natural Dog Training.

Step 1 Establish a solid framework for effective training. Make sure your home is a calm, safe space for your new puppy. Stroke and handle him as often as possible so he gets used to human contact.

Step 2 Start with the basics. First, teach him his name. Every time he responds to it, give him a treat. Next, get him used to the leash. “Carry him to a spot away from the house, and let him lead you back,” says Jack Volhard, head of Volhard Dog Training in Culpeper, Virginia, and coauthor of Dog Training for Dummies. If he tugs the leash, turn your body the opposite way. He’ll follow you, then bound ahead.

Step 3 Train him to sit, stay and heel by holding treats at waist height and moving them in a slow circle, mesmerizing him, advises Behan. “When you hold food above a puppy’s head, he’ll automatically sit or settle back on his hips,” he says. Gradually incorporate hand gestures and verbal commands. Once he’s mastered that, teach him to come by trotting backward quickly (leash in your left hand, a treat visible in your right) while repeating the word come, says Volhard. Reward him every time he obeys.

Dos and Don’ts

Don’t ever say your pup’s name in anger, as a reprimand. “It undermines the relationship you’re trying to build with him,” says Volhard.

Do create a “relax zone” (inside) and a “play zone” (outside). Many puppy problems (chewing furniture, peeing in corners) can be averted by reinforcing these zones. “Playing indoors winds dogs up,” notes Behan. “Let dogs loose outside, where you can shape their energy and enthusiasm to your ends.”

Don’t yell at your pooch when he makes a mistake. It can scare him and make him fearful of people, says Behan.

Do teach your pup the meaning of No, says Behan. Put food in a bowl and lower it to the floor. As your dog gets excited, say “No” calmly but firmly and pull the bowl away. Repeat a few more times. Eventually his excitement will fade and he’ll lie down. Now set the bowl down. The result? Your puppy learns that No means Stop, be patient.

Article Source: examiner.com
Article by: Jeff Millman

I always joke that I “think about dog training 36 hours per day.” This is not far off. Whether I am working with my dogs or working with a client, there are frequent times that I will explain something a bit differently than I have in the past, or I will try something just a little bit different and get an “Ah Hah!” moment.

They are not necessarily profound, “Wake the children” ideas, but still might be helpful to you.

I had one of those moments tonight. I try and do a few training sessions throughout the day with my dogs and today was no exception. I planned on training them for a few minutes and then giving them their dinner. I worked with them for bit and then asked them for a “Down Stay” in another room while I loaded the dishwasher from our dinner and then fixed their dinner as well.

I set the timer on the stove for 10 minutes instead of just guessing how long they were in their stay. It is amazing how time seems to  go faster than it actually does. If I thought they were staying for 10 minutes without the timer, I probably would have released them after only 5 or 6. The timer kept me on track. 10 minutes is just an arbitrary time, sometimes I will do more or less. I think the longest I have asked them to stay is 30 minutes.

I  sometimes also set the timer when I am doing training to keep track of how long the session lasts. I try and do at least 5 minute sessions a few times a day.

I hope this is helpful to you and your pooch.

Article Source: buzzle.com

Owning a dog provides a great deal of personal satisfaction and whether you are the most hardened character or not, you are going to experience a great deal of love and companionship with your dog. Dogs are social animals by nature and they want to please who they are with as well as providing companionship and attention, dogs are great protectors of family and property not because they think these are your things but precisely because they feel this is their family and their home.

Training a dog benefits everyone and even if it is the most basic of behavior that is being taught, it will hep immensely with how a dog behaves and its own happiness and well-being. Dogs are hierarchical animals, they believe in everyone in their place and want to know constantly where they are in the pecking order and will seek reassurance in this; this is dog behavior and perfectly natural and when this is disrupted the dog will inevitably become stressed which may manifest itself in unwanted behavior.

Training your dog is a process and this will not produce immediate and instant results from just an initial session; training is part of a lifelong process which underpins the relationship you will have with your dog and them with you and your family as well as the world around them.

Training never stops.

Use these tips to help you with training:

Tip #1 Be Patient

Be patient; your dog will not always understand what you are trying to get it to do and will have to work it out but they will instinctively try to please you. They will quickly learn but so will you and losing your temper will harm the relationship you have with your dog and create adverse consequences down the road which will slow more advanced training.

Tip #2 Act Like a Team

Dog training is a misnomer to describe what we are doing here; in truth we are training the dog and the owner as you are a team and this is exactly how the animal is viewing the activity. Professional trainers rarely undertake training a dog directly when they are consulted; watch the TV programs which are popular at the moment and you will see that the professionals are actually training the owners in how to train their animals.

Tip #3 Be Gentle

Losing your temper, shouting at the dog and being angry, hitting or humiliating the animal are very big “No’s!” for owners. Negative reinforcement may produce a short term impact in stopping unwanted behavior but the effect tends not to be lasting and severely damages the way the dog views the relationship with the owner. Dogs are pack animals and look to the pack leader for guidance and protection; they do not react well to a pack leader which hurts them and you will see this in the wild with lots of friendly licking and play between members of the pack, including the leader.

These three pieces of training advice are all essential to forming a positive and constructive relationship where the dog understands its place in the family hierarchy and learns very quickly what is expected of it. A well trained dog is a credit to the owner but also a source of a great deal of satisfaction and enjoyment for years to come.

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: 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: 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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Article Source: pittsburghlive.com
Article by: John Ross

It’s easier to convince a puppy or a young dog that you are pack leader while he or she initially is seeking a position in the pack. It will be harder after the dog has assumed the pack-leader role.

This problem can be avoided if you make an effort to learn proper techniques to gain leadership. If you are incapable or unwilling to provide the leadership that a dog needs, do yourself and your dog a favor — find him a good home. Yes, it’s that important.

However, don’t be intimidated. Becoming pack leader is not such a daunting task.

You do not need to be mean or cruel to your dog in order to achieve a pack leader status. If you treat a dog abusively, he or she will learn only to fear and distrust you. You simply need to learn to be firm and consistent, as well as loving and fair, and your dog will accept you as pack leader.

Canine pack leaders are consistent, and they maintain their leadership position. Pack followers know what to expect from the pack leader. If you are inconsistent, it is a sign of weakness to your dog. If you show weakness, your dog will test you.

Obedience training capitalizes on a dog’s pack-leader instincts, but it is not brute force and dominance. You need to be gentle and assertive.

Canine pack leaders show affection toward their followers. They play with subordinates. They share food with and groom subordinates. They even sleep close to them.

This is why it is important to pet, praise and show affection to your dog. Along with teaching your dog that he or she must obey you, you also must show what we humans call love. Let your dog know that obedient behavior pleases you.

Praising your dog positively reinforces behavior that you want your dog to repeat. Positive reinforcement is an essential part of successful dog training.

How many humans can be pack leader in a family?

Dog often do not respond to everyone in the family in the same way. The person who spends the most time training and exercising the dog will get the best results. Young children often cannot convince most dogs that they are a more dominant member of the pack than the dog is. School-age children or teens also should not be given the primary responsibility of training the family’s dog. This is a job for adults in the family. If older children are interested, they should help under the guidance of an adult.

If you, as the dog’s trainer, make an effort to be consistent with your dog’s training, your dog will learn to follow direction from you. He or she might not pay very much attention to commands from other family members.

And the good news is that when your dog is trained properly, no one can undo the training that you have achieved. No one can undo your pack leadership role,

Your dog never will “resent” you for being pack leader. In fact, he or she will love and respect you more. In the wild, the pack leader is the most respected member of the pack.

Training through a canine point of view will strengthen the bond between you and your dog. Dogs are happier and more secure when they are treated like canines. I’ve observed that the most confused and unhappy dogs are those that are trained from an anthropomorphic (humanized) point of view. And their owners are the most frustrated people who have ever owned a dog.

Don’t forget the other components to success: exercise and socialization. Dogs that receive adequate daily exercise are mentally balanced creatures who can maintain emotional control. A dog that is out of emotional control cannot learn to behave properly. Socialization is imperative if a dog is going to be a secure, confident canine citizen.

Enjoy training your dog. Be confident, gentle, calm and assertive. Think pack leader.

Article Source: examiner.com
By: Jeff Millman

This is always a concern with dog guardians. Over-treating can lead to an overweight dog or intestinal difficulties if your dog is especially sensitive. Here are some tips to get your worries under control and avoid over-treating your pooch.

Calorie Bowl
This is a term that I coined in my dog training videos. This is a strategy that you can implement instantly and use daily.

1. Portion out your dog’s daily food intake into a bowl. For instance, let’s assume your dog gets two cups of dry food per day.
2. Instead of the full two cups, put 1.5 cups of food into the bowl and .5 cups of high quality treats (see Treat Suggestions below)
3. Throughout the day, grab handfuls of the contents of the Calorie Bowl and do short training sessions with your dog, or put portions of the food into Kongs or other stuffable toys
4. At the end of the day, if there is any food left, put the rest into your dog’s bowl

Use “Life Rewards”
Now that you are using the Calorie Bowl, you can also incorporate “Life Rewards” into your routine. Life rewards consist of using a variety of rewards throughout the day that you would provide for your dog anyway. If you shift your thinking a bit, you can do quick training sessions before all good things and your dog will benefit from more training. Here are some suggestions for using Life Rewards with your dog. Don’t forget a mentally stimulated dog is a happy dog!

1. Toys. If your dog loves toys, put them away until you are doing training sessions. If you keep them out all the time, your dog can quickly become bored with them and then they are less interesting and rewarding.
2. A game of tug. Dogs that love to play tug can be rewarded with this activity. Do a quick training session, play a game of tug, ask for a “drop”, do more training and then reward with another quick game of tug. Put the toy away when you are done so it is interesting the next time you use it as a reward.
3. Walk. Do a quick training session before you take your pooch for a walk.
4. Chew Toys. Giving your dog an occasional chew toy? Do a 5-minute session before he gets his chew toy.
5. Frisbee. If your dog loves to play Frisbee or chase a tennis ball or other toy, do training while you are playing. Suggestions include Drop, Sit, Down, Stay, Come, and Stop. Ask for more behaviors each time you throw the toy.
6. Running. Dogs love movement. While you are walking your dog, reward him with running or other fast movements when he performs behaviors that you ask for. For example, walk a bit, ask for a Sit, say, “Yes” and then run a bit, ask for a Stop and gently put the brakes on. Say, “Easy” walk slowly while you give praise, “Good, good, good” and then run a bit more. See my Intermediate Leash Walking Video for step-by-step instructions.

Treat Suggestions
When you are using treats, you should only use high-quality treats. “Treat” does not mean junk food. Avoid food coloring, sugar and by-products. I use mainly meat-based treats and other high-quality food items and use very small treats. As long as your dog’s system can handle the food item, you can be very creative with your food offerings. If you are not sure if your dog can handle something, give a small quantity for a few days in a row with no other changes in his diet and monitor his ability to digest the new treat.

Premium treats may seem more expensive, but usually if you calculate the cost they can be similar in price to the unhealthy well-advertised treats with the cute names and shapes that make them look like bacon, sausages or other meat products. Use small pieces of the high-quality treats and they will last a long time.

Kong You can use a variety of food items including dried liver, pasta, cheese (not every dog can process dairy), sweet potato treats, steamed chicken, dried chicken, venison jerkey, duck meat, lunchmeat (watch the salt), oyster crackers, peanut butter, etc.

As mentioned above, stuffing Kongs can be a wonderful way of making food and treats last longer and provide more mental stimulation. My new favorite Kong stuffing recipe:

1. Pasta
2. Cheese
3. Dried chicken
4. Melt cheese in microwave
5. Put in freezer overnight

Last night it took my dogs 2 hours to work their way through their frozen Kongs and then they were exhausted! Do not make the Kong too difficult for a new dog or he will get frustrated and ignore it, no matter the quality of the stuffing. Allow food to fall out easily at the beginning until he is really motivated to interact with the Kong.

Just remember, dogs need mental stimulation. If you only provide physical exercise, your dog can still be bored and possibly destructive.