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Why is your dog displaying destructive tendencies? Many people erroneously believe that destructive dog behavior means their dog is punishing them for being left alone. This is quite untrue, as most dog trainers and dog behaviorists will confirm. Let me show you with examples from with my two young rescued dogs, along with a couple of basic dog training pointers. All dogs have a lot of energy. The more high energy the breed, the more exercise your canine requires. If you have a problem with dog hyperactivity or over-excitation, insufficient exercise may be a root cause. The same holds true for destructive behavior in dogs. What to do? Walks and ball-chasing are great ways for your dog to exercise. That is a daily requirement. Also, you can put the dog on a treadmill for 30 minutes or so. Yes, it is good for dogs just as for people, for cardio-vascular health, weight control, muscle toning, and stress release. Psychological challenges are very critical, too, in reducing destructive or aggressive behaviors. Common challenges experienced on walks include such attractive nuisances as passing cyclists, squirrels taunting the would-be chaser, and the inevitable encounters with other humans and dogs. These can make a dog very excited, forgetting his leash training, and sometimes incite his protective, territorial, or dominance instincts or aggressive tendencies. I never allow my dogs to say hello to humans or other dogs when they are over-excited. Greeting an unfamiliar dog this way is rude in the dog world. The younger of my two dogs, Joy, does tend to become over-excited when she sees another dog. Sometimes I remove her from the situation. Other times I have her sit or lie down as the other dog walks by. Sometimes I intentionally expose her as a training exercise. Joy is catching on as any dog will, and is rewarded with permission to say hello if she is calm. As she learns to control this excitement during her exercise walks, her self-control and obedience in other areas increases as well . . . including right behavior if alone, and avoidance of destructive or aggressive tendencies. The coming together of two over-excited dogs for a first-time meeting (quite different from the understandably excited greeting of old friends) can result in a fight. Not always, but frequently. The overly-excited dogs must be separated. In a first-time meeting of two dogs, if aggression seems evident, WALK the dogs together with the people in between to separate and control them. (This can also be done with one excited and one calm dog, but not with two over-excited ones.) Have two people take them on walks together regularly until they acclimate. Thats what we do. With my dogs, there was no aggression but clear excitement on Joys part when they were introduced, but obviously time was needed for the two to explore each other and to establish a pecking order. With only one excited pup, a friend and I frequently walk the two dogs together. As the dogs get worn out from the joint walk, they are more calm and relaxed with each other. Aggression toward each other or general snits are far less likely then, and they are too tired to tear up a yard or house! I have no destructive dog behavior problems with my dogs because they are walked about two miles every day. They also have at least an hour of playtime with each other or with me daily. Note: There is nothing wrong with more than one hour of play -- Just be sure you control it! I also gave Joy plenty of toys as a young pup, so she always had something of her own on which to chew and did not suffer from boredom. She loved her toys, and so she had no interest in my things. She even recognized the names I gave to her individual toys, and by six-seven months old, she would retrieve the specific toy from her toy box on command and bring it to me for play! With Labrador blood and a great mouthing need, Joy also destroyed her toys faster and more completely than I have ever seen anywhere. Even things labeled indestructible! She viewed that as her hunt and kill duty and displayed her handiwork with great pride. She felt she had a purpose as she accepted and destroyed her own things -- never mine. We had NO destructive chewing problem with this puppy, even during the teething periods, which is almost unheard of for a Lab! Destructive behavior in mature dogs is caused by energy bursts. If the energy is drained through exercise, however, there is no need to tear something up to get rid of the energy. Obsessive behavior of any kind in a dog -- from jumping, running, fixation on balls, whatever -- a result of an energy burst. The solution? Exercise! Aggressive dogs need more exercise than any other. Aggression usually comes out in a dog who is anxious, fearful, undisciplined, or dominant. Aggression dog dominance, people aggression, and other dog aggression issues will be addressed in other articles and are not within the purview of this one. However, it is important to note that while taking away the dogs energy through exercise does not solve the underlying problem, nevertheless, it sure helps to lessen its impact! Owners must be cognizant of their dogs exercise requirements. It is not an option nor a matter of what is convenient. It is a necessity! Do not have a dog if you cannot provide for this most basic need. Remember, too, that any sort of dog behavior you dont like must be handled immediately. Dogs live in the moment and stay in it until it is addressed. Rena Murray is a professional Dog Obedience Trainer and Dog Behaviorist with extensive Dog Behavior Modification experience. Committed to helping Dog Owners as well as Pets, Rena seeks to educate as many people as possible through her self-help articles on Dog Behavior, Training a Dog, Aggression Dog Dominance, Dog Breeds, Shelter Dogs, Puppy Training, Dog House Training, Dog Training Equipment, and related matters posed by clients and bloggers. Rena also publishes a free e-mail newsletter: PAW PERSUASION POINTERS to help people better understand communication and control of their dogs, debunk dog training myths, explore right and wrong dog training techniques for specific situations, address destructive dog behavior, excessive and obsessive dog behavior, and other canine issues and concerns, from new puppy to old dog. Subscribe for free and obtain other free articles at http://www.PawPersuasion.com. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rena_Murray |
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Dog training collars come in a variety of types and sizes. When you want to train your dog, you'll want a strong collar that goes well with a sturdy leash, so you can keep your pet under control without hurting him too much. Therefore, it must also be one that fits around your dog's neck comfortably. Taking down the measurements of your dog, especially the area of his neck and head, with a measuring tape before going off to buy, would be wise. Traditional dog training collars, or choke collars, are now classified by how they are fitted around the dog's neck. There are three popular kinds of choke collars: the limited choke collar, the choke chain, and the snap-around. All of these serve unique purposes, and some are only advisable to use for dogs who require special training. The limited choke collar, for example, is used to train sled dogs and service dogs. The limited choke collar only fits snugly around the dog's neck. When you pull on it with a leash, it doesn't get any smaller than the size of the dog's head, so there's no pain involved for the dog, but it affords the user a great deal of force when used. The choke chain collar is not at all very popular these days. It's made of an adjustable chain of heavy steel links, which contracts when pulled on with a leash. It used to be a popular training collar for large guard dogs. This is sort of a shock collar in that it chokes the dog severely if he tries to make a sharp, sudden movement; the more the dog struggles, the more the chain tightens. The chain only falls back into place once the dog relaxes. The snap around choke collar is considered the healthiest overall, as it doesn't contract like the choke chain, and rides high on the dog's neck so it won't push against the windpipe even if the leash is pulled. You only need a minimum of force to guide the dog using this collar, and it keeps the dog's neck from snapping backward even in case of an accidentally strong pull. The more high-tech dog training collars are remote-controlled, but you won't always need those if you're mostly after restraint. The difference between traditional and high-tech training collars is that with the latter, you can inflict corrective measures upon your dog at the push of a button - as with shock collars, tone collars and vibration collars. Shock collars are not recommended for use by a truly caring dog owner - these are considered inhumane and unhealthy for the dog's training progress. Puppy-train.com provides you with information on dog barking, dog training collars, dog training schools, dog grooming supplies and homemade dog treats. Go to http://www.puppy-train.com/ Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Trevor_Mulholland |
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Do dogs and puppies know when they've done something wrong? Dogs who have been punished before for something often give the impression that they 'know' they have done something wrong. So what does this really mean, when have they really learned not to do something, and how will it help you with training? Dogs who are punished will often display what behaviorists call 'avoidance behavior' or 'appeasement behavior'. They very quickly learn how their owner behaves prior to dishing out a punishment, and will display this avoidance or appeasement behavior before the punishment even commences. Many dog owners interpret this as proof that the dog "knew" what he did was wrong. Unfortunately for both dog and owner, this is a misunderstanding. Why unfortunate? The owner thinks his dog is deliberately being naughty, and the punishments can escalate. What's more, the owner now believes that the dog is simply being disobedient, and can fail to take a course of effective behavior management or training. A dog will demonstrate that punishment has been effective when the punished behavior stops. Whether the dog knows it is 'wrong' or not is not something we can really 'know' at this stage in our evolution - after all, dogs can't talk and we can't read minds. An example - one dog owner complained that his dog was escaping from his yard. The owner had heavily scolded the dog for this behavior in the past, as his last dog was run over and killed after escaping from the yard. Now the dog would cringe when returning from his outings. To confuse the issue even more, when a third party told the owner that his dog had been seen outside the yard, the dog again cringed, picking up the subtle signs that his owner was angry and upset. Dogs are very attuned to this sort of thing. The dog had learned what to look for when a scolding was about to come. He had also learned that returning to the yard resulted in a scolding. He did not learn to stay in the yard at all, had he learned this he would not have escaped. We only know that a punishment is effective if the behavior stops. The owner escalated scoldings to the point of physical abuse, desperate not to lose another dog on the road. He believed that his dog knew that leaving the yard was 'wrong', because his dog cringed when he returned. With this belief firmly in the owner's mind, it didn't make sense to take more effective action such as installing a better latch on the gate and a spring to automatically shut the gate when visitors forgot to shut it. He was blinded to these more sensible and effective options, because he truly believed that his dog already 'knew' not to leave the yard. I can only feel sorry for this dog and his owner. Yet another of this poor fellow's dogs will probably be lost, stolen or run over by a car and I know that he genuinely has a deep love for his dogs. Unfortunately, he was convinced that his dog 'knew' he had done something wrong and was therefore only being disobedient. Even if his dog did know that he had done something wrong, the scolding was clearly not effective as the dangerous behavior continued unabated. Why bother? There are better options, such as improving fencing and gates, providing environmental enrichment by way of toys or treat-balls, and taking daily walks on-lead. Aidan Bindoff is Editor of Positive Petzine, a free resource for people training their own dog. Each edition is packed with helpful tips for training your dog using the latest pet-friendly methods that work fast and don't require a degree in animal behavior to use. Join now, and for a limited time you may download all available back issues (a $29.95 value) for FREE! As Featured On Best Ezines Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aidan_Bindoff |
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Housebreaking
What are the best methods for housebreaking a puppy?
 If your dog is going to live inside the home, and in America over 90% of our pets do, you are going to have to go through the housebreaking process unless you have grossly different hygienic standards than most. It is not hard, it need not be messy, and it need not be a struggle. It does not have to take a long time. Remember that it is a training issue and you will need to have more than casual input. It will take some of your time but the more involved you get, the shorter that span will be.
The Rules
Housebreaking Rule Number One: This is The Most Important Rule If you don't catch your puppy doing it - then don't punish him for it!
Housebreaking Rule Number Two: Praise your puppy when things go right. Don't let this be a situation where your only action is saying "No" when they are caught in the midst of using the wrong area. If they do it right let them know!
Methods of housebreaking
Starting Inside: There are several ways to housebreak a puppy. With the first, you can put down papers or pretreated pads, encouraging them to use these areas for going to the bathroom. The pads are scented with a chemical that attracts the puppy to use them. Whenever you see them starting into their "pre-potty pattern," such as walking around and sniffing the floor, you gently pick them up without talking and carry them over to the papers/pad and then praise them when they go to the bathroom (Rule 2).
When all goes well and they are using the papers consistently, the papers are either moved closer to the door and/or another set is placed outside. The transition is made from concentrating the toilet habits to one spot inside the home to one spot outside the home. Finally, the papers inside are eliminated. The only problem with this method is that for a period of time it encourages the animal to eliminate inside the home. In our experience, housebreaking may take longer when this method is used.
 Crate Training: The second popular method of housebreaking involves the use of a crate or cage. The often-stated reasoning is that the animal is placed in a cage that is just large enough to be a bed. Dogs do not like to soil their beds because they would be forced to lay in the mess. It works, and while in these confines, most pups will control their bladder and bowels for a longer time than we would expect. Young puppies, at 8 or 9 weeks of age can often last for 7 or 8 hours, however, we would never recommend leaving them unattended in a crate for that long in most circumstances.
During housebreaking, whenever the puppy is inside the home but cannot be watched, he is placed in the crate. This might be while you are cooking, reading to the children, or even away from the home. The last thing you do before you put the puppy in the crate is take him outside to his favorite spot. The first thing you do when you take the animal out of the crate is another trip outside. No food or water goes in the crate, just a blanket and maybe a chew toy to occupy his time. Overnight is definitely crate time. As your faith in the puppy grows, leave him out for longer and longer periods of time.
Most people do not recognize an important advantage of crate training. It does more than just stop the animal from messing in the house. It also teaches the puppy something very important. The puppy learns that when the urge to urinate or defecate occurs, he can hold it. Just because the pup feels like he needs to relieve himself, the pup learns that he does not have to. This is thought to be the main reason why puppies that have gone through crate training have fewer mistakes later on.
Make sure you buy the right size cage. You want one that has the floor space that provides just enough for the puppy to lie down. But cages are useful throughout a dog's life and it would be nice if you did not have to keep buying more as he grows. That is not necessary. Simply purchase a cage that will be big enough for him as an adult, but choose a model that comes with or has a divider panel as an accessory. With these, you can adjust the position of the panel so that the space inside the cage available to the pet can grow as he does.
Using too large of a crate can often cause long term problems. The puppy will go to one corner of the cage and urinate or defecate. After a while, he will then run through it tracking it all over the cage. If this is allowed to continue, the instincts about not soiling his bed or lying in the mess will be forgotten and the puppy will soon be doing it every day when placed in the crate. Now a housebreaking method has turned into a behavioral problem as the puppy's newly-formed hygienic habits becomes his way of life.
Constant Supervision: The last method involves no papers, pads, or crates. Rather, you chose to spend all the time necessary with the puppy. This works very well for people who live and work in their homes, retired persons, or in situations where the owners are always with the animal. Whenever they see the puppy doing his "pre-potty pattern" they hustle him outside. It is important that the dog is watched at all times and that no mistakes are allowed to occur. This method has less room for error, as there is nothing like a cage to restrict the animal's urges, nor is there a place for him to relieve himself such as on the papers or pad. When he is taken outside, watch the puppy closely and as soon as all goes as planned, he should be praised and then brought back inside immediately. You want the dog to understand that the
purpose for going outside was to go to the bathroom. Do not start playing, make it a trip for a reason. Verbal communications help this method and we will discuss them soon. For those with the time, this is a good method. We still recommend having a crate available as a backup when the owners have to be away from the animal.
Verbal cues
Specific verbal communications will also help the two of you understand what is desired. It is an excellent idea to always use a word when it is time to head to the bathroom. We like "Outside?" Remember that whenever you use a verbal command or signal, it is important that everybody in the family always uses the same word in the same way. Think of the word "Outside" in this situation not only as a question you are asking the pup, but also as an indication that you want to go there. Some dogs may get into the habit of going to the door when they want to go outside. This is great when it happens but it is not as common as some believe. We have found that it is better to use verbal commands to initiate this sort of activity rather than waiting for the puppy to learn this behavior on his own. It seems like your consistent use
of a word or phrase like "Outside" will cause the puppy to come to you rather than the door when he needs to go outside. The pup quickly sees you as part of the overall activity of getting to where he needs to go. We believe this is much better.
Once outside, we try to encourage the pup to get on with the act in question. We use the phrase "Do your numbers." This is probably a holdover from our own parenthood and hearing children use the "Number 1" or "Number 2" phrases. Others use 'Do It,' 'Potty,' or 'Hurry Up.' As soon as they eliminate, it is very important to praise them with a "Good Dog" and then come back inside immediately. Again, make this trip that started outside with a specific word "Outside" be for a purpose. If we are taking the pup out to play with a ball or go for a walk we will not use this word even if we know they will eliminate while we are outside.
When an 'accident' happens:
One of the key issues in housebreaking is to follow Rule Number One: If you do not catch your puppy doing it, then do not punish him for it! We do not care what someone else may tell you or what you read, if you find a mess that was left when you were not there, clean it up and forget it.
Discipline will not help because unless you catch the puppy in the act, he will have no idea what the scolding is for. Your puppy has urinated and defecated hundreds of times before he met you. Mom or the breeder always cleaned it up. Nobody made a fuss before and the pup will not put the punishment, regardless of its form, together with something he has done without incident numerous times before. Especially if he did it more than 30 seconds ago! Puppies are just like our children. Unless something was really fun (and a repetitious act like going to the bathroom is not), they are not thinking about what they did in the past. They are thinking about what they can do in the future. At this point in his life a puppy's memory is very, very poor.
Anyway, let us face it. It was your fault, not the pup's. If you had been watching, you would have noticed the puppy suddenly walking or running around in circles with his nose down smelling for the perfect spot to go to the bathroom. It is just as consistent as the taxi cab driver behind you honking immediately when the light changes. The puppy will show the same behavior every time. It may vary a little from pup to pup but they always show their own "pre-potty pattern" before the act.
The same should be said as to your first reaction when you actually catch them in the act of urinating or defecating. It is your fault, you were not watching for or paying attention to the signals. Do not get mad. Quickly, but calmly pick them up and without raising your voice sternly say "No." Carry them outside or to their papers. It will help to push their tail down while you are carrying them as this will often help them to stop urinating or defecating any more.
They are going to be excited when you get them outside or to the papers, but stay there with them a while and if they finish the job, reward them with simple praise like "Good Dog."
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Housebreaking Rule Number One: If you don't catch your puppy doing it, then don't punish him for it! |
In the disciplining of dogs, just like in physics, every action has a reaction and for training purposes these may not be beneficial! If you overreact and severely scold or scare the heck out of a puppy for making what is in your mind a mistake, your training is probably going backwards. With housebreaking this is especially difficult for them to understand as they are carrying out a natural body function. Carried one step farther is the idea of rubbing a puppy's nose into a mistake he made, whether you caught him or not. In the limits of a puppy's intelligence, please explain to us the difference of rubbing his nose in his mess he left in your kitchen an hour ago versus the one the neighbor's dog left in the park two weeks ago. If the dog were smart enough to figure all of this out, the only logical choice would be to
permanently quit going to the bathroom. Punishment rarely speeds up housebreaking. Often, it makes the dog nervous or afraid every time it needs to go to the bathroom.
We will give you a perfect example of how this kind of disciplining causes long-term problems between a dog and his owner. A client makes an appointment to discuss a housebreaking problem. They are hoping that on physical exam or through some testing we can find a medical reason for the animal's inability to successfully make it through housebreaking. They readily admit their frustration with the dog. The fecal and urine tests reveal no problem. We assumed that would be the case and have no intention of charging for those services. In the examination room, the pup is showing a lot more interest in the veterinarian than he is in his owners. The animal's eyes are almost saying, "Please kidnap me from them." When the owner reaches down to pet the dog on his head, the pup reflexively closes his eyes and turns his head to the
side. The dog reacts as if he were going to be hit. What this tells us is that the dog has been punished for making messes in the owners' absence. During this punishment the puppy is not, and we repeat, the puppy is not thinking about what he might have done two hours ago. He is not thinking that he should not make messes in the house. The animal is not even thinking about the messes.
The classic line that usually goes with this scenario then comes up "When we get home we know he has made a mess because he always sulks or runs and hides!" The dog is not thinking about some mistake he may have made. Rather, the pup has learned that when the people first get home, for some reason he has yet to figure out, they are always in a bad mood and he gets punished. The puppy has decided that maybe he would be better to try to avoid them for awhile so he does try to hide. In this particular case, discipline, misunderstood by the puppy, has caused him to fear his owners and this will probably affect their relationship throughout the life of the dog.
If you want housebreaking to go quickly, regardless of the method you use, spend as much time as possible with your puppy. In an exam room, one of us once listened to a client complain about how he had to take some time off from work for his own mental health and also, but unrelated, how the puppy was not doing too well in the housebreaking department. For us this statement was just too good to be true. It was the perfect set-up for our pitch. This gentleman, a bachelor, truly loved his puppy. We saw them together everywhere. Still, the problem was that he worked in a downtown office and the pup was home. His work allowed him to get home frequently but not always on a consistent schedule. There would be accidents when he was gone and sometimes he was gone longer than the abilities or the attention span of the puppy.
The solution was easy. We simply suggested his health and the puppy's training would both do better if he stayed home for a week or so. It worked. Under the man's watchful eye, he was always there at the time when he was needed and in less than seven days the ten-week-old puppy was trained. We are not saying there was never another accident, but they were few and far between. In the end, the best of all worlds occurred. The man realized his dog could be trusted, and thereafter, they spent their days together at the man's office.
Feeding and housebreaking
The feeding schedule you use can help or hinder housebreaking. You will soon notice that puppies will need to go outside soon after they wake and also within 30 to 40 minutes after eating. Be consistent when you feed the animal so you can predict when they need to relieve themselves. Plan your trips outside around these patterns.
All of this may seem simple, and it really is. The keys are that it will take time and you must be consistent. And, of course, you must never lose your temper or even get excited.
 Spontaneous or submissive urination
Puppies may spontaneously urinate when excited. This may be when they first see you, at meeting a new dog, or when they are scared. It is often referred to as submissive or excitement urination. Do not discipline the puppy for this, as it is something they cannot control. Simply ignore it and clean up the mess. If you do not overreact, they will usually outgrow this between 4 and 7 months of age.
Summary
Your new puppy is home and you have started the housebreaking process. This is just as much a part of training as the "Come" and "Stay" commands. However, mistakes that occur with housebreaking can cause more problems between you and your pet than those encountered with any other form of training. Be patient and stay calm.
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