Unless you have a big empty space in your chest that chucks out ice cubes, having to discipline your puppy can be a heart wrenching task! Of course that little puppy is adorable and sweet and he or she is still going to be just as adorable and cute and love you just as much with discipline. Without discipline your adorable puppy will not be such an adorable dog with bad manners and behaviors that are out of control! Discipline is not about putting the absolute fear into them! Discipline is establishing boundries and eliminating bad behaviors in a firm but positive way. While providing tough love, you must start your puppy’s training in those early years! Be sure to get your dog some dog clothes cheap and some spa dog shampoo to keep your dog clean and looking good.

This is the golden opportunity and if you put it off, then training is going to be more difficult! In just two years, your puppy will be a teenager, and much like human teens without proper guidance and discipline can be troublesome! What is there to do? How do you be firm but still loving to your little puppy? Well by following these easy guidelines you won’t need to scramble for money you don’t have on obedience classes. It is imperative that you teach your dog how to behave during this prime early socialization period. The ages between 3 and 16 weeks is the optimum time for such training. Be sure that if you have a tiny dog and you like to walk that you get a really nice discount pet carriers that will suit you and your puppies needs.

Another good rule of thumb is to be CONSISTENT! You have to be consistent every time! No falling for the “puppy dog eyes”. Ask yourself these questions: Am I establishing open lines of positive communication between the puppy and myself?, Am I supplying the puppy with the basic necessities of life; good nutrition, sound sleeping quarters, and a clean atmosphere?, Am I setting and maintaining consistent rules and boundaries?

Solid Dog Behavior Training Advice

Dogs can be very intelligent and owners need to realize that in the first step of dog obedience training. That’s good news because it means that your dog’s training is not going to be too difficult if you go about it the right way. Here’s some advice for those interested in dog training and what is involved:

Specifics

The timing of critiques and praises needs to be regular when you are training the dog. Obedience training allows little room for error. If you want your dog to obey you, your dog needs to understand that you want that—no matter what, all the time. If you do not advise or praise the dog while the action is occurring, it can be too late to ever change his habits. In training your dog, you may need to assist the dog as the action is occurring.

Consistency

When training your dog, you need to be consistent. If you never want your dog to scratch the door, do not ever let him do it no matter what the situation is. Dog behavior training is very sensitive to regularities.

Be habitual with your actions. If you do not want your dog to go on the sofa, then he never be allowed on that sofa—or your bed. In dog behavior training you learn that dogs do not understand the concept of occasionally or “if.” They only understand consistent permission or no permission– ever.

Good Boy!

When we are training our dog in obedience techniques, we often center on perfection in our dog but do not congratulate the dog’s good behavior as much as we should. If your dog is sitting where you want him to be sitting and minding his own business, tell him he is a good dog. In dog obedience training we believe in giving praise when the dog is not being naughty.

Try not to get too angry when he does something bad. In training our dogs, we believe that you should reinforce positive actions and let bad ones slide once in a while.

Stand Your Ground

If you don’t show your dog who the boss is, your dog will show you. You have to command your dog when training. Don’t be weak or shaky when you ask for an action. When training your dog, if dogs do not comply, you need to show them the way.
You can teach an older dog to adapt to a dog house, but unlike a puppy he may be already set in his ways and might not take to a new environment.

No matter the age of your dog, when you have completed your dog house training you need to teach your children that the dog house is his safe place and when he goes into his home he should’t be bothered and that he wants to get away from everyone else.

A dog, no matter how friendly, has the instinct to attack when it feels trapped and if your children are bothering the dog while in a dog house the dog will feel trapped and attack. That’s why dog house training is just as important to your dog as it is to the rest of the family.

There are a number of things you need to consider if your dog is displaying chewing behaviors in order to effectively combat this destructive habit. The best way to learn how to stop a dog from chewing is to examine several factors:

First, what is he chewing? Cushions, shoes, his own feet? Some objects may need to be removed from temptation, especially while a puppy is still learning good behavior and self-control. Some things may be just too hard to resist. Others can be saved with the use of a bitter chewing-deterrent spray, which also works on feet and tails. Simply creating a terrible taste will likely be enough to stop chewing and prevent future episodes, without harming your pet.

Next, what is the underlying cause of the chewing? If a puppy is teething, she definitely needs something to work those gums on. Try offering a toy or treats specifically designed for this purpose. Even better, freeze the chew toy for several hours, then give it to your puppy. This will both relieve his teething pain, AND distract him from chewing other objects. Win-win!

There are, of course, other causes of chewing, including boredom, stress and loneliness. Your dog requires a certain level of stimulation, similar to a child. And just like a child, if your dog is ignored, this can lead to him getting into trouble if adequate activities and interaction are not provided.
Other Points to Consider

- When there are times in the day that your dog must entertain itself, tie your dog up outside or have it somewhere where it can not reach anything but its toys to chew on. Maybe give your dog a little chew treat, or even better, one he has to chew in to get some peanut butter or other food inside. Mental stimulation is key!

- Practice obedience training your dog everyday, and make sure he gets plenty of exercise. This will help stimulate your dog mentally and physically, and thereby reduce its boredom.

- Do not physically punish your dog, as this will only cause more anxiety, and most likely increase his chewing.

- Do not play tug of war or wrestling games with your dog. This will only encourage him to bite and chew - not a good thing!

- Never try to pull a toy from your dogs mouth. Instead, distract him with a treat, and remove the object once he has dropped it. You can also teach him the “Leave” command.

- Ensure that he has plenty of toys to keep him occupied while you are out. You may want to rotate them, for added interest.

- If you think he suffers from any separation anxiety, make your exits very low key, so as to cause as little stress as possible.

For more information on Dog Behavior Problems I suggest you check out this great Dog Teaching site.

For the house training dogs information, please visit this blog.

The trick of “sitting up” is easily taught to small dogs, but should try not be included in a big dog’s education, as it is difficult for them to preserve their balance.

The training of sitting up is one of the first tricks to teach and forms the groundwork for many other dog tricks. To train a dog to sit up, prepare some treats as a reward, and set your dog on his haunches in a corner, so that he cannot fall either backward or sideways and has very little or no space to lose balance.

Keep him from pitching forward by holding one hand under his chin and with the other hand hold the treat above his nose and keep repeating distinctly and deliberately say, “sit up.” Do not make him sit up too long at any one time, but repeat the lesson frequently and reward him often with plentiful of praise and treats.

During his first lesson he will require considerable assistance from your hand to prevent him from pitching forward, but as he gets control of the balancing muscles and understands what you want, he will depend less and less upon your hand to keep him in position and you can gradually render him less assistance until you will only have to keep one hand in position two or three inches from his neck or chin, so as to be ready to prevent him pitching forward; later on you can withdraw this hand entirely and simply hold the treat just above the level of his head.

By constant practice he will sit up well after you set him up; then he should be set up against the wall, so as to afford him a support for his back only, and after he has been well schooled at this and can keep his position easily, practice him against chair legs, cushions or other objects that afford him less and less assistance, until finally he learns to preserve his balance and sits up without anything to lean against.

During all these lessons the words “sit up” have been impressed upon his mind by frequent repetition, and now comes the final lesson to teach him to sit up as soon as he hears the words, and the chances are, if he has been diligently drilled, it will be necessary only to call him out in the room, show him a treat, hold it up a suitable distance from the floor, say “sit up” and he will do so, when he should be given the treat while still in position.

The only necessity to perfection is to practice him several times a day until he will sit up at the word and without being shown a reward; that can be given him after he has obeyed.

You have now a foundation for many other tricks. He can be taught to beg by moving your hand up and down just in front of his paws, which he will move in unison with yours. He can also be taught to salute by bringing one paw up to the side of his head, or to hold a wooden pipe in his mouth, or to wear a cap on his head or other articles of wearing apparel.

In teaching a dog to submit to being dressed up, do not attempt to get him to wear too many things at once; try him at first with a cap and after he becomes accustomed to that you can put on a coat and gradually accustom him to the other clothing articles.

Enjoy teaching your dog the “sit up” trick and most importantly have fun along the way!

*****************************************
Want a FREE “5 Dog Training Myths” Report? Visit stop a barking dog to find out more!

Read about house training dogs.

Is barking a form of language among dogs with precise significance, or just playful noise? Dogs exchange information among themselves less by voice than by a wide range of facial expressions, body postures and gestures, as well as by various scents. Dogs, who bark at night, are probably working off excess energy or announcing their presence, and this is undoubtedly the only message conveyed to other dogs within ear shot.

When a dog goes to his owner and deliberately barks, it is simply meant to attract attention. You must try to guess his general behavior, rather than from the circumstances and his general behavior, rather than from the particular form or pitch of bark he makes. The howling or baying of hunting dogs is an instinctive hunting cry informing the pack that the dog is on a trail. Barking at strange noises is a warning as well as a threat display.

A lonely dog who bowls may be sending out a gathering cry to other dogs nearby. Wild dogs on the other hand, never back, they only howl. Could the barking of domesticated dogs be a form of communication more closely resembling speech? A pet dog that shares a close relationship with his owner and has been taught to understand many words obviously makes an effort, sometimes quite successfully, to give meaning to his own utterances.

A dog who wishes to assert his importance and boldness instinctively employs all of the effects that make him look bigger and more frightening, raising his back ton increase his height and holding his head high in defiance. A dog who wants to show submission does just the opposite, making himself look small by crouching down with his tail between his legs and his ears laid back flat.

A dog who wishes to assert his dominance will take a perpendicular position with his head over the other dog’s shoulders, while nudging or pushing, with his neck arched, head and tail raised and tense. The conventional play invitation is a posture with the forehead crouched, the hind quarters high, a wagging tail, bright eye and a little yap. A rigid stance with a steady gaze and a high, trembling tail is hostile. A high, steady tail signifies self confidence, and held low indicates inferiority, fatigue, ill health, or a bad mood.

Pawing at the neck is an expression of affection, nose-nudging is another invitation to play. Paw-giving is a conventional canine gesture with two possible meanings. When he gives his paw to his owner while avoiding eye contact he’s saying “Please forgive me” or when he wants attention, he is saying “I’m here, don’t forget me.” When he offers his paw to another dog, it’s a sign of submission.

An owner, who takes the trouble to observe his dog and pay him the courtesy of listening to him, can establish a simple two-way communications system with his pet. Canine messages are generally very elementary, as he asks much less of us than we do of him. “I’m hungry,” “I’m thirsty”, “I need to go out”, or “Come with me I think something is wrong” are among the messages he manages to convey very well considering his limited means. His most eloquent utterance is the emotional gurgle of barks that means to say “I’ve missed you!”

********************************************
Want a FREE “5 Dog Training Myths” Report? Visit how to stop a labrador barking to find out more!

You can find even more information here —> how to stop a mastiff chewing <—

Visit the house training dogs blog for more useful tips.

There are as many ways to raise a puppy as there are to raising a child. In fact, one way per family in general! But most of us agree that when it comes to children, certain things are universal and undisputed. Here are three things that a lot of people just do not think of when it comes to raising their dogs, however. How many times have we heard, “My dog just won’t listen to me”, or “He just won’t behave!”

1. Dogs do not understand English until we teach them.

The thing we all love about puppies the most is the way they live for us, the way they focus all they have on us, the way our lives become theirs. in the beginning, they study us to learn our body language, our facial expressions and our language. Until we teach them the English language, it’s all they have. If we say, “Wanna go out?” one day, “Have to go potty?” the next day, and, “Hafta pee?” the third day, if they DO figure out what we want, it is because we have picked up the leash and moved toward the door with a happy face! If you want to speed up his training by three-fold, teach him YOUR language. Pick a command for EACH behavior and stick with it. Tell all in your family to use the same words and commands, and your puppy will amaze you at how much faster he learns.

2. A young puppy’s metabolism is racing along faster than we think.

The younger your puppy is, the faster he is growing, the more food and water he needs to fuel his metabolism, and the more often he has to go potty. Do not punish your puppy when he makes a house-breaking mistake. These are YOUR fault. Your puppy’s age in weeks and his breed size determine how often he must go out. Once an hour is not too often for a large 6-week old puppy, especially if it is summertime. Dogs love the exciting smells outdoors, so there is no excuse to not have him housebroken by 7-8 weeks of age. Right after a nap, after he eats and after grooming are the key times, and he will signal you. If he is happily chewing a toy and gets up suddenly with his nose to the floor, move quickly! And every time he goes potty outside, praise him to high heaven! “What a good BOYY!”, “GOOD go potty!” and the like. Dogs love our happy faces, and they will do anything to get it.

3. Dogs live for our facial expressions and body language.

Because of this, the worst punishment you ever need to give your dog is a scowl and to turn away from him. You can see his tail fall down and his face get so sad. He will learn the lesson, I guarantee it. But his attention span is only 3-5 minutes, so do not scorn him any longer. Love him up and give him your happy face again. Physical punishment is never necessary. Use consistent commands and loving praise and he will know what you want of him before you know. He will become a master of your body language and facial expressions in no time at all.

Naturally there are many aspects of training your puppy well. Loving kindness works just as well for puppies as it does with children, creating a happy, well-adjusted and obedient dog for life. These three important tips, used consistently with confidence, will start him well on his way.

*****************************************
Want a FREE “5 Dog Training Myths” Report? Visit click here to find out more!

Make sure you also know these house training dogs tips.

To teach your dog tricks even easy ones you need to have some small reward treats, be in a quiet suitable place and keep the training sessions to 10 - 15 minutes or your dog will start to get board, remember when he gets something right lots of praise and a reward treat, just be careful not to get him over excited or he will loose concentration.

Getting your dog to give you his paw, first get your dog to sit, then as you say the word ‘paw’ take your dogs paw in your hand, give the dog a treat, repeat this, after a few times do not take his paw so quickly, say the word, count to one then take it, you should notice he is bringing his paw up as you say the word if he does not go back to saying it at the same time, do it a few more times then slow your response again. After 2 or 3 sessions most dogs pick this one up quite happily.

The high five, like a lot of tricks the high five is a progression of an earlier trick, in this cast the paw trick. Hold a treat in your fingers and raise your hand slightly higher than you would for the paw trick. You dog will think you want to do the paw trick and will reach for the treat with his paw as we taught him earlier, as he reaches up you say “high five” and give him the treat. Once your dog has mastered the paw trick this one should be very easy to learn and with just a few sessions he will be doing it on hand signal rather than voice control.

Getting your dog to jump through a hoop, before you start this one I would just like to ask you to be a little sensible and not hold the hoop too high as you do not want your dog to heart himself while doing the trick. Sit your dog on one side of a hoola hoop, get the dogs attention on your hand on the other side of the hoop take a treat in your hand and give the dog the command to release him from the sit, at first he may attempt to go around or under the hoop, if this happens start again, your dog wants the treat and will soon learn that going around or under does not get it so he will soon start going through it, when he does say hoopla and give him the treat. He will soon be jumping through the hoop on the command of hoopla. When I started doing this trick I had a medium sized dog (a Labrador) so I started with the hoop 6 inches from the ground and slowly raised it to waist height, if you have a smaller dog you might want to start with the hoop touching the ground so the dog just goes through the hoop and then slowly raise it as he gets used to the trick.

*****************************************
Want a FREE “5 Dog Training Myths” Report? Visit how to stop a chewing dog to find out more!

Read about how to stop a chewing dog issues on this blog.

American Bulldog training can be one of the most rewarding things you do with your new (or old) pet. You will establish a life long bond with your pet through the training process and get a better behaving pet in the process. It is important that you start training your dog as soon as possible because every day you wait is one more day you have to put up with aggression, biting, barking, chewing, jumping, and bathroom “accidents”.

American Bulldog training offers challenges that may not be faced when training other dog breeds. This doesn’t mean an American Bulldog is a bad choice for a pet, you just need to be aware of their unique behavior patterns.

The biggest thing that offers challenges with an American Bulldog is their size. They are large animals and need space to run. With their large size, they can do way more damage than a Chihuahua.

These dogs can be very playful. Running, jumping, and jumping on things are favored activities for young American Bulldogs. Even when they are just playing, they can do a lot of damage because of their size. They are probably not the best choice if you have small children.

They can be very protective so American Bulldog training needs to involve exposing them to a lot of people. They need to see other people as normal and friendly so they don’t attack everybody they see trying to protect you, their beloved owner.

American Bulldogs have also been known to be very aggressive with other dogs of the same sex. Cats and other small animals can easily become play things so you should probably keep them separate.

The last thing to be aware of with American Bulldogs is that some people can view them very negatively even if they never do anything wrong. This makes American Bulldog training extremely important not just some thing that is nice to do. Getting help from a top knotch training system like the Secrets to Dog Training is absolutely essential to successful training.

There’s a difference between disobedience and incomprehension. If your dog isn’t obeying a command because he doesn’t understand what it is you want him to do, that’s not a behavioral problem at all; it simply means that you need to spend some more time together in training. True disobedience occurs when your dog deliberately does not obey a request or command, although he has full knowledge of what it is that you’re asking him to do (and you know this because he’s performed it reliably on several occasions beforehand). Although this may seem like a relatively minor inconvenience, it’s actually a pretty serious thing – not only can it be dangerous for your dog (for example, if he’s heading towards a busy road and ignores your ‘come’ command), but it’s also detrimental to your relationship with your dog.

Disobedience is rooted in disrespect. When your dog deliberately does not obey you, he’s saying, “I don’t respect your authority enough to do what you want me to do”. If you allow him to get away with this, you are allowing him to form the habit of passive-aggression. This is not something that can just be left to “fix itself” – the problem will worsen, not get better, if you leave it. It’s very important that your dog recognizes that you outrank him in the social hierarchy of the household. The concept of alpha status is one that you need to be familiar with in order to maintain a healthy, functional relationship with your dog. It may sound cruel from a human perspective, but your dog is happier when he knows that someone else is in charge of making all the decisions – including his day-to-day behavior and obedience levels.

It is not possible to have a good owner/dog relationship if he does not understand that you are the clear-cut authority figure: he must know that he’s beneath you in the chain of command. Your first step in dealing with generalized disobedience is to reestablish your dominance.

Here are some tips on doing so:

- When leaving the house and the car, you must always leave before your dog. This is unmistakable alpha behavior: to a dog, only the alpha leaves first. If you allow him to exit the house or the car ahead of you, you are saying to him, “You’re stronger than me; you should go first because you’re the decision-maker”. Inside doors aren’t so important, but every time you leave the house or the car to go outside, you must make him wait for you to go first, until you release him from the ‘wait’ with a release-word.

- Make him wait for his food. Your family and you must always eat before him – if it means he has to wait an extra half hour or so for his meal, it won’t hurt him any. When you put his food down for him, make him sit and wait until you release him to eat. Keep his feeding schedule varied, so he’s always aware that you’re in charge of his food – don’t allow him to form expectations of when he should be fed.

- Don’t allow him free, uninhibited access to the whole house. The house is your den: you’re allowing him to be inside. Remind him that you’re allowing him into your den – it’s a privilege for him to be there, not a right - by sometimes allowing him inside, and sometimes sending him outside for half an hour or so. Keep certain areas of the house strictly for your own, as well (such as your bed, certain pieces of furniture, or some rooms).

- Never allow your dog to initiate play. If he’s nudging you for attention or to start a game, you may think that it’s cute and affectionate; but what he’s really saying is, “I’m the boss and I’m telling you to play with me right now.” If he starts bothering you for attention, ignore him for a few moments: get up and do something else. Wait until he’s given up before initiating the play yourself. Playtime is a fantastic way to bond with your dog, but it should be done on your terms, not his.

- When you arrive home, don’t rush straight over to him and shower him in affection. That is not alpha behavior at all – an alpha dog, upon arriving home, doesn’t go over to the other dogs and throw himself at them, saying, “Here I am! I missed you guys! Let’s have a cuddle!” – he ignores everyone else, relaxes for a short while, maybe has something to eat, and only interacts with them when he’s good and ready. Even though you’re probably good and ready to interact with your dog as soon as you get home, it will make more sense to him – and underscore your authority – if you ignore him for just three to five minutes upon arriving home. Another fantastic way of counteracting disobedience is to start – and maintain – a basic obedience training plan. You don’t have to do anything fancy or super-demanding; just ten minutes a day of learning and enforcing commands. This can drop to five minutes a day once your dog is completely reliable with the commands.

Here are some tips for a good training program:

- Never give a command that you cannot reinforce immediately if he chooses to disobey you. Every time your dog takes the opportunity to ignore your command, he’s learning that it’s both easier and a lot more fun to ignore you. For example, if you call across the park for him to ‘come’ as he’s playing with some other dogs, the choices are clear-cut to him: he could cut his play-time short and come to you, or he could ignore you – which is easy, since you’re so far away – and continue to have fun. Until your dog is completely reliable with commands, he should be on a long line or retractable lead so that you can enforce them if necessary.

- Remember to use your voice to the best effect. Praise should be in a light, cheery, happy tone of voice; if possible, smile at the same time. It makes a difference to your tone of voice, and most dogs will study your face to make sense of your expressions, too. Corrections should be uttered in a stern, brook-no-nonsense tone: you don’t need to shout, but your voice should be low and authoritative.

- When you’re verbally interrupting your dog, it’s more effective to shout, “OI!” or “Ah-ah-ah!” rather than saying, “No”. The sounds are more clear-cut, and you’ll get a better response. - Do not repeat a command. Remember, you should be training on a leash or a long line: if he ignores you, he gets a short, sharp tug (some call it a ‘flick’) on the lead to remind him that you’re present, and you’re in charge. Repeating yourself teaches him to wait for the command to be repeated at least once before he obeys you.

- Five to fifteen minutes per day is an adequate amount of time for training. Any more than this in one sitting, and your dog’s concentration will likely lapse: fifteen minutes of intense training, where your dog is concentrating hard on what you want, is enough to send even the most energetic dogs to their beds for a snooze afterwards. You might be interested in checking out a Dog Teaching site for advice on Dog Behavior Problems and dog training.

For the house training dogs info, please visit this blog.

There are many species of animals that share a bonding with the humans… Foremost among them, the men most loyal friend has always been the Dog. Humans and dogs are depended on each other for protection and survival through thousand of years. Any more information -best dog training technique

The arrival of a new puppy is an exciting time for any household. There are now more than 300 different breeds of domestic dog and these are often classified into different groups according to the tasks such as hunting, guarding and herding, for which they were originally bred.

The first thing that is to remind is that no dog is born with good manners. Puppies have no sense of correct behavior, so they offer a million things you could correct; which should you address? It’s all up to you to teach your dog to behave in the way in which humans want him to. As well as making life with your dog get more enjoyable, when you train your dog.

Training is the best gift you can ever give your pup; friendly, housetrained, well-behaved dogs are less likely to be surrendered to shelters or put down. There are no age limits to teaching dogs: puppies as young of three weeks old can learn, as can adult dog of any age. And whether you have got a branded new puppy or a senior dog but first step will be the same: learn how to be a GOOD TEACHER.

Training Guide:

Be Consistent

Use praise and rewards

Time the rewards right

Keep the training short and sweet

Make it easy for your dog to get it right

Keep yourself cool

Practicing with videos

Keep practicing

Training is the best investment that you can make in your relationship with your dog. But you have to do your homework first, though, to learn how to communicate with him and what you want in a way that your dog will understand. Stay consistent and patient, reward your dog for getting it right and remember: you can train a dog of any age. For more information -correcting dog behavioral problem