> Dog Training Online: February 2009

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Understanding Dog Temperament & Behavior


Understanding dog temperament and behavior can be a challenge but is a necessity if you wish to sustain a great relationship with your dog, not to mention a feasible one!

There are several aspects which distort a dog ' s temperament. Every dog is an individual so there is no blanket solution for behavioral problems. We can however address some of the various factors of dog behavior including:

Sex
Age
Breed
Past Experiences
Lifestyle
Diet
Health

Sex
There can be remarkable differences between male and female dog temperament and behavior. Males tend to be a little more aggressive ( although females of certain breeds are definitely not shy violets ) and dominating. Males like to mark their territory. You may desex your male dog to decrease this territorial behavior.

Age
The age of your dog remarkably much influences its behavior. Puppies will tend to be very playful and energetic whilst older dogs will prefer to sit around more. Regardless of age, exercise is an important part of every dog ' s life.

Breed
Certain breeds are simply more aggressive than others whilst other breeds may tend to be lazier or more coquettish. If you want a guard dog then opt for a German Shepherd whilst if you love active dogs then a Siberian Husky may be your choice.

Past Experiences
If you have adopted a pound dog then often you will not know what it has been through or why it ended up at the pound. Just like people, dog ' s may be scarred by negative past experiences and may take some circumstance to trust in humans again.


Lifestyle
Providing your dog with an ideal lifestyle for its breed and size is mandatory if you want to minimize anti - social behavior and maximize his happiness.

Diet
Your dog ' s diet can influence behavior. Just as people cope differently if they eat a lot of sugar for example, dogs may be affected by certain ingredients in dog food, particularly the cheaper supermarket brands.

Health
If your dog is suffering or in discomfort he may lash out, bark or act strangely. Always see a vet if you suspect any health problems in your dog.

By understanding the major factors in dog temperament and behavior we can really begin to understand why dogs act they way they do.

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Male Dog Temperament & Behavior


If you are thinking of getting a dog then one of the first decisions you need to make is which sex to choose and what kind of dog temperament.

Whilst all dogs bark and play, there can be marked differences in dog temperament and behavior between the sexes. This crisp article will help to identify some of the major behavioral traits displayed in male dogs. Specifically we will discuss aggression, territorial behavior and show. After reading this you will be able to make an informed decision about choosing the gender of your future dog based on their temperament.

Male dogs are usually more aggressive then their female counterparts. This can be displayed in their behavior towards the owner, children and other dogs. Typically this is the dog’s attempt to become the ‘Alpha Dog’. In other words it wants to be the dominant party in any relationship.

It is very common for a male dog to be much further active then a female. You should expect to take the dog for a long walk at least twice a day to ensure that any excess energy is used. The dog is always very protective of its home and its owner. A average behavioral problem with male dogs temperament is the marking of territory within the home. Desexing your dog may lessen the occurrence of territory marking.

Compared to females, the male dog is usually less viable to train. Due to the it’s nature the male dog will often try to win a ‘battle of wills’ with its owner as it attempts to establish its dominance.

Whichever sex you choose, having a dog as a pet is a wonderful thing. Dogs can bring love and excitement into most homes - and children passion them! But it is worth acknowledging that there are different temperament and behavioral traits. If you choose a male dog you need to consider the effects of its temperament and likely behavior and whether your prospective new friend is compatible with your lifestyle. Whatever time and energy you invest in your dog, whatever its gender they will grant back much more in feelings.

Dog Temperment and Behavior Specialists


Dog temperament and behavior specialists are often a last resort for dog owners who are at their wits end with their dog ' s temperament and behavior. However it is actually wise to send your dog to a trainer BEFORE any problems begin arising. As they say, prevention is better than cure. If you can train your dog in proper behavior before bad habits form, you ' re life will be much easier. Breaking bad habits is much harder than preventing them to bring with.

You need to be careful when choosing a dog behavior specialist. You need to look at things such as:

Price
Experience
Referrals
Qualifications
Program


Price
Some trainers are simply fresh expensive than others. This can be due to their reputation or varied other reasons. Often you will attain what you pay for but that doesn ' t mean that only the most expensive trainers can aegis you.

Experience
Your chosen dog trainer should have rampant experience in training all breeds of dogs. They should be able to communicate with you about exactly what needs to be done to train your dog, how long it will take and any sort of input that leave be obligatory by you.

Referrals
Asking friends and family for advice on dog trainers is a great way to find a good one. You can also go online to dog forums and find trainers in your local area. No doubt people will speak about the great trainers they retain found. This is an excellent way to find a behavior specialist that you can trust.

Qualifications
Dog trainers should be qualified and be able to show you their qualification certificates and traineeship achievements.

Program
You will need to find out what the program entails and if it will address the specific problems you are having with your dog's temperament. There is scarcely point in focusing on training sessions addressing barking if the real problem with your dog is biting. A good trainer will find out as much information as they can from you before proceeding with the course.

Dog behavior specialists can work wonders with either preventing or corrective bad dog behavior.

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Dog Temperament & Behavior Digging


Digging is common dog temperament. It becomes a problem when your backyard starts looking more like a section of the moon then a usual backyard.

Dogs dig out of boredom or curiosity. They also do it to bury various items such as bones. Because digging comes natural to dogs there are things we need to do to curb the dog temperament and behavior or minimize the impact of the digging.

A good way to terminate a dog from going back to dig the same space is simply to fill it in. You can use leaves, rocks or sand to fill it in. Often the dog will lose interest in the area if the original hole is filled in.

You could also have a designated digging area in your yard that the dog is allowed to freely dig in without retribution. This could be a sandbox or simply a patch of dirt in a corner of the pound. You can bury treats in this gamut to encourage digging here and nowhere else. Once the dog realizes he will get a treat if he digs here but not over there, it should become a appealing muddy.

Dogs love further dirt so make sure their designated area is regularly topped up with fresh soil. If you are planting anywhere else in the yard with fresh soil then fence it off for the time being.

These are just some ideas to discourage unwanted digging in your backyard.

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Dog Temperament Chewing


It is common for a dog temperament to chew on just about anything they can get their mouths into. This will include your furniture, clothing and yes, you. Puppies are just exploring their world and environment, and they enjoy tasting everything! Unquestionably this can become a problem of your dog's temperament if there are certain things you just don ' t want puppy to put into his abyss.

You should remove harmful objects from the dogs reach to start with. This includes electrics, wires, cords, chemicals, cleaning bottles and fresh dangerous substances. Tiny objects like marbles should also never be left lying around where the dog has access to.

To curb undesirable chewing on your items, provide your pup with plenty of chewable toys. The hard and chewed rubber toys are best and are found at pet shops and department stores. If your dog has something in its mouth at all times then it is much less likely to use you or your furniture as a chewing target!

Putting your dog outside will allow it to explore usual items like grass which it can chew one. A word of warning though; remove your plants if you don ' t want them ruined! Just about any breed of puppy commit chew on plants and I have had many an ancient plant completely ruined in minutes.

If chewing eventually turns to biting then you will need to consider dog training. Once your pup grows larger this can become dangerous particularly if you have children. A trained dog trainer can curb this chewing and biting behavior.

Toys and close watch are the best ways to ensure your dog ' s chewing behavior does not get out of control.

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Dog Temperament Books

Dog behavior books are an excellent way to learn from the professionals. It is an alternative to dog traning and a great manner to attempt to cure dog problems yourself. Tehy are also much cheaper than dog training with the following books costing uinder $15 each.

The following books are all peak rated best selling dog temperament behavior books.

The Dog Behavior Answer Book: Practical Insights & Proven Solutions for Your Canine Questions (Answer Book (Storey))

An excellent book detailing answers and help for hundreds of dog temperament situations. You will learn how to modify unwanted dog behavior and learn counter responses to certain problems. This is a very detailed and extensive book on dog beahvior.

Dog Language: An Encyclopedia of Canine Behavior
by Roger Abrantes, Alice Rasmussen, and Sarah Whitehead
This book covers all aspects of body conversation and behavior in dogs in very simple manner. it is very easy to understand and is a must have companion for all dog ownesr. You will find solutions to problems ranging from agressoin to body control to xenophobia. It even details various facial expressions on dogs, soemthing many books don ' t cover!


The Dog's Mind: Understanding Your Dog's Behavior (Howell Reference Books)

This is an worthy well written book about all aspects of dog behavior.
It touches on how dogs perceive the world and even goes into the make up of their brains. It is all about the psychology of dog behavior and is written by a practicing veterinarian.
The first section goes over dog anatomy and physiology as well as genetics. This is very interesting reading and leads to a greater understanding of dog behavior. The rest of the book covers individuality traits and social behavior. It also goes into detail on dealing with specific behavior problems.

These three books are highly recommended for anyone interested in learning about or improvng their dogs beahvior.

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Dog Temperament Biting


There are millions of people bitten by dogs every year, half of them children. It is important to make sure that your dog temperament does not demonstrate biting behavior.

It is easiest to train your dog if you get your dog as a puppy. All puppies love to use their teeth to play. If puppies segment too hard when playing with their littermates, their playmate will let out a " yelp " and will stop playing. This is how puppies learn not to bite.

If your puppy uses your hand as a chew toy you should firmly chat " NO " and turn away. The puppy will then get the message that biting behavior will not attract playmates.

Properly socializing your dog before 4 months of age will produce a well adjusted dog that is used to different dogs, people, sounds, and situations. If your dog is not afraid of something, he will not crumb it in fear or anger. Run the vacuum abstergent, have people knock on the door, take him for a ride in the car. Expose your dog to all sorts of situations before he is 4 months old so that he will not react out of fear and mouthful someone.

Exercising your pet is also a noted way to reduce aggression, at any age. Making sure that your dog gets enough exercise each day is an effective way to prohibit unruly behavior such as biting. Taking your dog for a walk also introduces ways to effectively manage such things as: distractions, things they might fear, or territory disputes. This is an excellent time to train your dog to listen to your commands instead of acting on instinct.

Good training at a young age, socialization, and continued exercise are great ways to reduce the chance that your dog temperament will declare biting behavior.

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Dog Temperament Barking


Barking is a identical common dog temperament problem, Barking is a dog ' s method of communication; it is well-formed for a dog to bark, however, when the barking becomes very loud or excessive, that is when it becomes a disputed point since yourself again your neighbours unwanted attention.

The regular reasons for excessive dog barking are simple things approximative as:
They are bored and have not had enough activity or exercise
They are frustrated. This can happen if they wish to engage in something but are not able to because they are scared.

It trust be simple frustrating to have a dog that barks excessively and loudly, especially if it occurs at night when you are trying to sleep, this can also fret your neighbors if the dog is loud enough.

There are some mild methods that you can use to reduce the amount of barking your dog does, here are some you can try:

Activity more often. Dogs need excersise, they need to be walked quite regularly, otherwise they will stew very hard it and have hugely much energy, at the least you need to do is hike your dog every day, this should make it tired.

Hold down the dog to stop barking. You rap operate the dog to stop by teaching it to react to certain commands, for example, if you say " hush ", you incumbency do this by giving treats every future a command is successfully obeyed.

Give your dog more attention. Dogs like attention and activity, if you don't spend much time with your dog also they are left by themselves quite often, you may begin to see they will bark out of frustration and boredom.

These are dependable some of the transparent methods you can try to use to diminish your dogs temperament barking problem, training is probably the most affective method and it would show a good abstraction for you to request your dog properly.

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Monday, February 9, 2009

Destructive Dog Temperament


Inside every bad dog there is a good dog trying to get out; with the right changes in your behavior, your dog's temperament will change as well. Here are the 4 most common dog temperament problems and how to deal with them:
Peeing in the wrong place Have you ever walked into a room and noticed a distinctive scent? Have you ever found a puddle on your new carpet? My all time favorite is running to the phone and slipping in a puddle of doggie piddle. Inappropriate urination can be a sign of territory marking, particularly in male dogs.
Excessive Barking You can hear it from a mile away, an enthusiastic, hearty dog bark. Yet when it is your dog, the incessant barking is decidedly not so charming. This can upset the neighbors and even cause an all out neighborhood bark-a-thon.
Jumping For adults it's annoying, for children its bowling with them as the pins. When small dogs jump it generally does no damage but larger dogs can cause harm to kids and even adults. Jumping is usually just caused by over excitedness.
Growling Nothing makes your friends and family want to run away faster than the growler. Dogs growl when they are angry, jealous or in pain. If your dog growls often then you can see a vet or dog temperament behavior specialist.
All of these problems can be solved by asserting your position as the alpha dog through the following behavior changes in you:
When you first walk in to the house, ignore them for 5 minutes, no enthusiastic greetings, do not praise or encourage them immediately.When you feed them or give them water, you eat or drink first.There must be a no dogs allowed room in the houseAlways be on a higher level than your dog, the least dominate dog seeks the lowest point in the roomMany dogs will become and alpha dog if they think you aren't the one in charge
Dogs are called mans best friend. If they can overlook your morning breath you just might be able to live with some of their "annoying" behavior.At the end of the day you have to decide, do you have a little naughty in you and is that what you love about your dog?

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Aggressive Dog Temperament


Aggressive dog temperament is not an uncommon thing as dogs have a tendency to be naturally aggressive. They like to bark and growl and can appear to be quite aggressive to the untrained eye.
The reasons that a dog becomes aggressive can include a number of things. The most common reasons are:
They are not feeling well or are in pain There is a change in the routine. If you usually spend a lot of time with your dog but for some reason, significantly reduce the time spent, this can sometimes trigger aggression Perceived threat. If a dog believes that either itself or its human family are in danger then it may become aggressive and attack the perceived threat. This is more prevalent in dogs like the German Shepherd and other intelligent guard dogs.Poor training. If your dog has not been trained correctly then it is certainly a danger, make sure you keep the dog on a lead if this is the case Poor treatment. If your dog is treated poorly or punished too much, it may lash out and attack anyone.
There are many different types of aggression among dogs, each with its own causes. Here are some of them:
Dominate Aggression - This is common with dogs that like to establish dominance in many situations, if this is not controlled then it can be very dangerous and can result in serious injury to people and other animals.
Fear Aggression - If a dog feels it is being "cornered" or is in a position of danger, it may become aggressive and attack anyone in its path.
Redirected Aggression - If a dog feels aggression towards another dog yet it is not able to take it out on the dog, it may redirect it to a human.
Territorial Aggression - Dogs can often be very protective of things such as food and toys, therefore, if a dog feels their territory has been breached, they may become aggressive towards you.
Aggression among dogs is actually quite a common problem. If you have any reason to believe that your dog has an aggression problem then you must take action to control its behavior. You should make sure the dog is properly trained and if necessary see a behavioral specialist.
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