Archive for January, 2011

Help Your Dog Overcome Fear Aggression

Fear aggression in dogs takes place when your dog is aggressive out of sheer fear or panic. If you have a fear aggressive dog, she is not necessarily of a violent nature, but rather is just scared of a certain situation. Her aggression is her way of telling you that she is not able to deal with the scenario.

 

Patience and perseverance are essential components when stopping fear aggression.

 

It can Occasionally be fairly difficult to stop fear aggression in dogs, as your dog is responding to a potent mix of instinct and fear. You ought to pay close attention to the reason for the fear, and work to desensitize her to it.

 

Do your best to raise her confidence

 

A great method to stop fear aggression is by positively rewarding your dog when she complies with her obedience training. With a very small dog, be careful not to give her too many treats, as this may perhaps disturb her system. As your dog becomes more used to your commands, progress to the next level. As your dog performs each of the commands to your approval, be sure to positively reward her. On the other hand, be sure not to baby her or reinforce her fearful behaviour with atypical attention and sympathy, as you do not want to be rewarding her for the very behaviour that you are attempting to train her to stop.

 

Desensitize her to the trigger of her fear

 

Desensitizing your dog is all about methodically and gradually getting her accustomed to what is eliciting her fear response, and can be a really efficient way to stop fear aggression in dogs. Your dog needs to learn through direct experience that the cause of her fear is not something that she should be afraid of, so undertake to keep your dog as cheerful and relaxed as you can.

 

For illustration, if she has a fear of the vacuum cleaner, as most dogs do, start slowly integrating it into her day-to-day life. begin by merely leaving it out in a prominent position, where she will have some incidental contact with it. Grant her plenty of opportunity to sniff it and walk around it, and play with her and feed her close to it. Methodically progress to turning the vacuum on, with your dog a fair distance away. Leave it on for a while, to get your dog used to the sound. Gradually see that she goes a little closer to the vacuum as it is running.

 

Be certain not to crowd your dog in any way. In the event that your dog is frightened in any way, it is vital that she has her own space.

 

Pay close attention to your dog’s body language. If at any point she shows signs of panic, fear, or skittishness, turn the vacuum off for a while, and then start again.

 

Counter-conditioning

 

Once you are of the belief that your dog no longer fears the primary trigger, you can begin the course of action of counter-conditioning as a further means to stop fear aggression. This means associating good things with the object of her fear. The best way to stop fear aggression in dogs in this regard is through the good old use of treats and lavish praise when there are improvements in her fear levels. Positive reinforcement, one of the tenets of operant conditioning, must be applied regularly and consistently to see positive results.

 

Socialize your dog regularly

Although the first phases of a dog’s life are the most important with respect to socialization, you should still consider it throughout your dog’s life, should fear aggression develop. The more she is exposed to other people, other dogs, and a variety of situations, the more she will see that the aforesaid are not to be feared. The less you will have to worry about learning how to stop dog aggression as well.

 

Seek professional help

 

If nothing you do seems to work, you should think about seeking the assistance of a professional dog trainer. It could possibly be the case that they can find something subtle that you could not, which could make a significant difference.

How to Get Your Dog to Stop Jumping Up

Jumping is a typical problem amongst dogs, especially jumping up on people. Your dog likes to jump on people, because she loves the attention and hugging that comes from it . To stop a dog jumping up, it is essential that you show patience and consistency in your training approaches Persistence and consistency on your part is a must to stop this jumping habit .

When you aremaking an attempt to stop a dog jumping up, it is also critical to always remember the following mantra : “praise for four paws on the ground; no praise for two paws in the air“.

There are several important factors to bear in mind as you embark on your goal of trying to stop a dog jumping up

Determine the reason for the jumping

You should first of all set out to uncover the trigger for the jumping . Then, keep her away from that trigger . For instance, if the trigger is the presence of other people, isolate your dog before their arrival . As soon as the people are there, retain control of her as she greets your guests . Give her treats, pet her, and praise her for having all four of her paws on the ground . Lightly pull her down if she attempts to jump up . Then, once again give her treats, pet her, and praise her for having all four of her paws on the ground. Your dog will soon come to realize that very good things will happen should she continue to be on the ground .

Turn your body away

Another effective technique to stop a dog jumping up on people, such as yourself, is to just turn your body away from her when she does . Don’t say anything to her, and don’t look at her. If you turn around, and she jumps up again, turn away again. Without your attention and reactions to her behaviour, she will calm down very quickly. Practice and persistence are keys here. When you have her in a sitting position, praise her for being such a good dog. Then, invite her to jump up for a treat, but only on your command.

Make the act of jumping an unrewarding one, and the act of not jumping a rewarding one

Yet an additional effective method to stop a dog jumping up on people is to make the act of jumping an unrewarding one. Have your dog on a leash, and then very gently step on it at about halfway when she attempts to jump up. Next, do something that triggers her jumping, such as showing her a tasty treat . She will not be able to get to the treat when she wants . Once she is back on the ground, apply positive reinforcement, one of the four main components of operant conditioining.

Establish that you are the dominant one

Is your dog dominant ? Your dog might jump up on you to show her dominance over you, or she might jump up on the furniture. However, if you allow this to continue, you will have a dog who thinks it is fine to jump up on anybody or anything . It is very important that you establish yourself as the dominant one in the relationship . So that your dog does not get too big for her britches, be consistent in your presentation of yourself as the dominant one in the relationship. 

How Do You Stop a Dog From Chewing?

“How do you stop a dog from chewing” has long been questioned by dog owners and enthusiasts. There are numerous good reasons why your dog is likely to chew destructively on something.  To stop dog chewing, you will have to to put forward some time and effort, as well as exhibit some basic common sense and patience . Your reward will be a dog who will not chew on your furniture, clothes, shoes, and stereo wires. Putting an end to chewing can also curtail biting and aggression troubles before they turn out to be full blown, so you will not have to be concerned about how to stop a puppy from biting, and how to stop dog aggression.

The principal reasons for why your dog is likely to chew destructively on something include a natural desire to chew, curiosity, boredom, anxiety, lack of exercise, and lack of respect .

So, just how do you stop a dog from chewing?

Stop dog chewing by taking control of the situation

How do you stop a dog from chewing in this respect? By dog-proofing your residence. Don’t leave your clothes, socks, silk ties, or shoes laying around where your dog can easily access them. Make certain that any wires or chords are made invisible to your dog. Keep your dog’s jumping ability in mind when you put objects in specific places . Think about spraying something on your dog’s intended chewing targets that has a bad taste, like lemon juice or cayenne pepper .

Clearly set the boundaries of your expectations

How do you stop a dog from chewing in this respect? Another important thought to bear in mind as you are attempting to stop dog chewing is to not blur the boundaries between stuff your dog is permitted to chew on, and things that she is not . For instance, don’t expect your dog not to chew on a new thing if you have earlier permitted her to chew on an older version of that same thing, liklike a piece of clothing .

Tasty alternatives

Another effective way to stop dog chewing is to provide her with lots of tasty options to your “off limits” belongings. If the surroundings of your dog is devoid of acceptable chewing objects, then you can hardly blame her for targeting your belongings. Beef jerkey, dentastyks, or a favorite toy can work wonders .

Stop dog chewing by interrupting your dog in the act, and follow it up with some positive reinforcement

If you are still wondering to yourself, “how do you stop a dog from chewing”, a good technique to utilize is to catch her as she is in the act of that destructive chewing. Do not make a huge deal out of it, however.  Stop the chewing, take the object away, and give her something good to eat , such as Froot Loops, a milkbone, or a dentastyk. As soon as her jaws clamp down on it, heap lavish praise upon your dog . Positive reinforcement like this is a beneficial strategy to follow when stopping dog chewing . Just be certain to be really consistent in your application of it. If you reprimand your dog for chewing on an improper thing, rather than just teaching her that the object is not hers to chew, she might think you are reprimanding her for chewing something unacceptable in front of you, and that it is fine for her to chew on something inappropriate when you are not there.

Health reasons 

If you are at your wits end , and in spite of your best efforts you do not have an answer to the question, “how do you stop a dog from chewing” , consider it may be the case that your dog has a problem with her teeth and gums, which might require veterinary care .

 

 

 

Getting an Older Dog to start Eating Right

My fifteen-year old shepherd/rottweiler mix has begun exhibiting telltale signs of old age. Even though she was a very enthusiastic eater who lived on a raw dog food diet for over ten years, since then, her appetite has decreased significantly. This has made it harder to maintain her normal routine as far as taking her medications go, which is set aside from the nutritional aspect of her every day life.

I have learned some really invaluable lessons along the way:

Keeping Your Dog Fed:

#1. There’s a fluctuating variance in my dog’s appetite throughout the day, as well as the morning hours are when she avoids food. I do not enable myself to get all worked up over it if she will not eat her food in the mornings. Sheba is normally pretty hungry at dinner time on days like those.

#2. Stay away from incorporating medication into your dog’s food. Today, I make it a point to give my dog her medication and food separately as opposed to mixing them together like I employed to. My dog’s holistic medicine has been far more successful inside the upkeep of her health, along with the food’s flavor isn’t so poor, either. The last thing I’d need to do is ruin the way her food tastes or make her less interested in it since I am already worried about her appetite.

#3. Each and every now and then, you must refrain from the typical diet. There are instances in which my dog is much more interested in having a “lighter” food regime rather than her regular raw meat diet; some of the foods I feed her on these occasions contain chicken broth, brown rice or cottage cheese.

Medicine:

#1. I have been hiding my dog’s medication in her cream cheese so that she is willing to eat it. My dog never realizes that she is swallowing a pill since it goes down the throat so smoothly. Peanut butter is yet another food I have used in a comparable way.

#2. The bitter herbal powders are a lot more hard to administer, nonetheless. Mixing them into chicken broth and baking them into biscuits is not usually a success. There are instances in which I have tried incorporating them into capsules, but there’s a high amount needed that would be impossible to fulfill.

#3. It was my veterinarian’s professional recommendation that I take a turkey baster, dilute my herbs with water and then squeeze the mixture down my dog’s throat. It sounds like it would be a difficult task to carry out since Sheba would most likely fight back, but it might be needed.

If anyone else who has experience with their own dog is able to offer a technique that genuinely works, I would love to hear it. What are the methods you utilize in order to get your dog to take his medicine and eat correctly? 

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