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How To Train Your Puppy

What You Should Know About Crate Training One Of The Most Effective Ways Of House Training Any Puppy Or Dog

Crate training is one of the most effective ways of house training any puppy or dog. Crate training is very efficient, and very effective, since it uses the natural instinct of the dog to achieve the desired result of a clean house and a well trained dog.

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The concept behind crate training is that a dog naturally strives to avoid soiling the area where it eats and sleeps. By placing the dog in the crate, this instinct is enhanced. The dog will come to see the crate as its den, and it will try to avoid soiling its den.

The key to successful crate training for a puppy or an older dog, as with other forms of dog training, is to establish a good routine. This routine will enhance the ability of the dog to do its business in the right place, and avoid eliminating in the wrong place. It is important to shower the dog with praise each and every time it eliminates in the established toilet area, and not to express frustration or anger when the dog makes a mistake.

It is important to confine the dog or puppy to a small part of the house, generally one puppy proofed room, when you are not at home. The room should contain a soft bed, fresh water and some favorite toys to prevent the dog from becoming bored and frustrated.

Crate training is different from confining the dog to one room, however. With crate training, the puppy or dog is confined to a crate when unsupervised. The idea is that the dog will think of this crate as its home, and not want to soil is home.

When crate training, it is important to remove the dog from the crate as soon as possible after returning home, and to take the dog promptly to the previously established toilet area. When the dog does its business in this toilet area, be sure to provide lots of praise and treats. It is important that the dog learn to associate proper toilet procedures with good things like treats and toys.

It is important to never leave the dog in its crate for long periods of time, as this will confuse the dog and force it to soil its sleeping area. The crate is simply a tool, and it should not be abused by leaving the dog in it for extended periods of time. If the dog is left in the crate for too long, it could set back the training program by weeks if not months.

The dog should only be confined to the crate when you are at home. Except for nighttime, the dog should be given the opportunity to relieve itself every 45 minutes or so. Each time the dog is taken out, it should be put on a leash and immediately taken outside. Once outside the house, the dog should be given three to five minutes to do its business. If the dog does not eliminate in this time period, it should be immediately returned to the create.

If the dog does its business during the set time period, it should be rewarded with praise, food, play, affection and either an extended walk or a period of play inside or outside the home.

During the crate training period, it is important to keep a daily diary of when the dog does its business each day. If the dog is on a regular feeding schedule, the toilet schedule should be consistent as well. Having a good idea of when the dog needs to eliminate each day will be a big help during the house training process. After the dog has used his established toilet area, you will be able to give the dog free run of the house to play and enjoy himself.

Dealing with accidents during crate training

It is very important to not punish the puppy or dog when it makes a mistake or has an accident during the crate training process. If there has been an accident, simply clean it up. Accidents during house training mean that you have provided the dog with unsupervised access to the house too quickly.

The dog should not be allowed unsupervised access to the home until you can trust her bowel and bladder habits. If mistakes do occur, it is best to go back to crate training. Taking a couple of steps back will help move the house training process along, while moving too quickly could set things back.

You’re proud of the new member of your family, that furry four-legged creature that is full of unconditional love and that will be with you for years to come. All too often, though, a new puppy or dog can wreak havoc on your home, yard, and neighborly relationships. For the sake of a happy home life and a contented puppy, dog training is a necessity. The right approach, combined with professional dog obedience training, will ensure that your newest family member will fit right in. Here are four secrets that the pros use for success.

1. Who’s the Top Dog?

By nature, dogs travel in packs, with the alpha dog as the leader of the pack. There can only be one alpha dog per pack; otherwise, chaos would ensue and the safety of the pack would be in peril. Your dog needs to understand that you are the alpha dog of the pack. You communicate that to your dog by exerting your leadership, such as taking him for a walk when you come home from work or by successfully completing a dog obedience training course together. You also exert your alpha dog status by controlling your dog’s food. When he knows that you feed him twice a day, it reinforces your position as top dog.

2. Consistency is Key

Virtually every dog trainer will tell you that humans are generally at fault when dogs don’t successfully learn commands. That’s because dogs see the world in black and white, whereas humans see the world in shades of gray. For humans, “Come” and “C’mon” mean the same thing; a dog, on the other hand, may understand “Come” but is clueless as to what his owner wants when he says, “C’mon.” Whenever you want to modify your dog’s behavior or teach it a command, use a consistent vocabulary and tone.

3. Mutual Respect Leads to Obedience

A happy and healthy human-canine relationship is based on mutual respect. Your dog respects your position as the alpha of the pack and you respect his needs. Contrary to what you may read, respect and obedience do not grow out of a package of doggie treats, nor do they grow out of fear. Excessive rewards and excessive sternness will lead to erratic behavior, while appropriate praise and correction will lead to respect.

4. Timing is Everything

Timing comes into play in various aspects of dog training. The adage, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” isn’t entirely correct, but it is much easier to train a puppy than it is an older dog. Some people make the mistake of engaging their dogs in long, drawn-out training sessions. Like young children, the attention spans of dogs are relatively short, and fun 15-minute lessons are more likely to bring results than hour-long drills. Timing is also key when establishing your alpha role. For example, the alpha dog eats first, so you should feed your dog after you’ve finished with your meal.

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Dog training is a necessity, but it doesn’t have to be a chore. Regardless of the location of your dog training — Chicago, San Francisco, or Miami — you should find a dog trainer that both you and your dog enjoy, and work with her or him to make your new family member feel right at home.

Chewing is something that comes naturally to every dog. Every dog feels the instinctual need to sharpen its teeth and hone his biting skills. Chewing on the right things, like specially designed chew toys for instance, can even help the dog clean his teeth and remove plaque.

Even though chewing is natural and healthy, that does not mean that the dog should be given crate Blanche and allowed to chew everything in sight. It is vital for every dog to learn the difference between the things it is OK to chew on, like toys and ropes, and the things that are off limits, such as carpets, shoes and other items.

When working with a new puppy, it is advisable to keep the puppy in a small, puppy proofed room for at least a few weeks. This is important not only to prevent chewing but to properly house train the puppy as well.

Older dogs should also be confined to a small area at first. Doing this allows the dog to slowly acquaint him or herself to the smells and sights of the new household.

When you set up this small, confined area, be sure to provide the puppy or dog with a few good quality chew toys to keep him entertained while you are not able to supervise him. Of course the dog should also be provided with a warm place to sleep and plenty of fresh clean water.

As the dog is slowly moved to larger and larger portions of the home, there may be more opportunities to chew inappropriate items. As the dog is given freer access to the home, it is important to keep any items that the dog or puppy should not chew, things like throw rugs, shoes, etc. up off of the floor. If you forget to move something and come home to find that the dog has chewed it, resist the urge to punish or yell at the dog. Instead, distract the dog with one of its favorite toys and remove the inappropriate item from its mouth.

The dog should then be provided with one of its favorite toys. Praise the dog extensively when it picks up and begins to chew its toy. This will help to teach the dog that it gets rewarded when it chews certain items, but not when it chews other items.

Teaching the dog what is appropriate to chew is very important, not only for the safety of your expensive furniture and rugs, but for the safety of the dog as well. Many dogs have chewed through dangerous items like extension cords and the like. This of course can injure the dog severely or even spark a fire.

Most dogs learn what to chew and what not to chew fairly quickly, but others are obviously going to be faster learners than others. Some dogs chew because they are bored, so providing the dog with lots of toys and solo activities is very important.

It is also a good idea to schedule several play times every day, with one taking place right before you leave every day. If the dog is thoroughly tired after his or her play session, chances are he or she will sleep the day away.

Other dogs chew to exhibit separation anxiety. Many dogs become very nervous when their owners leave, and some dogs become concerned each time that the owner may never come back. This stress can cause the dog to exhibit all manners of destructive behavior, including chewing soiling the house. If separation anxiety is the root of the problem, the reasons for it must be addressed, and the dog assured that you will return.

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This is best done by scheduling several trips in and out of the home every day, and staggering the times of those trips in and out. At first the trips can be only a few minutes, with the length slowly being extended as the dog’s separation anxiety issues improve.

A Word about Dogs, and One of the Top 3 Canine Behavior Problems; Excessive Barking

Dogs are wonderful; just ask any one of the millions of canine owners world-wide. They make terrific companions, are loving, loyal, protective, entertaining, and obedient. Well, most of the time anyway.

As with humans, no dog is perfect — including my treasured poodle, Muffy. She is wonderfully calm and composed, especially considering her breed type. And she has been my best friend for nearly 14 years. Nevertheless, she has her faults. We all do.

That aside, it is important for new dog owners to understand the differences between dogs and humans. Recognizing the differences will help owners balance expectations and keep them realistic.

Some behavior is ingrained; inborn and common to the canine population. Their ways are not our ways. We cannot punish a dog for being a dog. It would be unrealistic, for instance, to expect a dog not to be inquisitive; not to sniff, not to defend its territory, or not to explore and “cut loose” in an open field. People who cannot accept normal dog behavior should not own a dog.

Other behaviors in dogs are learned — due either to past experience, or neglect on the human’s part. Case in point: a mother dog does not hesitate to teach her puppies acceptable social skills and proper manners. She will correct and discipline a pup when they need it.

We humans, however, take a puppy away from its disciplinarian — its mother — and adopt it into our home. When the puppy bites, nips at our hands, or chews on things that they shouldn’t, we hesitate to discipline him. Either because we think he is too small for discipline, or else too darn cute! It is only after the puppy gets older and a bad behavior pattern has set in that we decide something must be done.

When it comes to problematic canine behavior problems, three are most predominant: excessive barking, biting, and jumping up on people. In this 3-part canine behavior and modification training informational, we will address each behavior problem individually.

Excessive Barking

Dogs can bark excessively for different reasons: boredom, loneliness, and defying being left alone are among the top reasons.

You have some control over your dog’s boredom and loneliness. Besides providing warm shelter, adequate food, and an adequate supply of clean water, both dogs and puppies require entertainment and exercise to be happy and relieve boredom.

Playthings and chew toys made for dogs help to keep a dog entertained. Spending time with your dog playing and exercising him is also important. A happy, content dog is less apt to bark excessively.

When it comes to having to be left alone, however, your dog must learn to accept being alone without causing a ruckus. There is little more annoying to neighbors than being forced to listen to someone else’s dog bark nonstop.

If a dog barks excessively for no good reason, well-known dog obedience instructor and author, Jerry Climer, suggests that you walk up to him and close your hand around his muzzle; forcefully, but not enough to cause pain. Hold his mouth closed and command “Quiet!” If he tries to break away, be more firm and forceful. Hold his mouth shut and snap your finger sharply across his nose, commanding again “Quiet!” Once he has stopped the excessive barking and is silent, praise him.

When training a young puppy not to bark, place a short rope on his collar and let him drag it around the house. When he barks to alert you, let him bark once or twice, and tell him he’s a good dog. Then use the command “Quiet!” in a firm tone, while at the same time giving his rope a little jerk to startle him. Insist that he stop the noise immediately, and praise him the minute he becomes quiet.

Whether training a grown dog or a young puppy, discipline must be consistent in order to be effective. After the lesson has been learned, commanding “Quiet!” will be enough to bring peaceful silence.

Five million puppies are born each year in need of love, patience and round-the-clock training. And their owners know all too well that training issues can arise at any time. Now puppy owners will find expert training guidance they need right at their fingertips.

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Those with access to podcasting devices can download a series of free puppy care and training videos for immediate help. The videos are approximately two minutes in length and cover such topics as crate training, house training, biting and chewing, barking and simple commands such as “sit,” “off,” “stay” and “heel.”

Puppy owners can download select videos on iTunes; this interactive Web-based guide provides a comprehensive selection of articles and videos on puppy training, nutrition and health.

Owners who have access to this virtual training library can reap the benefits of a well-behaved, well-socialized dog. The videos offer many other advantages:

* Take me with you: According to the Association of Pet Products Manufacturers, 40 million pets will travel with their owners in 2006. This has its unique challenges, especially when the pet in question is a puppy being trained. But there’s no need to stay tethered to home base when training guidance is at your fingertips.

* Owner see, puppy do: Reading about training techniques and seeing them in action are two different experiences. With video training, owners view step-by-step training instructions, which make the methods as clear and useful as possible.

* Whenever, wherever: A busy life is a fact of life for most Americans, which can make it a challenge for puppy owners to follow a consistent, time-consuming training routine and stay educated about their puppies’ needs. Having access to a virtual puppy care library gives owners an opportunity to review proper training techniques and other pertinent information about their puppies when it’s convenient for them.