Posted on Dec 08, 2008 under puppy training |
While a full advocate of dog obedience training even at the young age of puppy, it needs to be said that like children, dogs are only a puppy for a very short period of time. Yes, it’s a time for training and socialization and housebreaking and everything else that goes along with owning a puppy. Still, all too often we forget the real reason why we bought a puppy in the first place. Fun!
Romping with a little puppy is one of the few inexpensive joys of living. At this time, puppies think that you are probably the absolute most wonderful person. They learn to anticipate when you come home from work and when you leave in the morning. I had a Rottweiler for almost 13 years that even in those later years when he slept most of the time, my dog always managed to be at the door just as I was walking in. Kids grow up and go off on their own, but a puppy grows up to be your very own four-legged fan club.
I remember laying on the floor in the living room reading the newspaper after a hard days work. My Rottweiler puppy Willie, would unceremoniously plant himself right in the middle of the newspaper making certain to lick my eyeglasses. It was almost as if he was saying there would be no more work today, it’s time to build some sweet memories.
We would end up playing around and wrestling on the floor. I know you should never play with the dog with your own hands but Willie and I seemed to have this bond that was kept all throughout his life. When he tired, my little pup Willie would go over to the fireplace and curl up in the wood carrier. Sometimes he would decide to go to sleep directly on my slippers with his nose firmly lodged inside the right one.
I did crate training with Willie to housebreak him. Of course there were accidents but he was a great dog nonetheless. It took awhile but he got the hang of it. Although we moved several times during his life, Willie always seemed to know that going to the bathroom in a house was just wrong.
Willie and I had a great time together a short 13 years. Sometimes even today I long to once again enjoy that distinctive puppy breath and see my 4 legged friend once again waiting by the door. He was a great dog. I will never forget the time we spent together.
If you’re thinking of getting a puppy, remember to enjoy the good times and not obsess over training and other necessities. He’s only a puppy for a short while and they leave way to early.
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Posted on Nov 20, 2008 under puppy training |
Just like babies, puppies have no control of when or where they “unleash their goods”. Having a puppy urinate inside your house is definitely not going to make you happy and it won’t do any good for your puppy when you get mad with him/her.
It’s important that you tackle this issue early on in the pup’s life and teach them some discipline. You may be surprised to hear this, but it’s true that a dog that has an authority figure and learns right from wrong will lead a more prosperous life and will make your job of caring for them much easier.
It’s not too difficult to correctly potty train your puppy, however keep in mind the process can take anything up to 1 year.
So how exactly do you potty train your puppy? Read on to find out the basic techniques and a lot of useful advice.
Restrict the Puppy’s Freedom
You should restrict the area in which the puppy can move around. What this will do is decrease the chance of the puppy urinating in a place, which they shouldn’t. Lay the potty paper in an area outside and then put a fence around so the puppy cannot roam elsewhere. It’s not supposed to be a jail so make it large enough so the puppy can run around and have fun. Of course you can take the puppy inside occasionally but you need to make it clear that the area is their home for the time being.
Wet the Potty
When setting up your potty you should place some of your pup’s urine on the paper and then walk them to it so they can smell it. This will give them the idea that the area is where they should be urinating.
One Potty,One Place
Many people who try to potty train their puppy have great difficulty, so they decide to set up multiple potty areas in hope that the puppy will use at least one of them. This is a bad idea as it will only confuse your puppy and they will not learn to use a potty effectively. You should only ever need one potty area.
It Takes Time
Younger pups need to go to the toilet every few hours, so put a leash on them and take them to the potty area and give the puppy 10 minutes to do their thing. If they don’t need to go, take the puppy back to its area and then try again in about 20 minutes. You should not play with the puppy until it uses the potty, once they do, you should reward them by playing with them, praising them or feeding them.
Reward Good Behavior
Whether you feed them or praise them, it’s essential that you reward your puppy for their good behavior. Rewarding a puppy will make them happier and teach them discipline and a happier dog in the long run is going to listen to you. A good idea is to reward them every time they use the potty.
Make a Potty Journal
By keeping a journal of the time it takes your puppy to urinate after eating, it will make it easier for you to train them and understand their habits.
Mistakes will Happen
Please remember not to get angry with your puppy if they urinate in the wrong area. At an early age they lack many skills that older dogs have much like how a toddler may urinate before they make it to the toilet. The best thing to do if your puppy urinates in a wrong place, is to simply say “no” or “bad dog”and then walk them to their potty area.
All in all, by following the above advice, your puppy will be well on there way to being potty trained and you will have a well mannered and obedient dog because of it. However make sure you give it time, it’s not something that most puppies can learn in a week or so.
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Posted on Nov 17, 2008 under puppy training |
The Golden Retriever is truly one of the most beautiful dogs on the planet.
They have a beautiful coat, an amazing face, a strong, sleek, and muscular body, a fantastic personality, a tail that never stops waging, and they are a joy to watch at work, when flushing a pheasant, swimming in the water, or chasing a Frisbee.
The Golden Retriever was originally bred as a hunting dog in Scotland, around 1908, but is now very popular as a house pet, a therapy dog in convalescent homes and childrenâ??s hospitals, and is used by law enforcement for drug detection.
Although they do not make very good guard dogs, they will bark loudly if a stranger approaches.
If you have children the Golden Retriever can be the perfect pet. Because of their natural nurturing instincts, and very gentle nature they make the perfect companion.
In 1974 President Gerald Ford made the First Family dog a Golden Retriever named Liberty.
If you are considering getting a Golden Retriever puppy, you need to find a reputable breeder that specializes in breeding Golden Retrievers.
There are plenty of pet shops and back yard breeders that are selling Goldens, that may have serious breed problems ranging from aggression, to hip and eye problems, and a host of other problems that may not be noticeable at the puppy stage.
A reputable breeder will check the blood lines of the parents carefully to make sure they do not have a history of these problems, before breeding. This will be your best chance at having a trouble free pet.
Training your Golden Retriever is not as hard as you may think. These are very intelligent dogs, and eager to learn. They want to please you, and hate to be scowled.
The first thing to remember is that puppies will be puppies, so donâ??t expect too much too soon.
You can start to bathroom train right away, but if there is anything around you care about within the puppies grasp like shoes, or your favorite slippers, I would put them away, because your puppyâ??s going to chew them if he gets them.
Give your puppy something of his own to chew. They are teething, and want to naturally chew things because their gums hurt. Make it clear early on that he or she is to chew what you gave them, and nothing else.
If you expect your Golden to respond to your commands, then you want to avoid confusing him. Itâ??s easy to forget that they do not understand the English language.
They respond to certain sounds, or words, based on your body language, and tone of voice. The trick to making the training as simple as possible is to use a few basic words and stick with them.
If you want your Golden to get out of the trash, and you say â??noâ? one time, and â??stopâ? the next time, and then â??heyâ? the next time, they never really get what you are telling them.
The six words that I have found over the years that work best are â??NOâ? â??SITâ? â??DOWNâ? â??COMEâ? “HEEL” and â??STAYâ?. I find they work best if said without the dogs name. These are discipline words, and are better left by themselves.
Itâ??s important that you show your Golden Retriever that you are the boss. You must establish that you are the leader to be successful with his training.
If you give one of your commands, and he does not comply, reinforce the command with a little different tone of voice until he complies.
If that still doesnâ??t work, donâ??t just walk away. That will send a bad message. Stick with it until you get the desired results. It will happen.
Never yell at your pet or hit them, or raise your hand in a gesture to do so. You also never want to use anything like a rolled up newspaper, or a belt, or any object of this type to discipline them.
This will only scare and confuse them, and loose their trust, which will make it much harder to achieve the results you are looking for.
If you use the word “No” Firmly, to stop him from what he is doing, or gently show him you want him to â??Sitâ? or lay â??Downâ?, or use the word â??Come” when you want him to come to you, or say â??Outâ? when it is time for her to go outside - I think you will be very surprised at how fast he or she learns.
Whatever words work for you are fine, as long as you keep them simple, and stay with the same words all the time I think you will get surprising results.
And donâ??t forget the most important word of all, GOOD. Using that word combined with boy or girl, or the dogâ??s name such as â??Good Sammyâ?, can work wonders.
They learn to like that real fast. Saying Good Boy, or Good Girl, or What a Good Girl, with the right tone in your voice, combined with a pat on the head, a biscuit, or a rubbing of their belly, will practically send a Golden Retriever into orbit.
They are beautiful animals. Just be patient, and you will have a great friend for many years.
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