Article Surfing Archive

Everyone has some dog training tips when your dog is "naughty." But few actually give you good advice.

Let's face it, your dog wasn't born knowing how to behave. Different breeds are bred for certain tasks, be it hunting, herding, guarding, killing or chasing. Therefore careful selection of your dog is the first step towards an enjoyable life with your dog.

After that there's work to do, dog house training often being the first task. And if you don't get your dog as a pup you may be buying some behavior problems with it. Excessive barking, jumping up, biting, whining, not listening? You usually can do something about it.

Just as with raising children it pays to know a bit about how to do this, and why. Getting someone in for some basic dog training can set you back anything between $300 and $2,000.

But there ain't no free dog training like your own. After all if you and your dog want to enjoy life together why not work on this together right from the word go.

Oops! Did I say "go". "Sit", and read on...

Yes, dog training is a two-way street. Your dog has to take its cues from you as to what's "good" or "bad". If you are confused or inconsistent you'll both pay for that. So, owner training is important too.

Here are some commensense dog training tips:

* Did you realise it's natural for your dog to obey your command in one setting and not necessarily in another?

* Did you realise that pups are often allowed, even encouraged to jump up, chase and bite trouser cuffs because it's so much fun and later this same behavior is not wanted?

* Use the same command words for the desired behavior every time! You may may believe your dog is an Einstein but even he believed in elegant simplicity.

* Stop your dog from jumping up by putting your open hand in front of its face every time or use your knee if a bigger dog. Then say "sit" and physically sit it down if it does not obey.

* And, of course tire out your dog with exercise. She will reward you with better behavior.

A simple and consistent approach can prevent future problems. It's not rocket science but you do need to know what you're doing. Options are joining dog training classes, getting a dog trainer to come to you, or read dog training books if you don't already know how to train your dog. And, let's face it, you would not be reading these tips if you're confident that you do.

Yes, some dogs drive you crazy but never forget that the reverse can be true too. Among the best of dog training tips is always the advice that dog training is not just for the dog!