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Tips For Dog Obedience Training

Blogged by Tamzin on Friday May 30th, 2008 at 10:41 am in Dog Obedience | 0 Comments »

Tips For Dog Obedience Training

If you keep a dog either for sporting, competing, or simply for leisure, you probably know how significant it is to have him go through dog obedience training. A pet dog that is well behaved is always pleasurable to take along because he is less likely to go wild and cause troubles to other people. You surely don’t want to tag along a dog that barks at everyone and run around therefore scaring away the crowd. If good manners are very important in your home, the same things should also be taught to your pet.

Sure enough, keeping dogs at home should provide your loved ones with enough security and not that they will cause harm on anyone. You will not also like it when your neighbors complain that your pet has ransacked their properties or worse, have bitten someone in the area. Therefore, the more that you should pay attention to having your dog trained properly.

Are you planning to train your dog by yourself? Here are the steps that you need to take note of in dog obedience training. But remember; don’t ever move to the next step when your pet has not yet mastered the previous one!

The difficulty of the commands start from the basics to the most advanced. For starters, teach your pet the easiest instructions first. These are “sit”, “stand”, “stop”, “come”, and the likes. Be sure that he is able to learn all of these before starting with a new set. Always use these commands so he will be able to remember them.

Keep in mind your dog’s genetic makeup. Some breeds have their specializations so you must concentrate on harnessing their skills and capabilities.

Take note of the duration of time when teaching a new command. Don’t bombard your dog with several commands all at the same time. Also make sure that you use the praise or reward and punishment method. Your voice should likewise sound positive when giving praises and be unyielding when there is a need to reprimand him.

Ensure that your dog is physically comfortable as the training exercises are performed. Dogs get tired easily so don’t strain him that much.

Execute the dog obedience training sessions in a distraction-free area. As the response turns positive, gradually add more distractions like bouncing balls, doing the jumping jack, running around, throwing treats to him, and many others. But don’t overdo the use of distractions as it may frighten your pet.

Practice giving commands in a variety of surfaces. Some of these include the cement sidewalks, on sand, on dirt, on the grass-covered lawns, on a chair or table, low wall, logs, and many others.

Give commands while you are walking down the street, while you are in the pet supply outlet, or wherever you may be with your dog.

There is actually no best time of the day to administer the dog obedience training sessions. What matters is that both you and your dog should be up to it, in the mood, and in good physical condition.

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Dog Obedience On Come Or Recall Command

Blogged by Tamzin on Saturday May 24th, 2008 at 6:21 pm in Dog Obedience | 0 Comments »

Dog Obedience On Come Or Recall Command

The arrival of a young dog is always an exciting moment for everyone in the family. Kids and adults alike take turns in playing and adoring him. The puppy is always fun to touch and play with and has the tendency to be the center of attention in the household. You have to realize though that his arrival means you have a lot of things to attend to.

At the same time, he has a lot of new things to learn in line with his behavior and following orders. Do you want your dog to be responsive when you call on him? Well, unfortunately, some dogs fall short on this. To make a change, be sure to have your pet properly trained on this. Dog obedience training educates your dog to respond to the come or recall command given to him.

The Significance of the Come or Recall Command

Among the dog obedience commands, the come or recall order is said to be the most basic yet most important. This has to be done while the dog is still young. When your pet is able to respond well when you execute this command, you can be sure that he can use it to steer himself away from danger or any kind of trouble.

The come or recall command is greatly associated with the safety reasons. First and foremost, you may be able to grant your dog more freedom without fear that he will get himself into troubles. Even if you lose sight of him you are confident that he will come back as you call on him.

The Training Itself

The main goal that you should achieve for this dog obedience come or recall command is to easily get your dog’s response. He should come around during your first two calls. His listening skills should therefore be sharpened so he will respond wherever he may be and whatever it is that he is busy with.

Undoubtedly, the process is a bit hard. A responsive dog is not that easy to achieve. Dogs are not as mature as other human beings so the training will include a lot of work on your part. There are even dog breeds that love to be chased after. Thus, you should be familiar with the right technique that you should apply depending on how your dog’s natural instincts work.

The real secret to this is to start the obedience training as early as possible and reinforce your command all the time.

The General Rules to Observe

To make things a lot manageable, here are some quick tips for you.

Your dog may not respond at once but never punish him when he comes. It will give him the impression that the same thing will always happen and it will be twice the challenge to call on him.

Don’t unleash him in public especially if he has not perfected responding to your command.

Exude a positive voice when saying the command. Your dog has to associate his coming to you with a positive thing.

The environment where you are in must reflect safety because your dog will not definitely come to you when he feels threatened.

Don’t confuse him with other commands when he has not yet mastered the first one.

So, there you go with the important insights that will keep things manageable as you do the dog obedience training on come or recall command.

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Significant Information About Dog Obedience Training

Blogged by Tamzin on Sunday May 18th, 2008 at 6:07 pm in Dog Obedience | 0 Comments »

Significant Information About Dog Obedience Training

A dog is one of the most amazing pets to have. Actually, it’s even considered as man’s best friend. Owning one has a lot of benefits. It does not only help guard one’s house but also makes a great companion. Even those couples that don’t have a child yet consider having a dog as their companion for the time being. A dog is just like a human being, and sometimes even better. It offers affection, enjoyment, and so much fun.

But since a dog is still an animal, most of the time it will still act like an animal, unless the owner allows it to have a dog obedience training of some sort. Now, if you happen to have a dog, are you also considering about getting it trained? If you are, this article will give you significant information about dog obedience training.

First off, you might wonder what dog obedience training is and what it is all about. Well, it is a technique on which a dog trainer helps you train your dog by imposing yourself as its boss. Actually sometimes, you can even do the training yourself, as long as you have the knowledge about the basic dog commands. But to be certain about getting effective results, you can always rely on a dog trainer to assist you on this.

Moving on, there are several dog obedience training techniques that can be used to make your pet a well-behaved one. These include the collar or leash training and the reward training. Although the approaches of these two are different, both are bound to set a common language on which you and your pet will understand.

The collar or leash dog obedience training is said to be the harder technique. Because of this, it is less popular to dog owners these days. However, for some breeds of dogs, this is found to be more effective than the rewarding type of training. As its name implies, a collar or leash serves as the way to communicate to a dog in the collar or leash dog obedience training. To have control over your pet, the collar or leash technique have multiple degrees, which can be from soft pulls of the leash or collar to stronger ones. This way, you are able to show your pet that you are the one handling the situation and that you are the leader.

Meanwhile, on the reward dog obedience training, instead of using leash or collar, reward is used to teach a few common commands to your dog. Once your pet is able to follow what you are trying to command it to do, you give reward such as a treat. However, a reward does not necessarily consist of treats alone. You can also use verbal praises like “Good boy, or good dog!” if it follows your command and behaves accordingly.

Now, upon learning about this dog obedience training information, are you all set to sign up for a dog obedience class? Remember, you will not be doing this for your pet alone, but also for you as its owner. So make sure that you choose the right dog obedience training technique for you and your pet.

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Dog Obedience Training Exercises: Developing A Well-Trained Dog

Blogged by Tamzin on Tuesday May 13th, 2008 at 8:31 am in Dog Obedience | 0 Comments »

Dog Obedience Training Exercises: Developing A Well-Trained Dog

Have you seen the movie “Marley and Me”? If you have, then you’ve seen how annoying Marley can be. He’s the type of dog that any dog trainer will not be too happy to meet. He pees everywhere, chews on the living room set, and jumps on people. Actually, his owner, portrayed by Owen Wilson, even brought him to a dog training class to turn him into a well-trained dog. Unfortunately, the dog trainer easily gave up on him because he was the worst dog she had ever seen. He made a total chaos in the class, so he was not allowed to finish the course. That was kind of frustrating on the part of his owners. Now, if you have a dog like Marley, what will you do? Why not try these dog obedience training exercises to develop a well-trained dog?

Sit

You have to note that your dog must always sit at your left side with his shoulder at your left knee. To make him obey the sit command, you have to first fold the leash in your right hand. Then, call your dog’s name and command sit. Push down on his hindquarters using your left hand and jerk up on the leash with your hand. When he does the sitting position right, praise him and give him a treat.

Heeling on Leash

When walking your dog, his right shoulder should be about even with your left knee. Once the leash turns loose, simply call out your dog’s name and give the heel command. Walk forward as soon as you can and then give a hard jerk on the leash. Do not drag your dog when you do this. Once you jerked him into position, praise him with words like “Good boy!”

About Turn

When you turn away from your dog, do it to your right to reverse your direction. And as you do it, make sure that you keep your eyes on your dog and then give several short and quick jerks.

Stay

To make your dog stay where he is, command him to be in a sitting position. Afterwards, hold up your hand with the flat of your palm facing him, then tell him to stay. If he does, again give him praise but if not, put him back in position and start again.

Down

Just like in the stay command, you can make your dog obey the down command by putting him in a sitting position first. With him sitting, give the down command, then slowly push on his shoulders and wobble him off balance at the same time. But there’s another way to do this. You can also place the leash between your sole and shoe heel. Then, give the down command and pull up on the leash.

So these are just some of the dog obedience training exercises that you can do to develop a well-trained dog. At first, they may seem difficult. But once you tried them and see effective results, you will realize how rewarding these dog obedience exercises could be not only for your dog but also for you.

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How To Groom Long Haired Chihuahuas

Blogged by Tamzin on Tuesday May 6th, 2008 at 5:49 pm in Chihuahua | 0 Comments »

How To Groom Long Haired Chihuahuas

There are two breeds of Chihuahuas. Long haired Chihuahuas are recognized in the United States as a separate category from their short haired cousins. You should know, however, that both of these kinds of dogs are considered the same in both Canadian and British kennel clubs.

You should know that long haired Chihuahuas need more grooming than their short haired companions, but they still are not difficult to manage. They shed much less than you would imagine.

Long haired Chihuahuas have soft, fine guard hairs. These are smoother to touch than short haired dogs. While he short haired Chihuahuas don?t require much grooming, longer haired ones should be brushed once a day.

It can take 2 years for a long haired Chihuahua to develop its full coat. During this time, you should prepare your house to collect the hair when they do shed. Most importantly, you should keep your house clean and clutter free. This is especially important if you have people in the house that are either sensitive to dog hair, or who have breathing ailments like asthma. It is also a good idea to purchase a small vacuum cleaner to use near the dog?s hang out in the house.

it is a good idea to buy a small pair of scissors because long haired Chihuahuas are known for their irregular grooming. They can shed at different times. For owners, who want to keep their dogs looking good, hand a small pair of relatively sharp trimming scissors can do the trick.

These long haired Chihuahuas also can get a lot of lice in their coats. A good anti lice soap or shampoo is essential. Getting rid of lice keeps the dogs happy and healthy, and stops them scratching all over the place. This stops them from damaging their coats and scratching themselves. It also stops lice from getting all over the furniture, which is be a nasty byproduct of the long haired Chihuahuas? shiny fur coat.

You don’t need a lot of special products to keep long haired Chihuahuas groomed well. Shampoo and a good comb will do. Also, get an anti lice and mite comb, which can help scrape away excess dry skin which prevents lice. Taking care of long haired Chihuahuas is actually quite easy compared with other kinds of dogs. Their long fur coats are not the longest in the dog world, even though they are longer than the short haired variety.

Because Chihuahuas are small (under 6 pounds), they can be groomed pretty easily and quickly, so it doesn’t take up much of your time. A veterinarian can give you some more tips to groom long haired Chihuahua puppies.

Grooming Chihuahuas is important for their overall health as well as for the safety and comfort of your home. In addition, it is not difficult. In fact, long haired Chihuahuas are some of the easiest dogs to take care of in terms of grooming. Just remember that they need to be brushed daily and shampooed every couple of weeks. Take care of any lice problems immediately.

And that is how to take care of long haired Chihuahuas.

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