How to Teach Your Puppy to Lie Down and Stay

Posted in Dog Potty Training, Dog Training, Uncategorized by

I have found that about.com has a wealth of useful dog information, including teaching your dog to lie down. Check out this link to their instructions for the basic down command http://dogs.about.com/od/basiccommands/ht/downcommand.htm

Once your puppy has learned what “lie down” means, you should practice it for longer 20 – 30 minute periods and insist that your dog “stay” in the down position until you tell him “okay” to get up. This will establish you as the pack leader to your dog. When you practice this exercise, you should sit on the floor and read or somehow quietly pass the time, staying in the same position next to your dog. This way, if he gets up, you are immediately ready to put him back in the down position, and keep him there until you are ready to tell him “okay” to get up. Eventually, when your puppy realizes that he cannot just get up without permission, he will accept you as the one in charge, which will be well worth it as you proceed with any more training beyond sit and lie down. Persistence is the key, and it may take a couple sessions a day for 3 to 4 weeks. In the end, you should rest assured that your dog will listen and obey this command in any situation.

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Does Your Dog Jump on You When it’s Chow Time?

Posted in Dog Behavior Issues, Dog Training, Uncategorized by

While using her food as incentive, chow time is typically a very good starting point for teaching the Sit/Stay command, particularly if your dog gets excited and tends to jump on you to get her food. Once you have your dog’s food ready to serve, with her dish in your hand, tell your dog to “sit” then “stay.” Once she is sitting for a few seconds, begin to lower the bowl to the ground. As soon as the dog makes any move away from the sitting position, raise the bowl up and again tell her to “sit” then ”stay.” Repeat this process until your dog will stay long enough for you to put the food dish on the floor and silently count to five, then tell her “go eat” (or some command you choose) which will always be the command you use to give your dog permission to move from the sitting position to eat. Persistence will pay off here. After following this regimen for a few meals, your dog should begin to sit/stay on her own at meal time. Once she has this down, you can proceed with other sit/stay training.

 

Keep fleas and ticks at bay

Posted in Dog Health and Habitat, Uncategorized by

Need more options for flea and tick control? There are things you can do for your puppy besides using Frontline, K9Asvantix and other chemical flea and tick products.

Start by taking a look at your current landscaping around the area your dog typically uses. Be sure to keep the area free of leaves and debris and mow lawns frequently. If you can make use of some cedar mulch or chips around the perimeter, it will help to repel both fleas and ticks according to multiple resources. Also, eucalyptus trees help to deter fleas. I can personally attest to this one, since I haven’t found a flea on any of our dogs in the eight years we’ve had eucalyptus trees in our yard. You can also try Tansy plants around the yard as another flea repellent. Keep the ground free from leaves and cleaned up under bird feeders. For additional information on tick control, check out http://www.cdc.gov/ticks/avoid/in_the_yard.html

How to Stop Your Dog’s Submissive Peeing Episodes

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Typically, this frustrating behavior occurs upon greeting your furry friend. He may squat or roll over and dribble. Many people make the mistake of scolding the dog, which really only serves to reinforce this behavior.

To curtail submissive peeing, it is important to appear as non-threatening to your dog as possible. Here are some things to try:

  • Keep greetings low key – do not encourage excitement.
  • When you first enter the room, ignore your dog. Let him come to you.
  • Do NOT make eye contact.
  • Pet him under the chin gently, not on top of the head. But do not reach for the dog – let him come to you.
  • Do NOT scold or otherwise punish the dog for submissive peeing.
  • It may also help to distract your dog from this behavior by commanding him to sit or   stay or do something he knows to do – then rewarding him with a treat when he does it.

If you are consistent in implementing these ideas, the problem should resolve.

 

5 Essential Steps To Cleaning Dog Pee

Posted in Dog Potty Training, Uncategorized by

While cleaning up is one of the less pleasant aspects of puppy housetraining, it is certainly a critical one if you hope to succeed. Many people assume they can simply wipe the puddles up with a towel and be done with it. Unfortunately that just isn’t enough in most cases.

Dog pee clean up is not rocket science, but there are a few things you should know. You should not use ammonia based cleaners, as dogs are actually attracted to those as if you never cleaned the area at all. Be sure you clean the area larger than main spot, to be sure you get any tracked pee or poop from when your dog left the area. Those little wet paw prints are often overlooked.  And, of course, all dogs are different. Some are much easier to housebreak than others.

To clean a carpeted area:

  1. Pick up poop and blot pee with paper towels or rags
  2. Sprinkle w/baking soda and let sit just a few minutes
  3. Vacuum
  4. Neutralize
  5. Repel if needed

To clean solid flooring:

  1. Pick up poop and blot pee with paper towels or rags
  2. Wipe clean using a clean mop, sponge or rags with a non-ammonia based cleaner
  3. Wipe clean AGAIN with a fresh mop, sponge or rags and fresh cleaning solution (not the bucket you rinsed the first round in.
  4. Neutralize
  5. Repel if needed

To neutralize the area, you may use a 50/50 solution of vinegar and water (spray and blot) or you may purchase a neutralizer from a pet store. You may need to repeat this step if your dog keeps going back to spots you have already neutralized. You may use a black-fluorescent light to see urine spots that you can’t see with the naked eye if you think there are old spots you have missed. Be sure to clean and neutralize all previously soiled areas you may have missed, if your dog just seems to be going pee all over the house.

If your dog still goes back to pee in that spot, you may need to add step 5 (repel) to your arsenol. You may use a pungent perfume or air freshener as a repellent. Dogs have a very keen sense of smell, and often dislike those fragrances. My Boston Terrier won’t even sit in my lap if I put my favorite fragrant lotion on my hands.  You may otherwise wish to purchase a dog repellent from a pet store.

If you diligently follow these instructions, your dog should have no reason to keep going back to those same spots to pee or poop.

House Train Your Dog the Easy Way!

Posted in Dog Training, Uncategorized by

For dogs and humans to happily coexist, it is critical that the dog is trained to potty outside, and not in the house. I have found the most effective and least frustrating way to toilet train a puppy is by using a Training Bell, and of course I recommend the one at www.gizmo2wizmo.com in conjunction with crate training. Crate training is particularly helpful when your dog is left in your home while you are away at work or school, but is useful even if you are home most of the time. More on crate training later.

So, to teach your puppy to use a potty training bell to go outside, here is what you do:

  1.  Take your dog to the door adorned with the Gizmo2wizmo Puppy Training Bell. Say to your dog “Go outside” (or whatever your phrase is – just use the same phrase every time).
  1. Before opening the door, take your dog’s paw and use it to tap the Gizmo2wizmo so that it rings.
  1. Praise your dog and open the door to let him or her outside.
  1. Repeat steps 1 through 3 at regular intervals daily and consistently until your dog uses the Gizmo2wizmo dog potty training bell on his or her own. The necessary frequency of these intervals really depends on the dog. If you are training a puppy under 6 months old, I recommend starting with every hour or so. If your puppy has no accidents between outings for at least a day, then increase the interval to 2 hours. If your puppy has no accidents between outings for at least a day, then increase the interval to 3 hours, and so on.

Remember that puppies typically cannot control their bladders for more than a few hours until they reach about 6 months of age. So, you must be present to let your dog outside when he or she needs to go potty if you wish to avoid having potty messes in your home. Some dogs are more difficult to train than others, but consistency is the key!