Breaking Your Dog of Bad Habits

Title: Breaking Your Dog of Bad Habits
Author: Nick Luvera

Breaking Your Dog of Bad Habits
To effectively train your dog to behave in the way you
desire, you must first train yourself to respond to your
dog in a consistent and timely manner. Discourage your
dog's bad behavior each and every time you see it occur and
use the same commands every time. Additionally, in order
for training to be effective, your commands must occur
while the dog is in the middle of a bad act - otherwise he
will not know why you are reprimanding him.

How to Stop the Barking Dog - Dogs bark when they are
bored, lonely or nervous, so a dog that gets regular
exercise and socialization will be less inclined to bark.
If you do not have the time to provide enough physical
exercise for your dog, provide him with stimulating toys
that he won't tire of easily. For instance, a hollow toy
filled with peanut butter should keep your dog entertained
for quite some time. If your dog's barking is due to
nervousness, lessen his fear by giving him treats when he
exhibits a nervous reaction to something or someone.
Lastly, an alternative option is to purchase an anti-bark
collar. Anti-bark collars typically emit an irritating
noise or a release a harmless spray to deter your dog from
barking.

How to Stop the Digging Dog - Dogs are bred with the
instinct to bury leftover food. As this is an inane trait
in all dogs it can be a tough habit to break. One way is
to try to meet your dog halfway by providing a designated
digging area in the yard. You can toss all his toys, half
buried if you wish, into that designated corner and watch
him go to work. If your dog moves off and begins digging
in an area that is off limits, correct him immediately and
take him back to his designated digging corner. You may
also want to reinforce that it is acceptable to dig in this
area by making scratching motions in the dirt using his
paws (or your own)! When he starts to dig in the
appropriate area again, praise him immediately. In order
to teach your dog that certain areas of the yard are off
limits for digging, you may want to try spreading ground
pepper around those areas of the yard as a deterrent, or
enclose your plants and flowers with garden fences or
chicken wire. As a final option, limit your dog's access
to the yard unless you are out there supervising him.
However, keep in mind that if he does not get exercise
running around the yard by himself, you will need to take
him on plenty of walks and provide supervised activities
for him.

How to Stop the Jumping Dog - Oftentimes when a dog jumps
up people immediately pet him, which reinforces that
jumping is an okay thing to do. To break your dog of this
bad habit try using the following techniques. Rather than
giving your dog attention when he jumps, ignore your dog
and withhold all attention until he stops jumping and sits
down on his own - then begin petting him and praising him.
You may also want to command him to "sit" as soon as you
see him getting ready to jump. Make sure everyone in the
house does the same in order to be consistent.

About the Author:

Cheap Puppy Pads is dedicated to the education of pet
owners and delivering quality pet products. Check out the
site to see tips for potty training your dog.
http://www.cheappuppypads.com

.

__,_._,___