If your pet becomes tense whenever others approach items he considers valuable, it is a sign that he is inclined to guard his resources. For example, he might stiffen his body when another animal approaches his favorite toy. This is normal behavior among dogs. In the wild, their survival is dependent on preventing other animals from taking food and other supplies. Within a pack, the entire family will gather to protect their resources from would-be marauders.

Between two canines, confrontations rarely escalate over toys, food, and other items. The animal that “owns” the resources will send a clear signal to the other. This might include curling his lip to show his teeth, making is body rigid, and even snarling at the other animal. The normal outcome is for the second pet to simply walk away, giving the first one a wide berth.

Even though resource guarding is normal behavior among dogs, it can lead to problems when it is directed toward people. We’ll describe how this occurs, and offer several tips for curbing the habit. We’ll also provide suggestions for preventing it in the first place.

When The Behavior Is Aimed At People

This commonly happens with food. When a dog receives his meal, he may feel the need to protect it from others while he eats. When his owner approaches him during a meal, he may stiffen, and begin to growl. If his owner comes nearer, the animal may growl more loudly, and even snarl.

Most people will simply back off, and allow their pets to finish their meals in privacy. While this will prevent a confrontation, it poses a problem. If someone visits the home of a resource-guarding canine, and fails to realize the animal is disposed to protecting his food, the visitor may inadvertently trigger an aggressive response. This is especially problematic when young children are involved since they often lack experience with dogs.

If you notice your pet guarding his resources from people, take steps to eliminate the behavior. The cost of ignoring it may involve injuries.

Tips For Shaping The Problem Behavior

Addressing this issue involves desensitization training and counterconditioning. Your goal is twofold. First, you want to help your canine become less sensitive about the presence of others near his toys, meals, and other belongings. Second, you want to teach him that having people near can lead to things he enjoys, rather than losing control of his resources. Here are a few ways to achieve both goals.

Take note of the distance at which your dog starts to stiffen (for example, seven feet). Over time, gradually move closer to him, starting at six and a half feet, and then six feet, five and a half, and so on. This desensitizes him to your presence. He may be uneasy at first, but will slowly become tolerant.

Each time you approach your dog, give him a treat. This teaches him that your presence while he eats or plays with his favorite toy can mean something good for him. As he gains more comfort, begin removing the item he values while providing the treat. Then, return his resource. This is part of desensitizing him to having you near.

Eventually, start to remove items of which he is particularly fond, and give him limited access to them. Doing so trains your canine that you control all of his resources. This is similar to the leader of a dog pack. The leader decides who has access to the pack’s resources, and all other canines must concede to his authority.

Preventing The Problem From Surfacing

The best way to curb resource guarding is to ensure it never materializes in the first place. This is relatively simple to do with puppies since they are so trusting. First, help your puppy associate your presence with meals. That is, he needs to learn that you provide the meals, and thus control the resources. When you approach him with his meals, consider feeding him by hand. This strengthens the notion in his mind.

Second, your puppy needs to associate your presence with other things he enjoys. For example, if he is already eating a meal, give him a treat, or place an extra spoonful of food into his bowl. He’ll eventually look forward to your visits, even during his meals.

Resource guarding can be dangerous depending on the level of aggression in your canine. Resist the temptation to simply ignore the behavior. Instead, devote time to curbing it before you, your family, or visitors are bitten.

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Dogs use their mouths to learn about their world. This begins from the moment they are born, and continues throughout their lives. The problem is, over time, the behavior can evolve into an expression of aggressiveness. While a puppy rarely uses his mouth aggressively, an adult dog does so naturally, often without his owner realizing it. It is important to curb the behavior before this occurs.

We’ll take a closer look at the issue of canine mouthing and nipping below. We’ll explain how the habit develops during the puppy stages, and when you should take steps to discourage it. We’ll also provide a few suggestions for accomplishing the latter.

How Mouthing Evolves In A Puppy

Mouthing and nipping in puppies evolve as a result of training from their mothers, and socialization among their littermates. As a puppy reaches four or five weeks, his mother will have already taken steps to wean him off nursing. Meanwhile, as he plays with his littermates, he learns how far he can mouth and nip without crossing a line.

If a pup hurts one of his littermates by nipping him too aggressively, the littermate will provide feedback. He does so by yelping and immediately stopping play. This helps the offending pup to understand that his mouth can cause pain to others, an important step toward learning how to get along.

Many puppies are adopted near their eighth week. They are separated from their mothers and littermates, which severs this channel of feedback and socialization. If a pup’s new owner diligently continues socialization training, the animal’s habit of mouthing and nipping will remain easily controlled. Unfortunately, many owners neglect to spend the time. They ignore the behavior, allowing it to grow more pronounced.

Avoid Discouraging The Behavior Too Soon

During the early stages of a pup’s development, it is unnecessary to completely curb the habit of mouthing and nipping. In fact, many professional trainers suggest owners should allow a small amount of both. The reason is because puppies are still learning to identify boundaries. If they are forced to stop the habit at too early an age, they will lose the opportunity to do so based on feedback.

Taking Steps To Shape The Habit

When your puppy’s nipping becomes too frequent or painful due to his teeth, provide the feedback he needs. Do so in the same manner as his littermates. For example, if he bites your finger while playing, pull it away from him and exclaim, “Ow!” Stop play immediately. This reminds your pup that overly-zealous nipping can hurt people like it once hurt his littermates. The feedback mechanism is the same.

If you continue to do this, your puppy will eventually abandon the habit. By the time he becomes an adult dog, he’ll avoid mouthing and nipping people or animals.

But what if you neglect to discourage the behavior until your pet is fully grown? By that point, he might constantly grab your hands and arms whenever he wants your attention. Even worse, he may attempt to do so whenever friends and family visit your home. This can be frustrating for everyone involved.

First, resist the temptation to punish your canine for the behavior. The reason he mouths and nips is because he has never learned that doing so is unacceptable. He is doing what comes naturally to him.

Second, make it clear that you control his resources (e.g. food, toys, etc.), and that he must work to earn them. This positions you as the leader. He is to comply with your wishes if he wants access to his valued resources.

Third, begin to use treats to reward your dog when he lets go of your hands and arms. If he grabs you with his mouth, stop immediately. Don’t speak or stare; simply wait. Eventually, your canine will release you. Give him a treat when he does.

Training an adult dog to avoid mouthing and nipping requires patience. But unless you take the time to establish clear boundaries with your pet, he will lack the opportunity to learn them.

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Even though dogs routinely bark, whine, howl, and growl, vocalization is not their main method of communication. Their gestures are more telling. They reveal what a canine is feeling and his attitude toward his immediate environment. They can also be used to anticipate his actions, and thus avoid dangerous circumstances.

Given the importance of a dog’s gestures and the information they convey, it’s worth learning to understand them. Below, we’ll describe the most common, and explain what they communicate. You’ll learn how to tell when your pet is feeling playful, stressed, threatened, submissive, or aggressive.

Bared Teeth

When a canine bares his teeth, he does so to communicate, not attack (though an attack may follow). He is warning another animal or person to stay away. A number of situations may trigger this reaction. The animal may be guarding food; he may be fearful, and lack a means of escape; or, he might be warning potential intruders to stay off his territory.

Don’t approach a dog that is baring his teeth. Instead, back away slowly. If your pet is showing his teeth to you or your family, enlist the help of an experienced trainer.

Yawning

A yawning canine is not sleepy. He is trying to send a specific message. In most cases, yawning is a means of communicating conciliation. The animal uses it to calm another animal or person when he feels stressed or frightened, and does not wish to confront the object of his fear.

For example, if a large dog approaches another canine, the latter animal might yawn to inform the former that he feels threatened. Rather than fighting, the yawn is meant to calm the situation and avoid a confrontation.

Play Bow

Most people can recognize this gesture. The dog brings his chest to the ground while his hindquarters are raised in the air. His front legs and paws are spread out in front of him. This is a gesture that is meant to encourage other canines to play. It also informs other animals that the dog feels no aggression or fear. He simply wants to interact.

When two canines meet for the first time, and agree to play together, there may be a few bumps along the way. One may play too roughly, causing the other to react with a bark. If neither animal is willing to back down, a confrontation may occur. Otherwise, they might resume their play, or simply stop.

Whale Eye

This is a gesture that displays the white portion of the dog’s eyes. You can observe it when the animal looks slightly sideways at something or someone. It is a method of communicating a sense of unease or anxiety.

While whale eye appears harmless, it can be a precursor to an aggressive response. The canine feels nervous, and thus is more likely to attack when provoked. Many people make the mistake of approaching an animal when they observe this gesture. Doing so is dangerous.

Lip Licking

When a dog licks his lips, he either does so due to the thought of food, or to send an entirely unrelated message. In the latter case, the gesture has essentially the same purpose as yawning: to calm another animal or person. The canine feels threatened, and wants to appease the animal or person he considers to be a threat.

It’s important to highlight that lip licking, while a form of conciliation, can eventually lead to an aggressive response. The reason is because the animal feels threatened. This makes him more likely to react aggressively if he feels he must defend himself.

Wagging Tail

Most people believe a wagging tail communicates happiness or playfulness. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Much depends on the manner in which the dog is holding his body while wagging his tail. For example, if the animal’s body is stiff, he is letting you know that he feels anxious about something. If you reach toward him to pet him, he may attempt to bite you.

Canine gestures offer a window into a dog’s mind. Learn to recognize the gestures above, and understand what each communicates.

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Finding some urine or dog poop on your favorite carpet can definitely be annoying. Your cute and cuddly little dog now seems gross and you don’t really feel like giving him a pat when he comes near, but rather a swift flying kick!

Don’t feel guilty: It’s tough to love a puppy that uses your entire house as its bathroom.

Don’t worry, puppies can be taught to urinate or defacate at certain times and in certain places that you prefer. Housetraining can be done in simple steps and any puppy can be trained.

Buy a crate first.

Putting your puppy in a crate will train him to control his bladder and bowel. He will always want to keep his area free of feces and urine and this is an essential part of housetraining. Using a crate makes the process of housetraining more comfortable for your puppy, compared to usina boulder or sea shells like what they did a long time ago.

You puppy will also use the crate as a place to sleep and relax. Try it, YOU might even enjoy it more than your bed. Don’t try to do housetrining without a crate as it is much easier to have one.

When you can’t look after your puppy, be sure to use a baby gate. It keeps him from having accidents and you can also use it when you have your own baby.

Assign a potty spot.

Go around your property and choose the best spot for potty training. This will be where you will teach your dog to poop or pee all the time. Don’t make it too far, it has to be easily accessible to you and your pup. Find an area that you can clean easily because your pupy will not like a dirty potty.

Because you are on your own property, your puppy is better protected from diseases such as distemper and canine parvovirus. An infected dog’s vomit or bodily waste are carriers of the said diseases.

Because other dogs – except those that already live with you – aren’t likely to eliminate in your yard, your puppy won’t come in contact with those potentially disease-transmitting agents. If your neighbor’s dogs do eliminate in your yard, you can strongly complain to your neighbor and have steps taken to stop that behavior. If your neighbor himself is eliminating in your yard, then you should call the police and possibly the insane asylum.

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Dogs have long been man’s best friend, but without adequate dog training they can quickly turn into man’s worst nightmare. An inadequately trained canine can present a host of problems that sometimes causes him to be more trouble than he is worth. Fortunately, a well-trained animal can be a constant source of joy in any home. When that instruction is received in a school that specializes in producing well-trained dogs, those dogs’ owners can rest assured that their animals’ behavior will meet their lofty expectations.

Training by the owner

One of the first options chosen by large numbers of pet owners is teaching the animal in the home. This type of education is effective for teaching an animal to come when it is called, sit on command, and many other simple “tricks”. While this method works for many of the most basic types of instructional commands, most experts recognize that there are some essential disadvantages to the approach.

Nevertheless, there are some things that this type of informal schooling seldom teaches. Without a third party providing training, many dogs end up with gaps in their understanding. These gaps are among the most common sources for bad behavior from canines, and can be more adequately corrected by expert trainers in a professional educational environment.

Determining the boss

Most people instinctively recognize that it is they who should have the preeminent role in the human-canine relationship. Despite that recognition, many dogs are reluctant to immediately place themselves in an inferior position to their human master. They battle for that dominant role through a combination of stubborn reluctance to obey, attempts to elicit sympathy, and other forms of manipulation.

School settings are ideal for teaching the animal to identify that his master is the boss in these relationships. Most trainers are adept at making animals understand that they are subordinate, which can help to dramatically decrease the pet’s propensity for manipulative behavior. Establishing this hierarchy is the first and most critical benefit that professional trainers can provide.

Staying the course

People who train their own dogs are simply ill-equipped in most instances to maintain the type of disciplined structure necessary to properly educate the animals. Too often, instruction is erratic, sessions are skipped due to schedule conflicts, or the owner simply gives in to his animal’s refusals. This can lead to altered expectations, which can result in confusion in the canine mind. With expert trainers, a firm regimen of training is always maintained so that the animal can better learn what his behavior should be.

In the best interests of the dogs

Canine trainers understand that these animals need to have the security that properly established boundaries provide. In many respects, dogs are like small children in that both groups benefit from well-established expectations. Where there is this firmly set standard of behavior, dogs can flourish. Where it is absent, they often flounder in confusion and experience undue stress.

Though a formal period of instruction obviously costs more than self-training at home, it is far less expensive than dealing with many of the most common behavioral problems that can arise when dogs are not properly trained. As a result, most families that make the investment necessary to provide proper dog training for their beloved family pets find that the cost is more than justified.

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Dog training eBooks can be of great help if you are having problems with your pet and you don’t have the time or energy to go through dog training schools to have it correct its misbehaving ways. EBooks can help in giving you good information to better understand your pet.

Dog training eBooks provides crash course training that you can do at home and at the palm of your hands. If you have gripes about carrying around a self-help book on pets while your go anywhere with your dog, an eBook keeps everything compact so that you stay light on your hands while you teach your pets some new tricks from the book itself.

EBooks about dog training are usually small-sized and easily reachable information that you can easily bring out with the touch of a hand. Since this is the ripe age of cell phones and pocket-sized PCs, we can now reach and store more information than we have had before. Accessing a book that would otherwise leave you encumbered inside your tiny cell phone is a breakthrough for our time – if you ever wanted to teach your pet to do a certain command or take care of its misbehaving ways, you can just pull out your pocket pc or cell phone to access the information.

EBooks about dog training are easily accessible information that you can download off the net and put into a memory card or similar device for you to access later. Accessing a book that would take up some time reaching for and flipping through pages, eBooks can do better if your reader has a search query to look for the information faster. You can just pull out your cell phone to get a hold of the information that you need.

Dog training eBooks keep their information relatively shortened but direct to the point. Most dog training eBooks out there express their points as simple as possible so they can reach more readers and have them understand the important points using simplified English.

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It is important to impart good behavior on puppy while they’re young. You don’t want your puppy growing up to be a full size dog that will jump up on people, pull at their clothes, and nip them – since you spoiled it at a young age to get attention that way, do you? Of course you don’t.

If you want your puppy to behave properly and it’s doing it right now, do not even acknowledge that your puppy is in the same room. Do not make eye contact. Do not say a word to your puppy, no matter what. Over time, your puppy will give up its misbehaving and sit instead of troubling you further.

If you want your puppy to behave properly, you should know when to reward it and shower you with attention. If it’s calm and you command it to sit for example, and it does it – praise it and reward it if you have to. During this stage puppies respond more to being rewarded than being punished.

Puppies who don’t behave should be punished accordingly. But it’s not what to think, it’s not about physically harming your puppy or being angry at it. There’s a simpler way – ignore it. Remember, puppies thrive on your attention. So whatever you do, pretend it isn’t there when it’s misbehaving. This will give it the idea that the way its acting is wrong and will proceed to correct itself.

The only way for a puppy to behave properly is for you to be clear that you are its master. Establish your place as the alpha and it is your follower, that way it has a good enough reason to behave around you. If you have well behaved puppy on your hands, then there is no reason to be worried.

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When an individual owns a bigger dog, they can find that it’s very hard to locate the ideal collar for them. That is the time they need to know what to look at in a large dog collar to find the most effective one for their pet. Then they can locate the proper collar and purchase it knowing that it is the appropriate one for their dog and that he’ll have the ability to enjoy going out with his owners without being uncomfortable.

One issue to consider is whether the collar is adjustable or not. When the collar can be adjusted, then a person has to see exactly how easy it really is to adjust. But they in addition need to make certain the dog can’t change it when they are going for a walk by slipping it over their head. If they can do that, then your dog could quickly slide out of the collar.

An additional issue to take into account is the material that the collar is made from. By taking this into consideration you will be able to decide if it really is sturdy enough to hold back your dog. Bigger dogs have a substantial amount of strength, and so it is vital to get them a sturdy collar.

Another thing to take into consideration is the thickness of the collar. The actual thickness of the large dog collar is important to make sure that it is not easily damaged by the dog. If the collar is much too thin the dog could break the material after which the owner would end up chasing after the dog rather than calmly walking it.

In addition, you must look at the sturdiness of the collar. This really is an important consideration to make simply because you want a collar which will be comfortable for your dog and last for many years. You do not want a collar that is going to fray quickly within a couple of months. That will deteriorate the collar and make it quite a bit easier for the dog to damage it and get loose.

Locating the most effective large dog collar is often difficult. However, when you use the above mentioned suggestions, you will have no difficulty finding a good one which will work effectively for your dog for several years. Comfort, durability, thickness, and adjustability are all significant considerations to make when you are shopping for your dog’s collar. Luckily, there are various internet and offline merchants who stock a broad assortment of excellent collars that are not just well made, but come in many great colors as well.

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Pet owners really love their dogs. Canines with a happy temperament and warm personality are definitely the favorites of families and get just as much love as the children themselves. Nonetheless, occasionally they could be overzealous, too protective or simply aggressive. In all such situations, they are likely to bark just far too much.

In reality, a number of dogs simply like to bark since they have the appropriate timbre for it. In all such cases, these pets will grow to be nuisances on some occasions. To help keep the dogs away from their barking mode, an anti bark collar is proving to be an effective product.

If you’d like your dog to become a civilized canine that gets plenty of praise for its behavior then you may decide to buy an anti bark collar for it. You may not have considered it but dogs who bark too much don’t just pester you but grow to be an annoying factor for your neighbors too. At times, they could even force neighbors to file municipal complaints. To prevent this kind of a scenario, it is better to make use of this measure until you are able to train your dog properly.

The anti bark collar might use ultrasonic sound to help keep the dog from barking; the instant they bark this kind of unpleasant sound penetrates their ears and disturbs them. Normally, as time passes, their inclinations get controlled to a great extent. Some of the collars also use shock therapy and send a modest electric current towards the dog every time they bark.

After they ultimately make out that the current is connected with their barking, they tend to get quiet. Some dog owners use those collars which use citronella. The citronella mist is very disturbing for a dog and every time this mist shows up the pet will get more convinced that they need to stop barking completely.

From time to time you are going to discover that your dog continues to bark even with using these collars. If this is the case, you should totally stop using them and try to get to the underlying cause of the issue. A lot of the time, you are going to discover that barking is the symptom of some more significant problem. It could be a childhood trauma or some illness or some loyal trait marked by the desire to safeguard their owners against enemies.

It is possible to get these collars from on the internet to find the best offers. Before buying them you should make sure the web sites are affiliated with the Better Business Bureau. It is also well worth reading a few of the quality testimonials and buyer reviews; these give you rare insight and first hand information about the collars.

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If the best things come in small packages, then a smaller dog will make the perfect addition to your family. These tiny innocent beings will instantly win you over with their unconditional love, regular companionship and trademark diminutive manner. In truth, small dogs make great companion dogs because they can always be by your side, carried around with ease, effortlessly scooped up into your lap, or nestled in your carry bag. Paris Hilton’s Chihuahua playing peek-a-boo out of her Lady Dior bag is a favorite and much published case in point.

Normally, canines that weigh under 22 pounds or are generally shorter than 16 inches are classified as small dogs. Needless to say, this is merely a rough estimate, and a few small dog breeds are somewhat heavier or much lighter or even taller or even tinier than this. Take as an example the Chihuahua breed. These are the tiniest of all smaller dogs weighing in at a meager six to eight pounds and standing proud at a modest six to ten inches tall.

There are actually a stupendous variety of small dog breeds that will capture your heart. Apart from the super tiny Chihuahua, there’s the lovable Pug, the silky Maltese, the Beagle with his enhanced sense of smell, the eager-to-please Boston Terrier, the frisky and impish Pomeranian, the energetic Yorkshire Terrier, the lion-faced Pekingese, the long-haired fluffy Lhasa Apso, and a whole lot more. Each one of them is just as adorable as the other, and you are going to be spoiled for choice so far as this little league goes.

Small dogs are particularly useful additions to your family. Apart from being terrific companions and adapting quickly to your household environment, in addition they make remarkable watch dogs. Which means you don’t have to feel concerned concerning your family’s protection with a small dog in your own home. They may be tiny, however the smallest whiff of danger will have them bringing the house down with their deep-throated yelps and barks.

Small dogs can typically be trained fairly readily. They are obedient dogs and have an eagerness to please their owners. Hence, following orders and paying attention to your command comes fairly easy to them.

In most cases, small dog breeds are extremely low maintenance. Many of them will not shed fur everywhere, and for this reason your house is not going to be a furry mess. In addition, these types of dogs get their fill of exercise simply by strutting about indoors. So in the event that you happen to be low on time and are not in a position to regularly take your dog out for a walk, you won’t really need to be concerned about him getting lazy or overweight.

Lastly, and most importantly, smaller dogs tend to be a great hit among kids. Their unintimidating dimensions and unbridled affection makes it much easier for little kids to befriend these small creatures. All in all, small dogs are not just the cutest and most adorable of dog breeds, but also really useful and beneficial additions to the household. There is nothing quite like a cute little doggie to complete that perfect family portrait.

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