Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Proper Discipline for Effective Puppy Training

June 7, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

The idea of punishing when puppy training makes no more sense than the idea of punishing an infant child.

Have you ever heard of anyone spanking a baby?  The only thing that would do is make the baby cry, and make the adult feel badly.  A small baby won’t learn from punishment, and puppies are no different.

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Just like everything you do with a small baby is designed to let it feel loved, protected and close to you, the way your treat a new puppy can affect the way that dog views you for entire relationship.

If you choose to punish a puppy, the most you will do is scare it and make it wary of you.  If you smack a puppy, even lightly, all it knows is the pain of the strike and the fear it feels at that moment toward you.

It doesn’t learn that it was doing something wrong because it’s too young to understand that concept.

If your puppy is chewing on something for instance, and you punish it with even a light tap, of course it will probably stop what it’s doing.

It’s surprised and possibly feels pain from the smack, and now feels very frightened of you.

It doesn’t link the punishment with what it was doing, though, and has no way of predicting when it might be punished next.

Shouting when puppy training can also do damage to your relationship.  If you startle the puppy with a shout, of course it might stop what it’s doing. But again, the puppy doesn’t understand the relationship between its actions and your shouting.  Even the angry tone of your voice can cause your puppy to be afraid for a moment.

If you use these punishments on a puppy, the puppy will learn to be afraid of you, or at the very least it will learn that you can be mean.

The puppy might not trust you, because it doesn’t understand why you frighten it. This can keep the puppy from every really warming up to you, and you’ll be unable to have a good relationship as the puppy grows.

Some dogs are very passive, and will respond to you in a very defeated way.  Your dog might stay in line all the time, solely out of fear, but it won’t ever trust you.

Other dogs have a more stubborn streak, and because they feel threatened by you may attempt to dislodge you as the one in charge.  Dogs are pack animals, and if your dog thinks it should be the leader, you might be in for many behavioral problems big and small.

At the very least, you won’t have as good a relationship with your dog as you could have.

Just as you would do with a very small child, use gentle correction when your puppy does something he shouldn’t do.

Use gentle movements when puppy training and a kind but firm tone of voice, so that your dog understands to stop without becoming frightened.

Filed Under: Puppy Training Tagged With: Adult, Baby Cry, Chet, Discipline Training, Fear, Free Dog Training, Free Video, Good Relationship, New Puppy, Proper Discipline, Punishments, Puppies, Puppy Dogs, Puppy Training, Relationship, Shout, Small Baby, Tap, Tone Of Your Voice, Training Video

Basic Puppy Training Techniques

June 6, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

There are a number of important guidelines that you need to keep in mind when puppy training the basics about good behavior.

Exercising the right training techniques is what will make or break your training regimen with your dog. Follow these five important guidelines and teaching your puppy will be easier than ever.

1 – Be Gentle – Your new puppy is going to be extremely sensitive at first, and as a result will not be able to handle anything that is too stressful on both an emotional and a physical level. Although learning generally quickly takes place, now is the time where your puppy will react poorly to stress or being trained too rough.If fears are picked up too easily during the training process, then it may inhibit the puppy’s ability to learn, so make sure to be gentle but firm in your training.

2 – Keep Things Brief – Puppies have even shorter attention spans than children. Your puppy is only going to learn when his or her attention is on you, and you will not see the results that you are looking for when your puppy is tired physically or mentally. Make sure to be brief when putting your puppy through training activities, and then you can move on.

3 – Exercise Patience – Expecting overnight results is only going to frustrate you and cause your training regimen to lose its focus. Relax, and understand that things like this will take time, and puppies learn in spurts. Puppies also do go through brief memory lapses so do not allow yourself to become overwhelmed if your puppy seems to forget some of its training from one day to the next. Exercise patience when it comes to training and you will be just fine.

4 – Exercise Simplicity – Teaching your puppy should be done in a step by step process if you want to attain the best results. This is the best way that your puppy will learn. Exercise a simple, step by step approach and your puppy will learn more quickly and will enjoy the process more thoroughly than if you were to employ a more intensive training regimen.

5 – Build Confidence – Confidence is the core of every healthy adult dog, and confidence begins with building confidence in a young puppy. Building confidence in your puppy is not hard at all to do; all you need to do is spend positive time with your puppy as often as you possibly can. This will help to build self confidence in your puppy. You should not always be in training mode when you first get your puppy, but instead sometimes you should step back and play with your dog, having fun with him or her in the process. Training is important, but above all else your dog needs to know that you are friends.

These five fundamental training foundations are vital in preparing your puppy for an effective training regimen and will drive better results when properly integrated into your step by step puppy training process.

Filed Under: Puppy Training Tagged With: Attention Spans, Break, Exercise Patience, Fears, Good Behavior, Intensive Training, Memory Lapses, New Puppy, Overnight Results, Puppies, Puppy Training, Simplicity, Spurts, Step Approach, Stress, Training Day, Training Regimen

2 Items To Insist From Your Breeder When Buying A Puppy

May 14, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

1. Written Guarantee: Good breeders provide written guarantees against genetic disease. It is essential to get a guarantee on the hips and eyes of your pup, given the epidemics of hip dysplasia and various forms of progressive blindness among the nation’s dogs. The guarantee entitles you to a refund of the price of the puppy or a replacement puppy should there be a problem. The guarantee should also allow you to take your new puppy to your own vet within a certain period of time in order to have its good health independently confirmed before the sale is considered final.

Beyond the guarantee of your pup, you want to see copies of the Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) certificate on the hips of both parents, plus the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (GERF) certificate on the eyes of both parents. Do not take the breeder’s word that the parent animals are so registered. Good breeders will not be troubled by your request.

However, you must be prepared to run into the occasional breeder whom will not want to comply with your request. You are almost sure to run into “prominent” breeders who don’t believe in having their dogs’ hips and eyes checked, even if they are from seriously afflicted breeds.

Both in a personal quest for a dog and in researching this information I had this experience again and again. For instance, there is a dog breed about which Michele Lowell says in Your Purebred Puppy: A Buyer’s Guide, “He is susceptible to hip dysplasia and serious tumors.” She urges: “Buy only from OFA-registered parents.” A leading breeder of this breed, a person who sits on the national club’s breed standard committee, told me she didn’t have her animals OFA-certified because “I’ve never had any hip problems. If I ever start, I’ll have my dogs checked.” Even in the midst of a plague of canine hereditary disease, this ton-of-cure-is-worth-an-ounce-of-prevention attitude is still common. Be ready to decide for yourself if you find it acceptable.

2. Restricted Transfers: Responsible breeders are answering the distress call of America’s dogs by trying to minimize inappropriate breeding. One way to do this is with “restricted transfers.” These can involve a contract between the new owner and the breeder stipulating that the dog will not be bred until it is old enough to be tested for inherited disease and has been certified disease free. Some restricted transfers require that the animal be spayed or neutered at six months of age, with AKC papers not passing to the purchaser until this is done. You may not be interested in acquiring a pet under such conditions, but you can be sure that breeders imposing them are deeply committed to improving the quality of their breed.

Filed Under: Dog Information Tagged With: Buying A Puppy, Canine Eye Registration, Canine Eye Registration Foundation, Dog Breed, Eye Registration Foundation, Genetic Disease, Good Health, Hereditary Disease, Hip Dysplasia, Hips, Michele Lowell, Midst, New Puppy, Orthopedic Foundation, Ounce Of Prevention, Personal Quest, Plague, Progressive Blindness, Pup, Purebred Puppy

Housetraining Schedule: How To Housetrain Your Puppy In 7 Days Or Less

May 7, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

It is quite alright if you are a new puppy owner and feel clueless about how to initiate housetraining for your dog. Many new dog owners make the mistake of scolding and punishing their dogs when they make a mess.

I made this same mistake with my first Chihuahua. Every time she would go potty inside the house I would take her over to the messy area and scold the dog with a loud voice with the occasional tap to her rear.

Soon enough, I noticed something strange happening. My puppy was still refusing to use the bathroom where she was supposed to go, but she started pooping and urinating underneath the bed and in closet areas. I caused my puppy to be afraid of going to the bathroom!

She did not understand why I was angry all of the times before and all her little brain knew was that every time she used the bathroom, I would yell at her. I realized that she started to be fearful of going potty and was basically trying to hide it by going in places that I could not see in plain view.

The Positive Approach Always Works Best

The moral of the story here is that you must take a positive approach to housetraining and totally eliminate any negative scoldings or punishments. The best thing to do is to supply your dog with a schedule each and every day. This schedule must be adhered to without fail in order to produce the quickest results possible. Here is a sample schedule:

6:30 AM: Immediately upon waking, remove your puppy from his crate, leash him up, and take him to his potty area, wherever that may be. Allow him to focus by staying quiet as he sniffs and circles the area.

When he starts to eliminate his wastes, offer praise and start repetitively giving a potty command such as “Go Pee, Go Pee”. As soon as he is done, offer more praise and a treat if you like. Now take your puppy back to his crate.

7:30 AM: Exactly one hour later, give your dog breakfast and then take him outside to the potty area approximately 20 to 30 minutes later. Immediately return him back to his crate until the next potty break.

10:30 AM: It’s time for another potty break.

12:30 AM (Noon): Take your puppy outside to his potty area and follow the same routine. Afterwards, come inside and feed the dog lunch and then some playtime.

3:30 PM: It’s time for another potty break.

5:30 PM: Take your puppy outside for another potty break and then back inside for some dinner. You do not have place him back in the crate until the next bathroom break.

During this time at night, try to play with your puppy as much as you can. This is a good time to tire him out a bit for his nighttime sleep. But keep a close eye on his behavior in case he starts to sniff and circle an area in the house before using the bathroom. If you cannot keep a close eye on him, simply put him back in his crate.

9:00 PM: If your puppy is sleeping at this time, wake him up for one last bathroom break. Follow the same potty routine and then put him back in his crate until the next morning potty break. Start the entire routine all over again.

Filed Under: Puppy Training Tagged With: 30 Minutes, Brain, Chihuahua, Clueless, Dog Owners, Dogs, Focus, Going Potty, Going To The Bathroom, Loud Voice, Messy, Mistake, Moral Of The Story, New Puppy, Pee, Punishments, Puppy Owner, Tap

Puppy Training Made Easy

April 23, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

When you bring a new puppy into your home, it is important to begin training right away. If you wait to start, your puppy may pick up bad habits that will be hard to drop in the future. Although you may want your puppy to learn how to sit on the first day, those tricks will have to come behind potty training, biting, and chewing.

When your puppy learns the meaning of “no,” training will become much easier.

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Although it’s not necessary to physically punish your puppy, you must remember to be stern, no matter how cute your puppy is. Puppy training doesn’t always have to be unpleasant.

With the use of praise and rewards, training can be a fun bonding experience for both of you.

The first step in training your puppy is teaching him the word “no.” The sooner he begins to understand “no,” the sooner he will understand everything else.

During the first couple of weeks that your puppy is in your home, you may be tempted to make excuses for his behavior.

However, if you don’t teach him where to go to the bathroom, and certainly where not to go, he will never learn.

It is understandable that you want your puppy with you at all times, but carpet should be avoided like the plague until he has been completely housebroken.

Treats and rewards will speed up this process, puppies need motivation just like humans.

Your puppy wants to please you, so when he sees how happy you are that he didn’t potty on the floor, he will want to do it again.

As long as you are consistent with your training, he will be consistent in his understanding and progress.

You will be amazed at how sharp those little teeth are the first time your puppy uses your finger as a chew toy. Depending on how hard he bites you, it may really hurt.

This is a problem because he does not mean any harm, he’s only playing, and your first reaction is going to be anger. Many times your first reaction is to hit back, and this is never the answer.

In the same way that a child who is abused regularly, your puppy will not obey you because it makes you happy, he will obey you because you terrify him.

This is not a healthy relationship and it can be avoided by simply firmly scolding your puppy verbally as opposed to physically. The result to this technique is a mutual desire to make each other happy.

When you bring a puppy home, you may need to do a puppy version of child proofing your house. Puppies teeth just like babies do, and they will chew on anything they can get their hand on.

This includes your favorite pair of designer shoes. It is important to show your puppy that you are upset about his behavior without scaring him by throwing a hysterical fit. Introduce him to the world of chew toys that are colorful, tasty, and inexpensive.

This way, your shoes are safe, and your puppy can always find something to chew on.

He will enjoy having something that is exclusively his, and you will enjoy wearing your shoes sans holes. Puppy training can be simple and enjoyable if you are prepared for what’s to come before it happens. Your puppy is a lot like you, and he’s not trying to make you angry by biting you or chewing on your things.

He simply doesn’t know any better, and it’s your job to teach him.

This author is a HUGE fan of puppy dog training

Article Source: ArticleSpan

Filed Under: Puppy Training Tagged With: Anger, Bad Habits, Carpet, Dog Obedience, Dog Training, Furniture, Love, Motivation, New Puppy, Plague, Potty Training, Puppies, Puppy Training, Rewards, Rugs, Teeth, Train, Training Puppy, Training Your Puppy, Urinating

How To Teach Your New Puppy To Play-Bite Softly

July 6, 2009 by admin Leave a Comment

One of the first dog training protocol you will want to initiate when you get a new puppy is to teach him to inhibit the force of his play-bites. It is not necessary to reprimand the pup, and certainly physical punishments are not called for. But it is essential to let your puppy know that bites can hurt. A simple “Ouch!” is usually sufficient. When the puppy backs off, take a short time-out to “lick your wounds,” instruct your pup to come, sit, and lie down to apologize and make up. Then resume playing.

If your puppy does not respond to your yelp by easing up or backing off, an effective technique is to call the puppy a “Bully!” and then leave the room and shut the door. Allow the pup a minute or two time-out to reflect on the association between his painful bite and the immediate departure of his favorite human chew-toy. Then return to make up. It is important to show that you still love your puppy, only that his painful bites are objectionable. Have your pup come and sit and then resume playing once more.

It is much better for you to walk away from the pup than to physically restrain him or remove him to his confinement area at a time when he is biting too hard. So make a habit of playing with your puppy in his long-term confinement area. This technique is remarkably effective with lead-headed dogs, since it is precisely the way puppies learn to inhibit the force of their bites when playing with each other. If one puppy bites another too hard, the dog who gets bitten yelps and playing is postponed while he licks his wounds. The biter soon learns that hard bites interrupt an otherwise enjoyable play session. He learns to bite more softly once play resumes.

The next step is to eliminate bite pressure entirely, even though the “bites” no longer hurt. While your puppy is chewing his human chew-toy, wait for a bite that is harder than the rest and respond as if it really hurt, even though it didn’t: “Ouch – Gennntly! That really hurt me, you bully!” Your puppy begins to think, “Good heavens! These humans are soooooo sensitive. I’ll have to be really careful when mouthing their delicate skin.” And that’s precisely what you want your pup to think: that he needs to be extremely careful and gentle when playing with people.

Your pup should learn not to hurt people well before he is three months old. Ideally, by the time he is four and a half months old (before he develops strong jaws and adult canine teeth) he should no longer be exerting any pressure when mouthing.

Filed Under: Dog Information Tagged With: Biter, Bully, Confinement Area, Dog Training, Dogs, Habit, Lead, Lick, Love, New Puppy, Ouch, Protocol, Punishments, Pup, Puppies, Resume, Resumes, Short Time, Wounds, Yelp, Yelps

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