Pet Nutrition Supplements

For several thousands of years, dogs have enjoyed a bond with man that
no other animals have. Throughout the ages, dogs have been man’s best
friend, serving as man’s companion as well as a multitude of
functions. Despite how long man and dog have been interacting,
communication barriers still exist between the two.

Dogs have the mental capacity of a two-year old child, an obvious
barrier when it comes to man attempting to communicate with his dog; a
dog processes information differently. In addition, dogs have senses
that work differently from that of a human. For instance, a dog’s
sense of smell is unarguably much more sensitive and heightened than
man’s, and a dog responds differently to reds and greens.

Anyone who is in the business of training dogs needs to understand the
fundamental characteristics of dogs in order to curb canine
misbehavior and minimize the frustration by dog owners when
communicating with their dogs.

You do not need to be a licensed dog trainer in order to teach or be
able to communicate better with your dog. There are several basic dog
training tasks you can undertake yourself. The younger your dog is,
the earlier you should start his training. Most dog breeds can start
training as early as four weeks old. Devote at least 30 minutes
teaching your dog basic skills. One hour is recommended. Below are a
few basic dog training tips you can do.

Establishing Your Dominance

* Dogs are pack animals; they are highly social animals. Dogs
descended from wolves and as such, they follow a strict hierarchy –
there is an alpha dog, beta dog, all the way down to the omega dog.
You need to understand this hierarchical scheme early on in your dog’s
training. You want to establish your dominance of the pack; your dog
must learn to look at you as the alpha male if you want an orderly
household and to keep your sanity intact.

* Of course, establishing yourself as the alpha male may be easy or
hard depending on your dog’s breed an on your dog’s personality. You
will find that similar to humans, there are dogs that are more
assertive than other dogs. While you can use commands, leashes and
collars and other training tools, it is your attitude that will play a
huge role in your dog’s training. You need to let your dog know who is
the boss.

* Establishing dominance does not mean that you only use physical
force. There will be times when you will need to apply physical force,
but only appropriately and when necessary. You can establish dominance
by being firm and waiting for your dog to comply to your commands.

* If you have a young dog, you can start teaching him that you are the
alpha male by laying him on his back and placing your hand firmly in
the middle of your dog’s chest. When your dog lowers his paws, take
this as a sign of submission. You can further assert your dominance by
putting your face close to your dog’s face.

Restraining Your Dog

* Dogs have the natural tendency to run and play. You can control this
tendency by putting your dog on a short leash. Before and after every
training session, allow your dog some play time; let him run and play.
However, when it is time for your dog’s training session, try not to
encourage play. Establish this pattern so your dog learns that
training sessions are not play sessions.

Teaching Your Dog to Obey Commands

* Teach your dog to obey short, clear commands: sit, stay, down, come.
Do not combine commands (e.g., “sit down” or “come down”) because you
will only confuse your dog.

* Issue out your commands in a firm voice; do not issue commands
harshly, and avoid sounding angry. Make your dog understand that you
are the boss.

* Be consistent with your commands. Issue every verbal command with
the same tone and hand gesture. This helps your dog learn to
understand and follow commands easily and quickly. Keep in mind that
your dog operates at the mental capacity of a two-year old child, so
consistency is your best friend when you are training your dog.

As you spend time teaching your dog the basics, you need to have the
patience and commitment to see to it that your dog learns the things
that can help both of you become better at communicating with each
other. With patience and commitment, you can form a much closer bond
with your dog.

Technorati Tags: Dog Training