Friday, February 25, 2011

Dog Training: Precluding Bad Habits and Encouraging Better Ones

By Brad Morgan


Dogs love to dig. Whether it is to bury a bone, look for a bone, or to just see what is underneath the dirt this time, dogs enjoy digging.

While it is a natural instinct in dogs, digging can be detrimental to your yard and to your dog's discipline. How can you get your living breathing shovel to stop?

The first step in stopping your dog from digging is to determine why he is doing it in the first place. As mentioned earlier, some dogs just love it.

However, there may be other reasons including lack of attention or stimulation, storing food, or he's building a den to cool off or stay warm. Alternately, he may be attracted to freshly turned earth or the scent of fertilizer.

Knowing the reason behind the digging can help you stop the behavior. For instance, if it is due to boredom or lack of attention, you can start to offer your dog more play time with you.

If the problem persists, try one of the following:

1. Find the spots your dog usually digs and bury a balloon that has been inflated. If your dog digs, he'll pop the balloon. This unpleasant reaction to his digging can deter him from continuing.

2. When you refill the holes, add in some of your dog's own feces. The next time he digs there, he will be repelled by it. This may not be a fun way for you to teach your dog, but it is effective and humane.

3. Try burying some chicken wire just below the surface where your dog likes to dig. When your dog pits the wire with his paws, he'll hate the sensation and stop digging.

4. Spray him with a hose. Dogs hate being sprayed, especially in the face. Make sure if you do this that you have caught him in the act of digging or he won't know why you're spraying him.

Digging doesn't have to be a part of your dog's normal routine. With a little work and training, you can get past this behavior and have a hole-free yard

Clicker Training - A Great Training Technique

You want to teach your dog acceptable behavior in a gentle, humane way. Many people have found success with the clicker method.

Operant conditioning is the repetition of a behavior when a reward is given. This is the premise behind clicker training. How does it work?

You hold a small plastic box in your hand. It has a metal strip which produces a clicking sound when pressed.

When you first start click training, you pair the click with a reward, such as a dog biscuit. When the dog performs a command well, you click immediately and offer the treat.

Your dog will connect the clicking sound with the behavior he just performed. Since that behavior earned him a treat, he'll want to repeat it. As the training progresses, you can stop using the treat. The click will be sufficient reward. Soon, you don't even need the clicker either.

Because clicking is quicker than speaking, the dog learns exactly which behavior he is being rewarded for, so clicker-trained dogs tend to learn more quickly.

Your puppy would like to make you very pleased. Using the dog clicker strategy is a terrific way to show your dog in a powerful and gentle method.



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