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Dog Training, Care, & Behavior

If you're having difficulties with housetraining your dog, excessive barking, digging, or other pet concerns, take a look at our behavior tips on this page.

Canine Behavior	Just for Puppies	Basic Dog Care & Training
Keep Your Dog Confined to Your Property Keeping Fido off/out of... How to Solve Digging Problems Destructive Chewing The Escape Artist Barking Separation Anxiety	Puppy Nipping Puppy Chewing Stages of Puppy Behavior Housetraining Your Puppy Curb Submissive / Excitement Urination Socializing Your Puppy Remove Odors & Stains	Be the Leader Modifying Dog Behavior Inside or Out -- Making the Dog Part of the Family Positive Reinforcement Professor Pooch -- The Educated Dog Re-Housetraining Your Adult Dog Crate Training

Keeping Your Dog Confined to Your Property

We recommend that you keep your dog indoors, unless you're present to supervise his time outside. Dogs are "pack animals" and need to socialize with you and the world around them. By walking your dog regularly (at least twice a day), you can provide him with the exercise and mental stimulation he needs.

If there are times when you must leave your dog outside, keep him in a securely fenced yard to prevent him from straying. Within the safe confines of your yard, he should have access to adequate shelter from rain, snow, severe winds and other inclement weather. You may also consider providing him with a covered dog "run" or pen with a doghouse inside. This is a good alternative if you're unable to fence your yard, or if your dog is apt to escape from your yard by jumping the fence.

We don't recommend that you chain or tie your dog up to prevent him from wandering off. A chained or tied up dog is likely to become frustrated, which could lead to destructive and/or aggressive behavior. He could also become entangled in his chain, rope or leash and, as a result, severely injure himself.

However, if you feel you must chain or tie up your dog, then use a "dog trolley." You can construct one by sliding a ring onto heavy wire or rope and fasten the ends between two posts or trees. Then, connect your dog's lead to the ring. Make sure the lead is short enough to avoid tangling, yet long enough to allow your dog to lie down. The trolley may either be overhead or on the ground. Provide at least 15 feet of clear space for your dog to move around in and be sure to remove any objects or debris that could cause him to become entangled or injured. Don't secure the dog trolley near stairways, fences, decks or porches, and make sure it's a safe distance from all possible "escape routes." When using a dog trolley, don't ever use a choke chain collar, but use a leather or nylon harness instead. Don't leave your dog chained outside for extended periods of time.

Indiana law requires you to make sure your dog has access to appropriate shelter, clean water at all times, and food, if necessary.

It's best to provide your dog with a tip-proof water bowl or place the bowl in an area where it won't get knocked over. You can dig a hole and place the bowl at ground level, which will not only keep it from being knocked over, but will keep the water cool as well. You'll also want to provide your dog with safe toys that are appropriate for his size.

Aversives for Dogs (Keep Fido Off/Out of...) 

Determining an effective aversive reaction for your dog is definitely a case of trial-and-error, as individual preferences will vary with each dog. This is often the best method to discourage a dog from a particular action or place, but will seldom work effectively without offering an alternative that is both convenient and rewarding.

Texture

You may need to weight the "material" firmly or tape it in order for it to stay put. To protect furniture or floor finish from sticky substances, attach them to a piece of foil or heavy plastic and secure that with weights or light tape. These are more effective for puppys, small dogs and low-energy dogs than for those who won't let a little obstacle stand in their way.

Indoors

• Shelf paper (sticky side up)
• Double-sided carpet tape

Outdoors

• Irregular/sharp rocks, firmly set into dirt
• Chicken wire, firmly set into dirt (sharp edges rolled under)

Both

Heavy plastic carpet runner (pointed side up)

Taste

Some of these substances may damage furniture or floor finishes, so be sure to test them in a hidden location before wide-spread use. Except for hot sauce and cayenne pepper, these substances should be safe to apply to most people's skin, however, some individuals may be sensitive to them.

• Bitter Apple or similar sprays and gels marketed specifically for taste aversion
• Insect repellents, especially those containing citronella or citrus odors (check for toxicity, if it's safe for young children, it's generally safe for pets)
• Some hot sauces
• Cayenne pepper
• Some muscle rubs
• Citric odors (colognes, concentrated juices or fresh peels)
• Aloe gel

Surprise!

Remote Controlled Aversives:

• Motion detector that reacts with a startling sound
• Snappy Trainer (upside-down mouse trap that's securely taped under paper to avoid contact)
• Aluminum pie plate containing water, beans or pebbles -- preferably balanced precariously
• Scat Mat (very slight electrical shock)

Human Controlled Aversives:

Use these to get your dog's attention, and thereby offer an appropriate alternative.

• Spray bottle or squirt gun filled with water or a combination of water and vinegar (NOTE: avoid the super-duper water guns that have a very forceful spray)
• Loud air horn
• Whistle
• Shaker can (soda can containing nails, pennies, beans or pebbles -- securely taped shut)

WARNING: For fearful dogs, try everything else before trying surprise techniques, especially those using noises!

Aversives for Dogs is Copyright Denver Dumb Friends League and Humane Society of the United States. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

How to Solve a Digging Problem

Digging is a normal behavior for most dogs, but may occur for widely varying reasons. Your dog may be:

Dogs don't dig, however, out of spite, revenge or a desire to destroy your yard. Finding ways to make the area where the dog digs unappealing may be effective, however, it's likely that he'll just begin digging in other locations or display other unacceptable behavior, such as chewing or barking. A more effective approach is to address the cause of the digging, rather than creating location aversions.

Seeking Entertainment

Dogs may dig as a form of self-play when they learn that roots and soil "play back." Your dog may be digging for entertainment if:

• He's left alone in the yard for long periods of time without opportunities for interaction with you
• His environment is relatively barren, without playmates or toys
• He's a puppy or adolescent (under three years old) and doesn't have other outlets for his energy
• He's the type of dog (like a terrier) that is bred to dig as part of his "job"
• He's a particularly active type of dog (like the herding or sporting breeds) who needs an active job to be happy
• He's recently seen you "playing" in the dirt (gardening or working in the yard)

Recommendations:

We recommend expanding your dog's world and increasing his "people time" the following ways:

• Walk your dog regularly. It's good exercise, mentally and physically, for both of you!
• Teach your dog to fetch a ball or Frisbee and practice with him as often as possible.
• Teach your dog a few commands and/or tricks. Practice these commands/tricks every day for five to ten minutes.
• Take an obedience class with your dog and practice daily what you've learned.
• Keep interesting toys in the yard to keep your dog busy even when you're not around (Kong-type toys filled with treats or busy-box toys). Rotating the toys makes them seem new and interesting.
• For dedicated diggers, provide an "acceptable digging area." Choose an area of the yard where it's okay for your dog to dig and cover the area with loose soil or sand. If you catch your dog digging in an unacceptable area, interrupt the behavior with a loud noise, say, "no dig" and take the dog to his designated digging area. When he digs in the approved spot, reward him with praise. Make the unacceptable digging spots unattractive (at least temporarily) by setting sharp rocks or chicken wire into the dirt.

Seeking Prey

Dogs may try to pursue burrowing animals or insects that live in your yard. Your dog may be pursuing prey if:

• The digging is in a very specific area, usually not at the boundaries of the yard
• The digging is at the roots of trees or shrubs
• The digging is in a "path" layout

Recommendations:

• We recommend that you search for possible signs of pests and then rid your yard of them. Avoid methods that could be toxic or dangerous to your pets.

Seeking Comfort or Protection

In hot weather, dogs may dig holes in order to lie in the cool dirt. They may also dig to provide themselves with shelter from cold, wind or rain, or to try to find water. Your dog may be digging for protection or comfort if:

• The holes are near foundations of buildings, large shade trees or a water source
• Your dog doesn't have a shelter or his shelter is exposed to the hot sun or cold winds
• You find evidence that your dog is lying in the holes he digs

Recommendations:

We recommend that you provide your dog with other sources for the comfort or protection he seeks.

• Provide an insulated doghouse. Make sure it affords protection from wind and sun.
• Your dog may still prefer a hole in the ground, in which case you can try the "approved digging area" recommendation described above. Make sure the allowed digging area is in a protected spot.
• Provide plenty of fresh water in a bowl that can't be tipped over.

Seeking Attention

Any behavior can become attention-getting behavior if dogs learn that they receive attention for engaging in it (even punishment is a form of attention). Your dog may be digging to get attention if:

• He digs in your presence
• His other opportunities for interaction with you are limited

Recommendations:

We recommend that you ignore the behavior.

• Don't give your dog attention for digging (remember, even punishment is attention).
• Make sure your dog has sufficient time with you on a daily basis, so he doesn't have to resort to misbehaving to get your attention.

Seeking Escape

Dogs may escape to get to something, to get somewhere or to get away from something. For more detailed information, please see"The Canine Escape Artist." Your dog may be digging to escape if:

• He digs along the fence line
• He digs under the fence

Recommendations:

We recommend the following in order to keep your dog in the yard while you work on the behavior modifications recommended in "The Canine Escape Artist."

• Bury chicken wire at the base of the fence (sharp edges rolled under)
• Place large rocks, partially buried, along the bottom of the fence line
• Bury the bottom of the fence one to two feet under the ground
• Lay chain link fencing on the ground (anchored to the bottom of the fence) to make it uncomfortable for your dog to walk near the fence

Regardless of the reason for digging, we don't recommend:

• Punishment after the fact. Not only does this not address the cause of the behavior, any digging that's motivated by fear or anxiety, will be made worse. Punishment may also cause anxiety in dogs that aren't currently fearful.
• Staking a dog out near a hole he's dug or filling the hole with water. These techniques don't address the cause of the behavior, or the act of digging.

Destructive Chewing

Exploring the world with their mouths is normal behavior for dogs. Chewing can, however, be directed onto appropriate items so your dog isn't destroying items you value. Until he's learned what he can and can't chew, it's your responsibility to manage the situation as much as possible, so he doesn't have the opportunity to chew on unacceptable objects.

Taking Control By Managing The Situation

• Take responsibility for your own belongings. If you don't want it in your dog's mouth, don't make it available. Keep clothing, shoes, books, trash, eyeglasses and television remote controls out of your dog's reach.
• Don't confuse your dog by offering him shoes and socks as toys and then expect him to distinguish between his shoe and yours. Your dog's toys should be obviously different from household goods.
• Until he learns the house rules, confine him when you're unable to keep an eye on him. Choose a "safe place" that is dog-proof with fresh water and "safe" toys. If you're dog is crate trained, you may also crate him for short periods of time (see "Crate Training Your Dog").
• Give your dog plenty of people-time. Your dog won't know how to behave if you don't teach him alternatives to inappropriate behavior and he can't learn these when he's in the yard by himself.
• If, and only if, you catch your dog chewing on something he shouldn't, interrupt the behavior with a loud noise, offer him an acceptable chew toy instead, and praise him lavishly when he takes the toy in his mouth.
• Have realistic expectations. It's virtually inevitable that your dog will, at some point, chew up something you value. This is often part of the transition to a new home. Your dog needs time to learn the house rules and you need to remember to take precautions and keep things out of his reach.

Chewing is normal teething and investigative puppy behavior (see: "Dealing with Normal Puppy Behavior: Chewing"), however, dogs will engage in destructive behavior for a variety of reasons. In order to deal with the behavior, you must first determine why your dog is being destructive.

Play, Boredom And/Or Social Isolation

Normal play behavior can result in destruction, as it may involve digging, chewing, shredding and/or shaking toy-like objects. Since dogs investigate objects by pawing at them and exploring them with their mouths, they may also inadvertently damage items in their environment when they're exploring or investigating. Your dog may be chewing for entertainment if:

• He's left alone for long periods without opportunities for interaction with you.
• His environment is relatively barren, without playmates or toys.
• He's a puppy or adolescent (under three years old) and he doesn't have other outlets for his energy.
• He's a particularly active type of dog (like the herding or sporting breeds) who needs an active lifestyle to be happy.

Solutions:

• Play with your dog daily in a safe, fenced-in area. If you don't have a yard, a tennis court can be a good place to play. Fetch is a great game that will use up your dog's excess energy without wearing you out!
• Go for a walk. Walks should be more than just "bathroom time." On-leash walks are important opportunities for you and your dog to be together. Don't forget to allow time for sniffing, exploring, instruction and praise.
• Increase your dog's opportunities for mental stimulation. Teach your dog a few commands and/or tricks and practice them daily. If you have time, take an obedience class.
• Provide your dog with lots of toys.
• Rotate your dog's toys to refresh his interest in them. "New" toys are always more interesting than old ones.
• Try different kinds of toys, but when you introduce a new toy, watch your dog to make sure he won't tear it up and ingest the pieces.
• Consider the various types of toys that can be stuffed with food. Putting tidbits of food inside chew toys focuses your dog's chewing activities on these toys instead of on unacceptable objects.
• Make your dog's favorite "off-limits" chew objects unattractive to him by covering them with heavy plastic, aluminum foil, hot pepper sauce or a commercial "anti-chew" product.
• You might want to consider a good "Doggie Day Care" program for two or three days a week to work off some of your dog's excess energy.

Separation Anxiety

Dogs with separation anxiety tend to display behaviors that reflect a strong attachment to their owners. This includes following you from room to room, frantic greetings and reacting anxiously to your preparation to leave the house.

Factors that can precipitate a separation anxiety problem:

• A change in the family's schedule that results in your dog being left alone more often.
• A move to a new house.
• The death or loss of a family member or another family pet.
• A period at a shelter or boarding kennel.

These behaviors are not motivated by spite or revenge, but by anxiety. Punishment will only make the problem worse. Separation anxiety can be resolved by using counter conditioning and desensitization techniques (see: "Separation Anxiety").

The Escape Artist

Escaping is a serious problem for both you and your dog, as it could have tragic consequences. If your dog is running loose, he is in danger of being hit by a car, being injured in a fight with another dog, or being hurt in a number of other ways. Additionally, you're liable for any damage or injury your dog may cause and you may be required to pay a fine if he's picked up by an animal control agency. In order to resolve an escaping problem, you must determine not only how your dog is getting out, but also why he is escaping.

Social Isolation/Frustration

Your dog may be escaping because he's bored and lonely if:

• He is left alone for long periods of time without opportunities for interaction with you.
• His environment is relatively barren, without playmates or toys.
• He is a puppy or adolescent (under three years old) and doesn't have other outlets for his energy.
• He is a particularly active type of dog (like the herding or sporting breeds) who needs an active job in order to be happy.
• The place he goes to when he escapes provides him with interaction and fun things to do. For example, he goes to play with a neighbor's dog or to the local school yard to play with the children.

Recommendations:

We recommend expanding your dog's world and increasing his "people time" in the following ways:

• Walk your dog daily. It's good exercise, both mentally and physically.
• Teach your dog to fetch a ball or Frisbee and practice with him as often as possible.
• Teach your dog a few commands and/or tricks. Practice these commands and/or tricks every day for five to ten minutes.
• Take an obedience class with your dog and practice daily what you've learned.
• Provide interesting toys (Kong-type toys filled with treats or busy-box toys) to keep your dog busy when you're not home.
• Rotate your dog's toys to make them seem new and interesting.
• Keep your dog inside when you're unable to supervise him.
• If you have to be away from home for extended periods of time, take your dog to work with you or to a "doggie day care," or ask a friend or neighbor to walk your dog.

Sexual Roaming

Dogs become sexually mature at around six months of age. An intact male dog is motivated by a strong, natural drive to seek out female dogs. It can be very difficult to prevent an intact dog from escaping, because his motivation to do so is very high.

Recommendations:

• Have your male dog neutered. Studies show that neutering will decrease sexual roaming in about 90% of the cases. If, however, an intact male has established a pattern of escaping, he may continue to do so even after he's neutered, so it's important to have him neutered as soon as possible.
• Have your female dog spayed. If your intact female dog escapes your yard while she's in heat, she'll probably get pregnant. Millions of unwanted pets are euthanized every year. Please don't contribute to the pet overpopulation problem by allowing your female dog to breed indiscriminately.

Fears and Phobias

Your dog may be escaping in response to something he is afraid of if he escapes when he is exposed to loud noises, such as thunderstorms, firecrackers or construction sounds.

Recommendations:

• Identify what is frightening your dog and desensitize him to it (see our handout: "Helping Your Dog Overcome the Fear of Thunder and Other Startling Noises"). You may need professional help with the desensitization process. Check with your veterinarian about giving your dog an anti-anxiety medication while you work on behavior modification.
• Leave your dog indoors when he is likely to encounter the fear stimulus. Mute noise by leaving him in a basement or windowless bathroom and leave on a television, radio or loud fan.
• Provide a "safe place" for your dog. Observe where he likes to go when he feels anxious, then allow access to that space, or create a similar space for him to use when the fear stimulus is present.

Separation Anxiety

Your dog may be escaping due to separation anxiety if:

• He escapes as soon as, or shortly after, you leave.
• He displays other behaviors that reflect a strong attachment to you, such as following you around, frantic greetings or reacting anxiously to your preparations to leave.
• He remains near your home after he's escaped.

Factors that can precipitate a separation anxiety problem:

• There has recently been a change in your family's schedule that has resulted in your dog being left alone more often.
• Your family has recently moved to a new house.
• There's been a death or loss of a family member or another family pet.
• Your dog has recently spent time at an animal shelter or boarding kennel.

Recommendations:

Separation anxiety can be resolved using counter-conditioning and desensitization techniques (see our handout: "Separation Anxiety").

How Dogs Escape

Some dogs jump fences, but most actually climb them, using some part of the fence to push off from. A dog may also dig under the fence, chew through the fence, learn to open a gate or use any combination of these methods to get out of the yard. Knowing how your dog gets out will help you to modify your yard. However, until you know why your dog wants to escape, and you can decrease his motivation for doing so, you won't be able to successfully resolve the problem.

Recommendations For Preventing Escape

For climbing/jumping dogs: Add an extension to your fence that tilts in toward the yard. The extension doesn't necessarily need to make the fence much higher, as long as it tilts inward at about a 45-degree angle.

For digging dogs: Bury chicken wire at the base of your fence (with the sharp edges rolled inward), place large rocks at the base, or lay chain-link fencing on the ground.

Punishment

• Never punish your dog after he's already out of the yard. Dogs associate punishment with what they're doing at the time they're punished. Punishing your dog after the fact won't eliminate the escaping behavior, but will only make him afraid to come to you.
• Never punish your dog if the escaping is a fear-related problem or is due to separation anxiety. Punishing fear-motivated behaviors will only make your dog more afraid, and thus make the problem worse.
• Punishment is only effective if administered at the moment your dog is escaping and if he doesn't associate the correction with you. If you can squirt him with a hose or make a loud noise as he is going over, under or through the fence, it might be unpleasant enough that he won't want to do it again. However, if he realizes that you made the noise or squirted the water, he'll simply refrain from escaping when you're around. This type of correction is difficult to administer effectively, and won't resolve the problem if used by itself. You must also give your dog less reason to escape and make it more difficult to do.
• Chaining your dog should only be used as a last resort, and then only as a temporary measure until a more permanent solution can be found. Chaining your dog doesn't give him sufficient opportunity for exercise and can be dangerous if done improperly (see: "Keeping Your Dog Confined To your Property").

The Barking Dog

Some canine behavior problems, such as house soiling, affect only a dog's owners. However, problems such as escaping and excessive barking can result in neighborhood disputes and violations of animal control ordinances. Therefore, barking dogs can become "people problems." If your dog's barking has created neighborhood tension, it might be a good idea to discuss the problem with your neighbors. It's perfectly normal and reasonable for dogs to bark from time to time, just as children make noise when they play outside. However, continual barking for long periods of time is a sign that your dog has a problem that needs to be addressed.

The first thing you need to do is determine when and for how long your dog barks, and what's causing him to bark. You may need to do some detective work to obtain this information, especially if the barking occurs when you're not home. Ask your neighbors, drive or walk around the block and watch and listen for a while, or start a tape recorder or video camera when you leave for work. Hopefully, you'll be able to discover which of the common problems discussed below is the cause of your dog's barking.

Social Isolation/Frustration/Attention-Seeking

Your dog may be barking because he's bored and lonely if:

• He's left alone for long periods of time without opportunities for interaction with you.
• His environment is relatively barren, without playmates or toys.
• He's a puppy or adolescent (under three years old) and doesn't have other outlets for his energy.
• He's a particularly active type of dog (like the herding or sporting breeds) who needs a "job" to be happy.

Recommendations:

Expand your dog's world and increase his "people time" in the following ways:

• Walk your dog daily - it's good exercise, both mental and physical.
• Teach your dog to fetch a ball or Frisbee and practice with him as often as possible.
• Teach your dog a few commands and/or tricks and practice them every day for five to ten minutes.
• Take an obedience class with your dog.
• Provide interesting toys to keep your dog busy when you're not home (Kong-type toys filled with treats or busy-box toys). Rotating the toys makes them seem new and interesting (see our handout: "Dog Toys and How to Use Them").
• If your dog is barking to get your attention, make sure he has sufficient time with you on a daily basis (petting, grooming, playing, exercising) so he doesn't have to resort to misbehaving to get your attention.
• Keep your dog inside when you're unable to supervise him.
• Let your neighbors know that you're actively working on the problem.
• Take your dog to work with you every now and then, if possible.
• When you have to leave your dog for extended periods of time, take him to a "doggie day care" or have a friend or neighbor walk and/or play with him.

Territorial/Protective Behavior

Your dog may be barking to guard his territory if:

• The barking occurs in the presence of "intruders," which may include the mail carrier, children walking to school and other dogs or neighbors in adjacent yards.
• Your dog's posture while he's barking appears threatening -- tail held high and ears up and forward.
• You've encouraged your dog to be responsive to people and noises outside.

Recommendations:

• Teach your dog a "quiet" command. When he begins to bark at a passer-by, allow two or three barks, then say "quiet" and interrupt his barking by shaking a can filled with pennies or squirting water at his mouth with a spray bottle or squirt gun. This will cause him to stop barking momentarily. While he's quiet, say "good quiet" and pop a tasty treat into his mouth. Remember, the loud noise or squirt isn't meant to punish him, rather it's to startle him into being quiet so you can reward him. If your dog is frightened by the noise or squirt bottle, find an alternative method of interrupting his barking (throw a toy or ball toward him).
• Desensitize your dog to the stimulus that triggers the barking. Teach him that the people he views as intruders are actually friends and that good things happen to him when these people are around. Ask someone to walk by your yard, starting far enough away so that your dog isn't barking, then reward him for quiet behavior as he obeys a "sit" or "down" command. Use a very special food reward such as little pieces of cheese or meat. As the person gradually comes closer, continue to reward his quiet behavior. It may take several sessions before the person can come close without your dog barking. When the person can come very close without your dog barking, have them feed him a treat or throw a toy for him.
• If your dog barks while inside the house when you're home, call him to you, have him obey a command, such as "sit" or "down," and reward him with praise and a treat.
• Don't inadvertently encourage this type of barking by enticing your dog to bark at things he hears or sees outside.
• Have your dog neutered (or spayed if your dog is a female) to decrease territorial behavior.

Fears And Phobias

Your dog's barking may be a response to something he's afraid of if:

• The barking occurs when he's exposed to loud noises, such as thunderstorms firecrackers or construction equipment.
• Your dog's posture indicates fear -- ears back, tail held low.

Recommendations:

• Identify what's frightening your dog and desensitize him to it (see our handout: "Helping Your Dog Overcome the Fear of Thunder and Other Startling Noises"). You may need professional help with the desensitization process. Check with your veterinarian about anti-anxiety medication while you work on behavior modification.
• Mute noise from outside by leaving your dog in a basement or windowless bathroom and leave on a television, radio or loud fan. Block off your dog's access to outdoor views that might be causing a fear response, by closing curtains or doors to certain rooms.

Separation Anxiety

Your dog may be barking due to separation anxiety if:

• The barking occurs only when you're gone and starts as soon as, or shortly after, you leave.
• Your dog displays other behaviors that reflect a strong attachment to you, such as following you from room to room, frantic greetings or reacting anxiously to your preparations to leave.
• Your dog has recently experienced: a change in the family's schedule that results in his being left alone more often; a move to a new house; the death or loss of a family member or another family pet; or a period at an animal shelter or boarding kennel.

Recommendations:

• Separation anxiety can be resolved using counter-conditioning and desensitization techniques (see our handout: "Separation Anxiety").

Bark Collars

Bark collars are specially designed to deliver an aversive whenever your dog barks. There are several different kinds of bark collars:

• Citronella Collar: This collar contains a reservoir of citronella solution that sprays into your dog's face every time he barks. A citronella collar is considered humane and a recent study reported an 88% rate of success with the use of this collar. One possible drawback is that the collar contains a microphone, so the aversive is delivered in response to the sound of the bark. Therefore, other noises may set off the collar, causing your dog to be sprayed even if he hasn't barked. Also, some dogs can tell when the citronella reservoir is empty and will resume barking.
• Aversive Sound Collar: This collar emits a high-frequency sound when your dog barks. Some are activated by the noise of the bark, while others are hand-held and activated by a handler. The rate of success for this type of collar is reportedly rather low.
• Electric Shock Collar: We don't recommend an electric shock collar to control your dog's barking. The electric shock is painful to your dog and many dogs will choose to endure the pain and continue barking. The success rate of this type of collar is less than 50%.

The main drawback of any bark collar is that it doesn't address the underlying cause of the barking. You may be able to eliminate the barking, but symptom substitution may occur and your dog may begin digging, escaping, or become destructive or even aggressive. The use of a bark collar must be in conjunction with behavior modification based on the reason for the barking, as outlined above. You should never use a bark collar on your dog if his barking is due to separation anxiety, fears or phobias, because punishment always makes fear and anxiety behaviors worse.

 

Separation Anxiety

Dogs with separation anxiety exhibit behavior problems when they're left alone. Typically, they'll have a dramatic anxiety response within a short time (20-45 minutes) after their owners leave them. The most common of these behaviors are:

• Digging, chewing and scratching at doors or windows in an attempt to escape and reunite with their owners.
• Howling, barking and crying in an attempt to get their owner to return.
• Urination and defecation (even with housetrained dogs) as a result of distress.

Why Do Dogs Suffer From Separation Anxiety?

We don't fully understand exactly why some dogs suffer from separation anxiety and, under similar circumstances, others don't. It's important to realize, however, that the destruction and house soiling that often occur with separation anxiety are not the dog's attempt to punish or seek revenge on his owner for leaving him alone, but are actually part of a panic response.

Separation anxiety sometimes occurs when:

• A dog has never or rarely been left alone.
• Following a long interval, such as a vacation, during which the owner and* dog are constantly together.
• After a traumatic event (from the dog's point of view) such as a period of time spent at a shelter or boarding kennel.
• After a change in the family's routine or structure (a child leaving for college, a change in work schedule, a move to a new home, a new pet or person in the home).

How Do I Know If My Dog Has Separation Anxiety?

Because there are many reasons for the behaviors associated with separation anxiety, it's essential to correctly diagnose the reason for the behavior before proceeding with treatment. If most, or all, of the following statements are true about your dog, he may have a separation anxiety problem:

• The behavior occurs exclusively or primarily when he's left alone.
• The behavior always occurs when he's left alone, whether for a short or long period of time.
• He follows you from room to room whenever you're home.
• He reacts with excitement, depression or anxiety to your preparations to leave the house.
• He displays effusive, frantic greeting behaviors.
• He dislikes spending time outdoors by himself.

What To Do If Your Dog Has Separation Anxiety

For a minor separation anxiety problem, the following techniques may be helpful by themselves. For more severe problems, these techniques should be used along with the desensitization process described in the next section.

• Keep arrivals and departures low-key. For example, when you arrive home, ignore your dog for the first few minutes, then calmly pet him.
• Leave your dog with an article of clothing that smells like you, an old tee shirt that you've slept in recently, for example.
• Establish a "safety cue"--a word or action that you use every time you leave that tells your dog you'll be back. Dogs usually learn to associate certain cues with short absences by their owners. For example, when you take out the garbage, your dog knows you come right back and doesn't become anxious. Therefore, it's helpful to associate a safety cue with your practice departures and short-duration absences.

Some examples of safety cues are: a playing radio; a playing television; a bone; or a toy (one that doesn't have dangerous fillings and can't be torn into pieces). Use your safety cue during practice sessions, but don't present your dog with the safety cue when you leave for a period of time longer than he can tolerate or the value of the safety cue will be lost. Leaving a radio on to provide company for your dog isn't particularly useful by itself, but a playing radio may work if you've used it consistently as a safety cue in your practice sessions. If your dog engages in destructive chewing as part of his separation distress, offering him a chewing item as a safety cue is a good idea. Very hard rubber toys that can be stuffed with treats and Nylabone-like products are good choices.

Desensitization Techniques For More Severe Cases Of Separation Anxiety

The primary treatment for more severe cases of separation anxiety is a systematic process of getting your dog used to being alone. You must teach your dog to remain calm during "practice" departures and short absences. We recommend the following procedure:

• Begin by engaging in your normal departure activities (getting your keys, putting on your coat), then sit back down. Repeat this step until your dog shows no distress in response to your activities.
• Next, engage in your normal departure activities and go to the door and open it, then sit back down.
• Next, step outside the door, leaving the door open, then return.
• Finally, step outside, close the door, then immediately return. Slowly get your dog accustomed to being alone with the door closed between you for several seconds.
• Proceed very gradually from step to step, repeating each step until your dog shows no signs of distress (the number of repetitions will vary depending on the severity of the problem). If at any time in this process your actions produce an anxiety response in your dog, you've proceeded too fast. Return to an earlier step in the process and practice this step until the dog shows no distress response, then proceed to the next step.
• When your dog is tolerating your being on the other side of the door for several seconds, begin short-duration absences. This step involves giving the dog a verbal cue (for example, "I'll be back.'), leaving and then returning within a minute. Your return must be low-key: either ignore your dog or greet him quietly and calmly. If he shows no signs of distress, repeat the exercise. If he appears anxious, wait until he relaxes to repeat the exercise. Gradually increase the length of time you're gone.
• Practice as many absences as possible that last less than ten minutes. You can do many departures within one session if your dog relaxes sufficiently between departures. You should also scatter practice departures and short-duration absences throughout the day.
• Once your dog can handle short absences (30 to 90 minutes), he'll usually be able to handle longer intervals alone and you won't have to work up to all-day absences minute by minute. The hard part is at the beginning, but the job gets easier as you go along. Nevertheless, you must go slowly at first. How long it takes to condition your dog to being alone depends on the severity of his problem.

Teaching The Sit-Stay And Down-Stay

Practice sit-stay or down-stay exercises using positive reinforcement. Never punish your dog during these training sessions. Gradually increase the distance you move away from your dog. Your goal is to be able to move briefly out of your dog's sight while he remains in the "stay" position. The point is to teach him that he can remain calmly and happily in one place while you go to another. As you progress, you can do this during the course of your normal daily activities. For example, if you're watching television with your dog by your side and you get up for a snack, tell him to stay, and leave the room. When you come back, give him a treat or quietly praise him.

Interim Solutions

Because the above-described treatments can take a while, and because a dog with separation anxiety can do serious damage to himself and/or your home in the interim, some of the following suggestions may be helpful in dealing with the problems in the short term:

• Consult your veterinarian about the possibility of drug therapy. A good anti-anxiety drug should not sedate your dog, but simply reduce his anxiety while you're gone. Such medication is a temporary measure and should be used in conjunction with behavior modification techniques.
• Take your dog to a dog day care facility or boarding kennel.
• Leave your dog with a friend, family member or neighbor.
• Take your dog to work with you, even for half a day, if possible.
• What Won't Help A Separation Anxiety Problem
• Punishment is not an effective way to treat separation anxiety. In fact, if you punish your dog after you return home it may actually increase his separation anxiety.
• Getting another pet. This usually doesn't help an anxious dog as his anxiety is the result of his separation from you, his person, not merely the result of being alone.
• Crating your dog. Your dog will still engage in anxiety responses in the crate. He may urinate, defecate, howl or even injure himself in an attempt to escape from the crate.
• Leave the radio on (unless the radio is used as a "safety cue" - see above).
• Obedience school. While obedience training is always a good idea, it won't directly help a separation anxiety problem. Separation anxiety is not the result of disobedience or lack of training, it's a panic response.

Puppy Nipping

When puppies play with each other, they use their mouths. Therefore, puppies usually want to bite or "mouth" hands during play or when being petted. With puppies, this is rarely aggressive behavior in which the intent is to do harm. Because puppies are highly motivated to exhibit this type of behavior, attempts to suppress it or stop it are unlikely to be successful unless you give your puppy an alternative behavior. The goals of working with this normal puppy behavior are to redirect your puppy's desire to put something in her mouth onto acceptable chew toys and to teach her to be gentle when a hand is in her mouth.

Encourage Acceptable Behavior

Redirect your puppy's chewing onto acceptable objects by offering her a small rawhide chew bone or other type of chew toy whenever you pet her. This technique can be especially effective when children want to pet her. As you or the child reach out to scratch her behind the ears (not over the head) with one hand, offer the chew bone with the other. This will not only help your puppy learn that people and petting are wonderful, but will also keep her mouth busy while she's being petted. Alternate which hand does the petting and which one has the chew bone. At first, you may need to pet or scratch your puppy for short periods of time, since the longer she's petted, the more likely she is to get excited and start to nip.

Discourage Unacceptable Behavior

• You must also teach your puppy to be gentle with hands, and that nipping results in unpleasant consequences for her. Teach your puppy that nipping "turns off" any attention and social interaction with you. After a nip, look your puppy right in the eye, and yell "OUCH" as though you've been mortally wounded, then ignore her. Leave the room if you must, but ignore her until she's calm, then try the chew bone and petting method again. It's even better if you can coax your puppy into a sitting position using food. It may take many repetitions for her to understand what's expected.
• Nipping and mouthing hands can also be discouraged by loosely holding your puppy's lower jaw between your thumb and forefinger after she's taken your hand in her mouth. Don't hurt her by squeezing too hard, just gently hang on so that wherever her mouth goes, your hand hangs on. This will quickly become tiresome and she'll eventually pull away. After several seconds, release her jaw, but continue to offer her your hand. If she licks or ignores it, praise, pet and offer a tidbit. If she closes her mouth on your hand again, repeat the procedure.
• A third alternative is to wear cotton gloves coated with a substance with an unpleasant taste such as "Bitter Apple." In this way, your puppy will learn that "hands in mouth taste bad." For this method to work, every time she nips your hand she must experience this bad taste. The possible disadvantage to this method is that your puppy may learn "hands with gloves taste bad and those without gloves don't.
• Remember that any of these three methods will probably not be effective unless you work hard to teach your puppy the right behavior by offering her an acceptable chew toy.

Jumping Up

When your puppy jumps up on you, she wants attention. Whether you push her away, knee her in the chest or step on her hind legs, she's being rewarded for jumping up (even though it's negative attention, she's still getting what she wants).

When Your Puppy Jumps Up:

• Fold your arms in front of you, turn away from her and say "off."
• Continue to turn away from her until all four of her feet are on the ground, then quietly praise her and give her a treat. If she knows the "sit" command, give the command when all four of her feet are on the ground, then quietly praise her and give her a treat her while she's in the sitting position.
• When you begin to praise her, if she begins to jump up again, simply turn away and repeat step two, above. Remember to keep your praise low-key.
• When your puppy realizes that she gets no attention from you while she's jumping up, but does get attention when she stops jumping up and sits, she'll stop jumping up. Remember, once you've taught her to come and sit quietly for attention, you must reward her behavior. Be careful not to ignore her when she comes and sits politely, waiting for your attention.

What Not To Do

Attempts to tap, slap or hit your puppy in the face for nipping or jumping up are almost guaranteed to backfire. Several things may happen, depending on your puppy's temperament and the severity of the correction:

• She could become "hand-shy" and cringe or cower whenever a hand comes toward her face.
• She could become afraid of you and refuse to come to you or approach you at all.
• She could respond in a defensive manner and attempt to bite you to defend herself.
• She could interpret a mild slap as an invitation to play, causing her to become more excited and even more likely to nip.

Never play "tug-of-war" or wrestling games with your puppy if you're having a nipping problem. These types of games encourage out-of-control behavior, grabbing, lunging and competion with you. These aren't behaviors you want her to learn.

A Note About Children And Puppies

It's very difficult for children under eight or nine years old to practice the kind of behavior modification outlined here. A child's first reaction to being nipped or mouthed by a puppy is to push the puppy away with their hands and arms. This will be interpreted by the puppy as play and will probably cause the puppy to nip and mouth even more. Dogs should never be left alone with children under ten and parents should monitor closely all interactions between their children and dogs.

 

Puppy Chewing

Puppies may be just as much work as human babies - maybe more so because puppies can't wear diapers and they have very sharp teeth! It's definitely true that, similar to infants and toddlers, puppies explore their world by putting things in their mouths. In addition, puppies are teething until they're about six months old, which usually creates some discomfort. Chewing not only facilitates teething, but also makes sore gums feel better. Although it's perfectly normal for a puppy to chew on furniture, shoes, shrubbery and such, these behaviors can be a problem for you. A puppy won't magically "outgrow" these behaviors as he matures. Instead, you must shape your puppy's behaviors and teach him which ones are acceptable and which aren't.

Discouraging Unacceptable Behavior

It's virtually inevitable that your puppy will, at some point, chew up something you value. This is part of raising a puppy! You can, however, prevent most problems by taking the following precautions:

• Minimize chewing problems by puppy-proofing your house. Put the trash out of reach, inside a cabinet or outside on a porch, or buy containers with locking lids. Encourage children to pick up their toys and don't leave socks, shoes, eyeglasses, briefcases or TV remote controls lying around within your puppy's reach.
• If, and only if, you catch your puppy chewing on something he shouldn't, interrupt the behavior with a loud noise, then offer him an acceptable chew toy instead and praise him lavishly when he takes the toy in his mouth.
• Make unacceptable chew items unpleasant to your puppy. Furniture and other items can be coated with "Bitter Apple" to make them unappealing (see our handout: "Aversives for Dogs").
• Don't give your puppy objects to play with such as old socks, old shoes or old children's toys that closely resemble items that are off-limits. Puppies can't tell the difference!
• Closely supervise your puppy. Don't give him the chance to go off by himself and get into trouble. Use baby gates, close doors or tether him to you with a six-foot leash so you can keep an eye on him.
• When you must be gone from the house, confine your puppy to a small, safe area such as a laundry room. You may also begin to crate train your puppy (see: Crate Training Your Dog). Puppies under five months of age shouldn't be crated for longer than four hours at a time, as they may not be able to control their bladder and bowels longer than that.
• Make sure your puppy is getting adequate physical activity. Puppies left alone in a yard don't play by themselves. Take your puppy for walks and/or play a game of fetch with him as often as possible.
• Give your puppy plenty of "people time." He can only learn the rules of your house when he's with you.

Developmental Stages of Puppy Behavior

Although feeding time is important, it's also vital to include petting, talking and playing, in order to help your puppy build good "people-skills." Well-socialized mothers are more likely to have well-socialized puppies. Puppies "feed" off of their mothers' calm or fearful attitude toward people. Puppies are usually weaned at six or seven weeks, but are still learning important skills as their mother gradually leaves them more and more. Ideally, puppies should stay with their littermates (or other role-model dogs) for at least 12 weeks.

Puppies separated from their littermates too early often don't develop appropriate "social skills," such as learning how to send and receive signals, what an "inhibited bite" means, how far to go in play wrestling and so forth. Play is important to help puppies increase their physical coordination, social skills and learning limits. Interacting with their mother and littermates helps them learn "how to be a dog" and is also a way to explore ranking ("who's in charge").

Skills not acquired during the first eight weeks may be lost forever. While these stages are important and fairly consistent, a dog's mind remains receptive to new experiences and lessons well beyond puppy-hood. Most dogs are still puppies, in mind and body, through the first two years.

The following chart provides general guidelines for the stages of development.

0 - 2 weeks = Neonatal

• Most influenced by their mother.
• Touch and taste present at birth.

2 - 4 weeks = Transitional

• Most influenced by their mother and littermates.
• Eyes open, teeth erupt, hearing and smell developing.
• Beginning to stand, walk a little, wag, bark.
• By four or five weeks, sight is well-developed.

3 - 12 weeks = Socialization

• During this period, puppies need opportunities to meet other dogs and people.
• By four to six weeks they're most influenced by their littermates and are learning about being a dog.
• From four to 12 weeks they're most influenced by their littermates and people. They're also learning to play, including social skills, inhibited bite, social structure/ranking and physical coordination.
• By three to five weeks they're becoming aware of their surroundings, companions (dogs and people) and relationships, including play.
• By five to seven weeks they're developing curiosity and exploring new experiences. They need positive "people" experiences during this time.
• By seven to nine weeks they're refining they're physical skills/coordination (including housetraining) and full use of senses.
• By eight to ten weeks they experience real fear -- when puppies can be alarmed by normal objects and experiences and need positive training.
• By nine to 12 weeks they're refining reactions, social skills (appropriate interactions) with littermates and are exploring the environment, spaces and objects. Beginning to focus on people. This is a good time to begin training.

3 - 6 months = Ranking

• Most influenced by "littermates" (playmates now include those of other species).
• Beginning to see and use ranking (dominant and submissive) within the pack, including humans.
• Teething (and associated chewing).
• At four months they experience another fear stage.

6 - 18 months = Adolescence

• Most influenced by human and dog "pack" members.
• At seven to nine months they go through a second chewing phase -- part of exploring territory.
• Heightened exploration of dominance, including challenging humans.
• If not spayed or neutered, beginnings of sexual behavior

Housetraining Your Puppy

Housetraining a puppy requires time, vigilance, patience and commitment. Following the procedures outlined below, you can minimize house soiling incidents, but virtually every puppy will have an accident in the house (more likely several). Expect this - it's part of raising a puppy. The more consistent you are in following the basic housetraining procedures, the faster your puppy will learn acceptable behavior. It may take several weeks to housetrain your puppy, and with some of the smaller breeds, it might take longer.

Establish A Routine

• Like babies, puppies do best on a regular schedule. Take your puppy outside frequently, at least every two hours, and immediately after he wakes up from a nap, after playing and after eating.
• Praise your puppy lavishly every time he eliminates outdoors. You can even give him a treat. You must praise him and give him a treat immediately after he's finished eliminating, not after he comes back inside the house. This step is vital, because rewarding your dog for eliminating outdoors is the only way he'll know that's what you want him to do.
• Choose a location not too far from the door to be the bathroom spot. Always take your puppy, on a leash, directly to the bathroom spot. Take him for a walk or play with him only after he has eliminated. If you clean up an accident in the house, take the soiled rags or paper towels and leave them in the bathroom spot. The smell will help your puppy recognize the area as the place he is supposed to eliminate. While your puppy is eliminating, use a word or phrase, like "go potty," that you can eventually use before he eliminates to remind him of what he's supposed to be doing.
• If possible, put your puppy on a regular feeding schedule. Depending on their age, puppies usually need to be fed three or four times a day. Feeding your puppy at the same times each day will make it more likely that he'll eliminate at consistent times as well. This makes housetraining easier for both of you.

Supervise, Supervise, Supervise

Don't give your puppy an opportunity to soil in the house. He should be watched at all times when he is indoors. You can tether him to you with a six-foot leash, or use baby gates, to keep him in the room where you are. Watch for signs that he needs to eliminate, like sniffing around or circling. When you see these signs, immediately take him outside, on a leash, to his bathroom spot. If he eliminates, praise him lavishly and reward him with a treat.

Confinement

When you're unable to watch your puppy at all times, he should be confined to an area small enough that he won't want to eliminate there. It should be just big enough for him to comfortably stand, lie down and turn around in. This area could be a portion of a bathroom or laundry room, blocked off with boxes or baby gates. Or you may want to crate train your puppy and use the crate to confine him (see our handout: "Crate Training Your Dog"). If your puppy has spent several hours in confinement, when you let him out, take him directly to his bathroom spot and praise him when he eliminates.

Oops!

Expect your puppy to have an accident in the house - it's a normal part of housetraining a puppy.

• When you catch him in the act of eliminating in the house, do something to interrupt him, like make a startling noise (be careful not to scare him). Immediately take him to his bathroom spot, praise him and give him a treat if he finishes eliminating there.
• Don't punish your puppy for eliminating in the house. If you find a soiled area, it's too late to administer a correction. Do nothing but clean it up. Rubbing your puppy's nose in it, taking him to the spot and scolding him, or any other punishment or discipline, will only make him afraid of you or afraid to eliminate in your presence. Animals don't understand punishment after the fact, even if it's only seconds later. Punishment will do more harm than good.
• Cleaning the soiled area is very important because puppies are highly motivated to continue soiling in areas that smell like urine or feces (see: Successful Cleaning to Remove Pet Odors and Stains).

It's extremely important that you use the supervision and confinement procedures outlined above to minimize the number of accidents. If you allow your puppy to eliminate frequently in the house, he'll get confused about where he's supposed to eliminate which will prolong the housetraining process.

Paper Training

A puppy under six months of age cannot be expected to control his bladder for more than a few hours at a time. If you have to be away from home for more than four or five hours a day, this may not be the best time for you to get a puppy. If you're already committed to having a puppy and have to be away from home for long periods of time, you'll need to train your puppy to eliminate in a specific place indoors. Be aware, however, that doing so can prolong the process of teaching him to eliminate outdoors. Teaching your puppy to eliminate on newspaper may create a life-long surface preference, meaning that he may, even in adulthood, eliminate on any newspaper he finds lying around the house.

When your puppy must be left alone for long periods of time, confine him to an area with enough room for a sleeping space, a playing space and a separate place to eliminate. In the area designated as the elimination place, you can either use newspapers or a sod box. To make a sod box, place sod in a container, like a child's small, plastic swimming pool. You can also find dog litter products at a pet supply store. If you clean up an accident in the house, take the soiled rags or paper towels, and put them in the designated elimination place. The smell will help your puppy recognize the area as the place where he is supposed to eliminate.

Other Types Of House-Soiling Problems

If you've consistently followed the housetraining procedures and your puppy continues to eliminate in the house, there may be another reason for his behavior.

• Medical Problems: House soiling can often be caused by physical problems such as a urinary tract infection or a parasite infection. Check with your veterinarian to rule out any possibility of disease or illness.
• Submissive/Excitement Urination: Some dogs, especially young ones, temporarily lose control of their bladders when they become excited or feel threatened. This usually occurs during greetings, intense play or when they're about to be punished (see our handout Submissive and Excitement Urination).
• Territorial Urine-Marking: Dogs sometimes deposit urine or feces, usually in small amounts, to scent-mark their territory. Both male and female dogs do this, and it most often occurs when they believe their territory has been invaded (see: Territorial Marking Behavior in Dogs and Cats).
• Separation Anxiety. Dogs that become anxious when they're left alone may house soil as a result. Usually, there are other symptoms, such as destructive behavior or vocalization (see our handout Separation Anxiety).
• Fears Or Phobias. When animals become frightened, they may lose control of their bladder and/or bowels. If your puppy is afraid of loud noises, such as thunderstorms or fireworks, he may house soil when he's exposed to these sounds.

Curb Submissive / Excitement Urination

Submissive Urination

Submissive urination occurs when a dog feels threatened. It may occur when he's being punished or verbally scolded, or when he's approached by someone he perceives to be threatening to him. It's important to remember that this response is based on the dog's perception of a threat, not the person's actual intention. Submissive urination may resolve as your dog gains confidence. You can help to build his confidence by teaching him commands and rewarding him for obeying. You should also gradually expose him to new people and new situations and try to make sure all of his new experiences are positive and happy.

Your Dog May Be Submissively Urinating If:

• Urination occurs when he's being scolded.
• Urination occurs when he's being greeted.
• Urination occurs when someone approaches him.
• He is a somewhat shy, anxious or timid dog.
• He has a history of rough treatment or punishment after the fact.
• The urination is accompanied by submissive postures, such as crouching or rolling over and exposing his belly.

What To Do If Your Dog Has A Submissive Urination Problem:

• Take your dog to the vet to rule out medical reasons for the behavior.
• Keep greetings low-key.
• Encourage and reward confident postures from him.
• Give him an alternative to behaving submissively. For example, if he knows a few commands, have him "sit" or "shake" as you approach, and reward him for obeying.
• Avoid approaching him with postures that he reads as dominant, for example:
• Avoid direct eye contact -- look at his back or tail instead.
• Get down on his level by bending at the knees rather than leaning over from the waist and ask others to approach him in the same way.
• Pet him under the chin rather than on top of the head.
• Approach him from the side, rather than from the front, and/or present the side of your body to him, rather than your full front.
• Don't punish or scold him - this will only make the problem worse.

Excitement Urination

Excitement urination occurs most often during greetings and playtime and is not accompanied by submissive posturing. Excitement urination usually resolves on its own as a dog matures, if it's not made worse by punishment or inadvertent reinforcement.

Your Dog May Have An Excitement Urination Problem If:

• Urination occurs when your dog is excited, for example during greetings or during playtime.
• Urination occurs when your dog is less than one year old.

What To Do If Your Dog Has An Excitement Urination Problem:

• Keep greetings low-key.
• Don't punish or scold him.
• To avoid accidents, play outdoors until the problem is resolved.
• Take your dog to the veterinarian to rule out medical reasons for the behavior.
• Ignore him until he's calm.

Socializing Your Puppy

Socialization and puppy training are of utmost importance as puppyhood is the most important and critical time in your dog's development. What you do and do not do right now will affect your dog's behavior forever.

A properly socialized puppy is well adjusted and makes a good companion. It is neither frightened by nor aggressive towards anyone or anything it would normally meet in day to day living. An un-socialized dog is untrustworthy and an unwanted liability. They often become fear-biters. Often they like to fight with other dogs. They are difficult to train and are generally unpleasant to be around. Unsocialized dogs cannot adapt to new situations and a simple routine visit to the vet is a nightmare not only for the dog itself, but for everyone involved. Don't let this happen to you and your dog. Start socializing your new puppy NOW!

The Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine agrees that the socialization period lasts up to about 12 weeks (3 months) of age. However, at 12 weeks, the puppy must continue socialization to refine its social skills. Socialization most easily occurs before the puppy is 3 months old. Any later than that and it becomes an excruciatingly difficult and time-consuming process that very few owners have the time, energy, money or patience to cope with.

Socialization Do's

Make sure that each of the following events are pleasant and non-threatening. If your puppy's first experience with something is painful and frightening, you will be defeating your purpose. In fact, you will be creating a phobia that will often last a lifetime. It's better to go too slow and assure your puppy is not frightened or injured than to rush and force your pup to meet new things and people.

• Invite friends over to meet your pup. Include men, women, youngsters, oldsters, different ethnic backgrounds, etc.
• Invite friendly, healthy, vaccinated dogs, puppies and even cats to your home to meet and play with your new puppy. Take your puppy to the homes of these pets, preferably with dog-friendly cats.
• Carry your pup to shopping centers, parks, school playgrounds, etc; places where there are crowds of people and plenty of activity.
• Take your puppy for short, frequent rides in the car. Stop the car and let your puppy watch the world go by through the window.
• Introduce your puppy to umbrellas, bags, boxes, the vacuum cleaner, etc. Encourage your puppy to explore and investigate his environment.
• Get your puppy accustomed to seeing different and unfamiliar objects by creating your own. Set a chair upside down. Lay the trash can (empty) on its side, set up the ironing board right-side up one day and upside down the next day.
• Introduce your puppy to new and various sounds. Loud, obnoxious sounds should be introduced from a distance and gradually brought closer.
• Accustom your puppy to being brushed, bathed, inspected, having its nails clipped, teeth and ears cleaned and all the routines of grooming and physical examination.
• Introduce your puppy to stairs, his own collar and leash. Introduce anything and everything you want your puppy to be comfortable with and around.

Socialization Don'ts

• Do not put your puppy on the ground where unknown animals have access. This is where your puppy can pick up diseases. Wait until your puppy's shots are completed. Do not let your pup socialize with dogs that appear sick or dogs that you don't know, that may not be vaccinated.
• Do not reward fearful behavior. In a well meaning attempt to sooth, encourage or calm the puppy when it appears frightened, we often unintentionally reward the behavior. It's normal for the puppy to show some signs of apprehension when confronting anything new and different.
• Do not allow the experience to be harmful, painful or excessively frightening. This can cause lifetime phobias in your dog.
• Do not force or rush your puppy. Let your puppy take things at his own pace. Your job is to provide the opportunity.
• Do not do too much at one time. Young puppies need a lot of sleep and tire quickly. It is much more productive to have frequent and very brief exposures than occasional prolonged exposures.
• DO NOT WAIT!! Every day that goes by is an opportunity of a lifetime that is lost forever. You can never get these days back. If socialization does not happen now, it never will.

Successfully Remove Pet Odors & Stains

Has your pet left "scent marks" of urination and/or defecation on your floor or furniture? To successfully re-train your pet to avoid those areas, follow these basic steps:

• Find all soiled areas using your nose and eyes. A black-light bulb will usually show even old urine stains. Turn out all lights in the room; use the black-light to identify soiled areas and lightly outline the areas with chalk.
• Clean the soiled areas appropriately to remove the odors (see below).
• Make the areas unattractive and/or unavailable (see our pages on dog and cat aversives, positive reinforcement and housetraining ).
• Teach your pet the appropriate place to eliminate by using positive reinforcement (see our pages mentioned above).

These steps work as a team! In order for your efforts to be successful, you need to follow all of these steps. If you fail to completely clean the area, your other re-training efforts will be useless. As long as your pet can smell that personal scent, he'll continue to return to the "accident zone." Even if you can't smell traces of urine, your pet can. Your most important chore is to remove (neutralize) that odor.

Methods To Avoid

You should avoid using steam cleaners to clean urine odors from carpet or upholstery. The heat will permanently set the odor and the stain by bonding the protein into any man-made fibers. You should also avoid using cleaning chemicals, especially those with strong odors, such as ammonia or vinegar. From your pet's perspective, and may actually encourage your pet's inclination to reinforce the urine scent mark in that area.

To Clean Washable Items

• Machine wash as usual, adding a one pound box of baking soda to your regular detergent. If possible, it's best to air dry these items.
• If you can still see the stain or smell the urine, machine wash the item again and add an enzymatic cleaner. Be sure to follow the directions carefully.
• During the re-training period, a good way to discourage your pet from using the bedding is to cover the bed with a vinyl, flannel-backed tablecloth. They're machine washable, inexpensive, and unattractive to your pet.

To Clean Carpeted Areas and Upholstery

• Soak up as much of the urine as possible with a combination of newspaper and paper towels. The more fresh urine you can remove before it dries, especially from carpet, the simpler it will be to remove the odor. Place a thick layer of paper towels on the wet spot and cover that with a thick layer of newspaper. Stand on this padding for about a minute. Remove the padding and repeat the process until the area is barely damp.
• If possible, take the fresh, urine-soaked paper towel to the area where it belongs -- your cat's litterbox or your dog's designated outdoor "bathroom area" -- and let your pet see you do it. Don't act angry when you do this, but try to project a "happy" attitude to your pet. This will help to remind your pet that eliminating isn't a "bad" behavior as long as it's done in the right place.
• Rinse the "accident zone" thoroughly with clean, cool water. After rinsing, remove as much of the water as possible by blotting or by using a "wet-vac," "shop-vac" or "extractor."
• If you've previously used cleaners or chemicals of any kind on the area, then neutralizing cleaners won't be effective until you've rinsed every trace of the old cleaner from the carpet. Even if you haven't used chemicals recently, any trace of a non-protein-based substance will weaken the effect of the enzymatic cleaner. The cleaner will use up its "energy" on the old cleaners instead of on the protein stains you want removed.
• To remove all traces of old chemicals and clean old or heavy stains in carpeting, consider renting an extractor or wet-vac from a local hardware store. This machine operates much like a vacuum cleaner and is efficient and economical. Extracting/wet-vac machines do the best job of forcing clean water through your carpet and then forcing the dirty water back out again. When using these machines or cleaners, be sure to follow the instructions carefully. Don't use any chemicals with these machines – they work much more effectively with plain water.
• Once the area is really clean, you should use a high-quality pet odor neutralizer available at pet supply stores. Test the affected surface for staining first, and read and follow the instructions.
• If the area still looks stained after it's completely dry from extracting and neutralizing, try any good carpet stain remover.
• If urine has soaked down into the padding underneath your carpet, your job will be more difficult. You may need to remove and replace that portion of the carpet and padding.
• Using the suggestions in our dog and cat aversives, positive reinforcement and housetraining pages, make the "accident zone" unattractive, the appropriate "bathroom" area attractive, and teach your pet where you want him to eliminate, instead. The re-training period may take a week or more. Remember, it took time to build the bad habit, and it will take time to replace that habit with a new, more acceptable behavior. Treat your pet with patience and give him a lot of encouragement!

To Clean Floors and Walls

If the wood on your furniture, walls, baseboard or floor is discolored, the varnish or paint has been affected by the acid in the urine. You may need to remove and replace the layer of varnish or paint. Employees at your local hardware or building supply store can help you identify and match your needs with appropriate removers and replacements. Washable enamel paints and some washable wallpapers, may respond favorably to enzymatic cleaners. Read the instructions carefully before using these products and test them in an invisible area.

Be the Leader

A good leader is fair, consistent, and trustworthy and gives and expects respect. Fair, no-nonsense rules, consistently enforced will give your dog the leadership he needs in order to be an enjoyable companion in your home. A good leader has what the subordinate members want (food, games, fun, petting/grooming, interaction). Utilizing these things will have your dog following you in anticipation of what you have to offer.

1. One way of gaining leadership (and/or to teach impulse control) is for you to go through doorways first.

• The best way to do this is to teach your dog a wait command to be used at all thresholds (exterior doors, gates, cars).
• It is also important that your dog moves out of your way when you walk through the house. If he is in your way, rather than walking over or around him, shuffle your feet (don't kick), saying something like - move - as you make contact with your feet.
• If your dog is always running ahead of you (either in the house or outside), you can turn and go the other way, no longer allowing him to race you.

2. Ask your dog to sit, look at you with attention, or lie down in order to get something he wants. This is teaching your dog to say please and thank you. Use these commands before he is played with, has his leash attached to his collar, is given his food, throwing his toy, before playing tug, etc. Having him do something for you teaches him to listen and perform before he gets what he wants.

3. For some dogs, free feeding may have your dog thinking he's in charge of the food supply. Offer meals twice a day, removing the food after 15 minutes. This will put you in charge of a resource that is very important to your dog. In addition, it helps with housetraining and weight control!

4. You must go to many locations (at least 20) and train your dog to respond to you in these various environments before you can start to count on her to be reliable in her behavior and listen to what you are asking her to do. You will need treats for a while at first when teaching obedience commands (especially in really busy locations) to help you in getting your dog to respond appropriately to you. Treats may always be needed initially in really high distraction locations (especially new ones). Be sure to make the treat interesting enough to win out in the environment you are in.

5. CONSISTENCY is key to all training and interactions with your dog. Set up fair and consistent rules in your household and have everyone follow them. If you are wishy-washy, it is unfair to expect your dog to have any level of consistency in her behavior. For example, your dog may be allowed on a certain piece of furniture but not others -- OR it is only okay if you invite him on the furniture. Assign certain words and use them every time. If you say SIT each time rather than sometimes saying sit down, you sit, or sit, sit, sit, your dog will be less confused and will learn to comply much more quickly with what you want.

6. Giving your dog feedback must always be given WHILE a behavior is occurring, or your dog will not learn what you are trying to teach. Whether the feedback is positive or negative, you only have up to 3 seconds from the time the behavior has occurred to give that feedback. Anything past that small window of time is after-the-fact punishment, which will teach your dog not to trust you, and to think of you as someone who is unpredictable. Dogs learn to leave things alone after LOTS of catching them in the act and interrupting what they are doing, which is the same for a toddler. It wouldn't make sense to drag a child to something he broke an hour ago and show him what he did wrong and yell at him. The one-year-old won't understand what you're trying to teach him and neither does your dog.

7. If your dog is turning a deaf ear (i.e., not listening, ignoring your requests, etc.), put him on his leash when in the house and have him go everywhere you go. This gives your dog no options for independence or to get into trouble. Please, NEVER leave a dog unsupervised when his leash is on.

8. If your dog continues to push you by either demanding attention, not listening, turning a deaf ear, or challenging you non-aggressively (body slamming, excessive jumping, or mouthing), then you want to stare your dog directly in the eye (this is a confrontational gesture), scowl at him, and use a low, growly voice, saying something like - stop it.

You can also walk toward your dog while doing all these facial gestures, as this really gets the message across that you are in charge of this space, and you mean business. This is much more effective than any hitting, scruff shaking, or rolling your dog will ever be, because this is how dogs communicate with one another. By staring, moving your dog out of YOUR space, and using a low growling voice, you will be letting your dog know that he's crossed the line.

9. It's also important to have a command you give to your dog that signals that you are finished engaging with him, and that he needs to go away. You may say something like - go - and point. Initially, you may need to stand up and walk into your dog as you're telling him to go so that he knows to actually move away from you. Pretty soon, you'll only need the verbal command.

Interactions and Personal Space

Have you ever watched two or more dogs interact with one another? What you will notice is that the dog that is the leader is the one that ignores the other dog(s) until he/she decides it's time to interact. As the leader of your pack, it is your job to decide when interactions will or won't occur. If a dog is trying to initiate interaction from the leader dog, that leader dog will turn his head or body away, ignoring the dog trying to engage with him. If he continues to pester the leader, he will make his message more clear by staring, growling/snarling and even chasing the dog away. Then the leader will go right back to doing what he was doing. We can imitate much of this type of interaction with our dogs. It will make sense to them because this is what they do with each other, and it will work so much better than trying to do things in our human way, which doesn't make as much sense to dogs.

1. When your dog leans on you, brushes against you, steps on you, puts his head in your lap to be petted, or brings you a toy to play, he is deciding when things are to happen and/or disrespecting your personal space. When your dog initiates any interaction, decline the offer by moving him away, saying nothing and ignore. If you start talking to him when you're moving him away from you, you're giving him negative attention, which is still attention! If you move him away with your hands, be sure your body moves toward your dog at the same time. Wait long enough so that he isn't seeking attention from you, then if YOU want, invite your dog over to do something with you. It is perfectly fine to invite your dog to touch you or interact with you at any time, but ONLY when YOU say so! Be 100% consistent on this. Do the bump/move away and ignore 2-3 times. If your dog continues to seek attention, go to #2 below.

2. Your next progression would be to give your dog a hard stare (even scowling at the same time) and use a low, growling-type voice, saying something like - Stop it - or - Knock it off - as you move your dog away from you, even standing up and walking into him to really make your point, then immediately ignore him. Be sure to keep the verbal growling short and effective. You really want to convey the message that your dog has crossed the line. This is how dogs communicate with one another, and your dog will definitely get the message. Do this 2-3 times. If that isn't effective, it's time for your dog to go into a time out (#3 below).

3. Time-Outs: It is important to be prepared ahead of time in case a time out is needed. In the room(s) that you are in most often, attach a leash (made of chain preferably to avoid chewing) to something very secure so that your dog won't be able to go anywhere. It is absolutely necessary that you put your dog in his time out where he can still see you ignoring him (someplace safe where you can keep your eye on your dog, or put him in an area where your dog cannot get to you but can still see you). If you put him where he can't see you, after 5 seconds he'll start trying to get back in or will go off and do something else. Remember, dogs have to receive feedback from you as the behavior is occurring in order to understand what you expect. You have up to 3-5 seconds immediately after the behavior has occurred, but no more than that!

• There will be times you will skip numbers 1 and 2 altogether. If your dog is completely obnoxious and over the top (i.e., launching at you, constantly nipping at you, picking at you and then running away, uses your lap as a landing pad, etc.) do the time-out exercise every time needed.
• While your dog is engaged in the inappropriate behavior, in a happy tone say something like - It's time to go on your leash - and take your dog to the anchored leash or area you will be putting him in.

Ignore your dog completely for about 30 seconds, then release (as long as he's not crying or barking). Don't look at, talk to, or give food/treats/toys while he's in a time out. Be sure to have at least 5 seconds of quiet before releasing him. Note: If the dog cannot be moved by the owner because he's too large or owner has a physical reason, then the owner leaves the dog and shuts a door in his face. Stay behind the door for 30 seconds, then return.

Modifying Dog Behavior

By providing consistent, fair and loving leadership to your dog, you will find that you will both be happier and enjoy your relationship in ways that work for everyone. Read the following information to find out how!

1. Positive Attention: Any time your dog does anything you like and want him to continue doing, (i.e., chewing on the appropriate toy, doing something cute, when your dog complies with what you ask him to do - sit, down, wait, etc.) give positive attention. Also, the moment the dog stops an unwanted behavior, give praise (i.e., leaves the cat alone, stops chewing on inappropriate item, removes feet from the table top, etc.).

2. Interrupt and Redirect: When your dog is engaged in something you don't want him to be (chewing the wrong item, feet on the table, walking toward something inappropriate) make a short, sharp sound with your voice (i.e., Agh! or Hey! with a hand clap added if needed). This will startle your dog and you should get that deer in the headlights look. At that moment praise your dog. Sometimes this is all you need to do to get your dog to leave something alone, but your dog may return to the source of interest which means you will interrupt your dog again, praise when he stops engaging, and redirect him to do something else (i.e., give him the appropriate chew toy, have him walk toward you, have him sit, etc.). It is important for your dog to have another option; otherwise, he'll find what you want him to leave alone to continue to be of interest.

3. Ignore: Ignore any behavior(s) you want to disappear forever (i.e., jumping on you without an invitation, demanding attention by barking at you, demanding you interact with him by pawing, leaning, bumping, placing a toy in your lap, putting his head in your lap to be petted, jumping on the furniture, jumping up toward your face, etc.). It is VERY important that you initiate all interactions with your dog. This is what a dog in charge does with other dogs. In other words, your dog is to be ignored by you until you initiate contact. This is exactly how dogs interact with one another and it is very effective in teaching your dog to respect your personal space and ultimately listen to you much more attentively.

4. Negative Attention: Giving attention to your dog in a negative way when he is doing something you don't like (i.e., yelling at him to get off of you, repeating his name several times to get him to stop doing something, chasing him when he grabs something he's not supposed to have so that you will interact with him, etc.) tends to be what many of us do when interacting with our dogs. However, it is a behavior that should be ELIMINATED. After all, negative attention is still attention, and your dog will take what he can get! If you replace negative attention with interrupt/redirect OR ignore, and then add in positive attention at every opportunity your dog will soon start to behave in a way that works best for both of you.

A very effective training motto for life: Say it once, give your dog two seconds to comply, and if he doesn't, immediately (and always) take action. (i.e., lure him into a sit or down [rather than repeating the command several times], walk toward him to move him away from something if he ignores your interruptive sound, ask him to sit or come to you, replace the inappropriate item with an appropriate item).

Inside or Out -- Making Your Dog Part of Your Family

Some dog owners believe that dogs, especially large ones, should be "outdoor only" pets. At MGCHS, we believe that dogs of all sizes are happier, healthier and safer when they can be indoors with their people the majority of the time. Dogs have a need to be social just like we do.

Exercise

Some people believe that dogs need to be outside so they can get plenty of exercise. The truth is that most dogs don't exercise when they're in a yard by themselves; they spend most of their time lying by the back door, waiting for "their people" to either let them in or come out and play with them. However, dogs do need exercise every day, so we recommend walking your dog or engaging him in a regular game of fetch!

Socialization

Dogs need to spend time with "their people" in order to learn their rules and how to get along with them. Dogs that spend most of their time alone or only in the company of other dogs may demonstrate fearful, aggressive or overactive behavior toward family members or strangers because they've never learned how to act around people.

Safety

Dogs that spend most of their time outdoors are at risk for a variety of reasons. They could escape from the yard and become lost; a disgruntled neighbor could throw poison over the fence or spray the dog with mace or pepper spray; or the dog could be stolen and possibly sold to a research facility or dog-fighting ring.

Behavior Problems

Dogs left alone in the yard for long periods of time often get bored, lonely and frustrated. As a result, they may dig or bark excessively. Most cities have noise ordinances that penalize owners of barking dogs. If a dog escapes the yard in search of interesting things to do, not only is he at risk of being injured by a car, but his owner is liable for any damage or harm that he might do.

Protection

Dogs that spend time with their owners and feel attached to them are more likely to be protective of "their family." Dogs that spend most of their time outdoors may be friendly to any stranger who pets or feeds them. Alternatively, some yard dogs may become overly territorial and feel the need to protect their territory even from family and friends. If a dog is hardly ever allowed to come indoors, it will be difficult for him to distinguish between family, friends and uninvited "guests."

Puppies

People who are away from home for eight to ten hours a day may be inclined to leave their new puppy in the yard because he can't control his bowels and bladder for that length of time. Although it's true that puppies need to eliminate more frequently than adult dogs, it's also very important for puppies to receive adequate people time at this formative stage of their lives. If dogs aren't adequately socialized when they're young, they're likely to become fearful or aggressive toward people, and possibly other animals. Puppies are also more vulnerable to extreme weather conditions than adult dogs. If you must be away from home for more than four or five hours at a time every day, this may not be the right time for you to adopt a puppy.

The Garage

While dogs may be safer in the garage than in the yard, unless people spend time with them in the garage, they'll still suffer from isolation and, as a result, may develop any of the behavior problems previously mentioned. Most garages are very hot during the summer months and cold during the winter. Garages are often storage places for tools and chemicals that could cause injury to a curious dog. If the garage has an automatic door opener, the dog could run out into the street when the door is opened.

Changing Times

Some of us may have fond childhood memories of a family dog that lived outside, but times have changed. More mothers used to stay at home and children used to spend more time outdoors. The outdoor dog had company while mom hung laundry or gardened and the children played outside. With the advent of two-income families, television and computer games, the outdoor dog is more likely to spend most of his time alone.

No Alternative

• If you must leave your dog outdoors, unsupervised for extended periods of time, please provide him with the following:
• An insulated shelter with a wind-proof opening. Some very short-coated breeds like greyhounds, beagles and labs, may not be able to tolerate extreme cold, even with a shelter.
• Shade in the summertime. All dogs need shade, but remember that heavy-coated dogs, such as huskies and chows, are more susceptible to the heat.
• Fresh food and water every day. In winter, you'll need a heated water bowl to keep the water from freezing. In summer, you'll need a tip-proof bowl so your dog won't tip the bowl over in an effort to get cool.
• Interactive play time daily.
• A daily walk.
• An escape-proof fence with a locked gate.
• "Busy" toys.

Most dogs do enjoy spending time outdoors, but the time dogs spend alone outdoors must be balanced with quality time with "their people." With a little time and training, dogs can learn to be well-behaved around people and can come to respect the house rules. They can then be left inside alone without cause for worry and be trusted companions and members of the family.

Positive Reinforcement -- Training with Treats and Praise

Positive reinforcement is the presentation of something pleasant or rewarding immediately following a behavior. It makes that behavior more likely to occur in the future, and is one of the most powerful tools for shaping or changing your pet's behavior.

Correct timing is essential when using positive reinforcement. The reward must occur immediately, or your pet may not associate it with the proper action. For example, if you have your dog "sit," but reward him after he's already stood up again, he'll think he's being rewarded for standing up.

Consistency is also essential. Everyone in the family should use the same commands. It might be helpful to post these where everyone can become familiar with them. The most commonly used commands for dogs are "watch me," "sit," "stay," "down" (means lie down), "off" (means off of me or off the furniture), "stand," "come," "heel," (or "let's go" or "with me") "leave it" and "settle." Consistency means always rewarding the desired behavior and never rewarding undesired behavior.

For your pet, positive reinforcement may include food treats, praise, petting or a favorite toy or game. Food treats work especially well for training your dog. A treat should be enticing and irresistible to your pet. It should be a very small, soft, piece of food, so that he will immediately gulp it down and look to you for more. If you give him something he has to chew or that breaks into bits and falls on the floor, he'll be looking around the floor, not at you. Small pieces of soft commercial treats, hot dogs, cheese, cooked chicken or beef, or miniature marshmallows have all proven successful. Experiment a bit to see what works best for your pet. You may carry the treats in a pocket or a fanny pack on the front of your belt. There are even special treat packs available in many pet stores. Each time you use a food reward, you should couple it with a verbal reward (praise). Say something like, "Good boy" in a positive, happy tone of voice.

Note: Some pets may not be interested in food treats. For those pets, the reward could be in the form of a toy or brief play.

When your pet is learning a new behavior, he should be rewarded every time he does the behavior (continuous reinforcement). It may be necessary to use "shaping," with your pet (reinforcing something close to the desired response and gradually requiring more from your dog before he gets the treat). For example, if you're teaching your dog to "shake hands," you may initially reward him for lifting his paw off the ground, then for lifting it higher, then for touching your hand, then for letting you hold his paw and finally, for actually shaking hands with you.

ntermittent reinforcement can be used once your pet has reliably learned the behavior. At first, you may reward him with the treat three times out of four, then about half the time, then about a third of the time and so forth, until you're only rewarding him occasionally with the treat. Continue to praise him every time, although once he's learned the behavior, the praise can be less effusive - a quiet, but positive, "Good boy." Use a variable schedule of reinforcement, so he doesn't catch on that he only has to respond every other time. Your pet will learn that if he keeps responding, eventually he'll get what he wants. If you have a dog who barks until you reward him by paying attention to him, you've seen the power of intermittent reinforcement.

By understanding reinforcement, you can see that you're not forever bound to carry a pocketful of goodies. Your pet will soon be working for your verbal praise, because he really does want to please you and he knows that occasionally, he'll get a treat, too! There are many small opportunities to reinforce his behavior. You may have him "sit" before letting him out the door (helps prevent door-darting), before petting him (helps prevent jumping up on people) or before giving him his food. Give him a pat or a "Good dog" for lying quietly by your feet or slip a treat into his Kong toy when he's chewing it, instead of your shoe.

Punishment, including verbal, postural and physical, is the presentation of something unpleasant immediately following a behavior which makes it less likely that the behavior will occur again. To be effective, punishment must be delivered while your pet is engaged in the undesirable behavior, in other words, "caught in the act." If the punishment is delivered too late, your pet will feel "ambushed." From his point of view, the punishment is totally unpredictable, and he's likely to become fearful, distrusting and/or aggressive. This will only lead to more behavior problems. What we humans interpret as "guilty" looks, are actually submissive postures by our pets. Animals don't have a moral sense of right and wrong, but they are adept at associating your presence and the presence of a mess, with punishment.

If you've tried punishment and it hasn't worked, you should definitely stop using punishment and use positive reinforcement instead. Physical punishment usually involves some level of discomfort or even pain, which is likely to cause your pet to bite, as that is the only way he knows to defend himself. Scruff shakes and "alpha rolls" are likely to result in bites, especially if the dog doesn't perceive you to be his superior. Also, punishment might be associated with other stimuli, including people, that are present at the time the punishment occurs. For example, a pet that's punished for getting too close to a small child may become fearful of or aggressive to that child.

Professor Pooch - The Educated Dog

When you feel frustrated with your dog's behavior, remember that someone must teach a dog what is acceptable behavior and what is not. A dog that hasn't been given any instructions, training or boundaries can't possibly know what you expect of him. By teaching your dog how you want him to behave, you'll not only have a saner household, but a healthier and happier dog as well.

An Educated Dog:

• Allows you to handle every part of his body, to check for injury or illness and to give him medication.
• Has good manners, so he can spend most of his time indoors with his people. That means more supervision, less boredom and fewer opportunities for dangerous mischief. The more time you spend with your dog, the more likely you'll be to notice when something is wrong with him, like a limp, a cough, a sensitive area or a loss of appetite. By recognizing such irregularities early, you can seek medical attention immediately and, hopefully, prevent more serious problems.
• Wants to stay near you, listening for instructions (and praise). This means he'll have less opportunity to stray into danger.
• Will walk or run beside you on a leash without pulling, dragging or strangling, so you and your dog can get more exercise and spend more time together.
• Knows that drop it and leave it alone are phrases that mean business, so he'll have fewer opoprtunities to swallow dangerous objects. He also can be taught what things and places are out of bounds, like hot stoves, heaters or anxious cats. However, you'll still need to limit his access to dangerous places when you cannot supervise or instruct him.
• Will sit immediately, simply because you say so. No matter what danger may be imminent, a dog that is suddenly still is suddenly safe. And a dog that will stay in that position is even safer.
• Understands his boundaries, knows what's expected of him and has fewer anxieties. Less stress means a healthier dog.

By training your dog, you can help prevent tragedy and develop a better relationship with him. Keep in mind, however that even an educated dog needs upervision, instruction and boundaries - sometimes even physical boundaries. Allowing your dog, no matter how educated he may be, to walk, run or roam outside of a fenced area or off of a leash, is putting him in danger.

Selecting a Class

Here are some tips to help you select an obedience class that's right for you:

• Good obedience instructors are knowledgeable about many different types of training methods and use techniques that neither the dogs nor their owners find consistently unpleasant.
• Good training methods focus primarily on reinforcing good behavior and use punishment sparingly, appropriately and humanely. Excessive use of choke chains or pinch collars or using collars to lift dogs off the ground (stringing them up) are not appropriate or humane training methods.
• Good obedience instructors communicate well with people and with dogs. Remember that they're instructing you about how to train your dog.
• Specific problems you may have with your dog may not be addressed in a basic obedience course. If you're seeking help with house soiling, barking, aggression or separation anxiety, ask if the course covers these issues - don't assume it will.
• Ask the instructor what training methods are used and how they (the instructor and staff) were trained. Also ask to observe a class before you commit to one. If you're refused an observation, or if your observation results in anything that makes you uncomfortable, look elsewhere.
• Avoid anyone who guarantees their work; whose primary methods focus on punishment; or who want to take your dog and train him for you (effective training must include you and the environment in which you and your dog interact.

Re-Housetraining Your Adult Dog

Many adult dogs adopted from animal shelters were housetrained in their previous homes. While at the shelter, however, they may not have gotten enough opportunities to eliminate outside, and consequently, they may have soiled their kennel areas. This tends to weaken their housetraining habits. Additionally, scents and odors from other pets in the new home may stimulate some initial urine marking. Remember that you and your new dog need some time to learn each other's signals and routines. Even if he was housetrained in his previous home, if you don't recognize his "bathroom" signal, you might miss his request to go out, causing him to eliminate indoors.

Therefore, for the first few weeks after you bring him home, you should assume your new dog isn't housetrained and start from scratch. If he was housetrained in his previous home, the re-training process should progress quickly. The process will be much smoother if you take steps to prevent accidents and remind him where he's supposed to eliminate.

Establish A Routine

• Take your dog out at the same times every day. For example, first thing in the morning when he wakes up, when you arrive home from work, and before you go to bed.
• Praise your dog lavishly every time he eliminates outdoors. You can even give him a treat. You must praise him and give him a treat immediately after he's finished and not wait until after he comes back inside the house. This step is vital, because rewarding your dog for eliminating outdoors is the only way he'll know that's what you want him to do.
• Choose a location not too far from the door to be the bathroom spot. Always take your dog, on leash, directly to the bathroom spot. Take him for a walk or play with him only after he's eliminated. If you clean up an accident in the house, leave the soiled rags or paper towels in the bathroom spot. The smell will help your dog recognize the area as the place where he's supposed to eliminate.
• While your dog is eliminating, use a word or phrase like "go potty," for example, that you can eventually use before he eliminates to remind him of what he's supposed to be doing.
• Feeding your dog on a set schedule, once or twice a day, will help make his elimination more regular.

Supervise, Supervise, Supervise

Don't give your dog an opportunity to soil in the house. He should be watched at all times when he's indoors. You can tether him to you with a six-foot leash, or use baby gates, to keep him in the room where you are. Watch for signs that he needs to eliminate, like sniffing around or circling. If you see these signs, immediately take him outside, on a leash, to his bathroom spot. If he eliminates, praise him lavishly and reward him with a treat.

Confinement

When you're unable to watch your dog at all times, he should be confined to an area small enough that he won't want to eliminate there. It should be just big enough for him to comfortably stand, lie down and turn around in. This could be a portion of a bathroom or laundry room blocked off with boxes or baby gates. Or you may want to crate train your dog and use the crate to confine him (see our handout: "Crate Training Your Dog"). If he has spent several hours in confinement, when you let him out, take him directly to his bathroom spot and praise him when he eliminates.

Oops!

Most dogs, at some point, will have an accident in the house. You should expect this, as it's a normal part of your dog's adjustment to his new home.

• If you catch your dog in the act of eliminating in the house, do something to interrupt him like making a startling noise (don't scare him). Immediately take him to his bathroom spot, praise him, and give him a treat if he finishes eliminating there.
• Don't punish your dog for eliminating in the house. If you find a soiled area, it's too late to administer a correction. Do nothing but clean it up. Rubbing your dog's nose in it, taking him to the spot and scolding him, or any other type of punishment, will only make him afraid of you or afraid to eliminate in your presence. Animals don't understand punishment after the fact, even if it's only seconds later. Punishment will do more harm than good.
• Cleaning the soiled area is very important because dogs are highly motivated to continue soiling in areas that smell like urine or feces (see our handout: "Successful Cleaning to Remove Pet Odors and Stains").

Other Types Of House-Soiling Problems

If you've consistently followed the housetraining procedures and your dog continues to eliminate in the house, there may be another reason for his behavior.

• Medical Problems: House soiling can often be caused by physical problems such as a urinary tract infection or a parasite infection. Check with your veterinarian to rule out any possibility of disease or illness.
• Submissive/Excitement Urination: Some dogs, especially young ones, temporarily lose control of their bladders when they become excited or feel threatened. This usually occurs during greetings, intense play or when they're about to be punished (see our handout: "Submissive and Excitement Urination").
• Territorial Urine-Marking: Dogs sometimes deposit urine or feces, usually in small amounts, to scent-mark their territory. Both male and female dogs do this, and it most often occurs when they believe their territory has been invaded (see our handout: "Territorial Marking Behavior in Dogs and Cats").
• Separation Anxiety. Dogs that become anxious when they're left alone may house soil as a result. Usually, there are other symptoms, such as destructive behavior or vocalization (see our handout: "Separation Anxiety").
• Fears Or Phobias. When animals become frightened, they may lose control of their bladder and/or bowels. If your dog is afraid of loud noises, such as thunderstorms or fireworks, he may house soil when he's exposed to these sounds.

 

Crate Training

Crate training your dog may take some time and effort, but can be useful in a variety of situations. If you have a new dog or puppy, you can use the crate to limit his access to the house until he learns all the house rules -- like what he can and can't chew on and where he can and can't eliminate. A crate is also a safe way of transporting your dog in the car, as well as a way of taking him places where he may not be welcome to run freely. If you properly train your dog to use the crate, he'll think of it as his safe place and will be happy to spend time there when needed.

Selecting A Crate

Crates may be plastic (often called "flight kennels") or collapsible, metal pens. They come in different sizes and can be purchased at most pet supply stores. Your dog's crate should be just large enough for him to stand up and turn around in.

The Crate Training Process

Crate training can take days or weeks, depending on your dog's age, temperament and past experiences. It's important to keep two things in mind while crate training. The crate should always be associated with something pleasant, and training should take place in a series of small steps - don't go too fast.

Step 1: Introducing Your Dog To The Crate

• Put the crate in an area of your house where the family spends a lot of time, such as the family room. Put a soft blanket or towel in the crate. Bring your dog over to the crate and talk to him in a happy tone of voice. Make sure the crate door is securely fastened opened so it won't hit your dog and frighten him.
• To encourage your dog to enter the crate, drop some small food treats near it, then just inside the door, and finally, all the way inside the crate. If he refuses to go all the way in at first, that's okay -- don't force him to enter. Continue tossing treats into the crate until your dog will walk calmly all the way into the crate to get the food. If he isn't interested in treats, try tossing a favorite toy in the crate. This step may take a few minutes or as long as several days.

Step 2: Feeding Your Dog His Meals In The Crate

• After introducing your dog to the crate, begin feeding him his regular meals near the crate. This will create a pleasant association with the crate. If your dog is readily entering the crate when you begin Step 2, put the food dish all the way at the back of the crate. If your dog is still reluctant to enter the crate, put the dish only as far inside as he will readily go without becoming fearful or anxious. Each time you feed him, place the dish a little further back in the crate.
• Once your dog is standing comfortably in the crate to eat his meal, you can close the door while he's eating. At first, open the door as soon as he finishes his meal. With each successive feeding, leave the door closed a few minutes longer, until he's staying in the crate for ten minutes or so after eating. If he begins to whine to be let out, you may have increased the length of time too quickly. Next time, try leaving him in the crate for a shorter time period. If he does whine or cry in the crate, it's imperative that you not let him out until he stops. Otherwise, he'll learn that the way to get out of the crate is to whine, so he'll keep doing it.

Step 3: Conditioning Your Dog To The Crate For Longer Time Periods

• After your dog is eating his regular meals in the crate with no sign of fear or anxiety, you can confine him there for short time periods while you're home. Call him over to the crate and give him a treat. Give him a command to enter such as, "kennel up." Encourage him by pointing to the inside of the crate with a treat in your hand. After your dog enters the crate, praise him, give him the treat and close the door. Sit quietly near the crate for five to ten minutes and then go into another room for a few minutes. Return, sit quietly again for a short time, then let him out of the crate. Repeat this process several times a day. With each repetition, gradually increase the length of time you leave him in the crate and the length of time you're out of his sight. Once your dog will stay quietly in the crate for about 30 minutes with you out of sight the majority of the time, you can begin leaving him crated when you're gone for short time periods and/or letting him sleep there at night. This may take several days or several weeks.

Step 4: Part A/Crating Your Dog When Left Alone

After your dog is spending about 30 minutes in the crate without becoming anxious or afraid, you can begin leaving him crated for short periods when you leave the house. Put him in the crate using your regular command and a treat. You might also want to leave him with a few safe toys in the crate (see our handout: "Dog Toys and How to Use Them"). You'll want to vary at what point in your "getting ready to leave" routine you put your dog in the crate. Although he shouldn't be crated for a long time before you leave, you can crate him anywhere from five to 20 minutes prior to leaving. Don't make your departures emotional and prolonged, but matter-of-fact. Praise your dog briefly, give him a treat for entering the crate and then leave quietly. When you return home, don't reward your dog for excited behavior by responding to him in an excited, enthusiastic way. Keep arrivals low key. Continue to crate your dog for short periods from time to time when you're home so he doesn't associate crating with being left alone.

Crating Your Dog At Night

Put your dog in the crate using your regular command and a treat. Initially, it may be a good idea to put the crate in your bedroom or nearby in a hallway, especially if you have a puppy. Puppies often need to go outside to eliminate during the night, and you'll want to be able to hear your puppy when he whines to be let outside. Older dogs, too, should initially be kept nearby so that crating doesn't become associated with social isolation. Once your dog is sleeping comfortably through the night with his crate near you, you can begin to gradually move it to the location you prefer.

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