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Nobody wants to have to struggle to bathe their dog, especially when that dog is a heavy one. This is why it is very important to start the bathing process with your puppy so that he understands what you expect from him early on. A properly trained dog should not have to be thrown into the tub and then held down to wash him. A dog should behave nicely in the tub and he should climb in when he is asked to do so. This may sound crazy to some people, but by starting bath time positively from puppyhood, your dog will learn that, aside from the wet part (which some dogs enjoy), bath time doesn’t have to be so bad. With a little patience and a bit of encouragement from the start, your puppy will be climbing into the tub on his own in no time. You have to start slow and make sure you have treats. Bring him into the bathroom, talk to him, and reward him when he is calm. Praise him consistently unless he acts out, then you should ignore him. Slowly move toward your tub and introduce it to the puppy. He should have no fear of the tub at this point because he has never been in one. If your puppy is tall enough, coax him to climb into the tub on his own by leading him with treats. If he isn’t tall enough, lift him in and then give him treats once he’s inside to boost that positive atmosphere. Once he has fumbled his way into the tub, shower him with praise and rewards. At this point, you want to introduce water without scaring him, so place him on the opposite side of the tub, or better yet, encourage him to walk there himself. Slowly turn the water on so that it is at a slow trickle. Either he will become curious or he’ll try to back up even further. Don’t allow the water to touch him at this point, let him go to the water. You can even try and lead him to it using treats. Do this until he stands willingly in the water. Once the puppy is standing willingly in the water, start to sprinkle little droplets over him to show him that it is not going to hurt him and that it is not scary. Put treats in the water on the floor of the tub to encourage him to go into it. Slowly increase the amount of water you pour over him making sure that he is never frightened. Praise, voice, and treats are important here. Keep going until he is soaked and remains comfortable. Then slowly add a little puppy shampoo and rinse. By performing bath time like this repeatedly, soon your puppy will have no problem at all getting into the tub and enjoying his bath time. By forcing the situation to be positive completely, your puppy has no choice but to view bath time as a pleasant experience.  Kady Stansbury is the dash of artistic temperament that makes any site a success. She is a certified dog trainer with more than 5 years of experience in her kitty. She is also a tremendous writer who has over the years developed a formidable reputation and is much sought after as a Dog Blogger. She has successfully conducted one on one sessions where her students have learnt the basic commands of dog training lightning fast.
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You’re probably here because you have now realized that your dog is an escape artist. Although it is much simpler to prevent an escapee from learning that he can escape, it is not impossible to teach him not to escape – but it can be a bit difficult to curb the habit once it has begun. Dogs tend to flee home either because they are very bored and under-stimulated or because they are trying to get away from somebody or something that is unpleasant to them (ie: another pet, a person who isn’t nice to him, or somebody is consistently negative). First, begin by making sure that your dog is very satisfied at home; a bored dog leads to his need for stimulation, adventure, and excitement. This is probably the most important step you can take, it teaches your dog to want to stay home. You are now more interesting than the “fun” he can have outside the yard (gallivanting with dog friends, chasing rabbits, eating trash, etc). Make you and your family your dog’s center of attention. Play ball with him, wrestle with him, and make him excited about you. Second, you absolutely have to secure the area he gets out of or make sure that whatever is outside that encourages him to get out isn’t visible for him. For example, putting up view blockers may help desensitize him to the outside world until you can get him under control. Try putting trash bags up so he cannot see out. Temporarily raising the fence line can help as well. The third step is one that just about as important at the first. Exercise, exercise, exercise! The more you tire your dog out, the less likely he will be to want to escape. You will have stimulated him, allowed him supervised access to the outside world, and spent time with him. Going for walks are the best way to exercise a dog. If he is consistently trying to get outside, it would make sense that taking him out there yourself and allowing him to do many of things he would do out there anyways (sniffing everything, relieving himself, and greeting other friendly dogs if he is friendly himself) will at least satisfy his craving to leave a little. Another great option is to take your dog to an off-leash area once they are well under your control. Dogs love to explore on their own and once they are controllable, there is no reason why you can’t take them to explore outdoors off leash and supervised. If your dog doesn’t come when he is called, it is important to begin there by teaching him to come when he is called. Some dogs have gone a long time not coming when their owners call them, so you’ll have to implement some certain techniques (such as walking him when he comes to you outside or rewarding him lavishly when he does come to you –even when you are furious at him for running off). Be consistent. This cannot be stressed enough. The moment you stop stimulating your dog is the moment when he will start leaving again. Owning a dog is not always kicks and giggles; sometimes they take hard work, especially when a bad habit has been allowed to form and fester. Take the time to curb these behaviors as soon as possible and you will have a happy, well-behaved dog that you and your family can enjoy for years to come.  Kady Stansbury is the dash of artistic temperament that makes any site a success. She is a certified dog trainer with more than 5 years of experience in her kitty. She is also a tremendous writer who has over the years developed a formidable reputation and is much sought after as a Dog Blogger. She has successfully conducted one on one sessions where her students have learnt the basic commands of dog training lightning fast. Proper introductions are always in order when a new puppy comes home. He may be very scared and intimidated at first, but if you just give him a day or so to adjust to his new surroundings, he should come around. Make sure that you allow him the space to grasp his new home before beginning introductions and allowing everybody to hold and caudle him. Remind children that the puppy is scared and that he misses him mom; this always seems to create a sense of calm and reassurance with children. When the puppy begins to come around more, you can start playing and cuddling with him, but be sure that you are being relaxed and easy going so you won’t scare him. It is always good to introduce puppies to one person at a time and then slowly move on to any pets in the home after that. When introducing him to children, make sure they remain gentle and always try not to toss the baby around from person to person too much. Let him relax as much as possible. He will probably be pretty stressed anyways with all the chaos he isn’t used to. Make sure that when you introduce the puppy to other animals in the house that they will be gentle with him as a new pet they have never met. The stage at which you bring your puppy home will be one of the most influential stages of his life. This is the phase where a puppy retains the most information. Anything that happens to him during this time will stick with him well, so it is very important that you make his experiences positive. For example, if the cat is likely to claw him, maybe it would be best to hold off on kitty introductions for a while. However, introducing him to any friendly dogs in the home may actually help him adjust better into his new surroundings. There are many ways in which you can make your new puppy comfortable. Most people have experienced the screaming puppy in the middle of the night, but it doesn’t have to be that way. If you have another dog, let that dog spend time where the puppy is. If not, put a hot water bottle inside an old stuffed toy for comfort. Another great way to help your puppy adjust is to always have treats readily available for all household members to distribute to him when they choose. It isn’t smart to wait too long before implementing some training techniques with your puppy, but you can give him a little bit of time to relax and adjust before you toss him into learning mode. If you ever have any questions or behavior problems, speak to a local obedience instructor or animal behaviorist. Above all else, make sure you have patience with your new addition. Puppies take work, but if you take your time and be patient, you’ll soon have a mature adult dog that respects and adores you.  Kady Stansbury is the dash of artistic temperament that makes any site a success. She is a certified dog trainer with more than 5 years of experience in her kitty. She is also a tremendous writer who has over the years developed a formidable reputation and is much sought after as a Dog Blogger. She has successfully conducted one on one sessions where her students have learnt the basic commands of dog training lightning fast. |
AuthorHello there and welcome to The Dog Training Depot Blog! Here at our blog, you’ll not only learn the proper ways to positively put your dog in training mode, but you’ll learn all the fun facts to ensure the process is a roaring success! Join our "pack" of experts as we journey through the world of dog training! Archives
January 2019
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