What Are You Waiting for?

It’s never too early to begin “training” your dog. I know how tough it is to bring home a puppy and not fill their every moment with your attention and affection. You may be setting yourself up for more than you can or want to handle later. I am referring to the time prior to them being able to focus on specific training.

Obedience training starts when your dog is about four months old, but don’t wait to begin. If the pup is mature enough and/or if they are a large breed dog – start earlier. They won’t be able to focus for more than about 10-15 minutes at a time, so it’s not about duration. It’s about establishing the pattern of behavior that you want for your life with this puppy as it becomes a “dog.”

Puppies are puppies. Brilliant, I know! If you are waiting for them to outgrow puppy to start training them, you will certainly have your patients tried. It can be done, but why wait?

Establishing your authority and the dog’s place with it’s new family begins the minute they come home with you. This is when housebreaking starts and when the puppy gets socialized and made aware of what life is like living with humans. We can be challenging!

Remember, they know how to be dogs and they will do it extremely well. Don’t wait “until” – start immediately providing a safe place where mutual trust and respect nourishes a relationship that will last a lifetime. They’ll love you for it!

Is It Too Late to Crate Train?

Crate training can be a necessity for housebreaking. It also provides a place of safety for your dog and that may mean sanity for you. I often get calls about a “destructive” behavior that a well-behaved dog has suddenly been expressing.

It’s never too late to crate train. The biggest question is what behavior is making you ask this question in the first place? If you are wanting to housebreak a puppy or an older dog, crate training is a great option. You will have to use time and patience in both cases to acclimate them to the idea of being confined.

If you have a dog that is being destructive and housebreaking is not an issue, then you may want to use a play pen or something larger than what is used for housebreaking. This will provide a secure place for your dog and give them room to move around.

There are a lot of variables to crate training. If you are interested in learning more, I have written a Guide that explains the crate training process and how to housebreak any dog .

My Name is Gayle and I Have a Terrier

I enjoy the training and behavior modification calls I receive when the client tells me in an embarrassed tone about the unwanted, excitable behavior of their dog. It takes a few questions and then I find the truth – they were unwilling or maybe afraid to acknowledge the full breed of their dog.

I usually have to help them confess what they were almost unwilling to admit. They say they have a “Yorkie,” a “Boston,” an “Amstaff,” a “Westie,” etc. I encourage them to finish it – to say aloud, “I have a terrier.” The spirit and temperament of a terrier isn’t something you want to remove. It’s more that you need to understand them.

The first step to your new dog-temperament understanding is to admit openly and embrace that you have a terrier. If you have a dog that may be full or part terrier, be glad. Any other dog could be boring!

Dogs Form Abstract Concepts?

Some humans have difficulty with that! Here’s an informative article on the ability of dogs to form abstract concepts.

Dogs Display Signs of Human Intelligence by Roger Highfield

What is Humane Treatment?

This is not an easy subject and still a bit raw personally. I feel the need to share. . .

I love that there are no-kill shelters. That is WONDERFUL!

They are full. All of the local shelters are full. What’s next for the dogs whose last stop was the local shelter and hopefully a no-kill one that is full? They are being abandoned along with their abandoned homes. It’s a difficult choice to make for their humans. An almost impossible one. So, leaving the dog behind or dropping them off in a neighborhood leaves more options for the dog, right?

Consider those options. . .starving or dehydration. Becoming ill and not having medical care. Being hit by a car. Feeling abandoned and lost without a clue of how to find food and water. Looking for a familiar face.

Those are a few of their options. Maybe someone will pick them up and bring them home. That someone may already be over their dog limit and financially strapped but feeling guilty to let this one go.

What are your options — keep your dog until you find a home or shelter that can take it. Don’t just put an ad in the local paper – ask rescues, ask friends, ask anyone. It’s better to experience a little sadness about re-homing your dog than the sickness of leaving them somewhere unsure of their future.

Ok – here’s the tough part. There are worse alternatives than humanely helping your dog go to sleep for a very long time. Most people have difficulty with death as is evidenced with our treatment of humans. It is far more humane to know the fate of your dog, than to leave it to chance or someone else.

I say this because I get a lot of calls from people who want to know if I can take their dog or help them find someone who can because they don’t want to take them to a shelter. There is a much better chance of adoption through a shelter where people are actively looking, than anywhere else. If, the choice has to be made by the already-over-filled shelter to “put your dog down” after a specific period of time, on behalf of your dog, I’d like to say there are worse things.

I hate writing this. I hate that dogs are euthanized by the thousands daily. What choice is there as long as people don’t spay or neuter their pets? That’s only part of the problem. The dogs that are being abandoned now may have been spayed and once came from a shelter. They deserve nothing less than humane treatment.

I welcome your thoughts, comments, and suggestions.

What Time is it? Ask Your Dog!

What time is it to your dog. . .

It’s time to eat, nap, play, receive affection, bounce, chew, destroy(?), hunt, fetch, eat, nap, annoy, bark, nap. . .

I think you get the point. While dogs live in the moment, they define the moment. They definitely seem to know when it is the time of day for a meal. They instinctively have the most energy at specific times during the day. I believe this goes back to a time when they would hunt for their food. Early in the morning and at dusk when the wildlife used to be searching for food, dogs were preying on them. (Believe it or not, they weren’t hunting kibble!)

They may be removed from this instinct as they don’t use the energy to hunt but will express it by being destructive – digging, barking, overtly rambunctious. This may be the best time to take them out for a long walk, run, or play. Exercise is important and you may find the evening or early morning hours the best time for your dog. We don’t always have success when we work against their timing as that may be based more on instinct than desire or schedule.

Timing is everything – just ask your dog!

Your Dog May Not Like to Shop!

Before we get excited about being able to take our dogs every where we go, consider them and those in the environment where you’ll be taking your dog.

In some States, leaving your dog in the car is not an option as you will be fined.  I agree with this to a point.  Because those who are less responsible are once again defining the restrictions and regulations put on everyone, we need to understand why such a law was passed.  Dogs (and children) have died in cars due to intense heat.  Living in the desert, I understand that and appreciate the penalty.  However, it makes it challenging to take your dog with you when the temperatures are cool and comfortable, because the law still prevails.

Here’s some other food for thought on whether or not you should take your pup as you shop!

The Secret Life of Dogs

The secret life of dogs occurs when we least expect it. If we pay attention, we will begin to see there are patterns or times when this life exists for them.

This life manifests in our dogs when they freeze in time and space as if to hear something being said only to them. Or, they may get a glazed look as they stare into space as if looking into another dimension. Some of you might be thinking – this isn’t a secret life, this is them ignoring us. Think again!  You need a new perspective!

When they bark incessantly at something that doesn’t exist in our reality, it might exist in theirs. They could be listening to a life that dwells on a frequency we can’t yet visit.

This obvious ability of theirs occurs quite frequently in my neighborhood in the very early hours of the morning. UFO’s perhaps? I know, it’s most likely a distant coyote, but whatever it is, when it is heard by only one dog and the most vocal dog in the area, I try to see it as their “gift.”

My lack of sleep can be seen as an opportunity I was given to share in the secret life of this dog.

My dogs didn’t hear a thing. Perhaps, they are less gifted.   I know our neighbor’s dogs don’t just bark to annoy us. Surely they hear something in the ether that we can hope to some day experience.

Dogs Should Have a Middle Name

When correcting your dog, it is important, and sometimes critical they have a middle name. When I heard, “Gayle get in here,” I was motivated; however, “Gayle Marie, get in here right now!” – got me to run (well, it may have been the other way, but I usually would go to whom used that tone and my proper name.)

All of my dogs have a middle name. They don’t know if it’s masculine or feminine and no one makes fun of Moby for being named “Moby Marie.” Now that I think of it, that could explain a lot of his insecure behaviors. That’s another post.

If your dog is “pure” and comes with papers (we don’t know what that is around here), then they most likely have a given name much like my Catholic friends. It is useful to have more than just a first name for those times when you “mean” what you say.

I’m a trainer and I know that when we’re at home hanging out with our pets, we’re cool with calling them a nickname or something cute. But, when they are outside and we want them in yesterday, their name suddenly becomes proper! hmmm. . .

Try it! Call your dog using their given name and an added middle name and see if they don’t look at you with a new-found respect. Maybe, it won’t exactly be respect, but it will certainly be easier for you than dragging out a name when demanding something like “Spoooooot get in here.” “Spotty-James, get in here right now” sounds much better – doesn’t it?

Dog training isn’t always serious. . .and if it is, you’re doing something wrong!

What’s your dog’s “real” name? I won’t tell!

All Dogs Go to Heaven

Some days, my words are inadequate. . .

And,  your words?  I always welcome!  Do tell. . .