<![CDATA[Blog]]> https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/ EN Fri, 23 Jul 2021 14:48:00 -0400 Incomedia WebSite X5 Pro <![CDATA[Pack Animals - What Does That Mean]]> imblog

Dog Behavior and Understanding Drive and Perceptions

Pack animals - we’ve all heard the term, let’s look at what it means.

Dogs need to hang out with us, it’s all instinct, a need they must satisfy.
In the wild this helps the animals survive. In our homes these “drives” can be useful or disastrous.

What makes this difference?
Our understanding of the dog, it’s purpose for using a behavior, and how interactions with all environmental factors (humans especially) are being perceived and used by your dog.


There are three major drives: Defense, Pack, and Prey   

Defense   These instincts protect dogs when they perceive a threat or when under attack. It forces the animal into running, fighting, or a combination of both. Using this drive is not a way for you to train your pet. Emotionally, use of this drive for training forces a pet to work with you out of fear. That is dangerous and detrimental to a happy relationship.

Pack   This drive relates to social order, insuring all work needed to survive together gets done. Humans call it “hierarchy.” To pets, these are lateral positions, with no one job more important than any other. Survival depends on this order. This is the drive most used in training.
It’s also the area causing the most trouble due to misinterpretation. Leaders are supposed to give the commands and corrections for the group. If a dog is the leader, he can bite you. Discipline is part of it’s job.
When used correctly these drives help to ensure calm, confident behavior, emotional stability, and a trust in its human’s guidance.

Prey   A usable drive - Watch a police officer throw a toy to reward a task well done. The dog is thrilled to “go after” the ball. Back yard games with pets are wonderful times that can be had together!
The other side of this drive is dangerous. A dog gets the same thrill no matter what he chooses to chase. (cars, children, other animals). An out of control prey drive can kill. Mauling the catch can follow as the thrill becomes too intense for the pet to control. We address this by not allowing your dog to chase anything...ever.
If your dog is allowed to chase a cat, for example they can get so engrossed in the chase they could run in front of a car and get hurt.

To have a dog and not properly train them, in my opinion, is detrimental to the dog and their happiness.
]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 18:48:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?pack-animals---what-does-that-mean https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/00000000B <![CDATA[How To Walk Your Dog]]> imblog

Walk Your Dog Daily

Walking your dog daily is extremely important to their happiness

Birds fly, Fish swim , and Dogs walk. It is their nature.
Recently I asked my grandson to walk my dog, Raji.

This may come as a surprise to you, as it did to me, his definition of walking a dog was completely different than mine!
After he and Raji were gone for several minutes I wanted to check on them, just to be sure all was okay.  You see, he had never walked the dog before, although he and Raji were not strangers, they had never walked alone.

I was expecting to find them well down the street, however, they were less than 20 yards away! His definition of  'walking the dog' was to take the dog to the nearest patch of grass so the dog could relieve herself!
The definition I will use for walking you dog is to take them on walk of at least a half mile.

Dogs in the wild wake up and migrate in their search for food. Your mission here is to closely imitate their natural desire and need to walk.

While walking it is important for you to not let them 'track' while walking. Tracking is when they drop their nose to the ground and smell while you walk. Stopping this behavior will very quickly have your dog walking with you correctly at your side with a loose leash.


You should only allow your dog to stop and smell when you let them. Your dog does not get to make these decisions. When they start making decisions like this, they are leading you, thus challenging your position as pack leader.

Walking has many benefits for both you and your dog. In addition to the health benefits walking allows pent up energy to be reased which will help in training as it releases the anxiety in the dog.
]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 18:37:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?how-to-walk-your-dog https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/00000000A <![CDATA[How To Pass Another Dog While Walking]]> imblog

How to Pass Another Dog

The correct way to greet a dog for the first time

We have all been presented with this delimma when you are walking your dog on a leash and you see another owner and their dog walking toward you...what do you do? Do you stop and wait for the other dog to pass, or do you continue to walk?   Quite simply you need to continue walking.  When one of the dogs stops, it builds anticipation in that dog as to what is going to    happen. You can watch this behavior as you approach the dog who has been stopped by the owner, even if this dog is in a submissive position like in a sit position.
The owner will usually tighten the leash and continue to give their dog strong commands to sit or stay.

The following movie is a very typical walking experience when meeting an un-trained dog.
There are several things happening in this movie you should notice. Raji is walking with my grandson, she has never walked with him before. Trace, our   grandson, is giving small corrections to keep Raji focused on him and redirecting her attention from the aggressive small dog on the retractable leash.

Watch the small dog, while approaching the dog he gets more and more anxious until he can't stand it anymore and reaches the end of his leash charging and   aggressively barking at our dog.

You should continue to walk toward the other dog and if necessary issue corrections to your dog to avert their attention back to you. NEVER in a loud or anxious voice. NEVER have a tight leash...short quick corrections are all you need if you have followed our training techniques.
Notice in the first video this is a narrow street with alot of  traffic. There is a car  coming down the street and the lady with the small dog has absolutely no control over her dog with a retractable leash.
This dog could get hit by the oncoming car.   In this second video Raji is walking back, again passing this same small dog. The lady is on her cell phone, but this is no excuse for her dogs behavior. She should be able to put her dog in a down position while Raji passes, thus avoiding any aggressive behavior by her dog.

]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 16:40:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?how-to-pass-another-dog-while-walking https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/000000008 <![CDATA[The Correct Way for Your Dog to Greet Another Dog]]> imblog

The Correct Way To Greet A Dog For The First Time

Ok, let's look at this from the dog's point of view.
When you approach a dog and it's owner you are an intruder, perhaps a threat, to their pack, the owner and the dog's  pack.
The dog will see you approaching and perhaps their natural 'protection instinct'   will take place.
Perhaps the dog will bark at you but the owner will usually tell them to   stop.

Now the stage is set...most people will continue to approach the dog all the while   looking at, smiling, speaking to, and extending a hand toward the dog.

What the dog sees...
•you are making eye contact, a dominant agressive behavior.
•you are smiling (showing teeth) at the dog, an agressive behavior
•you are speaking (barking) at the dog, an agressive behavior
•coming at (extending your hand) at the dog, an agressive behavior

In the words of Dr. Phil, "What were you thinking?"

So what do you do?

What you do is to completely ignore the dog. Let the dog come to you and 'read' you   and your body language.
We tend to humanize dogs, that is, think they think like we do. They don't, in fact   they think very little in a situation like this, they react to the stimuli placed in front of   them   Once the dog has sniffed you, read you, and walked away you are no longer   perceived as a threat to the pack.

Watch Cesar Milan when he greets a dog for the first time. He says, "Don't look,  don't talk, don't touch”. The dog needs to come to you. He needs to smell you, sence   your aura, and make the decision in his mind that you can be friends.
]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 16:02:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?the-correct-way-for-your-dog-to-greet-another-dog https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/000000007 <![CDATA[Aggression]]> imblog

Aggression And How To Stop This Behavior

Why It is Bad and How to Stop This Behavior

It has been my experience, most people don't recognize aggression in their own    dogs, particularly small to medium sized dogs.
When walking your dog on a leash, if your dog pulls on the leash he is 'leading' you and therefore sees you as a weak member of your 'pack'.
Although this is not necessarily an aggressive behavior, it can quickly become aggressive. This is because your dog feels he needs to protect you. He becomes the protector of the 'pack' and will bark aggressively at another dog who is walking by. Your dog will do this because he 'needs' to protect his pack. It seems most people feel he 'just wants to play', he does not.

Dogs don't greet each  other face to face like humans do when greeting another human.  Dog training is more than just teaching your dog, it is establishing yourself as a leader in your dog’s mind. A well trained dog is one which will receive more freedom, exercise, and affection throughout it's life. With a well trained dog you will be happy and you can trust your dog will respond when absolutely necessary.

Side note:   It is equally important to understand why you need to train your dog.
As well as developing a well controlled and happy dog, the only way you can protect your dog from harm is have him respond to commands when given. Think about it, if your dog chases a cat, as they are prone to do, and runs into the street...he could get hurt.

The only way to protect your dog from harm is through proper training.   Large dogs are perceived to be aggressive for no reason other than their physical   size. Small dogs are not perceived to be aggressive mainly because of their size.  Fact is, larger dogs for the most part are less aggressive than small dogs. I am sure there is some data on this...somewhere. But take a walk someplace where you will see someone walking their dog.

You will see aggression in dogs who are untrained in basic obedience.

This is an example of a well trained large dog walking with a  little girl...notice the loose leash. Anytime you are walking your dog
this is how the leash should be...loose, Never have a tight leash.
]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 15:54:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?agression https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/000000006 <![CDATA[What Your Dog Needs]]> imblog
Exercise – To keep your dog's life balanced, 50% of their interactions need to be exercise.
Exercise is not the amount of time the dog is in the yard alone. It is the amount of time spent with human supervision and interaction, dog park, fetch, Frisbee, agility, and so forth. A dog's personality is set by the energy they are born with. Dog's have different energy levels – the following is several popular breeds and the amount of exercise they require per day based on their energy levels:


Discipline – 25% of dog's interactions should be training exercises.
Training communication with your dog in a way you and the dog both understand.
Obedience -  should be incorporated into your daily activities. This is obedience training from our methods, without treats.
Most people give their dog obedience commands only as a way to control their dog when he is either about to do something wrong or already has. The dog soon figures out that if he can just avoid punishment by moving fast or adopting a pathetic look, he has it made.
You need to incorporate our obedience training to reinforce the commands on a daily basis.
Affection – The last 25% of interaction should be affection.
Most owners ignore their dogs when they are being good. This is understandable because it is much easier to ignore a dog sitting quietly by your side or a dog lying on his mat in a corner than a dog who is jumping on you or running madly through the house with a dishtowel in his mouth. Because of this, most dogs quickly figure out that doing "bad" behaviors is what gets them attention.
For a social animal like a dog, negative attention is better than no attention at all. Owners must train themselves to be "on the lookout" for their dogs good behavior. Remind yourself and your family members to give the dog praise and attention when he's being good. Then he will be less motivated to engage in bad behaviors to get attention.
The problem with many human/dog relationships is the dog gets affection, very little exercise and no discipline. These types of interactions lead to behavior problems.
]]> Fri, 23 Jul 2021 15:39:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?what-your-dog-needs https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/000000005 <![CDATA[Basic Dog Obedience]]> imblog There is so much more to training your dog than just teaching him a few commands.
To be a successful 'trainer' you need to understand how dogs think, how they learn, and the importance of Pack Mentality
]]> Wed, 21 Jul 2021 21:50:00 GMT https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/?basic-dog-obedience https://www.teachyoutotrainyourdog.com/blog/rss/000000004