Dogs Can Do It

27/03/2022

03/04/2020

10/03/2020

Collar or Harness?

"Harness hurts less than Collar", is this the reason you opt for a harness? Means you agree that even harness hurts but way less than a collar. Think once, won't it be better to opt for something that won't hurt them at all? What if they don't pull on leash while walking? Will it hurt them anyway? Will it matter if they are on harness or collar if they walk without pulling?

Pulling on collar instantly shows us their physical discomfort and we immediately point our focus to reduce the pain by choosing harness. But there are many other aspects which hurt them too, not always physically but sometimes mentally. For example leaving them home when we go out for dinner, leaving them in kennels when we go for vacations, taking them for pee/poop as per our schedule, serving them food as per our convenience, car rides and many more. They stress themselves as they are not prepared for the situation and become anxious about it, many a times shown by their continuous whining, barking or nervous body language.

As a responsible pet parent, it is our responsibility to train our pets to be calm and comfortable in any situation where they are showing discomfort and stress. This would be the actual solution of the problem and not the one in which we opt something which hurts them less. The training might need lots of patience, time and efforts but that's how we show our real affection and care to our furry kids.

27/01/2020

We do justice to our relation with dogs by knowing their psychology before interacting with them. We tend to blame the dogs for their instinctual reactions if that creates unease to us but the fact is, dogs do not rationalize things, they simply react. Let us make some efforts to know the species before we interact with them.

Congratulations Viju n Aana for taking efforts to know more about dog before building up new relationship with your canine friends. I am sure with this, you would have experienced that nothing else can give you more satisfaction than spending your time with dogs.

29/12/2019

Is there Minimum Age To Train Your Pup?

Certainly NOT. Do we wait for human kids to attain minimum age to correct their misbehavior? If Not, then why not follow the same with our Canine Kids too

Dogs do not need to be harmed, hit or punished for their behavioral corrections. Such procedures make them fearful & nervous and could make the behavior worst. Correcting your pets behavior only demands your calm-assertive energy along with efficient way of communication. This means, there is NO MINIMUM AGE to train your pet for behavioral corrections. Infact it is beneficial for you to adapt to corrective measures at early stage to prevent your pet from getting into related behavioral issues at later stage.

Training your pet for basic commands (Obedience Training) like "Sit", "Stay", "Fetch" can also be done at any age as it is more of a play for them rather than typical training (if done in a right way).

So why do trainers recommend minimum age to start the training? This might be because you have consulted trainer for obedience training (and not for behavioral corrections) which needs lot of attention from your pet. As young pups are too excited to explore the new world around them, it is very difficult to gain their attention for such training. But you can train you pup yourself to respond to such commands during usual playtime rather than making the process stressful and boring by forcefully training them during specific sessions.

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27/11/2019

My Dog Can't Be Aggressive

He doesn't like me to take away his food, you can't dare pull toys from his jaws, he can't stand another dog in front of him, nobody can enter my house until I tie him, infact he even snapped at my daughter once. BUT HE IS NOT AGGRESSIVE AT ALL, He Is Just A Sweet Child Of Mine. He does it all as he is passionate for food, is possessive for his toys, hate other dogs, guards my house well and doesn't want to be disturbed sometimes, that's all.

Truly, Is That Really All? Are you waiting for worst to happen before you accept that these symptoms are clear indication of his aggressive tendencies. You are not accepting it because an aggressive dog is a Social Stigma, even though aggression is his natural instinct, inherited from their species. You never wanted him to behave in such manner but still you are justifying him to save his and your image in society.

You need to think beyond saving your reputation because your pet might be in need of help. Just like we loose temper, our pets too get aggressive due to specific state of mind and hence it should not be considered as Taboo. This is a condition of your pet as normal as his playful state but should be fixed on priority before it causes damage to somebody. As you remove the reason of his aggression, he will stop showing such behavior too. Doing this is easy if the condition is accepted, diagnosed and fixed at early stage. Don't wait for the situation to go out of your hand and act responsibly now.

15/11/2019

Training Is Not Changing Your Pet's Behavior

You consulted a trainer, watched and applied tricks from youtube videos and also took guidance from experienced pet-parents around but still you don't see any improvement in your pet's behavior. You might be thinking if she is more stubborn than other pets or has she crossed her age of accepting corrections or the techniques applied are not suitable. On the contrary, most probable reason could be none of these but one of the followings:
- Incorrect diagnosis of the issue
- Corrections are not made in a right way
- Someone is not following the training procedures properly
- You are allowing cheat sessions for her
- Following multiple instructions from different sources for same issues

It is very important that you practice the techniques yourself in presence of your trainer to see if you are rightly following them and also getting the results. This is to avoid the possibility of inappropriate technique being counselled to you. Make sure you are 100% comfortable and confident with the technique and also have been answered to your concerns and queries related to the training prescribed. Even the best possible technique won't work unless you are not confident about it. A trainer's job is not only to correct your pet's behavior but also to train you for correcting the wrong practices being followed and to become Calm, Assertive, Consistent and Patient while working with your pet.

06/11/2019

Importance of Puppy Counselling and Training

Finally the new member has arrived, possibly the first furry one in your house. Everybody is too excited to welcome her and shower lots of love and affection. But soon this excitement is overruled by panic, confusion, dilemma and lots of queries. Unaware of the facts pertaining to a pup, parents start getting worried about her biting habits, house accidents, chewing on furniture, sleeping all the time, eating irregularities, lethargic body language and many more. To get instant knowledge of the behavior, parents consult the famous dog expert & vet, Dr. Google which diagnose it to be worst ever condition in your pet. To add to the situation, calls to the breeder too goes unanswered. With the clock ticking fast and nobody to assist in that situation, first time pet-parents even start doubting their decision of getting a pup and thinking whether to give it back next day.

This situation is common among new pet-parents but there is absolutely nothing to worry for. You should just relax and consider these activities normal for the pup. Your worries are only due to lack of awareness about the puppy natural behavior and instincts. Consulting a dog behaviorist helps you to gain basic knowledge and getting yourself prepared to welcome her. Updating yourself for the upcoming behavioral changes, challenges in bringing her up and relevant training for pets proves to be beneficial in long term.

06/11/2019

Check points before getting your first pet

- Do thorough analysis and lots of consultation with pet-parents around for the best suited breed for you
- Having a dog at home needs long term commitment. As per their life span, be ready to take care of the pet for next 12-15 years
- Initial two weeks are critical for the pup to get accustomed to the new house. This is the time when he should be under supervision almost all the time
- Be prepared to deal with house accidents by the pup for initial few months
- Finalize a designated space in the house for the new member which it should consider as his own space. You might need to purchase crate and dog gate for the same purpose
- Find out the closest vet around and keep his contact number handy. Book an appointment with him for the date when you are expected to receive the pet
- Purchase necessary products such as food/ water bowls, collar & leash, potty training pads, wet wipes and food. Consult vet for more details.

06/11/2019

Different type of dog aggression:

1. Dog Aggressive: Attacking other dogs. Caused due to lack of socialization at early stage.
2. Human Aggressive: Attacking humans when someone tries to get too close to the handler. This points out the guarding tendency of the dog.
3. Dominance Aggressive: Dog without a pack leader would start dominating by showing aggression towards almost everybody around.
4. Food/ Resource Guarding: Showing aggression when a human tries to reach or remove food or object from dogs captivity. It is due to insecurity for the object by the dog. Training the dog to not feel insecure by human presence near food or object fixes such issues. Guarding the handler is another aggressive behavior shown.
5. Unsocial Behavior: Aggression shown towards new people or object. Letting the dogs meet different people, dogs and other pets help them become more social at later stages.
6. Pained or Fear Aggression: Unpredictable, unusual and sudden aggression shown by dogs could be due to pain they are going through. Such abnormal aggressive behaviors should be immediately reported to vet for diagnosing any critical illness.

Becoming calm & assertive leader and socializing your pet at early stage helps to get ride of most of the aggression.

06/11/2019

Why Do Dogs Bark?

Barking for dogs is a way of communicating their emotions. Pattern of barks symbolizes what communication is intended. Common barks by your pet and the message communicated with those are:
1. Alert Bark: Continuous and quick repetition of bark. Does to tell its presence in the area like done when somebody knocks on the door
2. Invitation Bark: Loud barks couple of times ending with a break before starting the sequence again. Done while playing or excitement
3. Aggressive Bark: Low volume growl ending with high volume bark. Done as warning before attacking. This includes signs of being territorial, guarding or scared.
4. Irritated Bark: Short, Instant Low Volume Bark. Done to tell his dislike for the interaction. Does not show aggression.
5. Frantic Bark: High volume non-stop barking. Sign of frantic dog displaying frustration, boredom, fear or nervousness. Does not show aggression.

06/11/2019

Fixing or Suppressing a Problem?

A common misunderstanding in pet-parents is that an in-born behavior by our pet can not be changed and the only solution is to suppress it forcefully. In real, suppressing and fixing are two different aspects. For example, according to many pet-parents continuous barking of a pet is a nuisance to society but it is natural for them to bark and hence can not be fixed and has to be suppressed. Possible inventions could be, locking the pet in bathroom, putting muzzle 24x7, punishing or giving anti-anxiety medication. In actual, such barking of your pet could be a symptom of bigger and serious problem. If not fixed at right time and in a right way, it can cause permanent damage to your pet. A dog behaviorist during the counselling can identify the reason behind such behavior and guide you to adapt corrective measure. Training will follow with counselling session with performing the corrective techniques.

06/11/2019

Importance of Pet Behavior Counselling

Counselling is done to the pet-parent whereas training is meant for both pet and pet parents to achieve the desired results. Most of us are not aware of the natural behaviors and instincts of our furry companions. Similarly our pets are not aware of the expected behaviors from them by their parents. Counselling pet-parent helps them understand if the pet behavior is really a problem or not, what is the actual reason behind a particular behavior, how to correct the behavior using certain technique and understanding the reason behind adapting that technique. Most importantly, never to forget that it is our pet who is adapting to the changes for us and should always be respected & loved for that rather than getting scolded for not learning fast.

04/11/2019

Behavioral Training

Behavioral Training is the mechanism by which you can change a particular behavior of your pet which is not appreciated in human society or identify a condition indicating uneasiness in your pet. Dogs do not have in-born understanding of the behaviors to be adapted while living in human society. Showing their natural instincts in particular situation might be normal to them but is not appreciated when done between humans. Changing these natural behaviors needs innovative techniques, simple procedures and bit of patience by humans. There is no generic way to deal with a particular problem in different dogs. The technique needs to be evaluated based on individual dogs behavior and temperament. But the good news is, these behaviors are not so difficult to get rid of as they seem to be. The biggest misconception related to it is that once a dog achieve certain age, such behavior can not be changed. Infact, unlike humans, dogs can adapt to new practices at any stage of their life except if the condition is due to medical problem. The only difference if done at early stage is lesser efforts required for inducing the change.

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03/11/2019

Obedience Training

Obedience Training consist of techniques to teach your pet to respond in a certain way on a particular command like "Sit", "Stay", "Leave", "Fetch" etc. These training are based on treats given to them as reward when they perform the action on the command. It is basically bribing them to do that action. With lots of repetitions, dogs tend to respond to the command expecting the treats in return and slowly inherits the habit to respond even without a treat due to positivity associated in the action. As these training involve awarding the pet them with treats, it is easier to learn the techniques yourself and apply on the pet. There are lots videos, articles and books available on how can train your pet for these commands. These are effective only if patience and consistence is shown in the training.

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