More Quick Tips When Walking Your Puppy

There are so many things I have to remember when walking my puppy.  What is a quick safety tip that I could be overlooking?

Down here in South Florida it is hot and humid most of the year.  Because of this, we have a lot of standing water and mold.  Little puppies love to sniff and lick just about anything.  The one thing you dont want them to do is to ingest mold and run the risk of stomach infections, loose stools, or even worse.  Here are a few, simple suggestions you might employ while walking your little puppy, Wolfie:

• Always be aware of your environment and avoid standing water or really dirty sidewalks.
• Walk at a brisk pace and stop only when you think it is safe for Wolfie to sniff and just be a puppy.
• Dont just blindly look off into the distance when you are walking.  Always keep your eye on Wolfie to make sure he is keeping his nose and mouth off the ground.
• Walk Wolfie on a short leash.  This takes away a great deal of the opportunity for him to get into trouble.  It also make is easier for you to keep him in control.

Always be observant of Wolfie when you are home.  If you see he is having loose stool, becomes listless, or his eating habits change, give your Veterinarian a call right away and discuss the problem.  It is our responsibility to keep our little puppy safe for his entire life and part of that is just being a smart and observant leader.  For more information, please contact us at The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

Read More..

What to Do When Your Dog Constantly Destroys Their Fluffy Bed

Sometimes the best training tips arent training tips at all!

Let’s think about this for just a moment.  Our dog loves to lie in the rocks by the pool or on the marble floor by the back door.  Is there any reason why we need to provide him with a fluffy bed in his crate or in his corner?

If you haven’t come to the same conclusion, the answer is “No”.  In most instances, your dog destroys their bed, in their crate or outside, because of boredom.  If you constantly replace the bed, you are reinforcing the destructive behavior that is growing in your dog.  If you continue this process, your dog will move on to destroying your couch and chair.  This is not a good thing.

Here comes the easy answer that took me several years of case studies to recognize. 

Remove the bed and allow your dog to sleep on the ground.  Don’t worry; he won’t hate you for this.  You have simply severed the association of “chew my bed, chew the furniture”.

If you have any questions about this, we are more than happy to respond.  Please contact us at The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

Read More..

Never ask a Lakeland their opinion

This blog is brought to you courtesy of my wife Yvonne. This is an e-mail she sent out a couple of weeks ago:

Lesson #1: Never ask a Lakeland their opinion……….. If you don’t want to hear the truth.



And so it was…………………………

Sears delivered my new treadmill yesterday. When I arrived home and after letting Tag and Chicklet out to go potty and rid the back yard of dreaded foxes……………..Chicklet came back in to inspect the new arrival. I asked her what she thought of Mommy’s new treadmill………. where Chicklet promptly jumped on the virgin track, daintily squatted, and produced just a few droplets of pee.

After my shock and horror, Ms. Chicklet spent the night tethered a few feet away from Mommy’s new treadmill, a pretty weighted collar added to her neck jewelry, where she watched as Mommy walked on the treadmill.

Chicklet is home today…………………glaring at the ###!!!@@@!!! treadmill.

Lesson Learned: I will not ask Chicklet her opinion of my new lamp. I can’t handle the truth.

Love to all, Yon

Doug

Read More..

Dog Grooming brushing their teeth and wash

Grooming the dog is based on preventive health care for your dogs and puppies. It gives you the chance to small changes in the body of your dog, could lead to health problems, such as the one-time or problems with his ears or his teeth.

Dog grooming can be a time for further bonding with your dog. This is a serious one-on-one, he will be included in your concern.

So how do you do when you start training your dog and the dog? Like most things with your puppy, you need to enter his dog slowly Care and help him very uncomfortable. In the short meeting, about 5 minutes and work up to the entire routine, he adapted.

Started combing and brushing. There are several tools for convenience, for brushing teeth, and the use of dogs depends on the variety and type of jacket he said. Do you have a puppy from the breeder of appropriate technologies.

Brushing should be done before bathing your dog or puppy. Bathing your dog when he must begin 14 years or earlier, if he is a very dirty dog. Most of the dog may only take a bath once a month, unless he got dirty. Whether you decide your dog a bath, bath, dresser or a kind of bathtub, the rubber mat with him some of the safety position, he will not stumble.

Bubble his body instead of his face. To ensure that the water from his ears. Maybe you want to stop his ear tube cotton balls to prevent water in his ear. What you wet dog and the dog shampoo. Besides washing. Any remaining shampoo in his coat and can lead to irritation of the skin or dry. Wipe his face with a wet cloth. Squeeze the excess water, then towel dry your dog. Fill it with a hair dryer to dry in warm, not hot, or let him in a warm room until dry.

Keep in mind that the dog would like to hitch you as soon as possible for his release. That is the reason why some people want their dogs, wash the outside of the rapid constraints to prevent it from rolling more and more dirt. If this is not an option, as in the winter, you might consider a professional care.

Professional care can be difficult for her dog and Grooming considerations, such as the need to divest a portion of the hair types of wiring. It depends on your ability to perform the necessary tasks and your desire to make

Read More..

Five Great Things a Good Dog Owner Should Do for Their Dog

I really want to be a great dog owner for Wolfie and there are so many opinions and suggestions of what I should do!  Are there some general things that I really need to focus on?

There are bookstores and bookstores full of dog books.  We could spend the rest of our lives just reading about what we should do with our dogs.  Since we probably dont have time for that, let me cut to the chase and give you the five "you really shoulds" for your dog:

1. First, good dog owners walk and exercise their dogs. Most dogs love to run and play. It is both a physical and mental release and helps keep them physically strong and emotionally happy. 
2. Yearly check-ups. Ensuring that your dog has yearly check-ups to help identify any medical problems before they become problems is a very good habit. During the yearly exam, your veterinarian will also determine if your dog requires any vaccines, flea control or heart worm preventative medications. These measures will help to keep your dog healthy and comfortable. 
3. Good daily care. Daily monitoring of your dogs appetite, urinations, bowel movements are a part of be a good responsible dog owner. Healthy dogs have a good appetite, normal urinations, healthy bowel movements and maintain an ideal weight. Any abnormalities should be noted and any persistent changes should be reported to your veterinarian. 
4. Feed a good quality food. Good nutrition is one way a dog owner can proactively make a difference in their dogs health. Over the past two decades, there has been a lot of research and scientific information used to properly formulate dogs foods to optimize health. Many of the foods that we recommend have these enhanced formulas that helps burn fat, develop muscle and promote healthy digestion. They were developed by nutritionists and veterinarians, so these complete, all-in-one diets have the right balance of proteins, fats and fibers to help protect your dogs health. Please do your own research and select a great food for your dog.
5. Daily grooming. Monitoring your dogs nails and trim them when needed, brush his teeth at least every other day and daily brush his hair are important ways to prevent unnecessary problems such as dental disease, torn nails, matting, and needless shedding around your home.

Do these things and your dog will thank you with better health and months, if not years added to their lives.

For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.. 

Read More..

The only way to train a dog is

The other night after our Neighborhood Pack Session three of my dog owners were outside talking. I joined in.

These three have been working with me for a while. And each of them has an awesome dog.

Vino is a Rottweiler. He started his training at nine weeks. He has been trained to be a service dog and is the subject of an earlier blog. He is 22 months old now and just an incredible dog. He works for his twins. He now gives an alert up to 45 minutes before the little girl goes into grand mal seizures and will intervene if her brother starts bumping his head into the wall he will push him away and sit with him until he calms down. He has passed every test and certification with flying colors.

Athena is a Rottweiler, Aussie cattle dog and Akita mix. She is a rescue. She is a one in a thousand dog. She took one look at her new owner, decided she loved her new mom, and has been a jewel ever since. Training her was a breeze and she is one of my pack leaders in Neighborhood Pack. She will often quell bad behavior in another dog with just a look.

Charlie is a young pit bull. When he started he was dog aggressive. We got him past that quickly and he became playful but at the first sign of any rough play would get pretty defensive. Now he is just playful with everyone. Maturity and experience will tone that down.

Vino’s Mom started the conversation by telling us that she had taken him into one of the chain stores. He was wearing his service vest. The store “trainer” came over and told Mom that she trained service therapy Rottweiler’s. She immediately asked if Vino had been trained in a method that uses corrections. Mom answered yes and the “trainer” launched into a harangue that dogs can’t be trained with methods using corrections.

.

Athena’s Mom also added that she had a similar experience in another of the chains. The trainer had lectured her about the “only way” to train dogs. She went on to explain the superiority of food based training, the favored method of many chains.

Charlie’s mom got stopped by a neighbor. Apparently this is one of those “I come to you” trainers who lives in her neighborhood. The trainer had seen Duke jump on her as they left the house for their walk. The trainer then told her how her training methods are wrong and she should change trainers. The trainer did not realize that jumping only occurs at the start of a walk and is a way he expresses pleasure. It is also the sign of a young dog who hasn’t quite understood why he should not do that yet.

Each of these three different trainers told my client that their training method was the “only way” to train a dog.

At that point one of my clients said that the “only way” to train a dog is the Manners in Minutes system. I disagreed. I believe that a good trainer can train a dog in any method.

I know I could train in any system; choke chain, pinch collar, clicker, food based, or any of the others. . I use the Manners in Minutes system because it is efficient. Not only do I think the dog catches on quicker, I believe the owner learns this method faster than any other. And I have set up my training lesson plan and center to maximize the method.

I have a training center rather than train in a park because I can control the environment. The center also means I don’t have too little or too much space. And I can control who and what the dog is exposed to as the training progresses.

I use very little food because I have long since realized that a client training for the first time will often use food as a crutch. The temptation to offer the food too often or too soon is hard for someone to resist when they first start working with a dog. As a result the client ends up bribing rather than motivating the dog.

I don’t like choke or pincher collars because for an inexperienced owner it is too easy too over or under correct. Under correction has no effect on the dog, over correction results in resentment. Electronic collars don’t make sense to the dog. I don’t use harsh alpha methods because a pack leader is firm, fair and consistent, not a bully. I don’t use clickers, even though I think they are the fastest way to learn to properly time praise, because too many owners have no control when they do not have a clicker at hand.

I stopped offering group classes to start training because I noticed that in every group there was always one dog that was so out of control that too much of the allotted time was spent on that dog to the detriment of the others. Every group always had someone who for various reasons needed a disproportionate amount of my time. Group tends to put the owner with an easier dog at a disadvantage.

So to make sure that the time I spend with you and your dog is efficient I start you in private sessions. That way you and the dog get my undivided attention. Then when the dog and you are ready I move you into group since there are many things we can do in group you can never do in private sessions.

If you have found a good trainer then there is no “only way,” just what they believe is the best way. And if you have found a trainer who has the “only way,” odds are you do not have a good trainer.

Doug

Read More..