It’s happened to everyone. You go over to a friend’s house and their barking dog attacks you. Well, it jumps up on your good clothes, enthusiastically licks your face and pokes its nose in areas you’d rather it didn’t sniff, thank you very much – all while your friend stands by helplessly. Then, the excited dog decides to welcome your leg into the house with a warm, personal embrace.

Once you’d disentangled yourself and finally found a seat, the dog comes charging over and demands that you pet it – nosing, nipping and nudging until you surrender and give it a few pats before it spills your drink. During dinner, the scene worsens: The dog sits right next to you, placing its head on your napkinned lap, looking up at you with pleading eyes and drooling in anticipation of the snack to come.
If you’ve ever had to endure a night like this, whether as a host or as a visitor, you understand what a difference it makes to have a well-mannered dog. Imagine having a dog that sits nicely to greet guests; stays when you tell it to; and never, ever begs. Such a dog would be the wonder of the neighborhood, walking on a loose leash, playing gently with children, sitting politely to receive attention and coming when called.
Believe it or not, your dog can become this wonder dog with a concerted training plan. I’ve often been asked the question “why does my dog do that!!!!!” Well, because it’s a dog!

Don’t bark. Don’t dig. Don’t chew. Don’t be a dog!! Be a child in a fur suit. A perfectly mannered child, who plays on command, sleeps on command and is seen but not heard is what we call the perfect mate. I have a client who owns a spirited 6-year old Papillon that is a chronic barker. He barks when the telephone rings. He barks when the doorbell rings. When left alone, he barks and barks and barks. He barks at kids, passing cars, the postman, the paperboy, the wind, the trees. He barks when his owner plays with him. He barks when his owner won’t play with him. He barks when his owner picks him up.

It’s natural for dogs to bark or otherwise vocalize. Yet chronic or excessive barking is a primary reason cited by people surrendering their dogs to animal shelters. But are the dogs really to blame? Why do dogs bark? Dogs bark for a variety of reasons. They bark when they get excited, when they are playing with other dogs, when the doorbell rings and to greet you when you arrive home. One of the early goals of domestication was for dogs to guard and warn against possible dangers, and most owners agree they do not want their dogs to stop barking completely. Most people like the security that comes when Fido alerts them to suspicious intruders and unexpected visitors. Let’s face it, though, when a dog barks incessantly because it is neurotic, spoiled, frustrated, bored, lonely or lacks adequate obedience training, and it can’t be quieted with a simple command, it’s a noisy dog.

Many breeds, such as Shetland Sheepdogs and Poodles, are prone to excessive barking, and they seem to bark with little encouragement. However, most dogs that develop chronic or excessive barking usually do so as a result of boredom, frustration or some form of stimuli. Chronic barking can also be a result of well-intended owners who inadvertently contribute to the problem by allowing bad habits to grow. “When their adorable 10-week-old puppy is barking, owners often do nothing because they assume the problem will magically go away on its own as the puppy grows and matures. 10 or 12 months down the road, the barking has escalated into a serious problem, and frustrated owners looking for some peace and quiet end up giving the dog away.
Try to understand why your pooch is barking excessively. For instance, an apartment-dwelling dog that is left alone all day might bark because it isn’t getting enough attention or exercise. Perhaps it sits on the couch and stares out the window where it barks at the myriad passerby.

Some barking problems can be traced to inadequate physical or mental exercise. High-energy breeds, such as the Australian Shepherd and Border Collie, need lots of daily physical and mental stimulations. Lacking appropriate exercise, these dogs will eventually implode – releasing their excess energy through excessive barking, destructive chewing or digging. In these situations, the solution may be as simple as daily exercise – a jog in the park, retrieving a Frisbee or tennis ball. Or fun hide-and-seek games that stimulate your dog’s mind.

Another option to control barking is with the use of corrective exercises. Always start with the mildest correction necessary, such as a shaker can or spray bottle. It you use a spay bottle, do not put water in it; rather, fill the bottle up with non-alcoholic mouth wash or better yet, pure white vinegar. As soon as the barking occurs, spray 2 to 3 direct spays in the mouth. The idea here is that your dog will associate the barking with that awful taste of vinegar or mouth wash that is sprayed directly in the mouth. The goal, of course, is that the dog stops barking sooner, rather than later.

Whether you choose the shaker can, spray bottle or ultrasonic noise emitter, the following tips will enhance your chances of success.

Consistency and timing are the keys to success. You must be consistent each time your dog barks until you can train it to respond to your quiet or other command.
Positive reinforcement is much more powerful than negative reinforcement. Verbally praise and reward the behavior you want, which is your dog not barking.
Dogs cannot learn an appropriate alternative to barking if you are not present to teach it.
Dogs are individuals. They learn at different rates. You may see improvement within a few days – or it may take many weeks. Remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day!
There will always be dogs that have a propensity to bark, and dogs that are more difficult than others to keep quiet. Despite the saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” it is possible, and even adult dogs with serious barking problems can learn new behaviors.
Preventing barking troubles before they become major stumbling blocks takes more than wishful thinking. It requires a basic understanding of why dogs bark, a good dose of patience, a well-thought out plan and a solid commitment to raising a well-behaved dog. Outfitted with this knowledge, you too can have a well-behaved, quite dog that is a joy to own.

Keep posted for my final article of a four-part series that will specifically talk about my new service, pet walking, and why it is so important to walk dogs on a daily basis. Hopefully you already have somewhat of an idea by having read this article.

For more information on these services or if you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call at 626-290-4370.

I Spend 24-Hours a Day with Your Dog

Doggy Sleep-Over Camp: 2- 4 Week Programs available…
– or as long as I need to keep your pet. Before your dog goes home, I will spend about 3 hours with you and your pet making sure he’s ready to go home. Then, I only send the dog home when you and your dog are ready.
After Sleep over Camp, private tune-up sessions at my facility, are free for the life of your dog.
All total, the amount of time I spend working with your dog in Doggy Sleep-Over Camp amounts to between 300-500 hours!
Many other training facilities only spend 30 minutes; three times a day with your dog and then the dog goes back into the kennel for the rest of the day. I do not believe this is how to get long-lasting change. Since I am with your dog so much, I’m able to see what is going on and I can tailor a program that works for you and your pet.

Your Dog Gets Socialized with Dogs and People:

I socialize your dog with other dogs and with people. Your dog learns how to be calm and submissive with vastly improved social skills. Your dog is learning and having fun at the same time. I take your dog with me hiking, the dog beach, and do many other fun activities all involved in his training.

If it is around the holidays, I take your dog to family holiday parties with me.

I Build Your Dog’s Confidence:

I will build your dog’s confidence, improve his behavior and social skills, calm and center your pet. When the dog understands his pack leadership, obedience falls naturally into place. If your pet trusts me, he will follow me.

I Train You and Your Dog

The program includes working with YOU as well as your dog. Part of the success of the program is to train you to work with your dog. From my experience, most of the time when the dog goes home, they are so well behaved, I rarely get a chance to see the dog or owner again. After the dog goes home I recommend seeing you once a week. You have up to two months after the dog goes home to do your part. After two months you will be on your own. If you go out of town, I can babysit and touch up on the behaviors that I have worked on. No extra charges.

Your Dog Gets Lots of Love:

Your dog gets plenty of love while learning. I give them a bath once a week. They get brushed every day. They learn how to be touched on my terms. Everything manifests in the body first, both humans and animals. I will show you how to read your dog’s body language so you can stop the undesired behavior before it gets out of hand. If you stop it from developing in the body first it cannot start a behavior problem.

Spayed/Neutered or not
De-sexing animals often leads to a dramatic decrease in behavioral problems. It also greatly reduces the chances of a dog developing mammary, prostate or testicular cancer. If your dog has not been de-sexed, consult with your Veterinarian to discuss the pros and cons of the matter. Most dogs go through adolescence between 8-18 months of age and behavior changes are typical of this period. De-sexing should help resolve these issues by reducing hormone levels.

Be the Top Dog
It’s easier to manage your dog if you understand the rules of dog social behavior. The key point however is that if you act like the pack leader your dog will see you as pack leader. However, if you don’t, your dog will feel it has to assume the role himself.

Remember that in a wild dog pack the dominant pack member controls :

Access to food

Access to favorite sleeping areas

Any interactions with lower pack members

Access to favorite items such as toys

In order to show your dog his position as bottom of the pack, you and your whole family can take advantage of these keys points.
For example:
1) Your dog must be the last to eat at every meal and should never get treats from the table, these can be saved for training treats later.

2) Your dog should never walk through doors before you. A good way to practice this is to walk around the house and make them sit at each doorway and wait.

3) If your dog is lying in the hallway or anywhere you have to pass, make them move. If you think they will snap, leave a lead on them so you can move them while maintaining a bit of distance.

4) When you arrive home, completely ignore the dog for 15 minutes. Don’t look at them, talk to them or pat them. After this, go to them and give them some quiet attention only as long as they are relaxed and calm.

5) Only interact with the dog on your terms. If you or someone else is petting the dog or playing with it and it becomes aggressive or badly behaved, immediately remove your attention from the dog by either removing yourself from the area or moving the dog to another area. You should do this without displaying any emotion such as anger, just be a calm but decisive pack leader and the dog will appreciate knowing where it stands.

6) Similarly you can assert your dominance by not allowing access to beds and couches or by only bringing out favourite toys when you want to play and removing them when you are finished.

Keep your dog challenged
Keeping your dog mentally and physically challenged will greatly reduce behavior problems in dogs of all ages but especially in the high energy teen months. There are a number of ways to keep your dog challenged.

Regular daily obedience training is a good routine – just five minutes a day spent rehashing familiar commands with your dog is an extremely effective way of reinforcing your authority and dominance while also keeping your dog mentally challenged. Be sure to use praise and/or treat immediately whenever your dog does something right.

Regular exercise is also very effective at improving your dog’s behavior and it can be both mentally and physically challenging. Quiet walks, while not particularly physically challenging keep your dog mentally stimulated, especially if you vary the walking environment to include new and interesting places. Free running your dog at the park or jogging with your healthy dog on lead can provide a great energy burning opportunity. Alternatively you can train many dogs to run on treadmills which is especially useful if you have reduced mobility or limited time and have a high energy dog.

Finally, toys are also an important source of mental stimulation for dogs and are very useful for keeping dogs entertained when owners are out. Try to build up a collection and rotate them so your dog does not get bored. Toys which can be stuffed with food and require the dog to work the food out slowly are especially valuable. These are called KONGS and can be bought at most pet stores.

Correcting general disobedience
For general disobedience, use the “Alarm-No!-Command” method

Three steps to take immediately when your dog disobeys:

Alarm your dog with a squirt from a water bottle or by shaking a pebble filled can.

At the same time say a loud “Bad” or utter a sharp growling sound like “Aaahhh.” Be stern and sincere every time so that the dog associates the harsh word with stopping the behavior

Redirect your dog with a command. ‘Sit and stay’ is a very good choice. Praise your dog as soon as it responds correctly.

Some dogs however can be difficult to alarm. In this case the time-out method is best. Set up a time out spot such as a quiet room. As soon as the dog disobeys, calmly and silently remove it to the time-out spot for a 3-minute time out. To make the situation positive again when the 3 minutes are up, let your dog come back out and ask it to sit. When it responds correctly praise. Teenage dogs in particular are constantly seeking your attention and therefore removing your attention by isolating them with a time out can be a simple and effective training tool.
If you are consistent and clear with your teenage dog and employ the methods above, you and your teen should be able to get through this period smoothly and you will enjoy your time together.

All the best,

Larry Ontiveros, CPDT

Approaching the Puppy – Remember how friendly dogs approach other dogs? They trot in a relaxed manner toward the other dog and stop to sniff briefly at the dog’s face. The casual, comfortable movement of the oncoming dog helps the dog being approached to relax. Now think about how children usually move. Not with calm, controlled, relaxed movements! When you approach a friendly dog, you should walk calmly (not overly slow or hesitant) at a normal pace toward the dog. Teach your children how to approach a dog. Stand upright and walk calmly toward the dog. Please teach your children that they should always ask for permission to approach a strange dog. Not all dogs like people, especially unfamiliar children. A common expression of friendliness by a child is to approach a dog in a bent over posture with an arm extended outward. For many dogs, the leaning-over action makes them very uncomfortable, even when done by familiar people such as close family members. When dogs lean over other dogs, as discussed earlier, it is seen as a threatening or controlling gesture. You are also invading their personal space. It is important to know that many dogs become frightened and will cower or back away when a person approaches in that manner. With puppies, it can help make the puppy more comfortable if the person squats straight down toward the ground in their own space (not bending over the puppy).

Discourage Running – Most children who like dogs will approach a dog in a manner that is quick and forceful looking. They often run toward them with open arms. For a puppy who is not used to children, this can be quite scary, especially if there is more than one child approaching. The puppy may be thinking, “Good grief, are they going to attack me?” Also, a sudden approach of a child running in from another room can scare or excite the puppy. The child’s intention may not even be to approach the puppy, but the puppy doesn’t know that. It’s even worse and more startling for the puppy if he was sleeping or resting. The puppy becomes scared and runs away with the child running after him, or the puppy gets so excited he chases the child, and tries to stop the child with his mouth. Try to discourage your children from running in the house, and make sure the puppy is getting adequate exercise to help keep him tired and content and less likely to join in the chase.

Touching and Petting – Why is it that when a child attempts to do something as simple as pet a puppy, they can often end up being mouthed (where the puppy puts his mouth and teeth on the child’s hand, arm, etc.)? Does this mean you have a bad, dangerous, or out-of-control puppy? Not likely.
When adults pet a puppy, they calmly put their hand out for the puppy to sniff, and then touch the puppy. When children attempt to pet puppies, typically their hands start off very high up in the air and move downward, cautiously and slowly, almost dangling over the top of the puppy’s head. There may even be a slight hesitation on the approach of the hand toward the puppy, as if they are thinking, “I want to pet the puppy, but I’m a bit unsure.” The slow, hesitant hand motion causes most puppies to reach their heads up to meet the hand. As soon as children see the puppy’s head and mouth coming toward their hand, they immediately pull their hand higher away, sometimes making a screeching sound. This now excites the puppy and turns the petting attempt into a fun game (in the puppy’s mind, anyway). It becomes an endless cycle of the hand going up and down and the puppy jumping up and down trying to grab the hand. The situation can quickly become out of control as the puppy becomes more and more aroused. It can turn a child’s simple efforts to pet the puppy into the puppy’s teeth on a hand or arm. This makes the child even more hesitant and worried about petting the puppy the next time. The slight hesitation of a child’s attempt to pet may also cause some puppies to react in a fearful manner, not trusting what the child’s next move will be. This is especially true if the puppy is not accustomed to being around children. The puppy is probably thinking, “Is the hand going to touch me or not? Why is the hand moving in that manner?” A timid/shy puppy may back away, crouch down low, or avoid the child. In turn, the child may take a more aggressive approach, since the puppy is moving away. This can increase fear in the puppy, as well as cause the child to become frustrated. Try to avoid putting the puppy and child in these situations.

Teaching Children How To Pet – Teach children to start off with their hands low and relaxed by their side, bringing their hand toward the puppy’s face at a normal pace, on a level plane with the puppy’s head so the pup can sniff their hand. They can then move their hand to touch the side of the puppy’s face, neck, under the chin, or along the back. Most children need to be shown how to do this. Take hold of their hand and actually do the hand motion for them several times. If the puppy lies down, help the child calmly rub the puppy’s belly area. If the hand approach is done properly, a well-mannered puppy will control himself and not put his mouth on the children’s hands.

For more information on my puppy program or if you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call at 626-290-4370.

• Earn your dog’s trust. Keep him safe from harm – harm from other dogs, other people and the elements. In addition, your dog should FEEL safe with you. He should not feel that he has to decide whether to run away or fight; to be aggressive toward another dog or a person, or to hide. You are the one who takes care of him and tells him whether and how he should respond. For instance, dog parks can be great places for dogs to play with other dogs and for you to chat with other dog people. On the other hand, if too many dogs are playing, or if your dog is acting frightened or aggressive, it’s usually best to withdraw. Come back when the environment is more conducive to good behavior. Even something as mundane as the back yard can be a place of danger or a breeder of bad habits, if the dog feels that he has to patrol and defend THE WHOLE THING, and you’re not there to reassure him. Always, if other dogs are in the vicinity or small children are around, extraordinary vigilance is warranted until you KNOW what your dog’s responses will be.

• Manage your dog’s environment. In addition to safety, this means that if the dog chews, find a chew-proof spot for him to stay if you can’t watch him. If he runs away, FIX THE FENCE or build one. Keep him on-leash in traffic. Try not to blame the dog for being a dog, and start modifying the environment to make being good easier. As he becomes more mature and well-behaved, you can relax your management.

• Respect your dog as an animal and as an individual. He is your dog and companion. Forcibly moving him, striking him, or pinning him to the ground is likely to lead to relationship problems. If a dog sees you as a threat to his safety, he may either “shut down” and not respond, or become aggressive toward you. He should welcome your touch, not fear it. An inappropriate physical correction can seriously harm or actually destroy your relationship with your dog.

• Exercise and stimulate your dog. Especially in adolescence, the only good dog may be a tired one! Because dogs are naturally most active in the morning and evening hours, a run at those times is very appropriate and will help him relax in between. Throwing the ball in the backyard is good exercise, but also realize that your dog requires mental stimulation as well as physical activity.

Dogs love to teach us games. Their favorites tend to be tug-of-war and keep-away, usually with something we don’t want them to have. Games of cooperation – like retrieving and hide-and-seek (the person hides – the dog seeks) are much better!

PAWS2TAIL offers reasonably priced private-In-Home training sessions that will help your dog or puppy become the companion you want.
I strongly emphasize positive reinforcement in all of my sessions, from beginning puppy and family dog training. Among my specialized classes are sessions for difficult dogs in the area of aggression (dog to dog and dog to people). Here I concentrate on the reasons for your dog’s unwanted behavior and provide you with the tools to modify it.
Individualized, one on one private training sessions teach obedience exercises from the basics to the more advanced. Here you will work with me to design a program that is right for you and your dog.

For detailed information, visit my website at www.Paws2tail.com or call me at 626-290-4370