Category Archives: Dog Behavioral Issues

My Dog Listens To My Husband But Does Not Listen To Me

Dog Heeling Northern Virginia

 

 

Every single day at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia we hear people say, “My dog listens to my husband (or wife), but he doesn’t listen to me.”

So, what we immediately begin doing is asking them questions to see “why” the dynamic of your relationship is the way it is.  Generally, this dynamic among owners and the dog has a lot to do with pack leadership.  Ask yourself who is the strongest member of your pack at your house; meaning, which one of you are the strictest on the dog, makes him have the best manners (make him wait before he eats, make him wait at the door, doesn’t let him drag them around on the leash, etc).  These small yet simple things generally have a lot do  with how your dog sees you in the pack structure.  “Generally” we hear females saying “He listens to my husband better than he does me” much more than we hear males say this.  Generally men are harder on the dogs and more strict, and women are generally more cuddly, loving, gentle.

Another major factor that can make a big difference is who spends the most amount of time working with the dog? During our obedience training lessons in Northern Virginia, we tell people on a daily basis, “You and your spouse should both be practicing this training at the house.”  What we see all of the time is if there is just ONE person that trains the dog, over the course a few weeks the dog will listen to that person flawlessly, and not so much the other person.

This is because the dog sees that just one person if correcting them, enforcing the commands, doing all the pack leadership things that are built into the training, etc.  So, the dog simply learns, “I have to listen to and respect this person; however, not so much this other person.”

The analogy I use on a daily basis is that it’s just like children.  Think about it, if the dad is disciplinarian of the household, and the mom is the pushover, which person does the child listen to the best? Welcome to the world of how your dog thinks and acts, as well.

So, if you find that your significant other has more control and respect out of your dog, start working with them on obedience training and pack leadership, and you should soon see a shift in the dynamic of your relationship.

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How To Stop My Dog From Eating His Poop (Feces)

Your dog eating their own stool actually isn’t uncommon, it’s a question we get regularly at our dog training business in Northern Virginia. Many owners are completely appalled and disgusted at this behavior; however, it’s somewhat common and normal for many dogs. The official term for this behavior is Coprophagia.

Four of the most common causes of this behavior we will discuss:

-Lack of Nutrients In Their Diet: You will need to go see a vet to ensure that your dog does not have some underlying issue such as worms or parasites. If your dog has worms or parasites, they can often consume many of the nutrients your dog is eating; therefore, your dog is eating their stool in order to get all of the nutrients they can.

-High Stress: Sometimes high stress situations can cause this behavior in your dog. If you recently adopted a dog or made a major change in your dog’s normal routine, this could also cause this behavior.

-Cleaning Up: Many new mothers do this to “clean up” their area of with their new litter there; however, dogs without litters can do this in an effort to clean up their area, as well.

-Taste: If your dog is eating foods that are rich in fats and proteins, your dog could simply like the taste.

Solutions To This Behavior:

-Obedience Training: With a proper obedience training regime, a qualified trainer can show you how to properly correct and redirect this behavior.

-Keeping A Clean Yard: In case your dog feels like they have to “clean up,” constantly keep your yard clean and free of any fecal matter.

-Give It A Bad Taste: This is one of the most common and widely used methods to help control this behavior, you can simply make the fecal matter taste horrible; therefore, you are deterring the dog from eating it. Some of the things you can do in order to make it taste bad are: Meat Tenderizer, a product called “For-bid,” or even adding some canned pumpkin (about 1/2-1 cup) to the dog’s food. All of these things taste very good to your dog while they ingest them; however, they make the fecal matter taste horrible when coming out. One last thing you can do is add a hot sauce to their fecal matter, which will clearly leave your dog not wanting anymore; however, it will not hurt nor harm your dog in anyway.

If you stick to these guidelines, you should find a simple solution in no time. As stated above, consult with a licensed veterinarian on your dog’s nutritional intake, as well.

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How Do I Stop My Dog From Chewing On Things?

Many owners ask, “How do I stop my dog from chewing on things when they are home alone?”  This is an issue we correct on a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia.

First, you must realize some of the main reasons that dogs do chew or destroy things:
-Attention Seeking
-Teething
Separation Anxiety (click for the blog)
-Not Mature Enough (See our Puppy Training Blogs)
-Boredom

One of the most common problems I find when dealing with our clients in our dog obedience program in Northern Virginia is that many people try to leave their dogs out and free in the house way too early. Meaning, they are leaving their 5-7 month old dog out while they are gone at work for 8+ hours and expect them not to get into anything. Doing this, is pretty much setting yourself and your dog up for failure, as I ask, “Would you leave your 5=year old home alone and expect that he/she would not get into anything? If not, why would you with your puppy?”

In my blog on Crate Training Your Dog, I say a good general recommendation is the dogs should be crated or in a safe/controlled environment when home alone until around the age of 1.5 years old. Again, this is a “general” assessment, some dogs may need a little less and some dogs may need a little more.

Second, my famous quote from my book, “Raising the Perfect Dog: The Secrets of Law Enforcement K9 Trainers,” is “If you do not give your dog a job to do, they will become self-employed, a self-employed dog will always cost the owner money.” Essentially, what that simply means is that a bored dog is a destructive dog. If your dog is destroying a lot of things, you could have a lot of pent up energy from lack of physical and/or mental stimulation. So, get your dog proper exercise on a daily basis as well as doing things that are mentally stimulating (obedience, nose detection, etc).

Third, is Separation Anxiety, which I cover in-depth in my blog on Dealing With Separation Anxiety in Dogs.

Fourth is lack of viable options to play with. Anytime you remove something that your puppy (or dog) shouldn’t play with (i.e., shoe, sock, etc) you should always give a firm “No,” and immediately replace it with something that they can play with. This is how your dog learns what is his and what’s acceptable and what’s not his and what’s not acceptable. So, ensure you have toys scattered throughout the house that give them options of things that they can play with.

If your dog has taken interest in a particular object, you can always get sour apple bitter spray from any major dog retail store. This is a bitter tasting spray that can be sprayed on any object; therefore, when your dog goes to chew on that object, they associate it with tasting horrible.

Lastly, obedience training. I always say obedience training in its’ self fixes numerous issues in dogs. I always say, “I have never seen an amazingly obedient dog with a lot of behavioral issues.” So, look into getting your dog into an official obedience training program like ours in Northern Virginia.

Nick
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How Can I Stop Food Aggression In My Dog?

We deal with food aggressive dogs at our training facility in Northern Virginia, a lot. So, many of you are probably wondering, “How can I stop food aggression with my dog?”

Click here to see a before/after video of a food aggressive Pit Bull we just recently trained at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia.

Food aggression in dogs can be caused by numerous things, a couple of the main things are poor pack leadership and the dog having to be food aggressive prior (common with shelter or hoarder dogs). Where the dogs “had” to fight over food.

There are a lot of steps you can start taking in order to begin fixing your dog’s food aggression problems. First, I would like to point out the 5-step approach we use that I wrote about in my blog on dog and people aggression .

When working with food aggressive dogs at our training facility in Northern Virginia, I always preach that we do a 5-part approach to this: Obedience, Confidence Building , Positive Association with People, Pack Leadership, and Proper Correction for the Negative Behavior. I have found that this is a fundamental approach that is imperative to start working a dog towards rehabilitation, and all 5 components are necessary to be successful.

First, we focus on obedience and confidence building, as I always say, “You cannot fix any issue in a dog that doesn’t listen to you.” If you cannot get control over your dog, it’s pretty much impossible to fix any issue that your dog is having. Also, obedience naturally bolsters pack leadership for you

Second, start by establishing yourself as the pack leader. There are many things you can do which I cover in the Pack Leadership blog in order to help establish this. Remember, if you watch pack animals such as Lions, when you see them eating a Gazelle the alpha males will always scare off the lower members of the pack so they can eat. This is essentially what your dog is doing to you, generally because he doesn’t see you as the alpha.

Third, start putting his food on the floor or a mat, this way it prevents your food aggressive dog from having a specific object to guard and try to protect. Just put a little bit of food down (about 7-8 pieces at a time), once he eats that, he will look up at you, put a little bit more down. Repeat this until his normal feeding is complete. This is just another small step to show him that YOU control his food.

Fourth, start having your dog sit or down while you are pouring his or her food (this is why control over your dog is important), once you finish putting his food on the floor or a mat, wait a minute or so and then release him to eat. This is a small drill that teaches your food aggressive dog that YOU are the one that controls when he eats.

Fifth, positive association with you approaching his food. While your dog is eating (on the mat or floor) approach his bowl from about 3-4 feet away (depending on your dog’s tolerance level with his food aggression) and toss a couple pieces of hot dogs (or anything your dog finds as a high-valued reward) near him. As he gets comfortable, slowly move in closer and toss the hot dogs into his food. Progress this until you can stand right next to him and put the hot dogs in his food. What this drill does is it teaches him to associate you approaching his bowl with someone positive! In your food aggressive dog’s mind, they learn, “Anytime this person gets close to me or my bowl, it means something good for me.”

Sixth, PROPER correction for the negative behavior. Again, this is where your dog obedience program comes in, find a qualified trainer to show you how to properly correct this behavior (properly being the key word). There has to be a correction when the dog displays the negative behavior (growling, snarling, snapping, etc). Just like there would be a correction if a lower pack member tried to correct the alpha male of the lion pride. Letting your dog know that there is a consequence for displaying the food aggressive behavior, and letting your dog know there is a reward for not displaying the behavior.

In summary, if you follow these 6-steps, you should be able to drastically help your food aggressive dog and/or completely stop the food aggression in your dog.

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How Do I Keep My Dog From Escaping The Cage or Crate?

The question always comes up, “How do I keep my dog from escaping his or her crate (cage)?” This is a very simple question; however, more of a complex answer. First off, many dogs who are escape artists and are constantly escaping their cage, may have some form of separation anxiety.

There are a couple things you can do in order to keep your dog from escaping his or her crate. You probably have one of the cheaper standard collapsible crates that most people buy because they are the most widely available at all major stores and they are fairly inexpensive. So, if this is the case, my first piece of advice is to try to zip-tie all of the sides of the crate. So, on all 4 corners, have 2 zip ties (one at the top and one at the bottom).

If your dog is still escaping the cage, then I would recommend you upgrade to a much more durable crate which is literally impossible for them to destroy or escape out of. Since I do not promote any specific business or brand, I would advise you to do an internet search on “military working dog crates” and you will see many of the crates I am speaking about. These are VERY durable, sturdy, rugged, and indestructible cages which literally make it impossible for your dog to escape.

Many people balk at the seemingly expensive prices of $400.00-$500.00 for these crates; however. you must keep in mind a few things before you are quick to rule them out. The first thing is that these will literally last YOU a lifetime, not the dog a lifetime, but YOU a lifetime. They are pretty much solid metal and indestructible, so it’s a life-long crate. Second, if you continue using the cheap $80.00 cages that your dog has been escaping, he is likely causing damage in your house (if they have separation anxiety), so a couch, pair of shoes, carpet (etc), can cost you well over $400.00-$500.00 in damages in just one escape. Therefore, you should look at it as a very good investment; meaning, you have it for life and your dog is not able to destroy anything in the house.

So, if you have found that your dog is an escape artist and continues to escape from their crate, try one of these two solutions above! The solution with zip-ties is by far the cheapest solution that works for many dogs; however, if it does not work you should consider making the investment and upgrading.

Lastly, exercise is very important for all breeds of dogs; however, it can drastically help with this issue in many cases, as well. Remember the great saying, “A bored dog is a destructive dog” and “A tired dog is a calm dog.” So, try to ensure your dog is getting plenty of exercise and or mental stimulation whenever possible which can drastically help improve this, as well.

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How To Solve Behavioral Issues In My Dog?

 

Whether your dog has behavioral issues such as: eats your house while your away, doesn’t travel well or gets snippy with invited guests, most behavior issues come from two possible sources.  Sometimes dogs are received from places that did not breed very well, and sometimes as their owner it can be hard to know what to do to teach them, and so we do the wrong things. Here are some useful bits of information on behaviors. If you puppy or dog is displaying any of them, you’ll be more informed if you decide to talk to a trainer.
Behavior #1: Separation Anxiety: I have a Eurasier, and he can’t stand to be left inside when my family leaves. He is a family oriented breed, and doesn’t appreciate being left behind. To show his great disapproval, he would chew the corners off our walls, and eat our doors until we had to replace them. Separation Anxiety in dogs is a very common mis-behavior in dogs, and is easily fixed.
Cure: While no behavior issue can be solved overnight, there are some steps you can take to help your pup adjust better when he’s left behind. If your dog has a crate, try putting them inside it, during the day. Even when you’re home, they should spend time throughout the day in their crate. If you don’t have one, you can use a bedroom to enclose them. This will help them learn to “be alone” even while you’re still home and this is one of the many ways you can deal with separation anxiety training in Northern Virginia
Behavior #2: Aggression: While some people think that aggression is bred into dogs, it in fact is generally not genetically aggressive. No dog wants to be aggressive, and will usually only exhibit this behavior when needed. There are some simple steps to help you deal with the aggression in your dog to return it to a easy going, loveable member of your family
Cure: Start by leading. If a dog doesn’t see it’s owner as a “pack leader” it will assume that role and try to dominate the situation by showing aggression. Don’t show fear. Dogs are very sensitive to fear and will react accordingly. Your dog needs to feel secure in your leadership, that you can be in control of yourself, him and the environment you’re both in.  We do a lot of dog aggression training in northern virginia and are able to help fix these issues by teaching the owners steps they need to take and teach the dogs how to interact with other dogs properly.
Behavior #3: Disrespect/Bad Manners: Dogs can sense that their “leader” isn’t really leading. If they sense this from you, they may act out by showing disrespect for your attempts to lead. If you catch your dog growling at you when you get near his food bowl (etc) than that’s a good sign that he doesn’t respect you as the pack leader.
Cure: Learning proper correction techniques, and assertive leadership will help you curb this behavior in your dog before it becomes a bad habit. Talk to an Off-Leash K9 Training trainer in order to learn more about how to correct this bad behavior in your dog, and how to learn how to be an effective leader.  We will teach you pack leadership techniques to start working on at your house as well as incorporating our dog training in Northern Virginia.
Whether your dog is showing aggression, disrespect or simple bad manners, these behaviors can be turned around.  We use simple 5-step method of: obedience, confidence building, pack leadership, correction for the negative behavior, and positive reinforcement for the desired behavior.
Contact your local trainer for more information. For those of you who live in Virginia, you can contact the qualified trainers at www.offleashk9training.com
 

How to Deal with Separation Anxiety in Dogs?

 

Nervous dogs, or those which have had a history of abuse, often exhibit anxiety when left alone. This can manifest itself as barking or whining, chewing furniture or simply cowering away somewhere it feels more protected. The general term is separation anxiety, and can affect many animals and even humans  So, you may wonder “How do I deal with a dog with separation anxiety?”. For most dogs it is easy to cure. Separation anxiety is something we work with daily at our facility in Northern Virginia.  Generally caused in most cases by the dog not being confident that it is an accepted part of your ‘pack’. In our Northern Virginia dog training sessions we can show you how to gradually correct separation anxiety and in the process make a happy, well adjusted dog which is a pleasure to own instead of a liability.
If a dog is properly trained from birth, then you are unlikely to have any problem with separation anxiety. It is a learnt behaviour, although sometimes particular breeds are more prone to it at birth (Malinois, GSDs, etc).. As such, and as with any learnt behaviours, it is possible to correct if you are prepared to put in the effort. In our Northern Virginia dog training courses we have specialists who are very experienced with separation anxiety cases. We will work with you to show you that it is not difficult to correct, as long as you have patience.
Take small steps and never allow your dog to become stressed.
Every dog is slightly different and requires slightly different approaches to the separation anxiety problem. Some dogs get anxious as soon as the owner is out of their line of sight. Some are OK as long as there is a person somewhere in the house. Still others only become stressed after a certain time of separation. The symptoms of separation anxiety also vary widely, as discussed above. In all cases, though, the same basic principles apply, though the way they are best applied require expert assessment. This is why you need advice from experienced trainers such as those at our Northern Virginia dog training courses.
Rescue dogs seem to suffer from the symptoms of separation anxiety more than most, probably because of some past physical/mental or being bounced around numerous homes. This should be born in mind when taking on a rescue dog. Furthermore the behaviour of the owner when leaving can significantly stimulate anxiety. Consequently, eliminating this problem is as much about training owners as it is about dog training.
 

Generally, dogs with separation anxiety need more separation.  Meaning, you should put them in their crate or in another room all throughout the day, even when you are still home.  Just to get them accustom to being alone and separated throughout the day while you are still in the home.  Also, try to make it a positive experience, such as giving them a favorite toy or treat.



Nick White

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Changing Your Dog’s Attitude: Dog Training Virginia

 

Why Northern Virginia dog trainers need to change your dog’s attitude
Every once in awhile, even the most patient of dog owners will realize that their dog has developed an attitude problem. This may apply to you. You know that your dog has a bad attitude when he tends to take the lead in the relationship. This may take the form of snapping and snarling when he encounters guests in the house, or barking at you when you try to give him a bath or take him out for a run. If your dog has an attitude problem like this, you should seek help from Off-Leash K9 Training, Northern Virginia.
Dog training Northern Virginia should be focused on making your dog understand that you are the leader and he is simply part of the pack. Why do some dogs grow to think that they are the alpha male in the family? Well, perhaps you didn’t notice that he was developing bad habits until they were manifested recently. For dogs that have developed a bad attitude, a course at dog training Northern Virginia would be greatly beneficial.
Lesson number one in Northern Virginia dog training should always be that your dog has to learn to follow your commands with no exceptions. So you could start off with your dog being trained by Northern Virginia dog trainers to consistently come and sit on command, even outside and off-leash. Eventually the dog training Northern Virginia will focus on you so you will be trained on how to properly use our training system. Your dog should be trained to enter doors on command (after you), to heel on command, to place on command, and to lie down on command, for starters.
One reason your dog developed a bad attitude is that he was left to decipher human behavior on his own. Have you tried talking to your dog? Part of dog training Northern Virginia is to learn how to communicate well with your dog, clear and crisp without yelling. Although scolding will certainly bring a response, you should also learn to praise your dog when he does something right. Teaching your dog wrong from right during Northern Virginia dog training will help eliminate that bad attitude he had developed.
Dog training Northern Virginia should not stop once your dog has emerged from the school. Dogs learn by repetition so always continue Northern Virginia dog training lessons at home until you and your dog have learned to make the dog training Northern Virginia lessons part and parcel of your daily life.