Will your Dog get enough exercise during the cold months

If you’re like me you’d rather wrap up in warm fuzzy fleece and hide under the blankets than face below freezing temps. But when the dogs need to get outside in the morning I begrudgingly put on the winter wear and brave the cold. The rest of the day our walks and other outdoor activities start tapering off to only as needed outings. Standing out in the freezing cold waiting for a dog to ‘take care of business’ is sometimes more exposure to the elements than most of us want.
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Like us our dogs can get used to a comfy sedentary life indoors during the cold months. This can take a toll on my dog’s health and well being so we find other outlets for exercise and mental stimulation.

Of course, braving the cold and going for a walk is great exercise, it’s not always possible this time of year so let’s look at other possibilities:

Get our with your dog to dog friendly stores. Lowe’s, Bass pro, pet stores, are great places to walk around with your dog.

Train your dog to walk on a treadmill.

Designate an indoor area for dog play. Dog proof an extra bedroom or basement for a some tug games and toy tosses.

Find Me! This is always fun and gets your dog moving. Just wait until your dog isn’t paying attention and hide in the other room. Call your dog or squeak a toy to get them going.
Where’s the treat. Hide a favorite treat or toy somewhere in a room and have your dog search for it.

Puppy pushups. This having the dog Sit and then Down and then back into a Sit for several repetitions. Helps build muscles too.

Sniffer Mind games. I do these with my older dogs to keep their mind and nose tuned. All it entails is presenting new foods and other smells to your dog to sniff and in some cases taste. Chapstick, bar soap, unusual spices can get your dog’s nose going (or backing away). It also lets your dog know that not everything you have is an edible tasty treat like they believe it to be. Celery, carrots, green beans, small bits of apple, or bananas are fun food treats for your dog to experiment with.

Obedience classes. It goes with out saying that learning something new is great mental stimulation.

Use the coming winter months as an opportunity to bond with your dog. We offer many ways to get over cabin fever so let us know if we can help.

We have a lot of opportunities for you and your dog to get out this Winter.

Scent Detections Fun
Trick Classes

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Dog Training Clicker

Clicker Dog Training

The newest dog training craze is clicker dog training. A clicker is a small rectangular plastic box with a metal button on top that clicks, hence the name clicker. It’s the type of training that the dog decides whether or not it suits him. There have been a lot of success stories with clickers, but with my dog he just didn’t want to know!

Researchers in dog studies believe that the clicker promotes enforced training, without punishment! As we all know when we do something good and get rewarded for it we are going to do the same again, a dog thinks the same way. Dogs learn through consequences, if they do something and it earns them a treat and praise they are going to want to do it again because they like this consequence. If they do something that you don’t like and they get ignored or said no to in a strict voice they know that they aren’t going to get any treats so are not going to do it again.

Clicker dog training works in such a way it reinforces good behaviour. If your dog sits, click and give him a treat. The next time he sits do the same but don’t say anything to him. He will soon realise that when he sits he will get a treat and hear a click, so when you eventually come to click before he sits he knows to sit. Its not all that confusing when you think about it.

Punishment is not used with clicker dog training as researchers believe that although punishment does stop some bad behaviour it may also create another unwanted behaviour. Punishment is almost always carried out after the dog has done something wrong so dogs see punishment as a random consequence therefore punishment doesn’t really solve anything.

Clicker dog training is not only used or dogs! It is widely used for other animals such as dolphins and horses. It is a widely practiced training method and does produce results; if carried out properly.

Some of the best quality dog resources and articles can be found online at MDarmas Dog Site. Our visitors recommend this website each time they try to search for dog training tips, advice and insider secrets from experts. You can search thru the form by keywords on that site or just browse their library of dog-related articles by experts in various fields of american eskimo breed dog.

Cheers

MDarma

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