Family Gatherings Train the Dog in Advance

Coming up we have Canadian Thanksgiving, followed by Halloween, then US Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Eve. All these provide opportunities for family gathering and parties. These events are great fun for the people, but can be very stressful for dogs. Here are some tips to help keep both kids and dogs safe and happy during family gatherings

Holidays Are Stressful for Dogs

The holidays are especially stressful for dogs due to changes in routine and the comings and going of visitors. Many dog bites happen at this time of year.

When visiting a house with a dog, children should be taught not to approach the dog (even if the dog has been friendly on other occasions). If the dog comes to them they should stand still like a tree and let the dog sniff. Only if the the dog is wagging and panting and coming to them for attention, and parent and dog owners are supervising and have given permission, should a child touch the dog. Dog owners should gauge their dog’s reaction to visitors. If the dog is overly excited, barking or growling, cowering away, trying to hide or otherwise showing signs of anxiety or aggression, the dog should be kept separate from visiting children for the ENTIRE DURATION of the child’s visit. The dog should have its own place in a crate or another room with toys, a bone to chew on and its special bed or blanket so that it can be happy and comfortable and away from guests. Even dogs who seem happy with visitors should never be alone in the room with visiting children. No preschooler, toddler or baby should be allowed to be near your dog unless you personally also have your hands on the dog and can prevent face to face contact between child and dog and can prevent the child from hugging or otherwise bothering the dog.

Greeting People at the Door

Dogs should not be allowed to greet visitors at the door. This is for the safety of the dog and the visitors. Keep the dogs in separate room or crate until the visitors are settled and then allow the dog to say hello if appropriate. If you are not sure about your dog, then leave him confined or keep him on a leash. Make sure that the dog associates visitors with something good for the dog, such as special treats or a stuffed bone.

Not the Time to Train the Dog

If you do perceive a problem between your dog and visiting children - THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO WORK ON IT. It is not reasonable to use visiting children to help train your dog. Take preventative measures to ensure that your dog does not have the opportunity to bite and once the holiday season is over seek the help of a dog behavior specialist who uses positive reinforcement methods to solve the dogs problem.

Family Gatherings

Family gatherings at a relative’s house are the source of fond memories for many. The relative’s dog may not enjoy these events as much as the rest of the family. Noise, confusion and changes in routine are stressful for dogs. Even a normally calm and docile pet may become agitated enough to bite under the extreme circumstances of a boisterous family celebration. Supervision may be lax if each adult thinks that another is watching the children. Children are the most likely victims of dog bites in this situation. Doggone Safe offers the following tips:

• Put the dog in his crate with a bone or favorite chew toy, at least during the most hectic times – guests arriving and leaving as well as dinner preparation and serving.
• Assign one adult to be in charge of the dog, to watch for signs of stress and protect from unwanted attention from children.
• Signs of stress include: The dog yawns or licks his chops.The dog shows the white part of his eye in a half moon shape.
• If the dog shows any of these signs, then he is worried and wants to be left alone. Put the dog in his crate or in a room away from the guests with a favorite chew toy or bone. 
• If the dog licks his chops, yawns or shows the half moon eye when a child approaches or is petting him, intervene immediately and ensure that the child cannot access the dog. 
• Do not allow visiting children to hug the dog. Dogs don’t like hugs and kisses. Even if the dog tolerates this under normal circumstances he may not tolerate this from strangers or in a high stress situation with lots of noise and people. 
• Other signs that the dog does not welcome attention from children (or adult) guests include the following:

• The dog turns his head away, walks away or tries to hide under furniture.
• The dog freezes and becomes very still, with his mouth closed. He may be staring intensely at the person who is bothering him and may growl. This dog is a few seconds away from a bite.
• The dog growls or raises the fur along his back.

• Assign one adult to supervise each baby or toddler with no other tasks expected. 
• If you have multiple dogs, consider kenneling them, crating them or keeping them in another room during large gatherings. 
• Supervise at all times.

Download our handout with a summary of tips for parents and dog owners

Articles:

Visit our article library for some articles about keeping kids and dogs safe during the holidays. Scroll through the list looking for those articles marked with a candy cane. Download the Doggone Safe Holiday Press Release with more tips

Members:

Doggone Safe Members: Download the Doggone Safe Holiday Press Release that you can edit to send to local newspaper, radio and TV media to promote your business and disseminate our safety messages. Join Doggone Safe.

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Dog Training Initial Training how to train a dog

Dog training – Initial Training

Dogs are known as a faithful animal, most dog owners or dog breeders would love to have a calm and obedient a dog. It is said that a calm and an obedient dogs can be acheved by a good training program on how to train a dog. Moreover, these trained dogs will have lesser tussles with people and other dogs.

If it is a puppy, you will need much more patience and time to house train your puppy correctly.

If you want your puppy to use the bathroom outside, you have to observe to its need to use the bathroom. When he needs to go outside, it will help if you condition him by saying "outside" or "out" in a high-pitched tone of voice, just to get him used to the idea of where he is going. He will soon learn what you mean and that it is time to go to the bathroom. Never forget to reward him with a praise when he follows or obeys your command.
Whatever dog training we give the dogs, there are some basic trainings and commands a dog must understand and follow. There is will be great to have a good program on how to train a dog.

http://www.mdarma.com/dogs

Some of these commands are:

· Sit – Training your dog to sit on a command is a basic and an important part of any dog-training program.

· Stay – A well-trained dog should be able to remain where his or her owner commands. So stay is another very important command in dog training.

· Down – Lying down on command is more than just as necessary; it is a key factor of any successful dog-training program.

· No – the word “NO” is one word that all dogs must learn and obey. Training your dog to respond to this important word can save you a lot of unnecessary trouble.

A well-trained dog will respond well to all the owner’s command. This dog will not be confused or show displeasure. Therefore, to achieve this it is vital to embark on a good dog training program.

Also a well-trained dog will also be a very good companion to you and your family. Further, you will have fewer problems like getting into tussles with people or with other dogs. So a good dog training is necessary

Obedience training is essential and is a great way to satisfy some of the dog’s own needs, example, exercise, relationship with it’s owner or handler.

Obedience training should be on going sessions; apart from dog training, playtime should be part and parcel of the training. This will ensure that the dog does not become bored and it also reinforces the bond between the owner and the dog.

Have many happy years with your friend and companion. Cheers

P.S.
Dove Cresswell is Professional Hollywood North Dog Trainer. Find out her success secrets.

2006 (c) mdarma.com - All Rights Reserved Worldwide A Dog Training

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Do Your Kids Speak Dog Woof Woof!

You may be surprised to learn that dogs can say a lot more than "woof", but they say it with their bodies not their voices. Make sure that your kids know how to speak dog. Even if you dont have a dog, you can be sure that many of your childs friends do.

Most dog bites to children are by a family pet known to the child. Most dog owners dont know the signs warning of an eventual bite and although they may be supervising they are surprised and shocked when a bite happens. Dogs dont bite out of the blue, and the dog will have been giving warnings, but no-one was listening Just because the adults dont know stuff, is no reason for kids not to know it.

Dogs are everywhere and the vast majority are nice dogs. Nevertheless, all kids need to learn how dogs communicate and when to stay away or leave them alone. Treating dogs respectfully is good for kids and dogs.

Watch and sing along with this fun and educational video from The Family Dog, dog trainers in New Jersey.

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Tip of the Day Teach Kids to Invite the Dog to Come to Them

This is our simplest tip and one that is probably the most significant in terms of improving dog/child relations. Teach kids that they should invite the dog to come to them, and if the dog declines the invitation, then they leave the dog alone.

Dogs say yes, by coming over, being loose and waggy and staying around without restraint. Dogs say no by turning away, walking away, yawning, licking or flicking their tongue out, showing a half moon of white in their eye, doing a big shake off, or being tense and stiff.

Here is a fun video from dog/child relationship expert Madeline Gabriel that shows kids how to be a kid a dog feels safe with and shows parents how to teach kids how to invite a dog to interact.

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Tip of the Day Teach Your Children to Speak Dog

Dogs are giving us information all the time about how they are feeling and what they might do next. If every child and dog owner knew how to interpret dog body language and paid attention to what the dog is saying, there would be many fewer adverse interactions with dogs. Here are the key signals that everyone should know:

Do you love this poster? Get yours today from the Doggone Safe Store for only $5.50 each!

For more information about dog body language, take our online course: Basic Body Language - on sale for $20 until the end of May. CE credits from many organizations.

Check out our Speak Dog slide show:

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Dogs dont speak English Give it a Name

My name is Not a command.

You can train your dog using the dogs name before a command as in "Joe Come" or even use the dogs name as encouragement after calling him but the dogs name itself should Never be used alone as the command.

Say for instance, you always call your dogs name, "Joe", to get him to come to you. The word "Joe" has now taken on the meaning of the command "Come". Likewise, if you yell the dogs name when hes snooping through the trash can or about to steal your lunch off the kitchen table, the dog learns that his name means 1) hes in trouble or 2) he should get away from something. This can be very confusing for dogs as one command cannot be associated with every action. Dogs become desensitized to their name.

Now imagine how confusing it would for the dog if he learned to come only to his name and now you want him to learn Sit and Stay. As the dog is sitting you must be very careful to not say his name. Even in encouraging ways. "Good boy Joe". To the dog "Joe" means "Come". The dog cannot sit/stay and come at the same time.

The dog needs to learn "Joe" what? "Joe" followed by a command tells the dog what you want him to do. "Joe sit". "Joe come". "Joe out". This way the dog learns each individual command and that his name is to get his attention and get ready to respond.

Give it a name.

Dogs have the ability to learn or recognize hundreds of words. We all use Sit, Down, Come or variations of these and other commands. We do this by associating a word with an action to get across what we want the dog to do. You can do the same with everyday words using consistency, patients and enough practice to build a clear association between the word and the action.

Name it!

"Kennel" as your dog is entering his kennel/crate.
"House" as your dog is on his way into the house.
"Outside" as you open the door for your dog to enter the backyard.
"ByeBye" as you gather the leash for a walk.
"Potty" as the dog is begining to urinate.

The opportunities are endless. Just be sure to use simple commands and use them each time your dog is doing the action you want to name. Use tiny treats to motivate your dog if needed and have fun with word play too. Just because a word means something in English doesnt mean it has to to your dog. It is just as easy to teach a dog to lift his paw and associate the word "Pony" instead of "Paw" as the dog lifts his foot.

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