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Bloodhound Complete Profile
Key Facts: Size: Massive Height: 58 - 66 cm (23 - 26 inches) Weight: 36 - 41 kg (80 - 90 lb) Life Span: 12 years Grooming: Easy but extensive Exercise: Considerable Feeding: Demanding Temperament: Gentle, but requires understanding Country of...
Hidden Danger
I met Spider in the fall of 1997, while visiting a friend's
home. Spider, a completely black kitten, along with the rest of
her siblings, had been thrown into a croaker sack and tossed on
the side of the road. Infested with fleas, her bones...
New Cat Causing an Odor Problem?
Recently, a friend said she'd gotten a new cat from a male
friend and the cat was spraying and urinating outside the litter
box. She has an existing kitty, female.
Get into the mind of the cat! He's new, nothing smells like
anything he...
Teach Cats To Use Scratching Posts
REQUIREMENTS FOR REPRINT: You have permission to publish this article free of charge in your e-zine, newsletter, ebook, print publication or on your website ONLY if it remains unchanged and you include the copyright and author information (Resource...
Which Parrot Is Right For Me?
Which parrot is right for me? This is a question that you must ask yourself before you think of keeping these lovely birds as pets. It is as important as your decision to have a child. You need to ask - which parrot is right for me - because every...
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Dog Training - House Training Your Dog
One of the most confusing and anxiety-ridden areas of dog
training is house training. Yet, it is one of the most
important, especially for the humans involved.
The best way to understand and find success with house training
is to use the dog's own nature to help you.
Dogs are, by instinct, very clean animals. They would rather not
soil any areas where they normally sleep or eat. Dogs are also
creatures of habit --- they like to know where they're supposed
to go urinate and defecate. If the dog is taught to eliminate on
gravel or concrete, they will tend to look for either of those
surfaces to do so. If they're taught to eliminate on grass or
dirt, that's where they will choose. Use these habits to your
advantage.
Setting up the training area
This is the first step. Make sure the area you choose is small
and confined. A bathroom works for this, or a place in a kitchen
or garage also work well. Remember that crate training works
well for puppies or small dogs, but for the larger animals, the
crate is too confining.
You need to spend some time with this aspect of the training.
You need to play with your dog in this area, and this is also
where the dog will be taught to sleep and eat. Put together a
special bed. This can be something you make up with items around
the house, or you can go to the store and purchase a bed. Don't
worry of your dog eliminates in this area at first. Once they
figure out that this is where the sleep and eat, they'll stop
eliminating there.
Once your dog realizes that the bed is for sleeping, you can
begin to move it around the house. But, only when you're there.
When you're not, put the bed back in the training area.
Setting up the toilet area
Now you need to determine where the toilet area is going to
be
located. Presumably, this will be outside the house. Wherever it
is, it has to a place that the dog can go to whenever it needs
to go. You need to go there with your dog so you can give the
appropriate rewards for good behavior.
Establish a set feeding schedule for your dog. If the dog is in
the habit of being fed at certain times, the natural process of
elimination will also begin to occur at certain times. Once you
learn when those times relate to the eating times, it will
become much easier for you to guide the dog to the established
toilet area.
Don't forget to make sure your dog has ready access to the
toilet area. That way mistakes aren't as likely to occur.
Continuing the house training process
Once your dog is in the habit of eliminating in the toilet area
and not in the sleeping/eating area, you can begin to extend the
training area to the rest of the house. Do this slowly. Start by
expanding to one additional room, and then gradually expand into
other areas. Don't expand into new areas until you're sure your
dog has control of its bladder and bowels. At first, do this
only when you're around. If you're away, then put your dog back
in the original training area.
Speeding up the process
If you have to move this process along more quickly, you can do
so. Remember to proceed with caution, though. It's better to go
slowly than to have to try to retrain a dog later. If you're
going to try to speed things up, you will have to be there in
order to reward your dog for successful eliminations. It is also
important not to punish for mistakes. That will only confuse the
dog and slow the process even further.
About the author:
Mark Bensen shares more of his dog knowledge at his informative
site, http://www.wecould2.com/doggonit/
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