Dog Training – How to Control Biting

admin — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:17:33 +0000

One thing you can count on when bringing home a new dog is the fact that he will nip and bite at your fingertips during the first few days or weeks. This is totally normal and there is no reason to get frantic that you may have purchased an aggressive dog. However, like any hostile behavior you wish to change about your dog, you need to take a few steps so that your dog understands that biting is not something you as the “pack leader” want him to continue doing. In other words he has to understand that biting is a huge no-no.
So how do you change biting behavior which is quite natural for dogs? Well, the first and foremost, you have to determine his age. This is very important because dogs under the age of about 15 weeks have to be handled slightly different when it comes to mouthing and biting than dogs over the age of 15 weeks.
If your dog is new and younger than 15 weeks, the following tips can help you control his annoying biting behavior:
1. First, you should begin to show your dog that you prefer his licking instead of biting. When he changes his behavior and licks at your fingertips or hands, make sure to praise him very gently. You can also encourage your dog to lick more often by rubbing a little butter or coconut oil on your fingertips. Let him know by soothing caresses that what he is doing is a good thing with each lick.
2. If your dog is continues with his biting habit at your fingertips and he is just been fed and really doesn’t need anything in his mouth, just set him aside with a nice bone for a little while. This is where a crate would come in very handy. Simply place your dog in the crate for a short period of time so that he can re-channel his mouthing attention to his favorite bone. And it is very important not to scream at or punish your dog along the way. You must create a positive learning environment for your dog. A hostile environment for a dog creates a hostile dog. A biting dog can become an even more serious issue when he starts biting members of your family and worse yet, strangers.
3. Whenever the dog bites down hard on your fingertips or hand, use a disciplinary tone of voice and give a command such as “No-No” while looking firmly into his eyes. Then simply hold this firm demeanor for a few moments and then immediately change your body language and go back to whatever it is you’re doing before, and with a calm approach. You have to remain calm. Many dog owners feel that being violent is the best approach but its not. Doing this step a few times is sufficient for your dog to learn the command and to stop biting down hard when he is commanded not to.

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Dog Illnesses

admin — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:37:06 +0000

All pet dogs should be treated as members of our family and adequate attention must be paid to the canine’s health. Sometimes dogs become sick but may not look so. It is very important to recognize and understand dog illnesses symptoms.
Since prevention is a better cure, we must learn something about dog illnesses and symptoms so we can better understand their conditions. This will help us recognize some common dog illnesses. If appropriate and adequate vaccinations are administered to the puppies, most of the common dog illnesses can be easily prevented.
Some elementary observations are useful to recognize certain common dog illnesses. Dogs take a lot of sleep but their sleep is marked by alertness. If a dog is sluggish then there may be various causes contributing to it, right from anemia to old age. If the dog is limping then you should check for prospective painful areas using a firm and yet gentile hand. Check out for any signs indicating lameness from time to time.
The appetite of the dog is bound to be affected by ill health. Look for any signs of loss of appetite. An important sign of dog health problems is excessive thirst. A pronounced weight loss is also an indicator of ill health. Check the eyes for any ulcers, discharges, veins or sores.
The mouth of a healthy dog is pink. There should not be any discoloring or cavities in the teeth. Look for signs of discharge from ears. It is advisable to clean the ears from time to time. The dog’s head should be regularly checked for sore patches, hair loss, or deep wounds.
Investigate the limbs and trunk for the same signs. If the dog is vomiting, there may be various underlying problems. If the body temperature of your dog is not between the range 38 to 39 Celsius it is an indication of some kind of illness. Check the female dogs for any kind of foul smelling vaginal discharge, which needs attention of a vet.
The symptoms of pain and discomfort experienced by a dog can give us many clues about the possible underlying illness. If the dog is suffering any abdominal pain, it may be due to canine hepatitis, enteritis or it can be a simple case of constipation. The abdominal swelling dogs indicate canine bloat and roundworms in puppies. Aggression of the dog may be caused by rabies. Roundworms, tapeworms, and whipworms my cause anemia in dogs. Any behavioral changes in dog can be an indicator of hookworms, tapeworms, whipworms, canine arthritis, heart disease, canine, or parvovirus.
Kidney diseases sometimes cause blood in urine. Eye infections and entropion cause bloodshot eyes in dogs. A ruptured diaphragm, obstructed airway, lungworm, bronchitis, pneumonia, food poisoning, heatstroke, allergies can cause respiratory problems in dogs.
There are various reasons of sudden change in weight of dogs like heart disease to heartworms. Hernia might be caused due to long term constipation in dogs. Allergies, parvovirus, hepatitis, lungworm, TB, pneumonia or distemper may be one of the reasons of coughing in dogs. Cannine parvovirus can also cause dehydration in dogs. Any pancreatic disorder, food poisoning can give rise to diarrhea in dogs. The dog may suffer from hair loss due to mange, red mange demodectic, scabies, cheyletiella mange, or cushings syndrome.
If dog indicates any signs of failing genital bleeding, persistent constipation, projectile vomiting, fainting, hair loss, seizure, stumbling, trauma, trembling, mouth bleeding, rectal bleeding, lethargy, shaking, urinating problems contact a dog care specialist.

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Dog Training – How to Control Biting

Dog Illnesses