Hiring a professional dog trainer can be a tricky process because all dogs are not the same and use different training methods. This article will help show you how to select a trainer that can help you get the most out of your pet. [Read more…]

Having a dominant puppy can lead to all types of problems as your puppy grows into an adult dog. Being able to identify these dominant signals is important so that you will be able to correct the problems before they become habits. Training your puppy should start at 4 to 6 months of age and the earlier the better to keep from developing these bad traits. [Read more…]

Over the years I’ve found that one of the things new dog owners are always searching for is a cure for their dog’s bad behavior. When I say bad behavior that covers all sorts of things from barking, jumping, soiling in the house, you name it. When the dog gets a little older then it seems that the behavior quite often turns to the fearful dog or the aggressive dog. [Read more…]

A lot of people ask me what is the best way to train their dog. In this article I’m going to address that question and give you some answers to those commonly asked questions. [Read more…]

Socializing your dog is very important and you must keep in mind that the period of socialization is from birth to 20 weeks old. During this period you must exposure dog to lots of new places, new people, little kids and other dogs so that you have a well socialized dog that you can enjoy for the rest of its life.

Let’s discuss some of those methods of socialization. [Read more…]

Introducing a new dog into your home can be potentially disastrous. Dogs are very territorial animals. Even if your dog is normally sweet and docile, precautions should be taken.

Before I take a new dog to my home with an existing dog the new dog must go to my vet for a thorough check up. I want to make sure that I am not bringing in fleas, ticks or any type of contagious disease. After this complete checkup then it’s time to introduce the dogs to each other. I think the first thing to remember is to not rush things. [Read more…]

As a dog trainer one thing that I’m seeing more and more of is aggression in dogs. There are many different reasons why a dog might be aggressive and as a canine behavior specialist and trainer it’s my job to figure out what that reason may be so that we can work at correcting it. [Read more…]

One of the things that I hear most about from new dog owners that really gets them frustrated is potty training their new puppy or dog. House training a new dog is really not that difficult and the methods that we use are the same whether it is an adult dog or a puppy.

I’ve been training dogs professionally for about three decades now and I have come across many different ways that people have tried to potty train their dog. Unfortunately most of these methods don’t work. [Read more…]

People today really love their dogs. They have close relationships with their dogs. Their dogs are smart and they know what’s going on around them. There’s a close bond between people and their dogs. Sometimes it almost seems like people think their dogs are a little person in a dog suit. But that’s not the case.

The truth is that dogs are dogs, no matter how close people and dogs are. It doesn’t matter how happy or cute our dog is, he’s still a dog. When you forget that your dog is a dog, it can lead to problems. Your dog has natural instincts and he thinks and reacts like a dog. Instead of expecting him to act like a person, we need to understand the dog and make changes for him. [Read more…]

The Canine Good Citizen program is an American Kennel Club program open to all dogs, mixed breed and purebred. Its purpose is to reward dogs and their owners who can show that they have good manners both in the community and at home. It fundamentally stresses responsible dog ownership and good social skills. Dogs who take part in the program go through a 10-part test and, if they pass, receive a certificate from the AKC and the CGC title. [Read more…]