Fearful Dogs

One of the saddest is the number of people that misunderstand fearful dogs and in trying to make things better for their dogs they actually make it worse. Fearful dogs are nearly always lacking strong pack leaders, and their owners are often the kindest and gentlest people ! They want nothing more than to see their dog live the kind of life that all the other dogs are living, happy, fun and free.

What they fail to recongnize is that their dog is actually scared because the owner is giving them the message that they are the pack leader. their dog like many is not able to handle the pressure, nor shoudl they be expected to.

Let me describe a scenario. If you are 4 years old and find yourself in a dark wood with your younger sister and there is a strange noise or a person coming towards you then you may very well be afraid. However if one of your parents were there with you though, then everything would be fine. That is because you would not be in charge! This is how it is for your dog when you make them the pack leader. They are terrified and just want to get home safe and alive.

All the responsibility is on your dog's shoulders and they are not able to handle it in this human world. There are far too many strange things for them to make decisions about all the time. Eventually they will snap unless you help them.

To help your dog you must firts become the pack leader and I suggest that the best way to do this is through watching video rather than reading about it. Here are a few things that you should remember when working with a fearful dog.

They can change but will struggle if you try to push it too fast

You must become the pack leader - There are some great videos sites now that show you exactly how to become the pack leader, don't just read about it

Ask your friends to ignore your dog when they first meet her

People should not approach your dog but wait until she is calm and then call her over.

If she doesn't come over then she is too scared and you must leave her alone.

A good video based website will show you exactly how to put all of this into place through the use of video so you can sit back, watch and learn.

Establishing yourself as the pack leader is the foundation to any success with fearful dogs. Until you recognize this you and put it in place you will never be in a position to help your dog.

One of the best sites around is The Online Dog Trainer. It has fantastic videos on establishing yourself as the pack leader and also you how to give confidence to fearful dogs. CLICK HERE

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How To Stop Dog Aggression

How To Stop Dog Aggression

If you want to understand how to stop dog aggression let me start by asking you two rhetorical questions!

• Firstly do You start the aggression with your dog simply joining in ?
• Secondly does your dog listen to you just before it behaves the way it does when you try show it another way to behave?

The answer will course be the following:

At the point your dog starts to become aggressive he is taking no notice at all of you.

He is making his own decisions and will not listen to you if you try to show him a different way to behave. What he is doing is simply too important to him and is the right thing to do. Dog aggression is nearly alway done in order to protect, their pack and their own lives.

Firstly there is of course a whole range of different types of aggression from dominant to fearly and everything in between. Then there is aggresion that occurs the whole time and other aggression, which is very erratic, and random depending on a number of differing factors. We could also look at what your dog is aggressive towards; it could be people, animals, other dogs  or objects.

The way to stop dog aggression however is very much the same, or at least the cause of the problem is the same. Your dog thinks that it is the pack leader, becomes fearful and attacks to protect you and himself. Dominant dogs will be more proactive, often attacking when they still have the option of running away, feaful dogs will only attack if they have no place to run. All the other factors pale into insignificance compared to this.

The most important concept to grasp if you want to understand how to stop dog aggression is that you dog must first look to you as the pack leader in the home. This is the easiest place to convince him you are the decision maker. Only then can you convince him that you are the pack leader.

Once you have convinced your dog that you are the pack leader outside then upon reaching the point where he usually is aggressive you will find that he will actually start to take notice of how you are behaving! If you aren't then you dog will probably continue to ignore what you are doing at this point forever.

Just remember, dogs are pack animals and they follow the pack leader.

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3 Real Key To Dog Training

There are a few real key to dog training, whether you are trying to train your dog to come when called, sit, stop barking or any other behavior. Understanding their importance is critical to achieving rapid results that are long lasting and helo develop the bond between you and your dog

The first is simple you must win your dogs mind

If you don't achieve this first then you will be struggling the all the way. When I talk about winning your dogs mind what I really mean is that your dog looks to you for all the decisions. Before you do anything else watch one of the amazing video sites that show you the 5 Golden rules to establishing yourself up to fail. Just at the crucial point where you really want your dog to listen they will go and do their own thing. For sure your dog may play ball occasionally or even most of the time, you may even have a dog that is obedient 99% of the time, however if you want a dog who always listens to you and does as you ask then you need to win your dogs mind

The second key to success is to motivate your dog

It is really important that you discover what it is that your dog enjoys both in terms of exercise and play but also in terms of a reward. If you can make the experience enjoyable then you will both achieve more and look forward to training

Some dogs love to fetch, others love agility, and other dogs simply love obedience training, or swimming out into water and retrieve. At least to start with find our what your dogs love is and help them develop this, what I am saying is work with your dog. The other point to recognize is to make training enjoyable reward your dog.

The three main rewards are:

• Food - anything from a single dry biscuit to a whole piece of sauge !
• Affection -  pats, cuddles, lot of high verbal praise
• Toys - games, throwing a stick or object, chasing your dog etc

Your dog is always going to work harder if you are fair in your training. Even if you do not want to use food you should make sure that you use affection accordingly when your dog does well.

If you want to use food rewards then always follow these simple tips:

• Always vary food rewards
• Do not give food rewards every time
• Never let your dog know what the reward is 
• If your dog doesn't come first time then do not give them reward

The third key to achieving perfection is practice !

Learning how to encourage behavior that is closer to what you want than the last is the third key to success. Again this is where rewards come in so handy! Motivate and then show your dog what it is that you want and there is no need for any negative training!

One of the best sites that show you all of this and more is The Online Dog Trainer, put together by top Dog Trainer, Doggy Dan. CLICK HERE

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How To Become The Pack Leader ?

Become The Pack Leader 

Of all the questions that people ask “how to become the pack leader” is the big one! This is by far the most important question how to convince your dog that you are the person in charge. Think of the pack leader as the decision maker - where you should go on the walk, how to behave in different situations and how to respond to all the strange things that are out there.

When you understand how dogs packs work you soon realize the importance, that pack leader makes all the decisions. If you leave it up to your dog then there a big chance that your dog is going to get something’s very wrong and make a mistake!

In order to understand how to become the pack leader you must first recognize that the following means nothing to a dog….

1. What car you drive, the size of your house, the money you earn or the fact that you speak languages! Your dog would happily swap all of that for a nice snack!
2. Asking your dog to sit before her dinner falls a long way short of what you need to be achieving to become the pack leader and walking through doorways is only necessary when your dog is on the lead.
3. Lastly - dominating your dog is certainly not the way to become the pack leader in fact this can back fire badly on you later on if you teach your dog that physical strength is what it is all about. Whilst you may force your dog into submission it will not be convincing your dogs mind that you are worthy of the position and that you should become the pack leader only that you are a bit of a bully.

So how do you become the pack leader? All dogs worldwide, regardless of breed use the same ways to check to establish the pack leader. The best way to learn about how to put it into practice is to watch it being done on video as I have done through one of the video based web sites. The important areas to take control in are the following:

The pack leader will be in total calm control when your dog barks and alerts you to danger. This includes anything that your dog may perceive as dangerous and barks at in and around the property
On the walk your dog should not pull you at a single stage, even the beginning! Learning to walk your dog properly can only really be learnt through video as I have found out!

If you are the pack leader then your dog should be able to relax and switch off completely inside the house. If your dog is always switched on most of the time and can’t relax then that is your dog on pack leader duty!

Getting your dog to switch off is directly connected to how you meet and greet your dog after your return home. You need to watch it on video it is so subtle but it is the difference between being the pack leader or the follower.

Lastly, feeding your dog correctly will establish who is the pack leader and there is much more to it than asking your dog to sit! Also if you have a dog that is “not food motivated” then you may be in for a surprise!

There is one site that shows you – using video – exactly how to become the pack leader and how crucial it is to changing any behavioral issue.

If you want to understand more about this topic or see the videos that explain everything then simply take a look at The Online Dog Trainer: Click Here

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