Handling Dog Behavioral Problems The Easy Way

Not all dogs are angels on four legs. Some exhibit all kinds of behavioral problems, from excessive barking and chewing up the house to more serious issues such as extreme aggression and biting. Sadly not all owners know how to deal with their dog’s behavioral problems and end up feeling like they cannot cope with the dog. So how can you prevent or control a dog’s behavioral problems before it all gets out of hand?

Why do dogs develop behavioral problems in the first place?

In most cases, a dog will develop a behavioral problem due to poor or no training, confusion over its place in the family pack, being mistreated by humans, boredom, too little exercise, or too much testosterone in the case of a dog that has not been neutered.

How can I prevent behavioral problems in my new puppy?

There is no guaranteed solution available to prevent future behavioral problems in a new puppy as all dogs are different and personality can play a role: some dogs have neurotic tendencies and will be more affected by environmental factors than others, so although one dog is happy to be left for a few hours at a time, another might bark excessively or chew the place into matchsticks.

Effective obedience training is the best way to reduce the incidence of behavioral problems in puppies. A well trained dog is far less likely to act up, so instead of allowing your new puppy to do whatever he likes in the first crucial months of his life, spend lots of time gently but firmly training him in a few basic commands.

Your dog needs clear boundaries. Like a willful teenager, he needs to be taught what is acceptable and what is unacceptable. Be as consistent as possible and if you reprimand him for something one day, do not ignore the same behavior the following day or he will become mightily confused over what is right and what is wrong.

Before you begin training your dog to prevent or solve behavioral problems, make sure the rest of the family is on board too, as there is very little point in training a puppy if he does exactly as he pleases with another member of the family. Consistency is the key to a happy and well adjusted puppy!

What are the most common behavioral problems in puppies?

Barking

Excessive barking is a very annoying problem, particularly in dogs left on their own for lengthy periods of time. We’ve all heard them: they are the dogs left out in a yard who bark constantly while the owner is at work. In this instance the barking is probably due to boredom and/or separation anxiety, but whatever the cause, it is important to try and deal with it or you could find yourself the subject of a noise abatement order.

Barking is often the result of too little exercise, so make sure the dog has more than enough exercise. If the dog is barking because he is left alone for long periods of time, reconsider your schedule or perhaps ask someone to look after him while you are at work during the day. Ideally teach a young puppy the “quiet” command: ignore him when he is barking and whining at you and then reward him when he goes quiet. If the dog is barking outside in the yard, get his attention and then give him something more productive to do such as a chew on a treat.

Chewing

Puppies love to chew, particularly when they are teething at around four months old. They will chew down on anything and everything, from a nice tasty dog treat to the leg of your kitchen table. But although we can encourage a puppy to chew his toys rather than the furniture, how can we prevent him destroying the house when he is left alone?

Any puppy left alone for hours at a time will chew due to loneliness and boredom, so the best way to avoid such a destructive habit is not to leave your puppy alone for extended periods of time. If he chews while you are around, correct him immediately with a loud noise and when he stops, reward him with a nice chewy treat or toy. Always remove items such as shoes from the path of temptation and make sure you give your puppy enough exercise so that he is mentally and physically stimulated during the day.

If you DO have to go out for short periods of time, crate the puppy to avoid any destructive chewing. However, NEVER crate the puppy as a punishment: his crate should be a place to relax and have quiet time, not a place where he is sent when he has done something wrong.

Digging holes in the garden

Dogs love to dig and digging holes is instinctive behavior, particularly in some breeds such as terriers, but if your puppy is making a habit of digging up your prized begonias every time your back is turned, you need to find a way to stop him.

Try and figure out why your puppy is digging holes in the garden. If it is because he can smell a rat’s nest, there is probably not a lot you can do to stop him—he is unlikely to stop until he has reached them. If he digs because he is bored, spend more time playing with him and make sure he is getting enough exercise. Other reasons for digging include trying to escape the confines of the garden or burying toys and food.

To prevent digging, do not leave the puppy outside for extended periods of time unsupervised and give him more exercise if you suspect the issue is due to a surplus of energy. If the digging habit is firmly entrenched, let him have a corner of the yard where he is allowed to dig with abandon (as long as he cannot dig under a fence and escape) and encourage him to dig there instead of in your vegetable patch.

Dog Accessories

Some people (celebrities mostly) love to spend serious money on kit for their dog. The dog becomes a designer accoutrement complete with a Swarovski studded collar and gold plated feeding bowls. The cute little bundle of joy is carried around by an assistant and rarely does anything so unseemly as fetch a stick or pee against a tree. But meanwhile, back in the real world, what essential and not so essential dog accessories can you buy for your new puppy?

Essential dog accessories

Unless you live in the middle of nowhere and the nearest neighbor is at least ten miles away, a collar and leash are essential dog accessories for any puppy. Local bylaws normally dictate that a dog must wear a collar if he is outside the home. This is to help identify stray dogs, so be sure to add a dog tag to the puppy’s collar and have it engraved with your contact telephone information just in case he runs off or gets lost.

A leash will be required once your puppy is old enough to be taken for a walk—normally once he has had his second course of vaccinations from the vet. Leashes come in all sizes and designs. Small dogs will only need a very lightweight leash, but larger breeds will need something more substantial or they will a) look silly, and b) the leash will probably snap the moment the dog tries to chase a cat.

For dogs that pull or are difficult to control once they are outdoors, if training proves to be ineffective or the habit of pulling like a freight train is too firmly engrained in the dog, consider purchasing a harness rather than attaching the leash to a collar around the dogs neck. A harness distributes the load around the dog’s shoulders rather than choking him each time he pulls hard. It makes it easier to keep him under control and is kinder to him.

Certain breeds of dog are required to wear a muzzle when out in public, although the law varies between different countries. A muzzle can also be very useful if your puppy is prone to snapping or biting other dogs, but always make sure the muzzle fits correctly and that the puppy can still open his mouth sufficiently to drink water if necessary.

A pooper scooper is an essential dog accessory if you live in an urban area. Lots of owners disregard this piece of doggy etiquette and allow their dogs to foul sidewalks and parks where children play, which is why dog owners sometimes end up with a bad reputation. Poop scoopers are available from all good pet stores, but if you are in a bind, take a few plastic diaper bags instead—turn the bag inside out and use it to pick the poop up, Tie it and then pop it into the nearest trash can.

Make sure you are not an irresponsible owner: always pick up after your pet. Not only will you be subject to a hefty fine if you are caught letting your dog foul the local area, you are also putting people’s health at risk. It might seem unpleasant to walk around with a bag of dog poop, but if you leave it there, a child could end up touching the poop and going blind from a toxocara canis infection, so do you really want that on your conscience?

Other useful dog accessories

A new puppy will need a bed to sleep in at night. He will be happy sleeping on a pile of blankets or an old towel if you have nothing else available, but buying him his own bed is a good way of giving him a piece of his own territory where he can go for a bit of piece and quiet.

A dog crate is also very useful for the early weeks and months of dog ownership. To begin with, a new puppy can be crated at night to help you toilet train him, but a crate is also useful when you need to confine the dog during the day when you need to leave him alone for short durations, although be careful not to crate him for extended periods of time or he will soon associate the crate with a punishment. Crates can be bought from pet stores or sites such as Ebay, so shop around and buy the largest size you can afford.

Water and food bowels are a must-have dog accessory. You can let your dog drink out of the toilet, but this is deeply unpleasant and not terribly good for him if you regularly put bleach down the pan. Larger breeds of dog will require large water and food bowls, so buy several according to the size of your dog. Bowls with rubber non-stick bases are useful as they stay put rather than slide around a tiled floor.

If you live in a cold climate, or your dog only has a think coat, a doggy coat to keep him warm in winter is essential. There are lots of breeds with thick woolly coats who are more than happy to romp around in the snow, but there are also plenty more who shiver the moment the temperature begins to fall, so keep your dog warm and cozy outdoors and buy him a cute dog coat.

Extremes of temperature can also cause problems at the opposite end of the scale. Baking hot asphalt can burn tender doggy feet, so if you live in a geographic region known for its hot climate, your dog will need some protective slippers for his feet if you intend walking him on hard surfaces outdoors. Without such protection, his feet will burn and blister.

Although dog toys are not an essential dog accessory, they are very useful for younger dogs. Puppies love to play and chew, so giving them a few dog toys to chew on might just save your favorite pair of slippers from being shredded. Always buy chews and toys designed for dogs as any other types of toy could cause the dog to choke.

What Are The Best Toys for Puppies

Puppies love to play and puppy toys provide hours of stimulating playtime for them when you are not around or too exhausted to run another lap around the garden. Puppy toys are also useful for when a puppy is teething at around four months of age, but what are the best toys for puppies and how do you choose from so many different toys on the market?

Why buy a puppy toys to play with?

Puppies are no different to small children: the world is one gigantic playground and nothing is considered to be out of bounds when it comes to searching for entertainment, so if your puppy is bored and looking for a diversion, he is going to hunt for the nearest available toy to play with. Sadly, if he can’t find a puppy toy, he might just decide to chew on your slipper or the tasty pine table leg instead.

What materials are puppy toys made from?

Puppy toys are designed to provide stimulation for young puppies. They are made from all kinds of different materials ranging from hard plastic and tough rubber to fabric and rope, but what all purpose-made puppy toys have in common is that they are non-toxic and free from potentially dangerous components that could cause a small puppy to choke or swallow and cause a blockage.

What qualities should I look for when choosing puppy toys for my dog?

All puppies have their own personal preferences and although your friend’s puppy might love his chewy banana toy, your puppy might take a dim view of it and refuse to even contemplate taking it into his bed for a chomp. But aside from individual taste in aesthetics, you should look for a few important qualities when buying a new toy for your puppy.

Check the toy is suitable for puppies before you buy or it could break into small pieces and cause your puppy to choke. Any toy with long strings or that is too small should be considered a potential choking hazard, and since puppies invariably put everything into their mouth, avoid such toys.

Toys that offer more than a chewing opportunity are always good for puppies. Lots of puppies adore toys that make a squeaking noise when they chomp down on them, although you might soon discover that the squeaky chicken is the most irritating puppy toy in the history of the universe when all you can hear at 3AM is ‘squeak squeak, squeak’.

Puppy toys that roll around or bounce are also highly entertaining for puppies. Such toys help to engage the interest of puppies and provide many happy hours of entertainment. Some breeds love to chase and retrieve and bouncy balls are the perfect puppy toy, However, avoid giving any puppy (or older dog) a small rubber ball to play with as these very easily become stuck in throats and they represent a serious choking hazard for dogs of all sizes.

Rope toys are fun for a game of tug-o-war with your puppy, but you should be very careful not to get into a game of dominance with your puppy, or he may decide that he is the leader of the pack. Try using rope toys for retrieval games rather than tug-o-war—larger breeds of puppy such as golden retrievers or spaniels are always happy to go galloping after anything that is thrown across a garden.

How many puppy toys do I need?

The more the merrier. Puppies are easily bored, so it is a good idea to keep a box containing a wide selection of puppy toys. Only let your puppy play with a small selection at any given time, so once he gets bored of his toys, you can bring some new and exciting ones out for him to play with. Hopefully this will keep him amused for longer!

Are dog treat toys a good choice for puppies?

Puppy toys that dispense dog treats or biscuits are a great choice for puppies. They are usually designed as a rubber toy with a hollow centre in which you can place some doggy treats or biscuits. The puppy cannot immediately reach the treat, although he can smell it so he knows it is there. The toy makes him work for the treat and by rolling it around on the floor, eventually the treat works free and the puppy’s effort is rewarded with a snack.

Where can I buy puppy toys from?

Pet stores are great places to buy puppy toys, but you should be able to pick up a few simple dog chew toys from the supermarket when you do your weekly grocery shop. It is also possible to buy puppy toys from online retailers or auction sites such as Ebay, so have a look around and see what purpose designed puppy toys you can find to entertain your puppy.

What things can I use as a cheap alternative to expensive puppy toys?

You do not necessarily need to buy a purpose designed puppy toy—any hard rubber toys suitable for babies or small children are just as safe for puppies to chew on and play with. However, be careful to inspect the toy first to make sure it does not contain potentially harmful stuffing or anything that might easily be chewed off, leading to a choking hazard—remember that a puppy is capable of chewing any soft plastic toy into a mangled mess within half an hour.

If you do not want to spend any money whatsoever, or your puppy is bored with his current selection of toys, a cheap alternative to rubber and plastic puppy toys is a cardboard box. Puppies love playing with paper and cardboard and to a puppy, a large cardboard box is heaven on earth. Give him the cardboard packaging from your new flat screen TV and he will be entertained for many happy hours. Your home will probably resemble a landfill sight for the rest of the week, but at least your puppy will be kept out of mischief for a while!