Most training revolves around giving the dog consequences for his behaviour, in the hope of influencing the behaviour the dog will exhibit in the future. Operant conditioning defines four types of consequences:br /
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Positive reinforcement adds something to the situation to increase the chance of the behaviour being exhibited again (for example, giving a dog a treat when he sits.)br /
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Negative reinforcement removes something from the situation to increase the chance of the behaviour being exhibited again (for example, releasing the tension on an uncomfortable training collar when the …

House training is the first thing your new puppy must learn. The toileting process a puppy learns in the first few months as a member of your household will last a lifetime so it’s important to do it right the first time. House training issues are the number one reason why dogs are taken to animal shelters so let’s begin.br /
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It’s important to understand that your puppy probably won’t be completely trained until he’s about 6 months old. That’s because young puppies lack the bladder and …

Unfortunately, eliminating problem behaviors is one thing that most dog owners eventually face. This article will focus on a few of the most commonly encountered behavior problems.br /
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Problem #1 – Jumping up on peoplebr /
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One of the most frequently cited problems with dogs is that of jumping up on people. Unfortunately, this is one of those behaviors that is often inadvertently encouraged by well meaning owners. After all, it is cute and adorable when that little 10 pound puppy jumps up on you, your family members and your …

Does your dog seem to spend an infinite amount of time licking himself? Why is he doing it? And how do you, as a dog owner, correct that annoying licking habit? Here are five of the most common reasons why your dog might be incessantly licking himself and the solutions to correcting the habit.br /
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1. Your dog might have developed an unrelenting licking habit because he needs a bath.br /
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If your dog spends alot of time outside, romping through the woods, tramping in the mud, rolling in the …

There are many different styles of dog training, and finding the one that works best for you is important for creating a dog that is a talented, loyal and faithful member of the family. All successful methods of dog training work to reinforce the relationship between dog and handler, and the foundation of any successful training program is getting the respect of the dog. Fortunately, dogs are wired by nature to seek out leaders, and to follow the direction of those leaders.br /
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Both leash/collar training and reward …

Separation anxiety, also known in the dog training world as owner absent misbehavior, is one of the most frequently encountered problems in the world of dog training. Separation anxiety can manifest itself in many different ways, including chewing, destroying the owner’s property, excessive barking, self destructive behavior and inappropriate urination and defecation.br /
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Dogs suffering from separation anxiety often whine, bark, cry, howl, dig, chew and scratch at the door the entire time their family members are away. Well meaning owners often unwittingly encourage this misbehavior by rushing home to …

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.br /
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The best way to understand and find success with house training is to use the dog’s own nature to help you.br /
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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 …

Weve always had dogs around ever since I was a kid, and even when our family was between dogs I adopted next doors Boxer dog as my own. Despite this, as a family we didn’t have a clue how to correctly train a dog – as long as it didnt mess on the floor, chew up our slippers and finally came on the fifth yell of its name we thought things were just fine. br /
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Like many dog owners I didnt know the first thing about training a dog. …

Reward training is often seen as the most modern method of training a dog, but reward training is probably much older than other methods of dog training. It is possible that reward training for dogs has been around as long as there have been dogs to train. Early humans probably used some informal kind of reward training when taming the wolf pups that eventually evolved into modern dogs.br /
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Many principles of modern reward training date back many decades. However, what is called reward training today has …

There are of course many reasons for owners to want a calm, obedient and faithful dog. For one thing, obedient and trained dogs are happier dogs, less likely to get into tussles with people or with other dogs. Another reason is that many communities require that the dogs living in their neighborhoods be well trained. This is especially true for many breeds thought to have aggression and behavior problems – dog breeds like pit bulls and rottweilers for instance.br /
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And of course, training your dog well …