by The Crunchy Canine | Aug 12, 2018 | Puppy Training
- Actually teach your dog what the word “come” means. Put a leash on, say “come” and then reel your dog in to you and reward. Rinse and repeat MANY, many times in several different situations (all with the leash on).
- Don’t over use it, particularly when you don’t mean it. When you use “Come” all the time, dogs stop paying attention. For example, when you are walking your dog and they are sniffing the ground, don’t say come unless you are going to do a formal recall. Use “let’s go” or something similar.
- Never chase your dog. EVER. Only give the command when you can enforce it so practice on-lead until the dog is reliable.
- Don’t repeat the command. Say it once and then make it happen.
- Only give the command if you can enforce it. For example, if your dog is not fully reliable yet, do not unleash at the dog park and start using the “come” command. This will only teach your dog that the word “come” doesn’t actually have any meaning.
- Never punish your dog for not coming. You can give a leash correction for non compliance when the dog is ignoring you but once they get to you (or you to them), you must stay positive and reward.
If you want a dog who can be trusted off leash in any environment, contact us today! Email us at info@thecrunchycanine.ca
by The Crunchy Canine | Jan 19, 2016 | Puppy Training
When training your puppy or dog, the tool you use should be efficient and effective. The way you use the tool should be clear, consistent, and humane. While I am not going to discuss any one specific tool, know that we use a variety of training collars when training a dog. The only tools we do not use are harnesses (of any type), or regular flat buckle collars. Of course we do have our preferences, but that is not the point of this post.
When training your dog you should be using your leash and training collar to provide the dog with information. How clear the information is will depending on the tool, and your skills and timing. There are some people with many years of experience around dogs who can use a piece of fishing line to train a dog. However, they are few and far between. Now take for example if you were to try to build a wooden box. You have a table saw and a drill, or you have a dull hand saw, some nails and a rock. Now you can probably still get the job done with the dull hand saw, nails and rock. You can cut the wood with the hand saw, but it will be slow and a little messy. You can use the rock to pound the nails into the wood. Now, the job can get done, but it wasn’t efficient or effective and the end results aren’t as great as they could be. Next, let’s look at the table saw and drill. You can cut perfectly straight lines and you can put it together quickly with the drill. Both get the job done (kind of), but one is far better than the other.
Dog training tools can be viewed the same way. The wrong tool is the dull saw and the rock. The right tool, table saw and drill. Now, for those concerned with some of the tools that might look torture devices (prime example is the prong collar), note that a table saw and drill can be used incorrectly or even with intent to cause pain. BUT when used properly they can help you build beautiful works of art! Just like the saw and drill, dog training collars can be used incorrectly, or even with the intent to cause pain. However, that comes down to the person holding the leash not the tool itself.
So, if the tool you are using is giving you the results that a dull saw and rock would give you, you might want to reconsider and try something else!
Happy Training!
Katherine Vooys-McDonald
Canines In Balance
Hamilton, Ontario
Dog training Collars
by The Crunchy Canine | Jan 15, 2016 | Puppy Training
Puppy Socialization
What is puppy socialization? Recently I shared an article explaining my hate for dog parks. OK, hate might be a strong word…more like my strong dislike for dog parks. If you read the article you will understand why I dislike them so much (if you did not read it here it is http://www.kdmathews.com/-bark-blog/just-say-noto-dogparks).
When people get a new puppy or dog, everyone says “oh you have to socialize them right away”. Somehow, somewhere the definition of socialization turned into taking your dog to the dog park to be around as many dogs as possible regardless of their temperament or disposition. Don’t get me wrong, I love the IDEA of the dog park. Dogs, off leash, enjoying the company of other dogs and people. Sounds lovely doesn’t it? Unfortunately too many dogs who shouldn’t be at the dog park frequent on a daily basis. Unfortunately, most dog owners have no idea what to look for in a dog who should or should not be freely socializing with other dogs. Unfortunately, not enough people are advocating for their dogs (and maybe they just don’t know how or that they should). Unfortunately, this leads to dogs being bullied, dog fights, and dogs who were once confident around other dogs leaving fearful and insecure. Just last week we were training our dogs outside of the Grimsby Dog Park and saw a dog fight break out within 10 seconds of one dog entering the park…not to mention the over adrenalized dogs running around in pure chaos, the humping (ohhhh the humping…non stop humping), and owners off in their own little world chatting or on their phones.
So now that we’ve cleared up with a brief overview as to why I do not like dog parks and why they should not be your “go to” for socializing your puppy or dog…you’re probably still wondering what the heck you CAN do to socialize your dog! Socialization needs to be productive and positive. Yes, getting your puppy around other dogs is important but it needs to be around the right dogs. One bad experience can affect your puppy for the rest of their lives. Most dogs who are reactive or dog aggressive were not born that way. More often than not, there was at least one bad experience that caused the behaviour and many owners can pin point that experience. The risk of taking your puppy or dog to the dog park is far too great and is not worth the potential consequences. Take your puppy or dog to group training, find a trainer who holds socialization classes, or find some friends or family with a nice balanced dog. However, getting your puppy or dog around other dogs is not the only component to socialization. Most behavioural issues come from fear, lack of confidence, lack of trust in handler, and not learning to follow. More important than letting your dog play with other dogs, is to expose them to as many positive experiences as possible in a variety of different ways. If you want to ensure you have a confident and happy dog who can go places with you then you need to take your dog to different places, let them explore different sounds and smells, touch and feel all kinds of surfaces. Here are some examples of what you can do:
- Take your dog to different dog friendly stores (most banks, Lowes, TSC, Rona, and many more).
- Using a long line (or off leash if your dog has a solid recall), allow your dog explore parks, trails, fields etc.
- Find any unique surface and encourage your dog to explore it (bridges, jungle gyms, tarps etc).
The benefits of giving your dog plenty of exposure to these different situations will in turn produce a confident dog who can handle most of what life throws it’s way. If you only take your dog to the dog park for socialization, you can expect the one time you decide to bring your dog into a new situation he will be anxious, misbehaved, and it will not be enjoyable for either of you.
If you need help socializing your puppy or dog please contact us for a FREE evaluation at 905-869-1170!
Happy Training
Katherine Vooys
Canines In Balance
Hamilton, Ontario
puppy socialization
Puppy socialization
by The Crunchy Canine | Jan 4, 2016 | Puppy Training
Happy New Year! Have you thought about your New Year’s Resolutions yet? Maybe your dog needs a resolution too? Pulling on leash? Jumping on guests? Excessive barking? Begging at the table? Not listening? If this sounds a little too familiar then it might just be time to make a joint resolution with your dog. While we hope training becomes an all year thing for you and your dog, why not take this opportunity to start the year off right? We have a variety of options when it comes to training to suit the needs of everyone. Whether you are looking for group class, private one on one training, or want us to do the training for you at Day School, we’ve got the solution to help you get your dog’s issues under control. Our gentle and effective training methods actually work! Just check out what our clients have to say here!
Not sure you want to commit to training just yet? Here are some FREE easy dog training tips to get you started on your own!
Adult Group Dog Training & Group Puppy Training
We now have two locations for Adult Group Dog Training and Group Puppy Training classes to serve you better! DogDen in Burlington on Monday and Wednesdays, and Temple of the Dog in Beamsville on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
We’d love to hear about your dog training goals! Contact us to reserve your spot in group class or to book a FREE evaluation for private training!
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