You might be surprised how many times I hear something along the lines of “To be honest, I really don’t like my dog very much!” when I meet with a client for the first time. I can’t fault them. Bad dog behavior puts serious strain on a dog’s relationship with its people and can cause all kinds of stress and tension in the house. If that’s the situation you find yourself in, this blog post is for you. Here are five suggestions to help keep everyone sane:
Say No to Bad Behavior. Many people feel powerless over their dog’s behavior. They want to say no but they aren’t sure how and they don’t want to risk hurting the dog. We strongly advocate for training tools because they aren’t too tough to learn how to use properly. Check out my YouTube channel for tutorials on the e-collar and prong collar. The good news is: you don’t have to suffer through your dog’s behavior! You can and you should say “no” in a way that’s meaningful to your dog.
Teach the Place Command. Saying no is important, but teaching your dog what to do instead is equally important. The place command is nicknamed the duct tape of dog training for a reason: you can use it to address a whole host of bad behaviors! Use it to keep your dog from destroying the house, getting underfoot, nuisance barking, and more.
Crate Train Your Dog. This one sounds simple but it’s often overlooked. Most folks use the crate while they’re housebreaking, which is fantastic, but then they stop using it. Dust it off and put it back up because it’s going to be part of your sanity strategy going forward. Crate your dog anytime you can’t be supervising him. This keeps your dog out of trouble, which keeps you sane. Down time is important for dogs, so don’t feel bad.
Take a Daily Structured Walk. If your dog is driving you nuts, chances are his leash manners are a wreck. Spend some time on YouTube learning how to teach your dog to heel properly, then get to work! The structured walk (dog in heel position, human leading) burns way more energy than you might think because the dog is using both physical energy and mental energy.
Hire a Dog Trainer. If you’re really struggling, this is the best thing you can possibly do. It’s not cheap but if you can swing it, it’ll absolutely be worth it. A professional dog trainer can teach your dog all the skills we just mentioned and more. Best of all, the trainer will teach you how to keep that good behavior going for the long haul!