Monday, March 24, 2014

Bonding With Your Dog: Some Tips

By Garrett McMahan


When you adopt a dog or perhaps bring a puppy home, your life is definitely about to change for the better. However, while a dog brings a great deal of joy into a home, it really can take a while for this furry pal to bond with the family. Consider the following helpful hints as you attempt to bond with your new dog.

Your dog cannot speak, but they can communicate in their own way. Look for clues from your dog as to whether they are scared or feeling stressed out. A dog that is cowering or has their tail tucked between their back legs is probably feeling afraid, but sometimes flattening their ears, pacing and destructiveness all can be signs of fear or distress. A dog in new surroundings can become scared easily, as they just don't know what to expect in this new environment. During the first days and weeks, use a very calm and soothing voice and give them opportunities to slowly warm up to you. Be sure to provide plenty of praise to your new friend. If you are patient and calm, you will find that your new dog probably will warm up to you fairly quickly.

In many ways, dogs are like children and they tend to feel content and secure when there is a set daily schedule. Creatures of routine, dogs memorize when it is time for a daily walk, when it's feeding time and when it is playtime. In the beginning, a simple schedule can increase your dog's level of comfort. While you probably cannot stick to a schedule 100 percent of the time, try to keep a schedule in place as much as possible. This also is a big help when it comes to housebreaking.

Provide plenty of time for fun and play. Dogs and humans need exercise, so get out there with your pet and have some fun. Take a nice long daily walk or run around in the back yard throwing a favorite toy. A high-energy dog might also enjoy learning Frisbee tricks or taking on agility training. Other dogs are perfectly happy if you toss a toy or ball across the room a dozen or more times. Playing together definitely can increase your bond.

While you might think there is no correlation between bonding and obedience training, this is simply not true. Dogs want to learn how to please their owners, and owners are pleased when dogs obey and do not exhibit troublesome behavior. Therefore, proper training can make everyone happier, and you also will bond simply because training take time and the two of you will be working together learning a lot about each other's personalities.

You have many choices when selecting a training program, and our busy schedules often make it difficult to go to a class or have a trainer come to our home. Opting for a set of dog training DVDs can be an excellent way to fit training into your schedule. Consider The Dog's Way for your new pet. This dog training system includes 12 DVD lessons with easy-to-follow instructions as well as a workbook that follows along with each lesson and helpful reminder cards which you can take on walks. It takes some time, but this is time well spent as you will end up with a pet that truly becomes a loyal, happy and fun companion.




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