getting enough exercise Archives - Brisbane Dog Training & Pet Behavioural Specialist

How To Teach A Dog To Stay | Building A Positive Bond With Your Dog

Having your dog stay on command is an important skill that your dog should know. “Stay” tells your dog to remain in a “sit” or “hold” position until you release them.

Teaching your dog to stay is an excellent self-control exercise. It also has practical uses and will keep your dog safe. For example, teaching your dog to “stay” will prevent your dog from bolting out the front door or jumping on visitors. It will also keep your dog quiet and still while you’re waiting for an appointment in your vet’s clinic.

What you need

Your dog must know how to sit or drop to learn to “stay” on command.

Make sure you also have a stash of their favourite treats and a clicker for your training sessions.

How to teach your dog to stay

Step one, have your dog sit or drop. Click and reward them as soon as they sit or drop.

At this stage of your dog’s training, you’re not using any hand signals or verbal commands. Hand signals and verbal commands are introduced when your dog can comfortably hold a sit or drop position without you having to say anything or give any hand signals.

When it comes to teaching your dog to “stay”, work with your dog in whatever position you think your dog can comfortably hold for longer. It doesn’t matter whether you teach them to “stay” in a sitting position or “drop” position. Some dogs are naturally better sitters, others are more comfortable lying down. Find out what works best for your dog.

Increase the time your dog holds their sit or drop position

Once your dog is comfortable sitting or lying down in a “drop” position without you having to say anything or give any hand signals, you can take their training in the “stay” command to the next level.

Start to increase the length of time between when your dog goes into a sit or hold position, to when they hear the clicker.

A delay between when your dog sits or drops to when they hear the clicker, teaches your dog to hold their sit or drop position for longer.

An important tip: work at your dog’s pace

Remember to always work at your dog’s pace. We want to set them up for success. Be mindful of the length of time you’re asking your dog to hold a sit or drop position. Don’t push to hard too early.

If you push too hard too early, you’ll teach your dog to “self-release” which is not what you want. Self-releasing means your dog will learn to break their position before you ask them to move.

Hand signals and verbal commands

Once you reach the point where your dog is rock solid in holding a sit or drop position for some time, then you can introduce a hand signal and verbal command (“stay”).

By “rock solid”, we mean your dog will hold their sit or drop when you move and sit on the couch or take a few steps away.

A useful hand signal for the stay command is the “stop” sign with the palm of your hand facing your dog.

Increase the distance between you and your dog

Once your dog is rock solid in holding a sit or drop position, then you can start to increase the distance between you and your dog while they’re holding their position.

Have your dog hold a sit or drop position, turn your back from them and take a few steps away. If your dog holds their position after you turn and move, then click and reward them.

Again, remember to work at your dog’s pace. For some dogs, turning your back on them and taking a step or two away will be enough of a trigger for them to break position and move.

Avoid self-releasing

Avoid teaching your dog to self-release. If your dog moves or breaks their position before you ask them to release their position, then don’t reward them and go back a few stages in their training. Always work at your dog’s pace.

Add a release word

Once your dog is comfortable holding their sit or drop position with you turning and moving a few steps away, then you can slowly increase the distance between you and your dog before you release them from their position.

When you’ve increased the distance between you and your dog, you can start to introduce a “release word”. This tells your dog when they can break their sit or hold position. Examples of release words are “okay” or “yes”.

Distractions

The next level in teaching your dog to “stay” is to introduce distractions during their training sessions.

Examples of distractions include: –

Have your dog hold a sit or drop position, then grab a piece of rope and wave it on the floor near your dog (far enough away so your dog can’t reach it or get to it). Teach your dog they are not allowed to have the rope until they hold a sit or drop position and they hear their release word.
Practice having your dog sit or drop and “stay” (hold their position) while you’re outside.

Introducing distractions into training sessions teaches your dog impulse control.

Final thoughts

When it comes to teaching your dog to stay, here are some other important tips: –

When starting out, keep training sessions short. Maybe no more than 15 minutes. Puppies or easily distracted dogs may need even shorter sessions. If a training session is too long, your dog will get distracted or bored and start to make mistakes.
Always end on a positive note. Every dog is different. And we all have our off days. If your dog can’t seem to focus or hold their sit or hold position, then switch to something they know for a few minutes before ending the training session. You want your training sessions to be fun and rewarding for your dog so they will love training with you.
Be patient and work at our dog’s pace. If your dog is having trouble holding their position or learning the stay command, try not to get frustrated. Take a break and try again later if you need to, and maybe try again with different treats.

At Fur Get Me Not, we are passionate about creating reliable manners based on a strong and positive relationship between you and your dog. In our basic manners course, we teach the critical commands including the “stay” command. Click here to book into our basic manners course.

3 Awesome Dog Tricks to Teach Your Dog | Dog Training Brisbane

Does your dog know these three Dog Tricks? | Dog Training Brisbane

Dog tricks are a great way to provide mental stimulation for your dog. Boredom can cause destructive behaviours like chewing, digging and barking.

We recommend all dogs be trained in the basic commands – sit, drop, come, stay and “leave it”. Most dog tricks build on the basic dog training commands.

Positive reinforcement training

Positive reinforcement means rewarding dog behaviours that you like. Take time to discover what kinds of rewards your dog really likes. It could be treats, praise, games, walks, toys or even car rides. When your dog does something you like, reward them for it.

What you need to teach dog tricks

To get started, you’ll need patience and a positive attitude, a stash of treats and a clicker or marker word.

Fetch

The first step in teaching fetch is to figure out what your dog can comfortably hold in their mouth. It could be a ball or a plush toy.

Once you’ve figured this out, start by placing the item on the ground in front of you. Ask your dog to pick up the item and place your hand under it. Reward your dog when they put the item in your hand.

Next, you want your dog to understand they should pick up the item and bring it to you when you’re further away. Take a step back and ask your dog to bring the item to you. Reward them when they do.

Then move a few more steps back, encourage them and praise them when they move towards you. Reward them when they put to item in your hand.

Gradually increase the distance but be consistent when they get a reward.

Roll over

Your dog must know how to “drop” or lie down to complete this trick.

Have your dog drop. Hold a treat by their nose and pull the treat from the tip of their nose towards their shoulder. If your dog turns their head to follow the treat, then continue to pull the treat around your dog’s shoulder so your dog will have to lie on their side to follow it.

Continue holding the treat close to your dog’s nose and pull it all the way around so it must roll all the way over to follow it. When your dog completes a full roll, mark, and reward them.

Your dog may not turn all the way around first go. If you need to, break it down into smaller parts.

With your dog lying down hold a treat by their nose and then pull the treat from the tip of its nose towards their shoulder. The moment your dog turns their head to follow the treat, praise or click and reward them. Eventually stop giving them a treat every time they turn their head and move on to the next part of the trick.

Add the “roll over!” command once your dog can consistently roll all the way over.

Shake hands

Your dog must know how to sit to complete this trick.

Have your dog sit. Hold a treat in one hand and show it to your dog. Close your fist.

Say “shake!” and wave your closed fist under your dog’s nose. As soon as your dog touches your hand with their paw, praise them and click or use a marker word, open your hand and give them the treat. Repeat and practice.

Over time, graduate to giving the treat from your other hand rather than the treat in your closed fist. Then stop using a treat in your closed fist altogether and reward them with your other hand every time they offer their paw.

Slowly decrease the number of times your dog receives a treat when they offer their paw. Soon you’ll only need to reward them occasionally to reinforce the behaviour.

Final thoughts

When it comes to teaching dog tricks, here are some other important tips –

One dog trick or command at time. This will help your dog stay focused. But if the training session is not going well, then switch to something they know and end the training session on a positive note.
Avoid distractions. At first, train your dog in areas away from excessive noise or activity. Start somewhere quiet, like your living room, and work your way up to your yard, then an open space.
Keep training sessions short. Maybe no more than 15 minutes. Puppies or easily distracted dogs may need even shorter sessions. If a training session is too long, your dog will get distracted or bored and start to make mistakes. Which brings us to our final point.
Always end on a positive note. Every dog is different. And we all have our off days. If your dog can’t seem to focus or perform a desired behaviour, then switch to something they know for a few minutes before ending the training session. You want your training sessions to be fun and rewarding for your dog so they will love training with you.

This article is covering some very basic tricks if you want to learn more complex trick and create a problem solving genius. Check out our Shape, Solve & Roll Class here.

Reactive Dogs and Walking| Why It’s A Bad Idea And What To Do Instead

Is walking a reactive dog in their best interest?

Reactive dogs bark, snap, lunge or growl when pushed beyond their threshold. By “threshold”, we mean what your dog can comfortably handle.

Most dogs when they react like this, they’re asking for space. A reactive dog is saying, in their own way, “please give me some space” or “I’m uncomfortable, please stay away”.

For some dogs, they will be pushed past their threshold when they’re on a lead and they see another dog as far away as a football field. For others, it’s another dog on the same side of the street, but just a few metres away.

In this blog article, we’re talking about reactive dogs – dogs that overreact to certain triggers or stimuli in their environment, for example being on a leash in public (called “leash reactivity”).

Walking leash reactive dogs

We know the challenges and struggles of walking a leash reactive dog. We really do.

You have a dog that’s leash reactive. It’s been drilled into you that you must walk your dog every day. You are racked with guilt when you don’t walk them.

You walk your dog as instructed. You’re anxious. Your dog goes through bouts of reactivity on EVERY walk. They lunge, bark, snap or growl at people, other dogs, noises, other animals (like cats), EVERYTHING. If you see another dog or person, you quickly cross the street and pray you can pass them quickly without setting your dog off.

Strangers shoot you looks, and you know what they’re thinking – “why can’t they control their dog?”. Your heart sinks. Maybe you flash them a smile and say something like, “I’m sorry, we’re working on it”.

You finally get home. You and your dog are feeling deflated, frustrated and angry.

How did that help anyone?

Now, listen carefully. We’re not saying that if you own a leash reactive dog you have a free pass to never exercise your dog again.

Whether you own a reactive dog or not, it is your responsibility to provide your dog with enough physical and mental stimulation.

But there are many activities that are far more productive for some leash reactive dogs than walking them. The key is to get creative and to discover what your dog loves to do.

Here are a few suggestions.

Games

Smelling games are a great way to provide entertainment, mental stimulation and enrichment for your dog. Play a game of “hide and sniff” with your dog. Get their favourite toy or food treat and hide it around the house or yard. Challenge them to “find it!”. When they find their toy or food treat, give them a reward. Change it up by using different scents or toys.

Hiking

If it’s possible to get into nature with your dog, then do it. Hiking trails provide a different experience for your dog. They need to concentrate on where to put their feet, they must deal with different textures under their feet (for example rocks, sand and dirt) and their noses will run wild. Let them stop and sniff every now-and-then, if they want to.

Always obey leash laws. Keep them leashed to keep them safe.

Swimming

If your dog likes to swim, then swimming has many benefits.

Swimming gets your dog’s brain working. It safely relieves stress. It works different muscle groups. Throwing toys into the water for your dog to fetch can enhance the experience for your dog.

Make sure you take your dog to a place where the risk of running into other triggers is low. Please do not take your reactive dog to an off-leash beach or swimming area during peak times.

Final thoughts

Be kind to yourself and your dog. Owning a reactive dog is challenging. It’s stressful. It’s hard work sometimes. But owning a reactive dog also changes your life. We promise it gets better with training and management. Don’t forget the awesome snuggles and good times.

Please don’t beat yourself up for not taking your leash reactive dog for walk. Walking a leash reactive dog can sometime cause more harm than good. Instead, get creative with your exercise options. Discover what your dog loves to do. You know your dog best.

If your dog suffers from any kind of reactivity, then seek help from a positive dog behaviourist. They are on your side and they aren’t going to pass judgement. A decent dog behaviourist is committed to seeing you and your dog succeed.

We offer one-on-one or private training and consultations for reactive dogs. Contact us today to discuss your dog and your dog’s needs. We would love to help you out.

Biting and Mouthing | How To Stop Your Puppy Biting

Biting and mouthing by puppies are common and normal behaviours. Like babies, puppies use their mouths to explore the world. Everything goes in your puppy’s mouth including human hands, feet, fingers and toes.

Puppies are also used to rough-and-tumble play with their brothers and sisters with lots of biting and mouthing. A puppy’s bite will start to hurt as their canine teeth come through and they grow and become stronger.

Below are some tips for teaching your puppy the rules when it comes to interacting, getting your attention and playing.

Be consistent and help your puppy to make better choices

Your puppy needs to learn how to behave properly including how to play politely. Bite inhibition is the ability for your puppy to use their teeth without causing distress or hurting other people or dogs.

Teaching “bite inhibition” will help your puppy have fun, and to be safe, with other people and other dogs.

Below are two suggested methods for teaching your puppy bite inhibition – (1) using toys and (2) meeting your puppy’s needs.

Direct to a calming activity

Chewing, licking and sniffing is naturally calming to dogs and helps to meet their needs from a biting and chewing point of view.

When your puppy goes to use their teeth, direct them to either a long lasting chew, kong or lickimat. They need to do this calmer activity for minimum 10 minutes so you may have to be creativity with what you use or what you have prepared or on hand. Make sure all energetic or exciting games are mixed up with a calming activity, for example scent games or puzzles. Swap between the two types of play ensuring your puppy does not get overstimulated. Teach your puppy to self-regulate their excitement. An overstimulated puppy will bite.

Meeting your puppy’s needs

Although, biting and mouthing is a natural behaviour, it is often worse when we are not meeting your puppy’s needs.

Make sure you are getting the balance right with the following:

Getting enough sleep or rest. An overtired puppy will be a biting monster. Make sure you teach your puppy to rest every hour.
Meeting their exercise needs. Pent up energy means they will struggle to make good choices and control their impulses.
Meeting their mental stimulation needs. This is the one that will make the MOST difference. When your puppy starts to bite re-direct them onto a puzzle or do some training that engages their ability to problem solve. When a puppy is thinking they are calm and less likely to bite.
Give them six new things to do with their mouth everyday. Feed their meals out of enrichment toys, give them rubbish to destroy and chew (always supervise at first to make sure they don’t swallow anything). Give them natural long lasting chews and ice blocks or meals frozen in a toy is a great way to sooth teething.

What doesn’t work

Always use positive reinforcement techniques when training your puppy.

Never punish them or yell at them. It will only make your puppy anxious and scared of you and create other behavioural issues that you don’t want. Dogs that are physically or verbally punished are more likely to retaliate with aggression. And it’s cruel.

We have also found for some puppies yelping or making a loud noise can overstimulate them and make the behaviour worse or frighten your puppy. So we no longer recommend this strategy.

Lots of praise

Remember to reward your puppy when they play well and politely. Give them their favourite treat or toy. This will show them that good things happen when they play nicely.

Supervise play between puppies and children

Children can’t use these training techniques on their own and will need adult help. And children often do things to get puppies excited, for example squeal and run around. Children must be supervised with puppies at all times.

Final thoughts

It’s important that everyone in the family or household practices these training tips. Everyone who interacts or plays with your puppy needs to be consistent.

If your puppy continues to be too rough, then seek help from a professional dog trainer that uses positive training techniques.

At Fur Get Me Not, our qualified canine coaches can support you in using positive training techniques to teach your puppy bite inhibition and other critical skills. We’re passionate about puppies and their humans forming strong bonds. Get started today by clicking here.

Pug Training Tips | Dog Training School Brisbane

Pug Training Tips | How To Train Your Pug | Dog Training School Brisbane

Pugs are very mischievous, playful, goofy, curious dogs. This can be fun and entertaining at first, but their curiosity and attention-seeking can lead to trouble without proper training. They are also quite energetic. Pugs are probably more energetic than people realise and can suffer from health problems like obesity if they are not given enough exercise.

With the right training, exercise and socialisation Pugs are very docile, clever, charming and social dogs.

Here are Pug training tips to help you understand your Pug’s needs.

Pugs are clever

Pugs are clever, although they probably aren’t renowned for being smart.

Start training early.

Pugs can learn a wide range of tricks using positive training techniques. Positive reinforcement techniques will allow your Pug to quickly learn that good things happen when they do something good.

A perfect way to start Pug training is with obedience training basics. Train your Pug in essential commands such as stay, sit, drop and “leave it”.

Pugs are very playful and social

Start socialisation early. It will help your Pug’s development and positively shape their temperament.

Socialise your Pug by educating them on behaving well and getting along politely with other animals, including other dogs. It is also important to introduce them to different environments.

Giving your Pug the opportunity to interact positively with different kinds of dogs will help them develop new, good behaviours and will build their confidence.

It’s important for your Pug’s development and well-being that they be given the chance to socialise with dogs of different shapes, sizes, and colours.

Pugs are stubborn

A Pug’s intelligence also means they can be stubborn and easily form habits, both good and bad.

Set rules for your Pug and stick to them. Don’t bend the rules because they are cute.

For example, decide early whether you will let your Pug sit on the couch or your bed. Be aware that if you allow this to happen but change your mind later, it will be very challenging to get your Pug to stop.

One final Pug training tip

Our biggest tip for training your Pug is to find out what your Pug truly loves and how they love to learn and focus on those things.

Maybe your Pug loves a specific toy, a long walk or food treats. Using their favourite toy or treat as a reward for good behaviour is the most effective Pug training strategy.

It is also important to remember if your Pug only socialises with other Pugs, they may not cope well or behave well when they come across other kinds of dogs. We’ve written a blog on whether different dog breeds have different training needs. Click here to check it out.

At Fur Get Me Not, we keep our group training classes and puppy playgroups small. We get to know your Pug’s individual needs and can provide specialist training by highly skilled dog trainers. To check out our dog training courses and playgroups, click here.

How To Teach A Dog To Stay | Building A Positive Bond With Your Dog

What you need

How to teach your dog to stay

Increase the time your dog holds their sit or drop position

An important tip: work at your dog’s pace

Hand signals and verbal commands

Increase the distance between you and your dog

Avoid self-releasing

Add a release word

Distractions

Final thoughts

Does your dog know these three Dog Tricks? | Dog Training Brisbane

Positive reinforcement training

What you need to teach dog tricks

Fetch

Roll over

Shake hands

Final thoughts

Is walking a reactive dog in their best interest?

Walking leash reactive dogs

Games

Hiking

Swimming

Final thoughts

Biting and Mouthing | How To Stop Your Puppy Biting

Be consistent and help your puppy to make better choices

Direct to a calming activity

Meeting your puppy’s needs

What doesn’t work

Lots of praise

Supervise play between puppies and children

Final thoughts

Pug Training Tips | How To Train Your Pug | Dog Training School Brisbane

Pugs are clever

Pugs are very playful and social

Pugs are stubborn

One final Pug training tip

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