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Dogs + Behavior & Training

  • For any social group to function properly, rules and boundaries need to be established and maintained. This does not involve the use of force but rather the consistent application of boundaries which leads to the formation of realistic expectations.

  • Many excitable and boisterous behaviours are normal for puppies and will diminish with time and with appropriate early training. However, if the behaviour persists, is difficult for you to manage, does not respond well to basic training it is possible that it is driven by an emotional disturbance, rather than bad manners.

  • Play with owners and with other dogs, not only provides the dog with some of its exercise requirements but also helps to meet its social needs.

  • Separation anxiety is a term used to describe a condition which afflicts dogs that are overly attached to or dependent on family members. They become extremely anxious and show distress behaviours like vocalisation, destruction, house-soiling or inactivity when separated from their owners.

  • For dogs to remain behaviourally healthy it is important that we meet their needs for physical exercise and mental stimulation.

  • The best approach to this problem is to change the dog's perception of the noises using the behavioural modification techniques of desensitisation and counter-conditioning.

  • Systematic desensitisation is a behavioural modification method used to reduce an animal's emotional response to a given object or situation.

  • The presence of unwanted and inappropriate barking is one of the most common complaints of dog owners and their neighbours! Up to a third of noise complaints to local Councils of some areas concern disturbances by dogs.

  • It is a normal behaviour for puppies to investigate their environment by sniffing, mouthing and perhaps even chewing on objects throughout the home environment.

  • Lack of early exposure to the sights, sounds or perhaps smells of a particular location, or one or more traumatic experiences associated with that location can lead to the development of avoidance behaviours.