What Is the Best Way to Discipline My Dog?
"What is the best way to discipline my dog?" "Can dogs and cats live peacefully in the same house?" I was recently asked these questions and wanted to share my thoughts with you.
I am not a dog trainer but, this is what I have learned from many years of working with animals.
Dogs are pack animals! They communicate very differently than we do.
Dogs and many other animals live by a code that says, "Someone has to be the boss!".
If you don't assume that position, they will! When most people discipline their dog, it's usually by yelling or hitting.
Neither one of these methods accomplishes anything positive.
The dog just becomes scared and fearful of you.
And, as strange as it sounds, yelling and hitting is attention, and it's better than none as far as their concerned.
In my opinion, it is better to reward good behavior with attention and praise and give no attention for the bad behavior.
Dogs are pack animals and they want to be part of the pack (family).
That is very important to them! Not allowing them to be with you and the family is actually the worst possible punishment for them.
For example, when an unwanted behavior happens, a stern "NO" followed by immediate removal and separation from the room is appropriate.
They needs to be placed out of sight.
Behind a closed door in a safe room with no toys, treats, etc.
If you already use a crate as his "den /sleeping area" I would NOT put him in his crate.
The crate should be a good place to be, not a bad place.
In fact, his crate should be a place with toys and treats and praise whenever inside.
After you have removed him from the room in which he misbehaved, in about 10 minutes you should bring him back.
Praise him when he is NOT doing the unwanted behavior.
When he repeats the unwanted behavior, and he most likely will, repeat the process.
Depending on how quickly he learns, he will figure out that if he is going to continue the unwanted behavior, he won't be allowed to be part of the pack.
This is basically how another dog would handle the problem, only they would keep him away with growls, etc.
It's VERY IMPORTANT that you bring him back in 10 minutes, he needs to understand why he was alienated, and he will only learn this through getting another chance, and repetition! This works great for chasing your cat, too.
Pet the cat in front of him so that he understands the cat is part of the pack (family).
My dogs would never chase my cats, but any other cat that came in our yard was fair game, as far as they were concerned.
Praise him when his attention is not on your cat and remove him immediately if he shows any signs of aggressive behavior.
This process might seem too simple to work but, you will see that, simple works best when it comes to dogs.
Dogs don't reason the way we do and they don't even know what behaviors you consider good or bad.
Our job is to teach them.
Most dogs just want to please us and they learn much faster with praise than they do with discipline.
I hope this information was helpful.
Thanks for reading! Kelly
I am not a dog trainer but, this is what I have learned from many years of working with animals.
Dogs are pack animals! They communicate very differently than we do.
Dogs and many other animals live by a code that says, "Someone has to be the boss!".
If you don't assume that position, they will! When most people discipline their dog, it's usually by yelling or hitting.
Neither one of these methods accomplishes anything positive.
The dog just becomes scared and fearful of you.
And, as strange as it sounds, yelling and hitting is attention, and it's better than none as far as their concerned.
In my opinion, it is better to reward good behavior with attention and praise and give no attention for the bad behavior.
Dogs are pack animals and they want to be part of the pack (family).
That is very important to them! Not allowing them to be with you and the family is actually the worst possible punishment for them.
For example, when an unwanted behavior happens, a stern "NO" followed by immediate removal and separation from the room is appropriate.
They needs to be placed out of sight.
Behind a closed door in a safe room with no toys, treats, etc.
If you already use a crate as his "den /sleeping area" I would NOT put him in his crate.
The crate should be a good place to be, not a bad place.
In fact, his crate should be a place with toys and treats and praise whenever inside.
After you have removed him from the room in which he misbehaved, in about 10 minutes you should bring him back.
Praise him when he is NOT doing the unwanted behavior.
When he repeats the unwanted behavior, and he most likely will, repeat the process.
Depending on how quickly he learns, he will figure out that if he is going to continue the unwanted behavior, he won't be allowed to be part of the pack.
This is basically how another dog would handle the problem, only they would keep him away with growls, etc.
It's VERY IMPORTANT that you bring him back in 10 minutes, he needs to understand why he was alienated, and he will only learn this through getting another chance, and repetition! This works great for chasing your cat, too.
Pet the cat in front of him so that he understands the cat is part of the pack (family).
My dogs would never chase my cats, but any other cat that came in our yard was fair game, as far as they were concerned.
Praise him when his attention is not on your cat and remove him immediately if he shows any signs of aggressive behavior.
This process might seem too simple to work but, you will see that, simple works best when it comes to dogs.
Dogs don't reason the way we do and they don't even know what behaviors you consider good or bad.
Our job is to teach them.
Most dogs just want to please us and they learn much faster with praise than they do with discipline.
I hope this information was helpful.
Thanks for reading! Kelly