This is the first post in our series about all things puppy related! Having a puppy is a fun and rewarding experience but can also be a frustrating and challenging phase. In these posts, we hope to shed some light on why puppies do the things they do and provide advice on how to deal with it.
Having a puppy is a fun but can be a challenging experience. To help you survive puppyhood, we found some of the best resources on everything from the first night to housebreaking your new furry family member.
Any fur baby parent will tell you that dogs have their own personalities. But what you might not know is that certain personalities respond better to a particular type of training. Dogs can be confident, shy, independent, happy go lucky, and dominant.
Do have an anxious or easily excitable dog? Then classical music may be the answer. Two studies* found that compared to other types of music such as heavy metal or pop, classical music appeared to reduce stress in shelter dogs and led to increased sleeping. Interestingly, classical music that was specially designed to promote relaxation in animals did not fair any better than regular classical music. So the next time you need to calm your anxious dog, why not try tuning into the classic music station! *Kogan, Schoenfeld-Tacher, & Simon. (2012). Behavioral effects of auditory stimulation on kenneled dogs. Journal of Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications & Research. 7(5), 268-275. Wells, Graham, & Hepper. (2002). The influence of auditory stimulation on the behavior of dogs housed in a rescue shelter. Animal Welfare. 11(10), 385-393....
Read MoreIt’s not always easy keeping our pets active and engaged. Here are a few games to keep your pooch entertained. 1) Take your dog’s metal bowl, put low fat peanut butter on the sides of it and flip it over. Your dog will be teased by the scent of the peanut butter but will have to work to flip the bowl over to get the reward. 2) If it’s nice out you can take an old bucket or large bowl fill it part way with water depending on the size of your dog and get your dog to splash around or retrieve treats from the water. 3) Yummy veggies frozen in ice cubes will keep your dogs cool on hot days and a rousing game of hide and go seek inside will exercise their noses on rainy days. For more active dogs, setting up an agility course in your backyard might be the...
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Here’s a list of 5 essential commands every dog should know…