Is your dog getting enough exercise? How much is enough? How can you tell? These are all questions that every dog owner has asked at one time or another. 

First, how much exercise does your dog need? It varies from dog to dog, and there are several factors you’ll need to take into consideration to determine how much exercise he really needs. A Border Collie, for example, was originally bred to herd sheep over miles of rough terrain and run for hours a day. They will require much more exercise than a dog such as a Pug, who was originally bred as a companion dog for royalty. While different dog breeds require different amounts of daily activity and exercise, there is one rule that applies to every breed, size, and age. That is, that some amount of daily activity and exercise is essential to your dog’s physical and emotional health.

Lack of exercise may lead to obesity, poor muscle tone, or heart problems. It can also result in emotional problems, such as boredom barking, destructive behaviors and anxiety. A dog who gets enough exercise will probably sleep better, suffer from less anxiety when left alone, and will generally be a happier and more content companion.

Exercising should be fun for both you and your dog. Depending on the type of dog that you have, you may be able to include your dog into your existing routine. Many dogs enjoy running, swimming, or playing Frisbee. Start slowly and gradually increase over time. Just like people, pets can get sore muscles and strained joints or ligaments if they over-exert themselves. If you have any concerns at all about beginning an exercise program with your dog, consult with your veterinarian first. 

During the warmer months, it’s a good idea to exercise your dog early in the morning, or in the evening, when it’s not so hot. If you exercise after dark, be sure to wear light colored or reflective clothing and get a reflective collar and leash for your dog. Remember, your dog is barefoot, and that hot sidewalk is just as hot on the pads of his feet as it would be on the bottom of yours! Some dogs are so eager to keep up that they will literally run until their pads are raw – or until they collapse from heat exhaustion. Keep an eye out for signs of fatigue or trouble breathing or excessive panting. Be sure to keep plenty of water on hand. By all means, if your dog wants to stop, let him. That’s a sure sign that he’s had enough.

A well supervised play group of similar size and temperament dogs can also be a great way for your dog to get his exercise. You may be able to set up a play group with friends who have similar sized dogs, or make arrangements for your dog to go to a dog park or doggy day care a few times a week.

There are also many different “dog sports” that you might be interested in. You can enroll in an agility class, where you and your dog will learn to run a course made up of jumps, tunnels, and other various obstacles. You may also like to try flyball, which is a team of dogs competing in a relay race. There is also canine freestyle dancing, herding, rally obedience, tracking and a number of other dog sports where you and your dog can learn new skills, meet other people who enjoy doing things with their dogs, and get some exercise too! 

No matter how you choose to exercise your dog, have fun, and remember… a tired dog is a good dog! 

The kick-off to this program begins on February 21, 2009, at 9:00 A.M. at the Houston Humane Society, 14700 Almeda Road,Houston, Tx.  Connie Archer, behavioral therapist and trainer for Bark Busters, says, “We are very excited about this new program and the response we have had from the volunteers at Houston Humane.  Our goal with this program is to make those shelter dogs even more appealing to the potential adopter by teaching the volunteers to work on some very basic skills with the dogs.”  Instead of just getting the dogs out to run and play, volunteers will have the basic tools to be able to work with the dogs on basic commands, such as sit, down, sitting to have leash put on, and teaching the dogs to walk without pulling on the leash.  Bark Busters trainer Donna Smith adds, “This should be a win-win situation for both the volunteers and the dogs. It will be very rewarding for the volunteers to know that they are not only giving the dogs exercise time, but that they can now help these dogs develop some basic skills to make them more adoptable and better able to assimilate into their future homes.”

The training for volunteers consists of three Saturday morning sessions with Bark Busters trainers.  Each session will include classroom learning on such topics as body language and voice tones, as well as hands-on work with actual shelter dogs. Classes are limited to twenty volunteers.  “It was exciting to see how quickly the first class filled up.  In two days, the first class of 20 was full.  We have already starting registering for the second set of classes, and it is filling fast,” said Archer. “The enthusiasm for the program has been great.”

“We at Bark Busters have been looking for a way to help our area shelters.  This seems to be a way to help motivate volunteers and help the dogs all at the same time,” said Smith, of Bark Busters. “If this program proves to be successful, we may try to expand it to help other area shelters as well.” 

by Cinda Bishop, Mucho Poocho Doggy Day School

Fear aggression is exactly what it sounds like. A dog becomes aggressive when he finds himself in a situation he perceives as something to be afraid of.  It doesn’t matter if the thing he fears is actually harmless, as long as he sees the item as something to be fearful of, there is a problem. Fear aggression is more often towards humans or other animals, but can be towards an inanimate object as well.

If you have a dog that you feel is fear aggressive, your first responsibility is to protect yourself and others from possible harm. This may include doing things like confining the dog in a crate or behind a gate when there is a possibility of a fearful situation arising. It may also mean using a head halter type collar and possibly even a muzzle when walking your dog. Remember though, these are just management tools. You have not solved the problem.  Management is not enough with a fear aggressive dog. It is a start, but training and behavior modification will also be required for the dog to overcome the fear. 

Where to start? 

First off, you need to be very aware of situations that make your dog fearful. What are her “triggers”? Can you tell by her body language when something is beginning to cause her fear or stress?  Does she pace, whine, pant or try to escape the area? Are her ears back? Is her tail tucked? The slightest change in her body language may be an indicator that she is becoming fearful. When at all possible, avoid placing the dog in a situation that you know triggers a fear response. Unfortunately, this isn’t always possible. This is where training and behavior modification come in. 

The first step is a thorough medical workup. You want to rule out any physical cause for the behavior before starting a training or behavior modification program.  If your dog has a problem with riding in the car, or with strangers, or with going to the vet’s office in general, make an appointment and talk to your vet first, before trying to take the dog in. It helps if you have a good relationship with your vet. You may need to arrange to be either the first or last appointment of the day to avoid meeting other people or animals in the lobby, or the vet may have a different entrance they would prefer you use. Be completely honest with your vet about your dog’s problems. If your dog has caused injury to any person or animal, or to herself, your vet needs to know this. 

Once you have ruled out any physical or medical cause, you can begin a training or behavior modification program. Do not attempt to do this on your own.  Seek the help of a Veterinary Behaviorist or a Certified Behavior Consultant. The International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC) has a consultant locator on their website (www.IAABC.org ). This is an excellent place to start. 

What happens next?

Once you have found a consultant to work with, you will probably begin by filling out a detailed history report. Be as specific as you can, and again, be completely honest. Take your time filling out the paperwork, and if you don’t understand the questions, ask the consultant to clarify for you. You will be working very closely with this person, possibly for quite some time, as you learn to work with your dog. It is important that you develop a good working relationship with them, and that you feel comfortable with their methods and techniques.  The consultant will work with you to develop a behavior modification program.  He or she will probably outline a program of exercises for you to work on with your dog. It is important that you do the work as outlined. If you run into a problem, talk to your consultant, and they will help you work through it. 

Remember, this will take a considerable amount of time and commitment on your part. Your dog most likely didn’t get this way overnight and there is no “quick fix.” But you will find that with the right kind of training, and enough time and patience, you will see an improvement in your dog’s behavior.  There is nothing more rewarding than watching a fearful dog transform under your guidance into a happy confident companion.

Targeting – what is it?
A target is anything that the dog must focus on and perform some action towards. Attention is a form of targeting, where the dog is focusing his gaze on your face (or hands). “Come” is a form of targeting in which the dog must find the area right in front of you. The dog can show his focus on the target in many ways. The most common are a nose-touch or a paw-touch.

What’s it used for?
There are many specialized uses for targeting. In competition obedience, a dog is trained to move away from the handler on a “go out” in targeting. They are also asked to retrieve certain objects. In agility, dogs must step within a certain area called a contact zone on many obstacles.

What about pet dogs?
Two of the best uses for targeting are teaching a dog to walk by your side and to go to his bed on command. It’s possible to teach a dog to walk at your side just by rewarding him for doing so (and of course removing the reward for walking anywhere else), but it may be that “at your side” is too vague for many dogs. If they have something to focus on, they can immediately know where they’re supposed to be. So, if you teach your dog to follow your hand (or a stick in your hand, for a shorter dog) with his nose, he will be perfectly placed and ready for reap your rewards.

There are many times when you may want to send your dog away from you. Maybe you have guests coming over and want to greet them at the door without your dog’s help. Maybe everyone’s sitting on the ground to enjoy a barbeque. Wouldn’t it be nice to cue your dog to “go to bed” and have him find his special pillow or crate to curl up in for a while? Targeting will help.

You can use targeting to start a lot of tricks too. You can teach a dog to spin in a circle or push doors closed and you can teach a paw wave or pushing a lever with a paw-touch on a target. You can easily groom a dog who is keeping his nose or feet on a target. Hearing ear dogs for the deaf often touch their partners with a paw to alert them to phones, doorbells or fire alarms. You can teach your dog to run to a door or to a certain part of the yard at the sound of your own smoke alarm.

How do you train it?
The beginning of target training takes advantage of the dog’s natural curiosity. Most dogs will sniff or even touch your palm if you hold it out to them – especially if you’ve just been handling food treats. Simply mark and reward your dog for each touch. It helps if you hold it close to their nose, maybe just below their nose level. If you want to eventually transfer the nose-touch to some inanimate object – like a target stick, sticky note or margarine lid – simply put some food smell on that and hold it cupped in your hand when you begin.

To train the paw touch, move your hand around in short, jerky movements low to the ground near the dog’s paws, or hold a treat under your hand. Most dogs will paw at this. Mark and reward for each touch. Repeat this a few times. See if your dog becomes more confident in his touching. Many dogs, even those with some experience with training and treats, act as if they don’t believe that simply touching your hand will work. Make sure that you reward this easy first step quite a few times before making it any harder.

Once your dog is fairly confident in the initial touching, hold the target out a little bit further, a few inches away, or just enough for the dog to really stretch out their neck (or leg) to touch it. Mark and reward those touches, repeating it a few times.

Now begin varying the position of the target relative to the dog and relative to you and you relative to the dog. Hold it out slightly to one side, hold it an inch or two above or below the original level. Hold the target out while you stand or sit, while you face the dog or have the dog at your side. Make it clear that it’s touching the target that is causing you to mark and reward, not any of the other factors your dog is seeing.

When your dog will consistently touch the target each time, add a cue like “touch” or “paw it”, or a hand signal like touching the target yourself with two fingers of the other hand. Add the cue just before you think the dog will do it to form the association between the cue and the action.

Fading the target
For some actions, you won’t ever need to take away the target. Your front and eyes will always be there for your dog to find on a “come” or “pay attention.” Your dog’s bed or crate will always be there for him to trot over to when you ask him to go there.

For other actions, you’ll want to fade away the target. You probably don’t want to walk with your hand or target stick in front of your dog’s nose. If you’re teaching a paw wave or head shake you’ll want the dog to move his body without having to follow your target, so you’ll need to fade it away.

You can make it less relevant by making it smaller (cutting down the lid, shortening the stick or fading your palm to a few fingers) or by holding it further away, while still rewarding the dog for following through with the actions that you want. In fact, the less relevant you make the target, the more you want to reward the action. You’re shifting the importance from following the target with nose or paw to completing the action in the absence of the target. Have fun with it and think of creative ways to teach your dog new tricks with his targeting skills.

Many people use “leave it” as a cute trick for their dog to show off his good manners. For example, they will place a treat on the floor, look at the dog and say “leave it.” After a few minutes, the dog is then released to get the treat. It’s a great thing to teach your dog. It teaches them a bit of self control, and if your dog happens to be a bit grabby, it can protect your fingers from accidental nips. However, for this particular behavior, I prefer “wait” – that lets the dog know that he will eventually get the treat. Wait is also useful when going through doors and gates, loading up in the car or at meal time.

So how does a dog learn these things? It’s simple. In just a few lessons a day your dog will learn these two commands, and impress your friends and family with his good manners.

“Wait” can be used in a sitting, standing or down position. It is easiest to practice at a doorway or at meal time.

In a doorway or at a gate, with the leash held tightly in your left hand, give the “wait” command and begin to open the door or gate slowly. If the dog begins to move towards the door, give a correction and repeat “wait.” When you can open the door or gate without the dog moving towards it, reward and release. Practice until you can open a door and go through it and your dog will wait until released to follow you. Getting in and out of the car is also a good time to practice.

At meal time, while holding the food dish, give the “wait” command and slowly begin to set it down. If the dog moves toward it, remove it quickly and repeat “wait.” Continue until you can set the dish on the floor without your dog touching the food until released. With a grabby dog, you may want to begin with him on leash so you will have more control.

For a reward, hold a treat in the palm of your hand. Show it to your dog and say, “wait.” If he grabs for the treat, quickly close your hand until he relaxes. Show it again and say “wait.” If he pauses, even for a few seconds, give the treat and praise him. If he lunges for the treat, close the hand again. Timing is important in this exercise. You need to give him permission to take the treat BEFORE he grabs it from you. You will gradually increase the length of time between showing him the treat and allowing him to take it.
Note: This exercise should NOT be done with dogs that are food aggressive!

Use the “leave it” command to teach when something is off limits – for example, chewing shoes or chasing the cat. “Leave it” means not now, not ever, never! Once your dog understands “leave it,” you can use it in many different situations. It can mean “leave the neighbor’s cat alone” or “don’t bark at the UPS man” or even “don’t pick up that chicken bone off of the ground.”

Begin with your dog on a leash, and set him up by leaving a shoe (or whatever he has a tendency to want to destroy) out in the open. If he isn’t particularly interested in shoes or tearing up household items, use a wrapper from a fast food meal – most dog’s just can’t resist a double cheeseburger wrapper! Walk your dog past the object and when he shows any interest in the object, give a gentle tug on his leash, followed by “leave it.” Praise him for the correct response and walk him back past the object again until he shows no interest in it. This may take several sessions, but it will result in your dog learning his limits. Before long, you will find your dog looking at you when he approaches something he’d like to grab. Praise and reward generously for this. Anticipating when your dog is thinking about grabbing the object or chasing the cat and correcting him immediately is much more effective than correcting him after he’s grabbed the object or begun running after the cat. Consistency is the key – if it isn’t ok to chase the cat today, it won’t ever be ok to chase the cat.

Teach your dog these two simple words and you’ll never have to worry about grabbing a forbidden snack or running past you out the door. Remember that training should be fun for both of you. Your dog enjoys the time and attention you spend with him and of course the praise for a job well done. Make training a part of your daily routine, and you will have a companion you will enjoy being with for many years to come.

Before unleashing your dog at the bark park, you should always observe the park rules of etiquette. For instance, Fido, whose immunizations have all been updated. Perfect. Fluffy, who has a bad case of kennel cough. Disaster.

Clean up after your dog. To prevent the unintentional spread of disease and intestinal parasites, pick up after your pooch. Leaving piles for others to clean up is especially rude and could result in you and your dog being banned from the park.

Female dogs in heat. Taking a female dog in heat out in public is well, irresponsible. Especially when there are dozens of dogs running loose, many of them unneutered males.

Be responsible for your dog. If your dog digs a hole, fill it back in. If he or she cannot play well with other dogs, take them home.

Follow the park’s posted rules. Following each park’s posted rules helps keep the parks open and available to everyone. Failure to obey the rules can result in your local park being shut down or cause a serious accident that could have been prevented.

By Bob Williams, Bark Busters Home Dog Training

Meet United States Air Force veteran, David LaValley. David served five years as a dog handler and had the distinction of handling bomb sniffing dogs for a president and a pope, namely President Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II. He once trained a dog to run an entire agility course with only one command. David was a very special kind of dog trainer.

David had one special problem: his best friend Aspen. When Aspen was a puppy, David was an avid in-line skater and taught Aspen to pull him on his skates. Aspen learned quickly but could not distinguish between a skater and a walker.

Over the next few years, Aspen learned that he could get away with other undesirable behaviors, like barking at everything, jumping on everyone and taking food from anywhere. In David’s own words, he had “absolutely ruined an otherwise wonderful Weimaraner.”

David was listening to the radio one day and heard that Bark Busters Home Dog Training was looking for the “naughtiest” dog in Houston. After the Bark Buster team reviewed the entries, it was obvious that they had found their dog in Aspen. But, could this dog be rehabilitated?

We are pleased to announce that life has changed at the LaValley home. We invite you to witness the transformation just as the LaValley’s did during our first visit. 

Aspen\’s Story

There are currently 14 Bark Busters trainers in the Houston area. To fetch a trainer or for more information call 877.500.BARK (2275).

There is no doubt that dogs too, have strong emotions. Some unfortunately, become panic stricken when their owners leave the house each day. These dogs may be suffering from Separation Anxiety (SA). If your dog performs any of the following behaviors, then read on. Common SA symptoms include pacing, drooling, shaking and whining before you leave each day. While you are gone they may refuse to eat, constantly howl, and engage in destructive digging and chewing around house entrances. If your dog is suffering from SA, then it is your job to teach him a new reaction to your departure. Remember, it is the dogs’ internal state that needs help. By implementing some changes in both yours and the dogs’ routine, you can help curb your dogs’ anxieties. 

• NEVER punish destruction or accidents after the fact. In fact, you can create more anxiety by teaching your dog to fear your return. Make it a point to come home, drama free, no matter what you find. Crating is the best way to prevent destruction, however confinement can make SA worse. 

• Keep your departures and arrivals low-key. Don’t emotionally overload your dog with long goodbyes and hugs. You’re actually sending a message to your dog that it IS a big deal that you are leaving the house. This includes dropping your dog off for boarding. A quick goodbye is the best medicine for your pet’s comfort.

• Desensitize your dog to your daily departing routine. Find out what steps in your routine trigger your dog to panic. This includes taking a shower, putting on shoes, picking up keys, etc. Most dogs are already in a full panic before we even leave. Practice the triggers one at a time, 5 times a day without actually leaving the house. For example, pick up your keys and set them right down. Put on your coat, then sit down and watch tv without even leaving. This disassociates your triggers with leaving and makes the dog more comfortable.

• Practice counter-conditioning these triggers routinely. While performing the triggers, give your dog his favorite treat ball or a filled Kong. This teaches your dog to actually look forward to your departure. For example, start your routine after giving your dog his favorite treat ball. The key is to save his favorite toy for your departures only. Don’t leave the toy lying around the house. It will lose its meaning.

• Once your dog is showing progress, begin with practicing very short departures. Try just opening the door and coming right back in. Working your way up to driving out of the driveway. Most destructive behavior happens within the first 30 minutes of you leaving. If your dog begins to panic, you have gone too far, so take a step back.

When the appropriate steps are followed in a consistent and patient manner, the success rate is high. This process can take anywhere from 2 to 12 weeks, depending on the severity. The good news is, once its over, both you and your dog can resume living a happy stress-free environment.

You have many options when it comes to training your dog. But, unless you have a dog that was previously trained, your dog will benefit from some basic obedience training. Even a trained dog needs to practice what he’s learned. You can enroll in a group obedience class, hire a trainer for private lessons, arrange to have your dog trained while being boarded, or you can do it yourself in as little as 15 minutes a day. Begin with this simple exercise to get you jump-started. Next time, we’ll work on how to get and hold your dog’s attention – after all, how can you teach him anything if he isn’t paying attention? 

Name Recognition – it seems like such a simple thing, but does your dog know his name? How can you tell?  Try this: when your dog is at rest and not looking directly at you, say his name in a conversational tone. Does he turn and look at you? Does he get up and come over to you just because he heard his name? If you answered yes, he probably knows his name. If you answered no, we need to do some work.

Think about how and when you call your dog’s name. Do you use his name when you greet him? Do you use a happy, friendly tone? Or do you only call his name when he’s in trouble? We need to teach him that his name is a good thing, not a signal that he’s done something wrong.

Start by saying his name in a happy tone. Just his name. Don’t confuse him by saying “here, Spot”. We want him to learn that his name is Spot, not Here Spot. When he responds even the slightest bit – even if he just looks in your direction, praise and reward him. Practice this for several minutes at a time, then take a break. At your next practice session, try saying his name conversationally and see if he responds. When he begins to recognize his name, try using it from different distances or even other rooms. Have other people call his name, and then praise him for responding. Name recognition is the foundation for focus exercises, and therefore an important part of basic training. 

In rare instances a dog may have had such a bad experience with his own name that he just will not respond. In these cases sometimes a name change is warranted. When choosing a new name, try to avoid names that are difficult to call quickly or that sound negative (for example, Bo sounds a lot like No).

Teaching him a new name is a great way to begin developing a bond with your dog. It will build his trust and confidence in you, and the two of you will begin to learn to work together as a team. Once your dog knows his name you are ready to continue his training.

Terriers can be vocal and snappy. Labs will eat your house. Yorkies are hard to housebreak. Think that this is stereotyping?

While all dogs have an individual personality, when considering a pure-bred puppy, a prospective owner must take breed predisposition into account. There are many factors that can affect behavior, but a landmark study performed by Scott and Fuller in 1965 determined that genetics was the most powerful influence.

Dogs have been selectively bred for thousands of years to perform functions that may not translate well to suburban life. A Husky, bred to run for hundreds of miles a day, is not an ideal candidate for an apartment or small yard. The single most important thing that a person can do before getting a puppy, is their homework.

Research the breed, talk with trainers, chat with owners and get the real story. If you insist on purchasing a dog from a breeder, ask about the parents and the factors that went into breeding these particular dogs. If a breeder doesn’t allow you to meet the parents or cannot tell you why they bred them. Run!

Too many dogs end up in shelters because a dog was purchased on impulse or without knowledge of the breed. Those who train for competition or in a working capacity know that a good dog starts with the parents. Some time spent researching before you get a puppy, can ensure the best possible partnership for years to come.