Dog Puppy Behavior Training Help

Nose Game – Great way to Enrich your Puppy’s Environment

AT — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:10:59 +0000

Okay, so last Tuesday evening, I arrived home around 8:00. Earlier that evening, I taught my group mini course at Collierville Pet Hospital. My Australian Terrier, Bentley was quite happy to see me finally get home. I had a few high value treats in my pocket, leftovers from group class. Rather than let Bentley earn the treats via a few commands, I decided to play a game to enrich his environment. I call this game the Nose Game.

I grabbed a fistful of pieces of his normal dry dog food and tore the training treats into very small pieces. I scattered the handful of dry food and treats on my patio and invited Bentley to come outside and sniff around. He was excited to smell the treats, but because the bits of goodies were scattered amongst the dry kibble, he had to use his nose to find the best pieces. It was fun to watch him by pass dry kibble while he sniffed diligently to find the few fragments of the training treats. Once all the treats were gone, he sniffed around and ate the dry food.

These sorts of food scattering games will enrich any dogs’ environment and give them a chance to use their noses to find food.

Environmental enrichment is a term used to describe an event or procedure which provides animals a better chance to use their natural gifts. One might enrich a giraffe’s environment by placing hay or grass feed on a platform several feet into the air, so that the animal must use his long neck, and stretch to get the food.

Any sort of food finding game is great for your puppy or older dog! Food toys like the tug-a-jug and plain ole scatter feeding are wonderful ways to make your pup’s day!

Here’s another great food foraging toy for your pup.

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Puppy Course for Pups under 16 weeks

AT — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:48:41 +0000

Parents with young puppies have extreme challenges when it comes to house training, play biting, and socialization. A 6-12 week old puppy can learn how to sit, lay, and come on command! In fact, all basic commands are possible at this young age. Start off right with your new puppy. This 3 session mini course if perfect for owners of young puppies (under 16 weeks). You’ll bring your puppy to 3, 1-hour classes. We’ll work on look, here, sit, and discuss first steps you can take to raise a perfect puppy. We’ll have socialization exercises such as “Pass the Peaceful Pup”, as well as puppy play time.

Click this sentence for dates and enrollment form..

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Six Facts You Need to Know to Raise a Perfect Puppy

AT — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 00:28:02 +0000

Chronic Commissions: Software for building an online income empire /p
Click Here!

Fact #1: Forget about alpha and pack.

A nine year old child, or a 85 year old grandparent in a wheelchair, can teach and control any dog by following a few, simple, kind rules. There is an excellent, simple way to teach your puppy, and it has nothing to do with alpha or dominance. As neat as it sounds, your family is not in some sort of mythical pack with your dog. You do not compete with your puppy for food, territory or reproduction rights. You do not have to intimidate your puppy into submission. That little guy wants to be your friend!

Fact #2: Mother Nature will potty train your puppy.

97.3% of the millions of dogs who ask to go outside, were never taught to go to the door and ask. Mother Nature did it! The dogs just naturally ask, without any training from humans. Puppies get house trained as a result of a natural, built -in process known as classical conditioning. It has little to do with consequences, scolding or tasty treats. Yes, your actions can enhance potty training, or your actions can unknowingly teach your puppy to pee and poop inside the house. But, the truth is, nature is responsible. Follow two simple rules, and let nature take its course. Your puppy will “become” house trained.

Fact #3: You have 12 -16 weeks to create a friendly adult dog.

Events during the first few months of your puppy’s life will determine if your adult dog will be a social butterfly or a frightened, shy, neurotic, anxious dog.

***********Every certified applied animal behaviorist is familiar with the mid, 20th century, classic 20-year study of genetics and the social behavior of dogs at Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor Maine.

John Paul Scott and John L. Fuller proved that events and exposures (or lack of events and exposures) during a critical period of socialization affect a dog for life. The critical period of socialization for domestic puppies begins when the ear canals open (about 21 days) and ends at 12 -16 weeks. ********

Here are four simple things you can do right now to introduce your young pup to the good life with a capital “L”.

Have your puppy meet 10 new people each day

Pop open an umbrella – - – just so he won’t be startled when he sees one spring open later

Tune into the Cartoon Channel and turn up the cartoons: What an excellent way to get your turbo puppy used to loud, unpredictable noises!

Race around your living room on crutches

The idea is to let your young puppy see, hear, feel, and experience everyday events, along with life’s surprises, at a very early age.

There are many easy things you can artfully do to raise an easy-going dog who will experience the ups and downs of life as a natural unfolding of events.

Take advantage of this 16 week

critical window of opportunity.

You will be glad you did!

Fact #4: Your puppy already knows how to come, sit, and lie down

Your puppy already knows how to do every basic obedience command. You just haven’t found the best way to ask your puppy, and you’re not quite sure how to kindly motivate your puppy to want to perform for you. . . (keep reading and you will know). . . Anyone can learn how to kindly tell their dog WHEN, WHERE, HOW LONG, and WHY to perform basic commands. It’s easy and it’s not a secret. You will succeed when you start off right with your puppy. Nurture a relationship based on trust, consistency, clear communication, and rewards for cooperation.

Fact #5: Puppies and dogs do not hang their heads in shame

When your puppy hangs her head and lowers her body, she is not saying, I’m sorry. She is saying, “Please do not attack me, I mean you no harm”. Some of you may be thinking, “but she lowers her head before I even talk to her.” Puppies are observant and smart. They quickly learn to read situations and human body language. Dogs know more about human body language than most humans. But this does not mean they feel guilty or know right from wrong? If you do not believe me, walk up to your puppy when she has done nothing wrong. Use the same body language and tone as you do when there is a mess on the floor. She will lower her head. Does that mean she knows she’s done something wrong?

Fact #6: There are no dog training secrets in this world; you too can be an expert.

Dog training gurus want you to think only they have the secret. Hogwash. There are hundreds of books about dog training. Unfortunately, many of the books are written by people who gained their information from reading other books. Outdated, 20th century information is being sold as new and improved! One reason I studied companion animal behavior and learning, (and canine abnormal behavior modification), was to be able to sort trendy, well marketed information, from realistic everyday solutions with accurate information that applies to all dogs and all owners.

Your search is over. I can help.

The problem you new owners are facing is you don’t have time to sift through volumes of information. It’s tough to find dog-friendly, 21st century information from an expert . . . especially one who has the experience to back up his words. I work with all kinds of animals: happy, exuberant, fearful, shy, aggressive, and compulsive.

As of December 10, 2009, I have helped 1621 pet owners. 25% of my clients have naughty dogs with aggressive, anxious and fearful behaviors. Veterinarians refer the new puppy and the crazy dog behavior cases to me, because I get good results. I get these results using kind, consistent, easily taught techniques. That number continues to rise, because this is my full time job.

I will give you the benefit of all my experience and education. When it comes to enjoyable, healthy relationships with our animal friends, there should be no secrets.

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

Alan J Turner

How’s Bentley

Memphis TN

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Three Steps for Puppy Play Biting Solutions

AT — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 00:06:58 +0000

Play biting is a stage of development. Most pups naturally grow out of the stage at about 6 months of age unless people do things that prolong the period.

I’ve met some older dogs, 1-2 years old, who still nip and mouth, which poses a true problem. This is an indication that their humans did not understand play biting and unknowingly created a play biting habit.

Here are three steps you can use to deal with play biting by a puppy 8 to 16 weeks old. If your older puppy is play biting, CLICK HERE for SOLUTIONS.

STEP ONE: Stop asking your puppy to bite during playtime.

Avoid games that involve pushing, poking, tumbling, hugging, especially game that involve getting on the floor with your puppy. Hands off during play! Rough play gives puppies the wrong ideas! Play games like sit for a treat, hide-n-seek, chase the toy on a rope, or fetch.

STEP TWO: Tell your puppy that play biting makes you go away.

Tether your puppy. Engage him or her to play with a toy. When the puppy bites you, say ouch and then walk away. The puppy cannot follow you because he or she is tethered .

STEP THREE: Teach your puppy how to bite and play with toys.

Immediately return to your puppy and offer a suitable toy. Praise your puppy for chewing the toy!

ALan J Turner – How’s Bentley – Memphis TN

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Tough Boy Trick- Capture your Dog’s Cute Behaviors – Place on Cue

AT — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:02:18 +0000

Imagine a photographer with a camera focused on a bird’s nest – just waiting for the baby birds to pop their heads up. The instant the birds show their heads, the photographer captures the image by releasing the shutter.

Imagine a dog owner (me) walking his turbo Australian terrier (Bentley).

Imagine Bentley scratching the ground with his feet (like a bull), immediately after he urinates.

Imagine me marking that behavior and then giving Bentley some version of F.A.T. (Marking is when you click a clicker, say a crisp X, or use whatever signal you use as a marker. F.A.T. is a reward system, consisting of food, attention, and touch.)

I thought Bentley’s natural behavior of ”scratching out” was cute, so I decided to teach him to do it on command. All I did was mark the instant he did it and then give him a reward. At this point I am not saying anything to Bentley. I am patiently waiting, then marking.

I am like the photographer in that I patiently wait for something in particular to occur, then I act.

During one walk with 3 or 4 instances of Bentley scratching out and me marking the behavior, Bentley caught on. To test his understanding, I waited for him to scratch out, and I did NOT mark the behavior. He looked up at me as if to say, “hey stoooopid, I scratched out – where’s the mark?” Now I was ready to add the command or cue. On our next pee stop I slipped the words. “Tough boy” immediately before he scratched out. I marked the behavior and a new trick was born.

Now I can ask Bentley, Are you a tough boy?” and he will scratch out like a bull!

You can capture any behavior your dog naturally performs. This means you can teach sit and down via the capture method. It’s too easy but it works very well!!

Happy Training!

Alan J Turner – Canine Relationship Solutions – Memphis – Collierville – Germantown – Dog Training – Cat Training – Bird Training – Horse Training

21Dog

How’s Bentley – Dog and Puppy Shake – Fun Facts and Trainer Truths – iPhone, iPad, iTouch app.

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Dog and Puppy & Fun iPhone App

AT — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:03:53 +0000

Welcome to this fun site. Enjoy your visit!

I’ve been lazy about posting new articles this year. I was working on another fun project.

It’s the iPhone app titled Dog and Puppy Shake – Fun Facts & Trainer Truths. The app made it into the iTunes App Store Thursday, June 3rd Hooray! Visit the app store and search “How’s Bentley” to find it.

If you have a moment, visit my newest site, 21st Century Dogs. You can upload a picture of your dog!

Thanks for visiting dogand! I’ll be adding some new articles and editing some current articles soon.

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Dog and Puppy Shake- Silly iPhone App for Dog Lovers

AT — Thu, 27 May 2010 03:51:11 +0000

Say, I have just submitted my new iPhone app, Dog and Puppy Shake - Fun Facts and Trainer Truths to Apple iTunes. It’s ready for sale!

It’s a silly app with dog trivia, fun facts, tips, and instructions. It has 50 slides of my clients’ dogs (with the dogs’ names) and a fun fact. You’ve seen many of the pictures on this site! Single tap the picture to read more information about the topic mentioned on the front. Double tap to save the picture to your camera roll. Shake your iPhone to see another random slide.

Alan J Turner

Upload your Dog’s Picture on my new site, 21st Century Dogs. It’s a FREE Dog and Puppy Club. The mission is to provide professional instructions on 21st Century Media. Soon you can watch professional videos on your iPhone, Droid, or WIndows smartphone!
Dog and Puppy Club

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iPhone 3Gs Video Golden Retriever Puppy Tug

AT — Sat, 15 May 2010 12:49:14 +0000

Here’s a cute video of two golden litter mates!

New iPhone app -Dog and Puppy Shake – Fun Facts and Trainer Truths
21st Century Dogs – Dog and Puppy Club

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Doritos Super Bowl Commercial Dog Collar Shock Man – Bentley’s Favorite

AT — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:47:01 +0000

Say, Here’s the best Super Bowl 44 Commercial. Bentley, my Australian Terrier said it is his favorite!

It’s the one with the dog who places the anti- bark shock collar on the man. Click HERE to read about dog-friendly solutions for barking dogs.

iPhone Version - Open YouTube app and search superbowl ad doritos dog collar.

Enjoy

Here’s the other commercials on CBS Super Bowl 44.

Dog and Puppy and Behavior and Training and Help

Alan J Turner

How’s Bentley Memphis TN

Be KIND to YOUR DOG! Stop Dog From Pulling with the best head collar – Purchase Canny Collar Here
Private and Group Dog Training – Memphis, Collierville,Germantown,Bartlett,Olive Branch,Jackson,Oxford TN MS

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Pet Friendly Hotels: Take your Dog to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics

AT — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 01:10:35 +0000

Traveling to Vancouver for the 2010 Winter Olympics? Here’s a link to pet friendly hotels in Vancouver, BC.

How’s Bentley – Memphis TN

Picture of Buffalo at Shelby Farms Park, in Shelby County Tn

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My Dog Pulls: Polite Dog Walking on Leash

AT — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:53:52 +0000

Stop your dog from pulling on walks!

Say, I have another web site site with information about teaching a dog or puppy to walk nicely on a lead. The name of the my site is My Dog Pulls.

Alan J Turner – How’s Bentley – Memphis Dog Trainer

Group Dog Obedience Mini Courses

Collierville, Germantown,Bartlett, TN

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Teach your Dog Inside Voice – Capture Dog’s Natural Behavior and Place it on Cue

AT — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 04:42:09 +0000

One of the neat things about using an instant reward marker is how you can capture a natural behavior and then teach your dog to do it on cue.
Here’s a recent email exchange with my client, Elizabeth, who has a 4-5 month old large mix breed dog, Big Mac.

BETH’S EMAIL:
Well, I taught him….Inside voice….and he acts like he is going to bark but doesn’t make a sound……Now he just sits and looks at me and gives me inside voice!!!! This is fun……Thanks!

OK….I have created a monster!!!!! This new trick he learned for inside voice…..HE WON’T STOP!!!! He just sits there an looks at me and keeps doing it…..I keep praising him and I sometimes give him a treat….but ok…what do you do when he has it down right?????

MY REPLY:
Hi Beth,

I’m glad to hear you are teaching Mac new stuff!!!!

Please tell me, in detail:

How did you teach him? Did you mark the behavior with your instant reward marker when he used the inside voice (IV)?
Did you tell him anything about outside voice?
Did you say anything?

Now- do you ask Mac for inside voice? If so, how?

Your next step is to place the behavior “on cue”, which means he only does it when you ask.

Answer my questions and I’ll tell you how.

BETH REPLY:
How did you teach him? Did you use the “X” when he used the inside voice (IV)? Yes….I caught him doing it once and said X and gave him a treat. Did that a couple of times I caught him again said X and inside voice and again gave him a treat…. Then I just said inside voice and he started doing it….Now I don’t say anything and he keeps looking at me doing it….This is where I don’t know what to do…..I don’t want to discourage him

Did you tell him anything about outside voice? No I have not said anything about outside voice

Did you say anything? Yes inside voice

Now- do you ask Mac for inside voice? Yes If so, how? Now I put my index finger to my lips like SHHHH quiet and I say Inside voice……He’s got it down tooooo well.

Your next step is to place the behavior “on cue”, which means he only does it when you ask. Ok….Now how do I do that because right now he is sitting here looking at me doing it over and over and over……I praise him but he’s not looking for praise he wants a goodie!

MY EMAIL:
Hi Beth!

You are almost there. I’m so proud of my new student!

Exactly what do you want Mac to do, and under what conditions do you want the behavior to occur?

Exactly what do you want Mac to “not do” and when?

BETH REPLY:
Exactly what do you want Mac to do, and under what conditions do you want the behavior to occur? Kinda like your tough guy thing with Bentley….it’s just something cute! Do it on command……Mac….Show your inside voice!

Exactly what do you want Mac to “not do” and when? I don’t want him just sitting at my feet doing it over and over again……I feel if I don’t acknowledge when he does he will get discouraged.

My EMAIL
Here’s what you do:
Step 1: Reinforce the behavior you want.
Step 2: Punish the behavior you don’t want.

Don’t add touch or his name or talk to him during this exercise. Follow these instructions as written!

Step One:
Cue the behavior (shhh signal), X the behavior, give tasty food treat. Don’t talk or pet him. Repeat the same sequence 3 more times for a total of 4 cycles.

Step 2: Say nothing- no cue – no talk – no touch. Wait until he vocalizes. (DATA A:note how long it takes for him to vocalize). Immediately look away, turn your back on him for about 10 seconds. Do not speak or make eye contact during this time out.

Turn back towards him, say “Hi Mac”-
Repeat Steps 1 and 2 until DATA A equals 10-15 seconds.
When you do Step 2, he will probably bark louder and be more demanding. Perfect. That means he’s about to give up!
When he quiet for 10-15 seconds in Step 2, praise him! Add touch!!!

Alan J Turner – How’s Bentley - Memphis TN

Private and Group Dog Training - Memphis, Collierville, Germantown TN

Stop your dog from pulling you on walks!

Canny Collar USA Dealer

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