Behaviour & Training

There’s nothing worse than a puppy that won’t stop pulling on the lead. It can be extremely tiring for both you and your pup and can turn a simple walk into a complete nightmare. If your dog is straining at the lead, or your puppy refuses to walk without pulling with all their strength, it means that you are only controlling them with physical restraint, rather than with the training that should keep them happily trotting at your side. Not only that but, as they get older, the physical effort involved in controlling your dog could be overwhelming, especially if your canine friend is one of the larger, stronger breeds. To make life easier for you and your dog, all it takes is a little training and they’ll be overjoyed at the sight of their lead in no time. Keep reading to find out how to leash train a puppy! Why lead training puppies is important Exercise Being able to walk your puppy on a lead provides an opportunity to exercise your dog and keep them healthy while they grow and mature. Mental stimulation Exposing your puppy to new environments is essential to their growth and development, and walking on a lead is essential to exploring many new places. The act of training itself is also great mental stimulation for your dog! Further training Lead training also improves responsiveness to overall obedience training, and it may become easier to teach other commands such as ‘sit’ or ‘stay’ once your puppy has learned to be walked on a lead. What you’ll need before you start puppy lead training A collar or harness Buy a collar or harness that fits your puppy appropriately, never too loose or too tight – you should be able to fit two fingers between the collar and your puppy’s neck. Treats Use treats to reward them for good behaviour on the lead.

There’s no need for your dog to stay at home if you’re going on holiday – in fact, your dog can make a great travel companion. With so many dog friendly hotels and holidays anywhere in the world, check out the basics of travelling with dogs and the world is your oyster. Travelling with dogs is easiest if you prepare everything well in advance – accommodation, travel arrangements, and paperwork can all be organised months before you go, which means less stress and more fun for both of you. Of course, you might not be planning on travelling abroad with your dog, but staying somewhere close to home, in which case things are even easier. Just keeping a few simple things in mind will really increase the ease of taking dogs on holiday. Get your pen ready and make sure you’ve thought about everything in the list below – and when you’ve done all that, the only thing left is to get excited about your trip. Health and safety arrangements when travelling with dogs The first thing to keep in mind when travelling with your dog to a new place is your pet’s health and safety. This task alone can make many dog owners reconsider their travelling plans, but it’s actually quite a simple process. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Dog target training may be a less well-known way to train your dog, but it is definitely picking up in popularity among dog owners. No other training technique hones your dog’s concentration skills as effectively as target training, and the process can help your dog develop their cognitive abilities. Target stick dog training is a great technique to teach your dog, but what exactly is it and how do you begin to train your dog with this method? In this article, we explore all the questions you may have about target training and the benefits. What is dog target training? Target training is a method where you teach your dog to identify specific objects and react to those objects in a certain way. For instance, if you show your dog a mat, your dog’s first reaction will be to use all of their body to respond to that object—in other words, they will lie down on the mat. But what if you could teach your dog to only touch their nose to the mat or only put their front paws on it? This way, your dog will be responding to the mat in a specific way (or with a trained action) by using only one body part. You can see why dog target training is growing popular: it teaches your dog better motor control and concentration skills. It also allows them to identify objects better, which can be very useful if you want to train them to tidy up their toys or close the refrigerator door! How do you start target training? The easiest way to get your dog started on target training is to teach them to identify a specific object with a body part. Begin by using your hand as your dog will probably already be familiar with hand signals and is already comfortable around you. You will need a clicker, treats and lots of fuss and praise for this, as these reinforce positive behaviour. • Present your hand to your dog, around half an inch away from his nose. If your dog looks at your hand, click and reward your dog. • If they touch their nose to your palm, click and reward them. • Keep repeating this action until they can follow your palm to the left, right and above them, all the while touching their nose to it. Make sure to positively reward your dog with lots of praise and treats—that is how they know what you want them to do! Once your dog is good at focusing on an object and touching it with their nose, it’s time to progress onto target stick dog training.

There is no denying that one of your dog’s most defining traits is their loyalty. This loyalty can be overwhelming and humbling, and has often been cited as an example of what human beings can learn from dogs. But life lessons aside, where does your dog’s loyalty come from? Yes, you feed them and play with them and have your own deep sense of love for them, but does that fully explain the depth of emotion they hold for you? In this article, we explore loyal dogs, why dogs are loyal and when that loyalty may need to be contained. Are dogs really loyal? The concept of a loyal dog has been peddled so much in today’s media and advertisements that you can be forgiven for questioning its premise: are dogs really loyal? Let us get the question out of the way: yes, they really are. The stories of dogs who wait endlessly for their owners or who are overjoyed to greet them years later are not made up. You can see the evidence in your own dog, who is delighted when you return home from work and greets you as if they haven’t seen you in weeks. If that is not deep loyalty, we do not know what is. So, what makes a loyal dog? There are several theories on where your dog’s loyalty comes from and why it is so deep. Here we explore a few of the explanations for your dog’s loyalty, ranked from simple to intriguing. The simple explanation: you give them food The simplest explanation for your dog’s loyalty is that you give them food and shelter. Your dog is grateful to you for the essentials of life that you provide and so is loyal to you. There is a scientific basis for this: domestic dogs are descended from wolves, which man once took in and tamed with shelter and food in return for them acting as guard dogs. This reciprocal relationship remains in your dog’s genes and their loyalty is a by-product of it. Of course, this would mean that loyal dogs adore anyone who feeds them. This is also largely true, as dogs do tend to grow more attached to the family member that gives them their food. But it is not the only explanation. Looking to dog psychology for answers: dogs are pack animals Dogs are also pack animals and long to belong to a pack. They are much like humans in that way – it is said that no man is an island and the same can be said for a dog. To your loyal dog, your family is their pack and they have adopted you as their own. Loyalty in a pack is crucial. In order for a pack to survive in the wild, their members must work together to overcome dangers. Trusting, co-operating and putting the pack’s interests first are all a natural part of surviving. It would explain why dogs often put their own lives in danger to protect their owners; their pack instincts require it of them. But that cannot explain everything. After all, your dog still loves you when you return from a long vacation and you have not been feeding them during that time. And what about Hachito, the loyal dog who used to greet his owner each day at the train station after work – and continued to wait for him for nine years after he died? Neither pack instincts nor reciprocal relationships can explain that. But something else might. The intriguing explanation: dogs may love In 2005, Science Direct held an experiment on canine behaviour, where they presented dogs with their owner’s scent, a scent of a stranger and the scent of food. Brain scans were taken of the dog as they approached each scent. The study hypothesised that since smell is so important to dogs, it would be the best way to understand how canine brains work. They were right. Not only did dogs react more strongly to the scent of their owners, the part of the brain associated with enjoyment and positive emotions lit up when they were given their owner’s scent. Your loyal dog does recognise you. The same patterns in humans would usually be associated with love. In another experiment, a dog was allowed to watch a stranger be rude to their owner. When the dog was then allowed to interact with the stranger and the owner, the dog actively snubbed the stranger. If that is not loyalty, we do not know what is.

Even though some dogs will make more noise than others, all dogs bark. Whether you have a tiny Chihuahua or a fully-grown Alsatian, you’ve probably heard them barking in a wide variety of situations. You might even be able to tell why they’re barking – for example, many dogs will bark if they encounter something that they perceive as threatening or even when they just want to say hello!

We’ve all promised ourselves, “new year, new me” and set ourselves massive goals, but often these resolutions get abandoned within the first week of January. Find out how to achieve yourgoals with the adorable Luna, as your guide. ‘Ok, Luna, it’s a new year and it’s time to talk resolutions. You are going to march around the streets with me every day so that I can measure exactly how many calories you’ve burned. You are going to cut down on those treats you love, because while we’re grateful we didn’t have to use the hoover during the festivities, that hasn’t helped your waistline. You’re going to get organised and stop leaving your toys all over the house. You’re going to quit barking at other dogs when you’re in the car, that’s a bad habit you’ve got into and as of today, you’re going to completely ignore squirrels. Okay?’ With a confused head tilt Luna sank into her bed, no doubt thinking, ‘that sounds like fun, thanks human.’