Educational Articles
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Life with puppies is complicated, and all puppies will sometimes do things their owners find problematic. Using management, planning, supervision, and positive reinforcement for the right behaviors will help puppies succeed, and owners better enjoy their companions.
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Every puppy will become a dog who needs veterinary care, grooming, and handling. Starting in puppyhood, owners can use positive training techniques to teach their puppies how to accept and enjoy restraint, basic procedures, and home husbandry.
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Training basic cues such as "sit", "stand", and "lie down" can set the foundation for all future training. These basic skills are useful behaviors that encourage good manners and tolerance of husbandry and veterinary care. Training your dog to understand cues improves communication with your puppy and improves the predictability of all interactions. Training methods based on positive reinforcement include luring, capturing and shaping.
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Providing puppies with positive socialization experiences may prevent the development of future fears. Puppy socialization must be done gently to avoid accidentally causing fear. Puppies are most primed for socialization before the age of 14 weeks. By taking precautions, some careful socialization can and should be done even before puppies have completed their entire vaccination series.
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Counterconditioning occurs when the pet's reaction (emotional response) to a stimulus is changed from one that is anxious or fearful to one that is positive and enjoyable. To accomplish this, favored rewards should be paired with each exposure to the stimulus.
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Many dogs experience fear associated with veterinary visits. Once recognized, fear can be reduced with gentle handling techniques and structured behavior modification exercises such as desensitization and counterconditioning. Medications that reduce anxiety can be given before the visit, while full sedation may be needed for some fearful dogs or certain procedures. Over time, dogs can learn to cooperate in their care.
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The heroic dogs involved in search and rescue missions optimize their natural abilities to help distressed people.
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Dogs do so much more than entertain us with tricks or accompany us on walks. Their abilities as service dogs are astounding. Gaining in popularity, dogs that assist people who have seizures play an important role in the lives of their owners.
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Separation anxiety describes dogs that usually are overly attached or dependent on family members. They become extremely anxious and show distress behaviors such as vocalization, destruction, or house-soiling when separated from the owners.
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Whether you and your dog decide to share a bed is a personal choice that involves several factors. The health of you and your dog should be taken into consideration as well as any behavioral issues your dog may have. There can be many benefits for both you and your dog to co-sleep if the circumstances align.
