A mentor of mine used to always say: "Want a friend, buy a dog". After all, dogs are the most loyal friends one could wish for. There are the best companions ever and they never fail to make us happy.
They love us and their loyalty extends to protecting us when danger arises. And also, there is the additional benefit that they will warn us when intruders are on our property.
In fact, you will probably not find a better and more effective alarm system anywhere. However, unfortunately, their barking can also drive us nuts if it is excessive and for apparently no reason.
Fortunately, though, we don't just have to live with this. Instead, we can train them and teach them to stop barking on command. In order to achieve this, however, we will need to be very consistent
One way to go about this is positive reinforcement. That is, rewarding your dog when he displays desirable behavior and ignoring him when he misbehaves. So do not give him a lot of special attention when he barks and you dislike it.
With that being said, however, please do be mindful that dogs are living creatures who naturally bark, so it will happen sometimes. They might also want to tell you something.
For example, an intruder might be on your property, he may be hungry, or he may need to use the bathroom. When your dog barks, try and find out whether he is doing it for a good reason, or just because he wants your attention. If the latter is the case, ignore him.
Raising your voice or hurting him as a punishment is not good because it will show him that whenever he barks, he will get your attention. Paying attention to his barking will also raise his anxiety level which results in more barking.
Demonstrate to your dog that you are the pack leader. Dogs are genetically programmed to follow their pack leader. It is important that you establish yourself as that person, or else they will.
They love us and their loyalty extends to protecting us when danger arises. And also, there is the additional benefit that they will warn us when intruders are on our property.
In fact, you will probably not find a better and more effective alarm system anywhere. However, unfortunately, their barking can also drive us nuts if it is excessive and for apparently no reason.
Fortunately, though, we don't just have to live with this. Instead, we can train them and teach them to stop barking on command. In order to achieve this, however, we will need to be very consistent
One way to go about this is positive reinforcement. That is, rewarding your dog when he displays desirable behavior and ignoring him when he misbehaves. So do not give him a lot of special attention when he barks and you dislike it.
With that being said, however, please do be mindful that dogs are living creatures who naturally bark, so it will happen sometimes. They might also want to tell you something.
For example, an intruder might be on your property, he may be hungry, or he may need to use the bathroom. When your dog barks, try and find out whether he is doing it for a good reason, or just because he wants your attention. If the latter is the case, ignore him.
Raising your voice or hurting him as a punishment is not good because it will show him that whenever he barks, he will get your attention. Paying attention to his barking will also raise his anxiety level which results in more barking.
Demonstrate to your dog that you are the pack leader. Dogs are genetically programmed to follow their pack leader. It is important that you establish yourself as that person, or else they will.
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