i bought a dog training clicker for my grandma, thinking that is might resolve the problem of her two yorkies fighting…. do you think it will work?
It depends on how you train the dog. Some people use the sound as a reward when the dog is behaving or does a trick right. Others, like me, use it as a naughty sound. When the dog does something bad, scold him/her and click the clicker loudly 3 or 4 times. Works both ways very well.
Heart worm is a serious and devastating condition that can be treated, but it can also kill. It is just as it sounds. A worm invades the heart and multiplies. The heart becomes the breeding ground and also a source of food for the worms.
How is heart worm acquired?
Mosquitoes are the main transmitter of this disease as they carry the early stages of the larvae. When mosquitoes inject a dog, they expel a chemical that triggers bleeding. Within that chemical is the heart worm larvae. Heart worms grow to between 17 and 27 centimetres in length.
What are the signs my dog might have heart worm?
Affected dogs will show signs of breathing difficulty and include coughing, panting and dullness.
How is heart worm treated?
The best approach to heart worm is prevention. There are drugs available that your vet can prescribe. Ivermectin is a common prescription. Often, the vet will do a blood test to ensure your dog does not have heart worm before beginning treatment. The medication comes in a chewable form that dogs generally take easily. It can also be given by injection.
Treatment should be continued one month before the mosquito season and up to two months after the mosquito season ends to combat any transmission that might already have taken place.
Once your dog has heart worm, it requires immediate treatment if recovery is to be expected. If the condition goes on too long, severe and life-threatening damage to the heart will occur. Until recently, there was no cure for this illness and any dog affected died a horrible death.
Which dogs are at risk?
Heart worm occurs throughout the world where mosquitoes breed. It affects wildlife as well as domesticated animals but it is not transmittable from one animal to another. Fortunately, the disease is less prominent during cold seasons when mosquitoes die off. The disease will remain dormant until the next warm season and mosquito breeding restarts.
What can I do?
Apart from putting your dog on heart worm medication each season, you can take steps around your house to help stop the disease. Because mosquitoes breed in any standing water, you can help prevent your dog acquiring the condition by making sure any standing water is removed immediately. It doesn’t take much water. A few tablespoons is sufficient as a breeding ground.
Make sure your eaves troughs drain properly. Empty water from pots and planters after rainfalls. If you have a decorative pond in your garden, treat it regularly (about every few days) with specially formulated chlorine to deter mosquitoes. Change the water frequently. Fill any holes on your property that hold water.
Spraying with an insecticide is not recommended for a number of reasons. 1) You also kill off good bugs that help to keep mosquitoes under control, 2) You endanger your own pets and 3) Spraying is a short-lived solution as it loses its strength within a few hours. If you have a bad mosquito population in a log pile or other moist area, spraying occasionally when you see clouds of mosquitoes is a good idea.
Consider using mosquito repellent in your garden. They come in various forms including lamp oil and candles. Citronella plant is a natural mosquito deterrent. You can buy them from your local garden nursery and place them around your yard. They do not survive cold climates, however, so you will need to replace them every year.
Francis N. Tressler
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/dogs-training-series-common-questions-about-heart-worm-692048.html
I’m trying to box train my dog and it does well when peeing but when she poops she don’t get it. Any suggestions?
I’VE HOUSE BROKE A LOT OF DOGS, AND IT MAY SOUND BAD, BUT I STICK THEIR NOSE IN IT, ,,,THEN NEVER CARRY THEM OUT THE DOOR, BUT MAKE THEM WALK TO THE DOOR,THEN OUT THEY GO. A COUPLE TIMES OF THIS IS ALL YOU WILL NEED TO DO THAT.
I have read many articles about dogs that have helped people with there handicaps. I have meet a few people too that had dogs that specifically helped them with there disability. I just don’t know where to start to get hands on experience working with dogs and being able to learn to train dogs so that they maybe able to help someone.
You have a few options.
You can start by applying at a dog training school to get your basic skills.
You can volunteer to be a puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind. If you live in California or Oregon, they have places there you can apply and work.
Seeing Eye Dogs is another place.
Some states do not have any guidelines and Federal Guidelines say the animal must help with the disability. Therefore, you could learn how to train dogs.
The term is service animal. Teamwork is a very popular and easy to follow program to train service animals at your home.
The following is a link to the ADA laws on service animals
Jun 29, 2010 | 1 | training dogsI read a question about crates for dogs? Someone suggested leaving the dog in a crate while at work. Thats like 8 hours. Dogs are extremely busy animals, like humans! Could you imagine being locked up for 8 hours in a crate?
Why get a dog if you dont have a yard or a house to keep it in?
Do you think its cruel to keep a dog in a crate? Or not really?
(It’s SOO strange the things i hear on yahoo answers, no one i’ve heard of over here in australia, uses crate training. I’d never even heard of declawing a cat until i got on here)
Crates are wonderful training material for a puppy or dog, but no – never leave them in a crate for 8 hours. They teach positive manners and are not a punishment. When the dog is used to the crate leave the crate door open and they will often consider it their very own "den" or sleeping space where no one will bother them. Your shoes won’t be chewed up either You can start with fifteen minutes and gradually work up to a couple hours. If it is a puppy add a safe toy like a Kong for entertainment. However if you plan to be gone all day long a crate is not an option, that is too long for any animal to be confined in a small space.
I adopted a 2 year old dog who is a mix of Lab and possibly something else, they are not sure. He is extrememly gentle, so much infact, at the shelter, he was their education training dog for children. He is the sweetest thing and very sweet with my 2yr old toddler, but I have two cats and he wants to bark and chase them.
How do I go about training him to leave them alone so I end up not having to take him back. I really want to keep him!
you train him by stopping him immediately with a quick yank of his collar(not hard just firm) and a firm "No!"
If he is so gentle and sweet, it also sounds like he is pretty smart and will learn quickly.
We have always had dogs and cats together and currently have 2 of each and they chase each other BUT they were also raised together from infant so to them, this is normal play and it never evolves into the destructive kind of chasing you are talking about. They also sleep together in a pile.
He will get the idea quickly if you are consistant and firm. You can even derail the very thought of chasing them if you are near and watching him closely and you see him get the nervous twitchy, "Im gonna get them!" kind of look in his eye. Same thing, "No!" and a little tug on his collar to take his mind off it.
My daughter also fosters the "be nice" command when she pets the cat and the dog is near, she pets both and doesn’t allow any rough behavior, even if it s playfull, from either the dog or the cat.
Remember, you are the pack leader and what you want is what your dog will do if you take control as the pack leader. Taking control has nothing to do with being harsh or beating a dog, it has more to do with atitude and your behavior that fosters a dogs natural desire to follow its pack leader. We use it with our dogs all the time and it works very well.
Any book with Ceasar Milan, the Dog Whisperer should be required reading for any dog owner. check him out. His show is on the National Geographic channel and his books are available in any good library.
Can anyone please tell me how I could begin a career training service dogs in MA? Or maybe begin as a volunteer, or an intern? Thanks very much.
this link has info on all states where they train sevice dogs. You should be able to find what you need on there. Good luck and thanks for helping a great cause.
http://landofpuregold.com/service-groups.htm
May 30, 2010 | 1 | training dogsI just moved into a new home with two other people. I want to start crate training my two dogs. I feel it would be better cause now I just leave them in my room when I go to work. Will it be more difficult to do so since they are not puppies? I want to crate train them for when I am gone to work they can be in there, so at night they will still sleep with me. Will that be ok ?
Lots of water and bathroom breaks available?
Be sure and get home as soon as you can and immediately let them out to pee and use bathroom.
Let them out right before you leave to go out for each thing too.
Keep the room very cool and lots of air flow for sleeping ease.
Dont let the people in the house turn the AC off because they are leaving.
Maybe keep a little fan blowing in the room, but not right on the dogs for sure.
I love animals and am very good at training them…
How can I get a job training the police dogs? Do you have to be a cop?
What do you think a job like that pays? Is it a full time thing?
I took some time to think about this in order to give you as honest and non sarcastic of an answer as I could. You must really want to do this or you wouldn’t have asked, right?? So that being said, I’ll proceed with my answer.
No you don’t have to be a law enforcement officer to train the police dogs. Keep in mind that it will be nearly impossible to get your foot in the door, because there are several vendors- those are the companies who sell the departments their dogs- who offer training academies to departments who have new dogs and handlers; attached are a few links to look at. Those departments who don’t use these academies have their own trainers or use another department who has trainers. As a virtual unknown, you won’t be able to even get started unless you have an inside contact and even then, would a department really take a risk like that not knowing anything about you or your credentials if you have any? And as the trainer, EVERYTHING you train into the dogs and handlers will be subject to litigation in the event one of the handlers gets sued. You can’t just call yourself a trainer, and there is case law that supports that.
My suggestion (if you’re serious about this) would be to contact Wendell Nope. Wendell is director of Utah POST service dog program and is the only certified teaching judge in the United States. A link to his web site is also below. At his school, one of the many courses offered is a certified trainers course, although I believe it’s only offered to comissioned officers; but if anyone can give you guidance on this, it’s Wendell. He is pretty much the expert in any facet of police dogs. Good luck
http://www.adlerhorst.com/
http://ventosakennel.com/patrol_k9
http://www.tarheelcanine.com/police.cfm
http://www.wendellnope.com
May 11, 2010 | 5 | training dogsMy Yorkie has severe aggression problems in regards to grooming and nail clipping. A friend told me that clicker training is great for dogs with these problems. Has anyone used this training method and how does it work in regards to nail and hair clipping (he goes crazy at the sight of hair clippers). Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Free Dog training tips and tricks ebook.
Click on link and download. It’s free!
May 03, 2010 | 6 | training dogs