Are you super busy? How to train your dog with the least amount of time possible...

Let's face it- owning a dog takes lots and lots of time and time is a very precious commodity in this day and age. Luckily, if you have a well-trained, calm, happy, Zen dog, the time that you spend with your dog should be the most relaxing and enjoyable out of your 24 hour day. The problem occurs when people are just too busy to give their dog the attention that they need, deserve and require, which results in "bad behavior". There's no such thing as a bad dog. DogZenergy truly believes this and we also don't believe in bad owners. Dogs are a constant source of love, but also a constant source of guilt. Most of us are really busy. I'm a dog trainer and I find myself feeling very guilty all the time about not giving my dogs enough off-leash time and/or not playing enough training games with them. I am the first to admit it- it's tough to be the perfect dog owner. It's also important to realize that trying to be perfect in any way creates a lot of stress and anxiety that your dog will pick up on. However, always trying your best and not being afraid to ask for help is a must. Ask a neighbor or a friend who doesn't have a dog, but loves them, to borrow your dog for a jog or a trip to the coffee shop. They'll be happy, your dog will be happy and you'll be happy too! Or you can hire a professional dog walker (insert shameless DogZenergy plug here ; ) or sign your dog up for weekly dog park visits. Just by being out and about all day with doggy pals, your dog will be better behaved and more mellow by the time you get home from work. Plus, dog walkers spend all day with dogs so they're very well trained in dealing with doggy problems and if they're good dog walkers, they'll happily help you with any behavioral problems that you've been dealing with. Because I spend all of my time with dogs or with my own dogs, I don't have a ton of time to read, but when I do get around to reading, it's usually about dogs. The last book that I read is called The Tao of Puppies: How to Raise a Good Dog Without Really Trying by Krista Cantrell, and I absolutely loved it. Cantrell's training style closely aligns with the DogZenergy Method in that all training should be an effortless mindfulness all throughout the day. Cantrell emphasizes that people need to relax a little (or a lot) and go with the flow of puppyhood. It's not easy having a puppy, but patience and awareness of puppy behavior will make the process much easier and more fun. Being consistent, but not too rigid is key. Some puppies have different personalities, which she describes as being Ying or Yang. Yang puppies are more active, brave and assertive, while Ying puppies are more submissive, shy and quiet. Both need different approaches to training. She also talks about how every command has a pair. For instance, sit/down, take it/leave it, up/off etc. It makes perfect sense to pair the commands for a puppy's optimum understanding and performance. It also controls the puppy's behavior and their endless energy. Energy has to go somewhere and to deny outlets for it results in resistance. Cantrell offers a very clear, successful approach to puppy training and I would advise everyone to pick up her book, The Tao of Puppies before bringing home their new pup.

To train your dog with little time, it's important to be mindful of your everyday interactions and habits with your dog. That being said, understand that your dog is constantly understanding you through the process of operant conditioning- the law of cause and effect. If your dog does something and you give attention to it or not, your dog will learn based on the observation and experience of that moment. You may be busy, but taking a second out of your day to quickly reward your dog for good behavior will make the world of difference. For example, if your dog comes up to you and automatically sits patiently without nudging, jumping or whining, reach down and give your dog a pet and a "good girl". I promise it will only take a second. If your dog is quietly laying on her bed instead of the couch or in your guests lap, walk over and give another "good girl". Capture the good moments with positive reinforcement and praise and you will quickly and easily shape your puppy into a good dog.

Weaving in good dog owner habits throughout your day will also shape up your dog and encourage good behavior. For example, simply asking your dog to sit and "leave it" before putting his food bowl down will foster your dog's self control and calmness. Your dog will learn to follow your wishes instead of charging or lunging for anything that he wants. Same goes with the front door, back gate, the car, or any access to fun and exiting things. By teaching your dog to sit and wait for things that he wants, you are actively training your dog throughout the day to ask permission for all things good. Does your dog want a belly rub? Ask for a down/stay first. Does your dog want to jump up onto the couch? Teach him to wait for permission only and invite him with the "up" command. Does your dog want to go for a walk? Ask for a down before putting on the leash. Does your dog want sniff and smell on a walk? Ask him to heel for fifty feet and then reward the behavior with "Ok, go ahead". You should be the gatekeeper to all things good in his life and your dog should be rewarded with these things if he follows your clear, consistent and benevolent leadership all throughout the day. All of these things require mindfulness of your dog's daily interactions with you, but it only requires a few minutes here and there to shape up your dog's behavior. So go get busy! Just kidding!

Interpreting a Dog's Body Language In Response to Stressful Stimuli

Learning how to read your dog's body language will open up a whole world of communication between you and your dog. Remember that with positive reinforcement training, you are always looking for all of the positive things that your dog does and rewarding that behavior with praise, treats, toys or life rewards. Therefore, you must always be one step ahead of your dog to set him up for success and to show him what you want him to do instead of just reacting to what he does. Being one step ahead of your dog means “seeing” things before your dog does and also appropriately responding to your dog’s body language before he becomes overly excited or stressed out by a stimulus. For example, if you are working with a leash reactive dog, you must always be aware of your environment and your dog's body language. Where their eyes go, their bodies follow. Where their ears perk up to the body will follow. If a dog licks his lips, yawns, pants excessively, salivates, lifts a paw, shakes off, ducks his head, puts his ears back, tucks his tail or raises his tail and wags it stiffly, these are all signs that your dog is experiencing a stressful response to stimuli in his environment. Capturing your dog’s attention before his body language reads, “I’m completely stressed out and overwhelmed,” and then redirecting his attention by taking the lead and showing your dog what you want him to do instead will alleviate his stress. By learning your dog’s body language, you will be more successful in being a benevolent, calm and confident leader.

At the same time that your dog is giving you cues with his body, he is also responding to the cues that you are giving him with your own body. Are you stiff? Did you tighten up on the leash, back away, pull away or clench your jaw? Did you suck in a deep breath? Are you staring at something intently? These are all stress signals from a human that your dog is very attuned to reading. Just remember, 90% of human communication is through body language and merely 10% is oral language. We are speaking to our dogs with our bodies all the time.

So what does a happy, relaxed, calm dog look like? Posture is balanced, comfortable and steady. Eyes are bright, but not fixed on one thing too intensely. Tail is held low and wagging with long sweeps or circles (unless the dog is a breed with an upright tail). The dog is breathing regularly and evenly, and sometimes dogs even "laugh" with a type of snorting and breathing sound when they are playing or happy to see you when you get home. Ears should be relaxed or forward. A happy dog trained with positive reinforcement methods, who trusts his owner and has all of his basic needs met will watch his owner's every move, ready for the next fun adventure. Whether it's just another tummy rub, playing his favorite training game, running on the beach, fetching his owner's shoes or going for a car ride to do errands, a happy dog's body language reads, "I'm ready to have fun and I'll do whatever you say because I trust you!"

How to train your dog to stop pulling on the leash

Hi!! i love your blogs and posts! so great! question... any suggestion on how to get a huge dog to stop pulling?

(From Megan on Facebook) Hi! Thanks for writing! It can be pretty frustrating training a dog to not pull, but if you have the right training tools and patience, you'll be able to train him in no time! Do you have an Easy Walk Harness or a Gentle Leader halter yet? If you have an extreme puller I would get the gentle leader. It acts like a horse halter, because you'll have control of your dog's head and and it works like a charm on most dogs. However, some don't like having something strange on their nose and will try to scratch it off so be sure to attach a positive association. Make sure that you use lots of good treats when you put it on and when you walk him around with it for the first time.

You'll also want to get a leash that you can attach around your waist. Make sure it's short enough that he can't walk more than a couple feet ahead of you, but long enough that he can reach down to the ground to smell and check his pee-mail. With the leash around your waist you can stop every time your dog pulls and "be a tree". Wait till your dog calms down and takes the tension off the leash himself and then say, "Good! Ok!" and then take another step. If he pulls either stop and be a tree or turn and go the other way. Make sure that you're walking at a brisk pace because dogs walk along side you a lot better when they're in a "traveling" trotting mode. They are less interested in smelling and pulling you towards something when they're trotting along. It's good if the leash is around your waist because your dog will know the exact length in the leash that he has until it goes taunt. You can help him out a little bit, by making the interrupter kissy noise to get his attention when he starts to reach the end of the leash. You'll be able to get his attention and he'll have to lessen his step to look up at you. If he does drop back to you without ever putting tension on the leash in the first place, click and treat and tell him "Good heel!" every time he's traveling by your side. You want him to start realizing that a tight leash means that you stop and the fun stops. You'll know that he's getting it when he starts to automatically take the tension off himself because he wants to get from point A to point B as fast as possible and he's realized that a tight leash means he goes nowhere. He's probably learned like most dogs that pulling gets him where he wants to go and when he gets to smell the bush he wanted to smell or the other dog down the street. It's like getting a big reward and as a result the pulling behavior will increase and he's going to try pulling even harder next time, which is another reason that it's extremely important to be consistent in stopping every time he pulls. Just like slot machine gamblers, if he gets to win only once in awhile, it'll keep him hooked enough to keep trying.

You can also start teaching him what heel means by clicking and treating him for keeping his head right next to your side. When his head is by your side, click and then treat him right near the seam of your pants. Once he starts realizing that good things happen when his head is near the sweet spot, he'll start cruising right along beside you. When you first start to teach him this, take one step at a time and click and treat him each time.

Then take a couple of steps and click and treat him. Keep doing this until you are only reinforcing him for staying by your side every 50 steps or so and so on. If he's trying to turn sideways and face you, use a wall to keep him parallel to you as you walk, click and treat. If he pulls ahead when you do this, stop and be a tree and wait till he goes back to your side-- don't click and treat though, because he'll be thinking, "I'm going to pull, then stop, then get my treat." You have to be careful of chaining behaviors. Instead, just stop and wait for him to come back to you then tell him, "Good, Ok" and then take another step. If he keeps his head by your side, click and treat. If you are super consistent and patient, he'll be walking wonderfully by your side and he'll know exactly what heel means. And you'll be able to quit the game of tug o' war once and for all!

Happy training!