Management...a cornerstone to having a well-mannered dog!

Proper management is one of the key components contributing to a well-mannered dog. Good management essentially entails understanding what are realistic expectations for your dog and how to set your dog up for success. For example, many young dogs aren’t capable of being left alone in the house all day without showing some signs of stress or boredom. Stress and boredom can often lead to destructive behavior. Therefore, many dogs are destructive in the house as a result of poor management. If your dog is alone in the house all day and chews up the couch, what is he learning when you come home and punish him? He will decide that chewing on the couch is fun and you coming home is bad! When you cannot supervise your dog, confine him to a crate or dog-proof area to prevent bad habits from developing. When you are home, supervise your dog so that you can stop misbehavior and redirect him into an appropriate activity.

New Summer Schedule--Check it out!!

Unleashed is gearing up for your busy summer schedules. We know that summertime is chalk full of kids activities, camps and vacations. You know how important obedience training is, but this time of year, it’s hard to commit to a full 6-week training program for your dog. Let us help you by offering a special Summer Schedule.

It’s our same great quality and same small class size, but we’ve broken down our curriculum into easy-to-commit 3-week class sessions instead of the traditional 6-week sessions. We’ve also added Monday and Saturday times as well as Trail Manners Workshops!

Smart Starts 1 focuses on:

1. · getting and keeping your dog’s attention around distractions
2. · Understanding Relationship and how to communicate with your dog effectively
3. · Teaching new behaviors like leave it, wait and the beginning stages of coming when called

Smart Starts 2 focuses on

1. · Building attention span and raising expectations
2. · Teaching loose leash walking, sit, down and stays
3. · Jumping up and more emphasis coming when called

Dog Training Group Classes---Get Started Next Week!

Unleashed has available classes starting as early as next week. Check out our website and register now so you can have a better behaved dog for the Spring!!

Are getting littermates a good idea??

What do you all think?? Feel free to chime in on this question on our Facebook Page, but read ahead to see what Unleashed says…

I wish more people asked us this question before they get the dogs. Unfortunately, we usually get this comment after they’ve hired us to help them…”I wish someone told me this wasn’t a good idea!”

Getting littermates isn’t all-bad. The dogs are usually very nice dogs! And, you only need to go through the potty training and puppy-chewing phase once. Those are some pretty big pros.

The problem is that there are two of them! Many owners are under the false impression that two dogs are easier than one…”they have each other to play with.” The fact is that we never recommend that someone gets another dog unless they want another dog and have twice as much time to commit to another dog. Don’t get another dog to keep your first one company! The novelty can wear off quickly and then you have two dogs that are chewing things up in your yard or barking excessively.

The three biggest things to consider when you look at getting littermates is your relationship with your dog, training and socialization. Relationship is probably the most important part of having a well-behaved dog. Dogs are pack animals and need to feel part of a pack. Ideally you want your dog to be totally and completely bonded to you. With littermates, it’s much harder to achieve this relationship because they already have their pack, with their littermate. Littermates don’t “need or want” their owners company as much as each others’. To remedy this, make an effort to separate the puppies for a short time on a daily basis in order for them to learn how to be alone. This is an important life skill. It also gives you a chance to bond to the other puppy.

Training is tricky with littermates. Take it from us, training two dogs together can be almost impossible.
Effective obedience training requires consistent reward and impeccable timing. The ideal thing to do is to separate the dogs when they are learning new behaviors. Once the behaviors are solidified individually, then try to work with them together.

Many owners who have littermates don’t realize how important it is to socialize their dogs separately with other dogs and with people. During puppyhood, it’s extremely important to take your puppy safe places and expose them to the real world. Expose them to safe, older dogs, children, shopping carts, skateboards, etc. Let them see the world. This is much harder to do with two dogs than one.

What do we recommend? We always tell people to wait at least 6mos before adding another dog to your pack. That gives you time to bond to the first dog and get them off to a good start from a training standpoint. Then if you feel you are ready for the commitment of another dog, go for it!

Unleash Your Dog's Potential

What was your dog bred for and why does it matter?

Why is it important to know what your dog is bred for? Breed specific behavior can help us reach our training goals faster and understand our dog better.

"Why is our Labrador so mouthy?"

"Why is our Border Collie chasing cars?"

"Why is our German Shepherd so territorial?"

"Why won't our Beagle come?"

These are all breed specific behaviors that are "hard wired" in these breeds. Can you stop these behaviors? In some cases, yes, in other cases, you manage the behavior but can't extinguish it. We shouldn't choose a dog only because they are the right size, or they have short hair, etc. Many Terriers, for example, are small and have short hair, but they are tenacious, smart, high energy dogs bred with a "big dog attitude." Many owners get in over their head with a specific breed. A little research can go a long way...

For more info on breed specific behaviors, check out http://www.anticruelty.org/site/epage/74487_576.htm

Socialize your dog!

Take your dog along! This is a great time of year to bring your dog with you on outings. There are many health and behavior reasons to bring your dog with you when you are running around town.

Dogs need mental stimulation as well as physical exercise. Bringing your dog with you on a quick trip to the cleaners or to the grocery store allows you to fit some training into your day. Work on some car manners, practice a quick wait command as you load up your dog. Even if he doesn't get out of the car, it allows for a change of scenery and new smells. If you have a quick second, get him out of the car and practice some loose leash walking and maybe a sit stay while people walk by. These short, distracting training opportunities are priceless for achieving appropriate manners in public.

My favorite places to train are Starbucks (because its a regular stop for me) and Safeway in El Dorado Hills because I love all the traffic and the shopping cart noises.

Where do you bring your dog?

How Much Training Should I do Each Day With My Dog??

This is one of the first questions we get when owners embark on a new training program, whether it be a group class or private lessons. The answer is simple...do as many short (3-5minutes) training sessions as you can. But, the most important thing to remember is to incorporate your training into your every day activities. For example, practice your wait command as you head out the door for your walk on the El Dorado Hills trails. Or, practice a quick down stay while you make a sandwich or are getting some dishes done.

If you set up one big "training session" per day, your dog will do great during that "training time" and then it all goes out the window when you need it in real life situations...

Remember, every time you interact with your dog, your dog is learning something!!! Make it count!