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How to give your dog a bath

Bath time, it could turn out to be a looked forward event or a dreaded event for your dog. It all depends on what you make out of it.Bathing your pet takes time, make sure you have allowed for this.  This will make your dog more comfortable if you are not rushed.

Dirt and odors love dogs, which makes learning how to give a dog a bath an essential part of caring for your pet. You may have had past experiences or visions of your dog running through the house half-soaped up and shaking water all over your furniture. Bath time doesn’t have to be a an occasion to dread if you plan ahead and give your pet a bath he’ll enjoy.  Have patients with your pet.  I am a groomer and believe me when I tell you patients is awarding for both you and your pet.   I have a couple clients that have dogs that only have three legs , one is terrified of water, but all these dogs have trust in me, I have taken the time to show them how to stand, how to relax in the tub, bath time can be frightening to many pets. 

If you have read “about Cheyenne” in my blog, you will understand that not all dogs are the same.She used to be scared when I bathed her, she would hit the panic button big time! I will never get upset with her, I show her that I won’t hurt her and the bath is a good thing.  I still have to be very slow with her, but she has accepted bath time without to much trouble.

First you want to gather you bath supplies, collect all the supplies you’ll need for bath before you start.  Some of the essential dog bath supplies that I like to use include:

Brush or comb: Have on hand the appropriate grooming brush or comb for your dog’s coat. One of my best recommendations is the Soft Rubber Dog Brush – Removes loose hair like a magnet, stimulates capillaries and natural oil production for healthy skin and coats.

Dog Shampoo and Cream Rinse: Be sure to use a Shampoo and Cream Rinse formulated for your pet.A word to the wise, don’t use prodcuts made for people to bath your pet, these prodcuts don’t have the appropriate pH balance and may harm your pets coat and skin. I like to use an Oatmeal base shampoo; it seems to help with the itches. 

Small Cotton Balls: These are for there ears, you need to keep water and soap clear of their ears.

Plastic Pitcher or Removable Shower head:  The pitcher works great if you don’t have a removable shower head for wetting and rinsing you pet.

Lots of Towels for Drying your pet.

A couple optional items you might like to use when you give your dog a bath are special ophthalmic ointment to keep your dogs eyes from being burned by the shampoo this is available from your veterinarian or a pet supply store, and an ear dry solution if your dog has a lot of ear infections.

Eight steps for bathing your dog:

When you have everything gathered up, its time to give your dog a bath!  A word of warning is be sure to close the door to the bathroom or whatever room you’re using to bath them, you don’t want any escapee’s…

Step one: Brush you dog

Be sure to always brush you dog before giving them there bath (this is also an important step in weekly dog grooming) you want to remove loose hair, tangles, and mats – bathing them before your do this will only make the tangles worse.

Step two:  It time to jump into the tub

Place your dog into the tub, if they will climb in the tub this is very helpful if not gently place your pet into the tub, remember you don’t want to scare them.  This is when you will want to put the cotton balls in the ears and apply the protective eye ointment in there eyes if you’re so inclined.

Step three: Get your pet wet!

Checking the temperature of the water is important to your pet, make sure it is lukewarm.  Start from the front and move to the back and the underneath, save his head for last – a dog with a dry head has less of a tendency to shake, since the best shakes start from the front and move back.   You can keep a better hold of your pet with his hair dry around his neck and head.

Step four: Time for the Shampoo

You will want to use a generous amount of shampoo, (but go easy on the shampoo around his head and ears).  Work the shampoo in to nice lather starting at the neck and moving back to the tail.Don’t forget to shampoo between their toes and make sure you get there bellly.  If your dog has a longer coat, be sure to squeeze and press the shampoo through his hair rather than rubbing it, this can cause tangles.

Step five:  Rinse and repeat if necessary

Rinse out the soap completely, Turn you hand over your dogs and check for any left over soap.  Soap left on your dog can cause skin irritation.  Be thorough when rinsing!  If you dog is real dirty and smelly you may have reapply the soap to the offending areas wash and rinse again. 

Step six: Wash the face last

Wet you dog’s head carefully and use your fingers or wash cloth to soap up his skull, muzzle and ears.  Keep the soap away from his eyes.Rinse everything again from front to back and do one last check for soapy residue that may need rinsing. 

Step seven:  Apply the cream rinse

Once you have your dog completely rinsed, it is time to apply the Cream Rinse.A good hint to keep your cream rinse from going on to heavy, mix it half and half with water.  Massage the cream rinse evenly all over your pet. I like to try and comb or brush the cream rinse into there coats, I feel this enhances their coat, and helps eliminates snarls in there coats. Be sure to rinse your pet thoroughly front to back as you did when you shampooed your dog.

Step eight: Prepare Yourself for the shake!

Remove the cotton balls from your dog’s ears.I have found if your hold a towel up and stand back your pet will shake themselves almost dry.Towel drying your dog as much as you can.  If they have long hair remember to pat them dry this will help avoid tangles.If your dog will stand still for this, you can use a blow dryer to help dry them.  After a pleasant bath your dog may go nuts!Expect a sudden burst of craziness – rolling and running threw the house.  Keep them inside and out of drafts until they are completely dry.I have found that where ever your pet likes to lay, place a towel there to help absorb any excess water. 

That is it; you are all done with your pet’s bath.  See it isn’t that bad.Bathing your dog should be a regular practice with your dog grooming program.Be sure to have the appropriate grooming supplies and equipment on hand, makes theings so much easier during bath time. 

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Wanting to keep your dog happy and healthy is probably one of your main goals.The main influences on your dog's health and well being are a nutritious diet and getting enough exercise.  This could also affect the way your dog behaves and could be a cause or a cure for problem dog behavior.

Some foods might affect dogs in the same way that they affect humans.There are people who are allergic or sensitive to food additives and some foods.There are different reactions to this sensitivity, an example is hyperactivity in children.  It is a possibility that if you have dog problem behavior, and training does not seem to be working, that your dog could be sensitive to something that it is eating.Think back to the last time that you ate something that didn't agree with you.Did you feel good?  What if you had no other choice but to eat it?Dogs have to eat what their owners feed them, they don't have the option to change their food.

Carbohydrates, fillers and additives make up a large part of the commercial dog food available today.  The high carbohydrate concentration alone can cause wild swings in blood sugar levels and can in turn, cause dog behavior problems.The dogs evolution can be traced back to primitive wolves, but they are not exclusively carnivores.The prey of wild wolves eat plants and the wolves will eat the stomach contents of the prey.You have probably seen your dog eating grass or other fruits and vegetables.Your dog would probably choose to eat food that it could digest easily if it was making the decision.A lamb and rice diet is often prescribed by veterinarinas because of this.

Food that is high quality, protein based and that contains the essential nutrients that an animal would derive from sources such as plants, roots and berries should be chosen to assure that your dog gets the proper nutrition.It might be hard to find a product that has these ingredients in today's market place, but they do exist and you should be able to find one with some research.To help your dog to be healthier and possibly even improve its behavior, proper nutrition is essential.

If you are a dog owner facing dog behavior problems, you probably sometimes feel at a loss for what to do. It’s possible you’ve tried everything you can and you still have a problem. Maybe your dog’s behavior is starting to interfere with your quality of life.

Dog behavior problems can also affect the quality of your dog’s life? Good discipline is important for your dog as well as for you. It’s often easier to say than to actually carry it through. Do you feel like you don’t know what to do to stop dog behavior problems?

The first step is to understand the problem. You need to know where your dog is coming from and why she’s having a particular problem before you can do anything to correct it.

Some types of dog behavior problems include:

· Excessive barking

· Biting or chewing

· Digging or destruction of property

· Aggressiveness to people or other animals

· Wetting in the house/ marking territory

Of course this is just a small example of the types of behavior problems your dog might have. It can be a behavior problem in itself if your dog resists the training or discipline you try to give her.

You should first rule out any physical or health conditions that could contribute to the problem. Once you’ve done this, you can begin training programs to improve your dog’s behavior. When you can, it’s always best that you do these programs along with your dog.

There are two different reasons for this; first, you need to be confident in giving your dog the commands and in rewarding and disciplining your dog. It’s also important because you want your dog to get used to the commands and how you say them. You can then grow closer to one another because of this.

When you can’t do it yourself at home with self-training tools, you might decide to bring a dog trainer in who can work with you and your dog together. As a last resort, you may send your dog to some type of dog training program but if you do this, you still need to get some dog training classes in of your own so you know how to handle your dog when she comes back.

You can find websites, books, CDs, DVDs and much more telling you how to properly train your dog and how to avoid common training mistakes. You can fix almost any type of dog behavior out there or that may come in the future when you do this.

Now that you have an idea of what resources are available to stop dog behavior problems, you’re ready to start taking advantage of them yourself today. There’s no reason why you can’t have a better dog that is also happier. This is a good thing for you both.

Behavioral problems occur when owners don’t work with their dogs. Puppies need to be trained early to reduce any behavioral problems. If you haven’t started training your dog yet, you still have time. It’s well worth the time and energy  to get  your dog trained. Every person that has a dog wants a well behaved companion.

Stop Dog Behavior Problems

Training Method

The best method in training a dog is using positive training. Positive training gives positive reinforcement for good behavior. This is how the dog will know when he has done something right. Remember to train in short sessions to start. All learning should be done step by step. Learning takes time, it’s a gradual progress. Three things an owner need to do about unwanted behavior; prevent it, ignore it, or teach an alternative behavior. Starting the dog out with positive behavior will allow for better results. It’s up to the owner to correct any undesired behavior that a dog has picked up. Always reward any good behavior and correct bad responses.

Behavior Problems

Knowing the reason for behavior problem is the first step in fixing it. Owners ask themselves a lot of why is my dog doing these things?  Most of the reasons are that the dog is either timid, bored, or possessive. Most of these behavior problems can be solved by finding out why the dog is reacting this way. Behavioral problems can be corrected with a little patience from the owner. Solving behavioral problems can be challenging, but worth the effort.

Dog’s Bad Behavior Solutions

Who is the Leader?

Dogs have a very strong pack animal mentality. There is always a leader in the pack. The owner has to establish himself has the leader. This way the owner will have an easier time getting his dogs attention and  getting correct responses. Building a partnership with your dogs can help solve problems later on. You want your dog to please you and not be afraid.

Dogs with behavioral problems can be fixed with training. The bond between owner and dog can improve the positive training methods. A dog will listen better and be easier to be around when fixing behavioral problems. The result that positive training focuses on is getting you dog to do what you want. Bad behavioral problems can result from a dog not knowing his role. A dog need obedience training to understand the rules of the house.

Change Dog Behavior Problems

I know due to experience that even the best dogs aren’t always well behaved and do have behavior problems.  Try to imagine attempting to deal with 2 English Mastiffs, and a little Yorkie Poo.  They are virtually impossible to handle when they’re all together which is sort of frequently.  However, you can learn the tips that I did and how I learned how to control my dogs better than I have ever managed to before!  Some of the things I am going to tell you about is coaching, positive re-strengthening, and consulting with your vet to reign out possible health problems. 

One of the first things that I had to do to help me out with my dogs was find a dog teaching program.  My hubby was not to keen on the concept, but after they were obedience trained he was quite satisfied because they were no longer dragging him thru the backyard.  So that tiny training helped out tremendously.  I believe that training can help dogs of any age or size.  They can even help with dog behaviour issues. 

The subsequent thing that I did to help address my dog behavior problems were to begin with positive beefing up.  I know that could be a easy psychological issue to deal with the difficulties, but it does work quite well .  I found that when they misbehave if I ignore them and not show any affection of any sort towards the dog it manages to change their angle quite quickly.  Most dogs do love having attention given to them and without that attention then they generally will correct the bad behavior swiftly.  However, you must remember that when the dog does something good you’ve got to give them love immediately.  I usually give a pat on the chest which according to classes that I have went to makes them feel proud of what they did.  I have used treats as a reward at certain times especially when training them to come after I let them off of the leash. 

While those solutions often work for dealing with your dogs behaviour you may have to consult with your vet to help address the issues.  I’ve had to do that for my moggy even because her behavior is so awful.  Sometimes as is the case with my cat he prescribed medication for her.  That might be what your dog needs to fix any behavior issues that keep recurring.  Remember that your sometimes your dogs behaviour could be caused by health problems so be sure to check with your vet before trying anything more. 

So if your dog is having behavior issues you can try a number of things.  Some of those things include consulting with your vet about possible health issues, positive strengthening, and dog training.  A mixture of all those things maybe required which is what I had to do with my dogs.  Mainly the coaching and positive strengthening which seemed to help out the best since they were only puppies, but in your older dogs it perhaps that they are experiencing health issues so you do have to consider the age of your dog before taking any steps to fix the behaviour. 

I am living in South Carolina with my excellent husband and 2 lovely kids.  I have 2 English Mastiff puppies, a Golden Labrador, and a Yorkie.  I also have two pussies who came to us as strays.  I love stitching, crocheting, and handling to take care of my zoo at the house.  Since I have so many pets I have got a strong interest in animal issues.

Despite his training or lack thereof, your dog may manifest some behavior problems some time.It’s important to act on it as soon as you recognize the problem.It will be a whole lot easier to correct a behavior in the young rather than the old.In any case, it’s always best to nip it at the bud.You don’t want to reinforce the negative behavior by ignoring it.

Prior to continuing on, see this article on Interesting Secrets To Dog Training Review .

Read on for some easy remedies to common dog behavior problems.

1.Present him with toys.Restless dogs are likely to dig.Digging is not entirely harmless; it can become dangerous when your dog eases himself out of your yard.Bored dogs, bite or dig on furniture, causing destruction.Worst-case scenario, your dog bites a live wire accidentally and gets himself roasted.So keep you dog busy.

2.Have fun with your dog.Have your pets befriend other dogs or animals.Dogs are better-behaved when there are other animals or there are people around.Separation anxiety makes dogs bark too much.If you live with neighbors close by, you must keep your dog’s barking to a controlled level.If not, you’d find yourself opening your door to a police officer becasue your neighbor has called them in.

3.Set aside a room for puppies.It’s unwise to leave an entire house and garden to unsupervised, curious pups.Untrained young pups will treat your things as chew toys, and your place as their poop spot.To stay sane and save your dogs from themselves, keep them locked in a closed room where they can do no harm.Only, be sure to keep them in with ample supply of food and water.

4.Submit your dog to a thorough physical checkup.If your dog has serious behavior issues, you want to make sure it’s not because of some physical defects.

If your dog is constantly jumping, check this page How To Stop Dog Jumping.

Specialized Training to Resolve Specific Problems.

Although never easy, behavior modification is one dependable method to deal with your dog’s behavior issues.To be effective, your solution must approach the problem by dealing with its root cause.If it’s not because of health issues, a dog’s behavior has a reason.You’d be in a much better position to change your dog’s responses if you understood the situations and the reason for the behavior.You may find that any of the quick fixes above solves your dog’s issues; or you may find you need to put in more effort to help him.Whatever the case may be, it’s very important to attend to the bottom of it.

To find more information on the subject, see this article on Stopping Dog Behavior Problems .

A common mistake that many people make when training their dogs, whether house training, obedience training, or teaching them entertaining tricks, is using various forms of punishment when the animal doesn’t do what they want. Shouting at the dog, hitting it and even closing it away on its own for hours are too often forms of punishing a dog used by pet owners who have been misinformed.

This is very detrimental to the pet-owner relationship, and to the dog’s emotional wellbeing. Respect from your dog is essential if you want it well training and using these punishment methods will take you in totally the wrong direction with regards to building trust. If you happen to have gotten your dog from a shelter it can take a while to build up the required level of trust as they have often sadly been abused.

Not only is punishment damaging to your relationship and your pet’s emotional health, it’s not effective either. More often than not, punishing your dog leads to defensive, aggressive behaviors. Once present, these types of behaviors will be hard to change. Utilising positive reinforcement will get you and your dog to where you want to be faster.

Instead of punishing your dog for unwanted behaviors, reward them for good behaviors. This training technique works wonders, and is effective in every situation. If you spot your dog weeing indoors then give it a quick “no” and remove it straight away outside. You will need to ensure that you keep an eye on your dog. When you spot them correctly using the right location for the toilet five loads of praise using a happy tone of voice.

It won’t take long for your dog to make the connection between the bad behavior and your disapproval, and the good behavior and your praise. Dogs thrive on making their owners happy, and see you as the leader of their pack. This natural desire to earn your praise works for you during the training process.

The same principle applies to any situation, be it unnecessary barking, chewing on furniture or objects, jumping on or licking people, or any other of a host of annoying and potentially dangerous habits. Patience is very much a virtue when training and along with consistency is key. You will very quickly see that your efforts have paid off

Dogs cannot be bad; it is the handler who is poor. It’s irritating when walking down the sidewalk in your own neighborhood only to have a dog jump up on your clean clothes. When your front yard turns into a ready made toilet for your next door neighbor’s dog, it can be equally irritating. Just like the kid next door who has not been taught any manners, these dogs can be compared to them.

Why blame the animal (or the kids) when the adult who’s supposed to be in charge isn’t acting responsibly? It is wise decision to take the help of a dog trainer to learn the tricks of handling this pet without spoiling its personality. Either you contact your vet office or pet store to get to meet a trainer or seek online help from a dog training book or from online dog training tips and tackle your pet problem before it goes out of hand. Owners can learn how to manage their pets from this training.

There is a saying amongst trainers however that it is far easier to train dogs than the people that own them! When you want the dog to be leash trained, make them practice in a small area away from other distractions. Both owners and neighbors get angry when they hear barking which although irritating is quite normal behavior. When they bark, they are simply communicating with us; a reprimand him might give them the wrong signal and confuse them.

So why does a dog bark?
When a dog needs attention, something to eat or drink, it will resort to barking. A Dog barking can be good burglar alarm and training them to stop isn’t always a good idea. It is not a good idea having your puppy bark, even during play if you are likely too shout at him when he barks as an adult. You could learn from your trainer how to reinforce certain behaviors in a puppy, which you desire, by giving them the occasional gift for being good.

How do you make your new puppy stop the undesired behavior?
Well, simply learn to reward him when he does something which is ‘desired’ behavior. There are many behaviors which are part of the breed of the dog so it is important to remember that you can teach your pet to go against these. In case you are particular about teaching your pet some specific behavioral skills, you should choose one from the breed which would provide you with the type of traits you are searching for.

When does a dog become good?
Good dogs are developed by patience, persistence and kindness.

Food aggression is most often seen in dogs who are rescued from homes where they were abused or neglected. A bite, a growl or a snap are all different types of food aggression. When attempting to pat your dog whilst its in the processs of eating it may well turn aggressively towards you.

Self-preservation is the most common source of food aggression, and the easiest to correct. In these cases, dogs feel the need to protect their food, from fear of it being taken away. Causes of this behavior can come from situations where the dog has been abused, had its food removed as a punishment of from just being under fed. Food aggression doesn’t always come from owner abuse or neglect, however. If you are not the first owner of your dog it may be that other pets have caused your dog to be off of its food.

If you feel that this is the case with your dog, all that’s necessary to correct the behavior is time, patience, and lots of love. Showing your dog that you are to be trusted is of key importance, that when you give the food to it you will not then remove it later. Be sure that your dog sees you pour their food and place it for them to eat, rather than readying the food and then letting the dog into the room.

Go slowly. Sitting by your dog whilst it eats is a great place to start off. For the first few times, stay silent. Ensure that your dog knows you are there but be sure not to startle them or make them fearful of your presence. When you get to the stage that your dog does not seem nervous when you are around, start talking to them in a gentle manner as they eat, wander around their eating area but stay at a distance. When your dog is used to you and no longer nervy you will be able to pet it whilst it is still eating. If they growl or snap, simply back away, and sit silently. It is an absolute must that no punishment is dished out on your dog, do not shout or hit it. It is key to let them know that you are happy with them when they let you stroke them as they eat.

If you are consistent with this training, you will see positive results very quickly.

Let me ask you a simple question.  Do you know the triggers for fear aggression in dogs?  If not, then you need to read this article to learn more about this type of canine aggression.

Fear Aggression In Dogs

This is one of the most frustrating types of dog behavior problems.  Your dog may not hate all strangers; just certain ones.He may have a dislike for all men, or just men with beards, or men wearing hats.  He may absolutely detest kids under five, but older children are fine.  He may be fine with strangers outside the home, or he may bark at anyone who walks by the house.  

You can use dog behavior modification techniques to desensitize your dog to strangers.  But in order to do so, you need to identify exactly what it is about a stranger that’s scaring him.

Common Triggers For Canine Aggression In Fearful Dogs

Men often seem more threatening to a nervous dog than women do.  They’re bigger, their voices are deeper and louder, they may have beards or moustaches, they may wear hats.  Men have a more direct way about them.They are more direct about making eye contact, too.  Sometimes a man may remind your dog of someone who scared him or abused him in the past.

Sometimes, all it takes is a couple of children to send a fearful dog over the edge.  Their voices are high-pitched, and they move quickly and unexpectedly.  They’re sometimes attached to scary things like skateboards and roller blades.If your dog already has fear issues, small children with noisy toys can be terrifying to him.  

Kids also have a tendency to grab dogs with no warning and hug them.This can lead to an attack by an unfamiliar dog.  Most dogs don’t like to be hugged anyway.  Teach your children never to hug a dog, especially one they don’t know.

Any dog finds it threatening if someone makes prolonged eye contact with him.  This is especially true with a nervous, fearful dog.  Avoid looking a strange dog directly in the eye.  Look down or to the side instead.

Someone who’s just walking down the street fast or very slowly can be scary, too, especially if they appear to be coming right at your dog.  Anything out of the ordinary can be unsettling for him.

Odd movements like somebody waving their arms around, or jumping up and down, will also get a fearful dog’s attention.If your dog catches a whiff of an unfamiliar smell on a stranger, like beer or cigars, it can scare him, too.

Sometimes it’s not something as obvious as any of these things. You’ll need to spend some time watching your dog and making notes of which trigger, or combination of triggers cause him to display fear-based aggression towards strangers.

Dog Behavior Modification Can Help

Punishing a dog who displays canine aggression towards strangers doesn’t work.  Dogs learn by associating things.  So punishing a dog who’s already aggressive towards strangers only serves to teach the dog that strangers really are bad.He associates a stranger getting closer with getting punished, so he gets even more aggressive towards strangers.

What you need to do is to desensitize your dog to strangers.  You do this by associating strangers with good things, like tasty treats.  Dog behavior modification is a long, slow training process that can’t be rushed.

A good dog training course can be worth its weight in gold when working with a fearful dog.  When looking at courses, you’ll want to choose one that has lots of good testimonials from dog owners who have used the course material.  It’s also important to find a course that includes a free consultation with an experienced dog trainer.  Another essential feature you’ll appreciate is a dog owner forum where you can ask questions, and talk to other dog owners who have solved the same problem with their dogs.

This is the easiest way you’ll find to to deal with fear aggression in dogs.

Visit No More Bad Dogs to learn more about fear aggression in dogs.