What makes a pet misbehave? Behavior problems can be due to medical or behavioral causes, or both. A clinical history, physical examination, and diagnostic testing will help determine if there are underlying medical conditions contributing to the problem. Although there may be a single cause for a behavior problem, it is often the combined effect of the environment and learning …
Dog Behavior and Training — Play and Exercise
Why are play and exercise important? Play with owners and with other dogs provides your dog not only with an outlet for physical exercise, but also helps to fill your dog’s social needs. Insufficient exercise can contribute to problem behaviors including destructiveness (chewing and digging), investigative behavior (garbage raiding), hyperactivity, unruliness, excitability, attention-getting behaviors, and even some forms of barking. …
Training Products for Dogs – Muzzle Training
Why should I muzzle my dog? If you know your dog has any potential to be aggressive, then it is irresponsible to risk the health and safety of others by not taking suitable precautions. This may not mean that you need to muzzle your dog in all situations; only those in which there is a potential for injury, based on …
Is This The Best Time to Adopt a Pet?
Pets add fun, companionship and love to our lives, but they’re also a big responsibility. Choosing to add a pet to your family is a very important decision. They require time, energy and finances to thrive as part of your family. Sometimes, adopting a pet may be too much added pressure, especially if you’re experiencing other life-changes at the same …
Dog Behavior and Training — Introducing a New Dog to Your Family Dog
Can I bring a new dog into my house with my existing dog? Dogs are social animals whose evolutionary history makes them willing and able to live in groups. Group living enabled the dog’s ancestors, wolves, to work together to obtain food, raise their young and defend their territory. Much of a dog’s communication with other members of its species …
Signs Your Dog Is Stressed and How to Relieve It
Stress is a commonly used word that describes feelings of strain or pressure. The causes of stress are exceedingly varied. Perhaps you are stressed out by your job, you become nervous when meeting new people, or you get anxious when your daily routine is disrupted. To reduce stress levels, you may seek comfort in several ways. Maybe you find solace …
Guilty or Innocent? Do Pets Know They Have Done Something Wrong When They Act “Guilty?”
Chewed slippers. Scratched furniture. Shredded curtains. Here lies the evidence that your dog or cat is guilty of a domestic infraction. Is their doleful look an indication of said guilt? Do they realize they did something wrong? Or do they wonder why in the world you’re upset? Regardless of how solid the evidence is, it’s hard to convict a pet …
Behavior Counseling — Senior Pet Cognitive Dysfunction
What is cognitive dysfunction and how is it diagnosed? It is generally believed that a dog or cat’s cognitive function tends to decline with age, much as it does in people. If your dog or cat has one or more of the signs below and all potential physical or medical causes have been ruled out, it may be due to …
Behavior Counseling — Senior Pet Behavior Problems
It is not unusual for behavior problems to develop in older pets, and often there may be multiple concurrent problems. Some of the changes associated with aging may not seem significant, but even a minor change in behavior might be indicative of underlying medical problems or a decline in cognitive function. Because early diagnosis and treatment can control or slow …
Can Old Dogs Learn New Tricks?
Life’s wisdom is often shared in trite, easy to remember quips called adages. “Look before you leap.” “A penny saved is a penny earned.” “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” In with expansive world of old adages, one definitely stands out, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” This canine-focused saying is most certainly “one for the books.” …
