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| TEMPERAMENT & TRAINING ISSUES - TRAINING - THE DEN - Canine Corner | ||||||||||||||
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Robi Pack Leader 
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The temperament problems discussed below are not specific to one breed, and may be found in any breed of dog. The following suggestions are a few ideas on how to cope with the more common behavioural problems. Many people feel that speying or castrating a dog with behavioural problems will help, however this is rarely the case. POSSESSIVENESS
Dogs are pack animals. Packs have a strict hierarchy and each dog needs to find its place in it. You must make sure that you and all the members of your family are of a higher rank than your dog. Some dogs are by nature more dominant than others. However other dogs will assume dominance if they perceive there is no one else to lead the pack. This will display itself by the dog dictating the rules of the house, for example, not allowing the owner to groom it. As soon as you acquire a dog you must assert your authority over it. This does not have to be done by aggressive means. Puppy training classes are an excellent way of learning the simple rules of dog training. Getting your dog used to being groomed, ears cleaned and teeth inspected from a young age is a very good way of asserting your authority. Remember all the members of the family need to be higher up in the pack than your dog. Never let your dog win tug-of-war games with toys - have fun, but be in control of the game. Don’t be afraid to buy a cage or play pen for your puppy. You can put your puppy in these while you do housework or other activities and this is another way of asserting your dominance over the dog. However, if this early authority has not been achieved, there are ways of lowering the rank of your dog, but you will have to be patient as it will take considerable time, effort and understanding for you to achieve this. Enrol in dog obedience training classes – this will teach you how to have some control over your dog. Food is a very strong instinct in all animals, with the highest members of the pack eating first. This is the easiest way to reduce you dogs rank in the pack. Before you feed your dog, make sure each member of your family eats something first and in front of the dog. It doesn’t have to be a main meal, just a snack will do. This will have to be done every day, possibly for several months. Try and gain some control of your dog, do not let it pull on the lead and stop it racing through doors ahead of you - your obedience classes should be able to teach you how to do this. If your dog is used to racing up to the door and barking when the door bell rings, it is displaying its leadership by warding off intruders to the packs territory. Shut the dog away somewhere (a cage would be excellent) before you open the door. If you assume this authority and meet the apparent intruder yourself then you are demoting the dog within the pack. Your dog will not be happy about this as it will feel threatened. After you have opened the door, introduce your dog to the intruder. You may need to put your dog on a lead so that it is under control. If the dog is happy and controlled then praise your dog. If it is aggressive or barks, then put it away and try again later. You are trying to teach the dog that you are pack leader and that it is safe for you to answer the door. NERVOUSNESS/TIMIDTY Nervous or timid dogs may show aggression when cornered or frightened. Some dogs are by nature more timid than others, but a dog that is not socialised and exposed to different experiences at an early age may become nervous in certain situations. For this reason you must gradually introduce your puppy to as many different people and situations as you can. These experiences must be happy ones for your puppy as they seem to have a long memory for things they have not enjoyed. If your dog is showing signs of nervousness, do not praise them as it is reinforcing this as correct behaviour. Instead try and gently encourage them and reassure them, helping them to feel confident. If your dog is naturally timid then do not force situations, it may take a long time for your dog to gain confidence and your dog may never be totally relaxed in new situations. Remember that a dog can detect if you are nervous so be as confident as you can when trying new things with your dog. RAGE SYNDROME For many years the golden cocker spaniel has been maligned because of the syndrome known as “Rage”. This appeared to become prevalent in post war days, since then many people and indeed veterinarians have continued to warn people against this most popular of colours amongst the cockers. Research has been carried out regarding rage for many years; to date there has been no real explanation for this problem. Rage syndrome actually exists within many breeds; it also occurs in all colours not just the golden & reds. It is vitally important that you do not mistake bad temperament for rage. Do not worry that this is something you are likely to see very often, this is a very rare problem within the breed and it is doubtful that real rage has been seen by many owners. Rage syndrome is not actually a behavioural problem, but a clinical condition. A RAGE ATTACK A dog suffering with rage can live very normally and happily for many months, showing no signs at all of any problem. It has been known for 8 week old puppies to develop rage but it is more likely to start at the time of puberty in the males and the first season in bitches. However there appears to be no proof that hormones play any part in the problem. The dog will without any warning or provocation suddenly attack the nearest person, having no control of itself whatsoever, sometimes as you put its food down or just when you walk into a room where it is. You could be stroking it or playing with it. DO NOT TRY TO PACIFY THE DOG. Leave the area/room and do not return for several minutes. During an attack it is quite common for the dogs eyes to appear to roll back showing the whites of the eye, the dog does not know what it is doing so do not blame or hit the dog. It is assumed that the attack is caused by some sort of fault in the brain. We do not know what triggers this to cause the attacks. After an attack the dog will return to normal and be unaware of anything that has happened, he will become your loving pet as before. This is when you have to make the heart breaking decision regarding your beloved pet. These attacks will continue to happen on a regular basis, possible more and more frequently. Eventually your dog will know you are reacting differently to him and become worried and unhappy.
____________________ Robi~Admin. |
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| Canine Corner > THE DEN > TRAINING > TEMPERAMENT & TRAINING ISSUES | |
