Dogs are a crucial part of many families and are known to provide enjoyment and love. But did you know that your dog also needs lots of enjoyment and love, and that’s it’s vital to their happiness and health? Dogs love companionship and attention, which are necessities any responsible pet parent should be able to provide. But the problem is that not everyone understands how to give their dogs the proper attention. Some people smother the dogs or chase them outside when they crave attention from them. A good training program will usually cover all this. One I always recommend to my readers is Brain Training for Dogs. Here are some tips to help you.
Be Loving and Gentle
You need to ensure that any attention you give to your poodle is loving and gentle. This will foster a sense of stability and security in the dog that strengthens the bond you have with it. Below are some tips that might be of help to you:
- Praise it while you give it attention for instance petting it. Use its name to go with the message. For example, “What a beautiful dog you are, Leo! Perfect boy!
- Do not take to yelling or even using strident tones when you give it attention. You might make it anxious and fearful, and you don’t want this because it affects the healthy attention you are giving it.
Schedule Daily Playtime
Being pack animals dog are used to spending their time in the company of other animals. This means that dogs crave to play. Also, giving your dog sufficient playtime goes a long way into ensuring that it exercises.
Schedule to play with him for at least 30 minutes every day. Some of the activities that you could engage in include running, fetching, walking, taking him to the nearest dog park, and catching a Frisbee among other things.
Be at the level of your dog
When giving him attention, it helps to be more accessible. You may want to lie or sit on the floor as this encourages it to relax. It also promotes bonding and builds trust.
Another idea is to sit on the chair or couch as this makes you more approachable to the dog.
Reciprocate the affection of your dog
When your dog shows you affection, you need to show it that you enjoy it and the best way to do this is to reciprocate its actions. The following are some of the ways your dog display its affection:
- After eating, it cuddles with you. Cuddling back is a fantastic way to show love and healthy attention.
- It sleeps with you. Allow it to lie beside you in its bedroom or your bed.
- It approaches you and wags tail when you are back home. You can appreciate this by hugging it and saying” It’s great to see you, Bingo.”
- It sits with you as you prepare dinner or attend to some other chore. Incorporating your furry friend into these daily tasks is a great way to show it that you care for her and value her presence.
Provide Attention at the Right Times
Dogs, like humans, also need some time when they are just by themselves and not disturbed. An example of this is when it is eating. When you give your dog attention at the most opportune times, it strengthens the bond between you and him even further.
Tips:
- The best time to show love and attention is when your pup is in a calm and submissive state. Some of these times are just after it has eaten, after it has responded to a command or a rule, after exercise, and after it changes from an unwanted habit.
- Use discretion when giving your dog attention when it barks, begs, or whines. Look into the reason why it engages in this behavior and respond accordingly. For instance, if the barking is as a result of seeing someone in the yard, comfort him by reassuring him that it’s just someone dropping off a parcel.
- Do not show him affection when it is anxious, dominant, aggressive, possessive, fearful, or when it has broken a rule.
Let him see you as the pack leader
In the wild, dogs live according to a social order in their pack. When you bring him home, he will see you as the pack leader. Showing your dominance will make sure that it is trained, loved, and lively. When you don’t take that role, your dog may get the wrong opinion that it is the leader. This might lead to some undesirable behaviors like jumping on others, eating off the table, or inability to be alone. These are tips to establish yourself as the pack leader:
- Interact with your pup as its owner, and not timidly.
- Give it praises warmly and quickly
- Make it obey your commands at the first time of asking
- Reprimand him quickly and fairly and let the matter rest there
- Be a model of authority and confidence to your dog
- Give and deny permission
Discourage Jumping
When you get a good dog training g program such as Adrienne Faricelli’s Brain Training For Dogs, training it to behave properly won’t be an issue. Otherwise, you will have to do it. By their nature, dogs use nose-to-nose contact to greet each other. And it may want to extend this to humans, too. But this behavior can be a bit dangerous for frail adults or children. Train him to use a preferred behavior, for instance, sitting, when it wants to great others and get attention.
- Give it the sit command if it attempts to stand up and greet others. While seated, refrain from giving it any form of attention.
- Tell your guests to assist with the training. If the dog does not sit when they arrive, ask them to turn back and walk away. Then, command your dog to sit down and let the guest approach it again.
Prevent Separation Anxiety
Dogs in the wild live in packs and are very wild. This means that, when you leave it alone, it can suffer from separation anxiety. This can make it to engage in destructive behaviors like whining, chewing, scratching, and even defecation. By preventing separation anxiety, you will be able to stop bad behavior and unhealthy attention. The following tips can help you prevent separation anxiety:
- Not making a fuss when you return home or leave for somewhere
- Leaving the clothes you wore recently that still have your scent with your dog
- Telling it that you will be back
- Giving it busy toys to distract it
Conclusion
Giving your dog attention and love is part and parcel of dog ownership. Even if you buy the best programs like Brain Training 4 Dogs and the like, you won’t raise it successfully without dedicating time to play with it and to show him love and affection. However, it’s also important that you give it this attention at the right times. Realize when your dog needs to be alone and let it be. Showering it with attention will build a strong relationship with you and is even healthy for your dog. And of course, you will benefit a great deal from a top program like Brain Training for Dogs. Most of these things are covered in the behavior training section of the program.
