You love your dog, but sometimes you find yourself wishing that you’d never invited this little barking whirlwind into your home. You’re at your wit’s end because the dog that used to be so cute and cuddly is now getting on your last nerve with its unruly behavior. There’s too much growling, excessive barking, doing their business inside the house and general disobedience. If you are at the point where things must change, or you are forced to give up your beloved dog, it’s time to immerse yourself in training for small dogs.
First of all, understand that your dog is acting out because you are letting it get away with this behavior. Dogs are born with a natural desire to be members of a social pack. All packs have a pecking order and your small dog would normally not be in a leadership role. However, when a dog is not properly trained, and allowed to do as it pleases, it will often take on an unnatural leadership role and display aggressive behavior. From your dog’s perspective, it is merely protecting itself from possible danger by asserting authority.
Unfortunately, this aggressiveness is destroying your sense of pleasure in living with your dog. Take heart in the fact that your dog doesn’t really want to be in this overly aggressive role. It’s simply doing what it feels it needs to do in order to survive in an environment where unexpected things happen. Training small dogs to behave appropriately inside and outside of the home is necessary in order to restore balance and peace to the household.
One of the best ways to train your dog is by using positive reinforcement techniques. Purchase several bags of treats, that you know your dog enjoys, and use them to begin training your dog to listen to you and obey your commands. Now, you shouldn’t attempt to do this on your own, because there are specific strategies involved that you need to learn from a professional. There are many dog training courses available online that can show you exactly what to do.
While you are learning how to train your dog, you will also be training yourself and others in your house how to behave in a manner that gives you the leadership role. Don’t be afraid to become the authority figure in your dog’s life. The dog isn’t going to see you as someone who is treating them mean. Instead, your dog’s anxiety over his living situation will be greatly relieved when you assume the role of human pack leader.
Training small dogs requires a lot of patience and discipline. A step-by-step dog training program will teach you how to give your dog specific commands to follow. When your dog listens to you and follows orders, let the dog know he/she is being a good dog and reinforce this by giving them a tasty treat. When your dog disobeys or ignores you, they get nothing. Deep down, your pet really wants to please you, and they’ll get the message that good behavior brings them rewards. Soon, all of the unruly behavior will be gone and you and your dog will be great pals again.