Category: Top Dog

Hello,

We live in a ground floor flat, our upstairs neighbour has a small dog who she leaves and it will bark until she returns. (I have tried addressing this with her, she is very uninterested and defensive)

We are hoping to get a puppy in a year. I see the barking as an opportunity to counter condition/train the puppy to be desensitised. The puppy will also come from a home where barking is not uncommon (I already know and have visited my breeder many times).

However! My partner sees the barking as an element of exposure that is outwith our control and he is worried we will in turn have a barking puppy/dog.

I really believe in training and feel determined to not be an awful owner like my neighbour. However I can see what my partner is saying.

For info: We both work from home, the puppy won’t be left alone unless we are training alone time and this will be gradual.

Any thoughts?

Hi all! I am searching for a pair of gloves that will keep my fingers from freezing (Boston winter!) but are slim enough to grab treats from the treat bag. Bonus if they can be washed because those treats are stinky. I have Raynaud’s Syndrome and so my fingers are always frozen and white. Also the puppy likes to bite the treats from my fingers so the more durable the better.

Has anyone found this magical unicorn?

Hey all. I’m looking to do some training and in the market for a whistle. Are there any whistles in your experience that make dogs bark hysterically? I don’t want to purchase the wrong one.

Hi! I have an 12 week-old golden retriever puppy, and I think I may have made some mistakes early on with how I handled training.

Whenever she jumps on our couch (she’s not allowed on any furniture except her bed), or on the table, coffee table, or her playpen, my husband and I say “off.” She does get off (usually have to to say it multiple times) and we say “yes,” which is her reinforcement marker for positive behavior — and then she immediately goes into a sit and just stares at us waiting for a treat.

She does the exact same thing with “drop it.” She’ll drop whatever is in her mouth (again after a few times saying it and trying to get it from her), we say “yes,” and then she instantly looks up expecting the reward. Same with “leave it.”

I feel like we accidentally reinforced the idea that she only does these commands for treats, and now shes going to think that if she does the behavior she’ll get one. But I have no idea how to get her to reliably do “off,” “drop it,” and “leave it” without her expecting a treat every single time.

Any advice on how to fix this early on would be super appreciated. Thank you!

20 week old puppy frustrated growling and biting leash when he wants to stop on walks but I don’t.

I’ve trained since 13 weeks with him inside to walk nicely and he does until 5 mins before the end of our walks where he stops and wants to stand still.

He doesn’t need to potty or sniff as he just stands and looks around. I’ve tried calling him and treating when he starts walking but he immeadiately stops again.

He’s mid teething and has lost both canines in the last two days so I know it may be that also. But how can I stop it as if I stop walking, he gets what he wants, but if I keep walking and drag him along he growls (clearly frustration not aggression) and bites his leash. He doesn’t the same on a slip and harness he turns all the way round to get to it.

Please any tips

We brought our pug puppy Nugget home on Saturday during a Minmesota snow storm. He's 10.5 weeks old and pee pad trained. I shoveled a decent sized patch of grass to remove as much snow as possible. Whenever I take him outside and set him down, he just sploots and seems to dissociate. He shivers because he's cold of course. I've had him watch my older pug go potty to see how she does it. I don't have the heart to stand there for more than a few minutes… How do we potty train him in this weather? I was thinking we could try potty pad in the garage and try to get him used to going like that… But ultimate he needs to be outside trained.

So I’ve tried asking this twice on the dogs subreddit and they keep removing it with no feedback as to why. Thought I’d try here instead…

Hi all,

So, I owned a husky for eleven years and he sadly passed earlier this year. I have been contemplating a new dog for next year and I am particularly interested in a bohemian shepherd. My wife is extremely reticent to get any dog that sheds at all, given the insane amount of hair our husky gave us over the years.

I am wondering if any bohemian shepherd owners can give me an idea about their shedding. I know what it says online and it’s certainly not on the level of a husky but there are a lot of variable statements about it. Can I get some feedback letting me know your day-to-day experience with bohemian shepherd shedding in your house?

Hello, my 14 month old purebred Labrador retriever puppy started having come and go anxiety issues at maybe about 9 months old. He is high strung and loves to run and play ball. I am a semi retired home improvement contractor and have a lot of time to run him and it seems to help but not take the problem away when he is suffering from it. When he gets to the outside the problems just seems to go away but when he’s inside he acts like he’s scared of going through doorways or close quarters. He is still growing and I guess my main question is how many of you have had this problem yourself with your dogs and did they grow out of it and what did you do that seemed to help when the condition comes back?

Sniff walks! Letting your dog sniff and set the pace of your walk is so good for them, in many ways:
– Stress reducing
– Mentally stimulating
– Reduces cognitive decline
– Bonding time with you
It's like you reading the newspaper, your dog loves to know what's going on around them as well.