Category: General Training Tips

How to stop a cat from peeing on your rugs…


When a cat stops using the litter box, there’s always a reason. Your first impulse could be to shout at the cat, but remember that will just frighten and confuse your cat. Despite common belief, cats are not vengeful, and they  are not going outside his box to get revenge. We always want to end positively with our animals. So if mistakes happen and you can catch them or you see them on the carpet, put them on the litter and if they go, use praise.
In turn we need to analyzed and understand what may have triggered this change from your cat using to the litter to not using the litter, such as adding another cat, loosing a cat, declawing your  cat, or something terrorizing them may have inadvertently caused the problem.
Remember the longer the behavior persists, the more likely it is to become habit. If you have more than one cat, you may want to use a color stain to see what cat is going where.  Your vet can give you a special non-toxic stain given by mouth that will show up in the urine( if you want).
Since there is a type of surface upon which your cat eliminates soft rugs or tile you can modify your litter to match it. If she likes soft surfaces like carpeting, buy a softer, finer litter, and put a carpet remnant in her box. If your cat likes tile then put tile in the litter box with some litter over it.
Make sure your litter boxes  have a 360-degree view. This will give them confidence while they are in the box and make them less prone to ambush. Also, place the box so that he has more than one way out (i.e. don’t have the box surrounded on three sides). Finally, place multiple boxes in multiple locations to give your cat more options.
Cats may dislike the litter you use, especially if you’ve recently and suddenly changed brands. If you must switch brands, do so gradually, adding more of the new litter to the old with each cleaning. Most cats prefer their litter unscented, and an inch or two deep.
Finally, give as many boxes as there are cats in the house—plus one.This decreases competition and gives each cat a box of their own. This great for the cats and make sure that where their litter  stays it is in a calm, quiet and safe place.
If the dog scares your cat and they were in the litter, the litter can be seen as negative now and they wont use it. If your cat was declawed the feeling of harsh litter can also be a huge reason they are not using the litter. Finally the main reason besides sudden changes in the household is medical reasons.
If your cat has suddenly  stopped using their litter look to see if they are having trouble urinating or crying while urinating. This could be a UTI (urinary track infection). Common in male cats and something your vet needs to take care of. Also if your cat has a history of kidney or liver disease that can cause them to consume more water and thus pee more.
Finally spraying can be the last culprit. Even though unspayed cats are usually the one to spray 10% of neutered males and 5% of spayedfemales can spray. Spray is usually on vertical objects and can begin due to multiple cats in the home or feral cats outside.
Cats not using the litter is a hard and common battle but if you can pin point why your cat is uncomfortable then the solutions get easier.
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How to Train Older Dogs and Puppies


Everyone knows puppies need training early in life. That’s why millions of people go to basic training classes and puppy perfection lessons. What people don’t realize is that when your dog becomes an older dog sometimes you need to treat them like puppies.
Is your older dog starting to pee in the house? Do they seem a little aggressive toward your family or other animals? Lets start treating them as puppies. Don’t get angry and frustrated!

If your older dog has started going in the house, set up a dog pen. They have less space to make accidents and now they are back to basics. Set up their pee pad in the pen to encourage urination in a certain spot.

Older dogs can start being belligerent and just remember that you cannot get mad . By understanding your dog you can learn to adapt to their new age. Set them up for success and revert back to puppy training. Supervision, attention, and comfortable living space that is conducive to their level of obedience.

The better you adapt to your dogs old age the happy you both will become. Now, who said old dogs can’t learn new tricks?

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Dog Birthdays


Have you been to a dog birthday party lately or ever? If you haven’t you have not experienced the incredible lengths people go through for their dogs. I have had the privilege to have been invited to my fair share of doggie birthdays and I have enjoyed every one. However it is not the delicious food or in some cases flowing wine that keeps me wanting more. It is the social interaction between the dogs that impresses me. It is great socialization and dog owners can learn new behaviors and have new experiences with other dog owners. Experienced and responsible dog owners are great teachers and leaders. At every dog birthday I have attended people discuss behavioral problems and get much needed dog advice from multiple sources and in some cases professional dog trainers. There dogs learn appropriate social behavior and meet new friends.

Dog birthdays may seem like something out of Beverley Hills housewives but this new craze is spreading amongst avid animal lovers and there is no stopping it. People invest a lot of money and time on their dogs and this will only continue to grow. So next time you are invited to a doggie b-day party, go! You never know what new behavioral and training tips you could get !

Oh and don’t forget to bring a gift

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Dogs are so funny


When I think of dogs I think of them as people . All with different personalities, sizes, shapes, colors and habits. During the week I have encountered several dogs all that amaze me in their own special way.

One situation that was interesting involved two dogs . One who is gregarious but is uncomfortable left alone and the other one is a little fatty but is great by himself. I arrived at the residence and started training immediately . After the session I wanted to treat the dogs to a fun play session in a dog park before I left . So I grab the leashes and like usual the outgoing dog sprints over ready for his walk the other dog is so happy in his bed with his bone that the dog park was not as reinforcing as the bone and bed combo. I called twice and to no avail.

It’s amazing how these dogs that live together and are good friends truly can exhibit separate personality traits.
Remember that dogs are more like us then you may think; just like children you have to respect and acknowledge that all dogs are different and thus they need different types of attention.

When I am involved in training I use different training techniques for different dogs. This is important!

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The Love of a Dog


Don’t you love the feeling when you come home and your dog is so happy to see you? Research recently shows that dogs are capable of reading the human face. Dogs were placed in a room and shown different objects and faces. The dogs looked at all the objects and animal faces straight on until the human face appeared . The dogs actually moved there eyes from right to left when human faces were seen . Scientists have concluded that like humans dogs recognized the human face.

So next time you hear someone say I think my dog knows when I am sad or they know when I am excited, there could be a real scientific truth to it.

Dogs seem to be emotional just like people. That’s probably why people want to treat their dogs like one of their family members. So next time you come home, smile , cause you knows who is reading your face. 😉

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