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Last Updated on June 22, 2023 by Thee Puppypreneur
HOW TO DISCIPLINE A PUPPY OR HOW TO DISCIPLINE A DOG
Ok, so there are a lot of different schools of thought on how to discipline a puppy or how to discipline a dog. I am pretty sure everyone has their own methods and their own opinions. It is just like a book on how you should raise your child. Should you leave them in the crib to cry it out and self soothe or do you run and jump at the first peep they make?
I will tell you what I do, so your can understand how to discipline a dog or how to discipline a puppy. And believe me what I do works! My furbaby is highly intelligent and if you believe your dog is too then this should work for you. Even if you believe your dog is not intelligent, I guarantee you they are. No dog is truly dumb it’s in your approach.
I talk to my fur kid. I realized that she understands EVERYTHING. Words are key. They are capable of understanding sit and shake, so why wouldn’t they be capable of understanding more?
Punishment can very rapidly turn into abuse if you are frustrated and then that can cause a bunch of other unwanted behavior problems such as fear or peeing and a reluctancy to come when they are called or that fear that can turn into aggression where you or others might end up getting bit.
THE WAY I DISCIPLINE A PUPPY
My form of punishment is rarely ever used. I mean like I have done it less than 5 times in my life and it was when she was a teeny tiny tot. Why, because my furbaby understands that a reward is better than a punishment.
If she is doing something wrong that I don’t like and I catch her. Yes, you must catch her in the act you can’t find your shoes chewed up later that night when she is nowhere near it and then scold her.
She will not understand what your problem is and why you are so upset that your $100 favorite hot pink heels (this happened to me) are now destroyed. You catch her in the act and correct the problem.
So, when this happened to those beautiful, hot pink, patent leather, peep toe, pumps that I still haven’t been able to replace (sigh), I saw her chewing on it and I gave her a firm “NO” and pointed to the destroyed item and held it up and told her “This is bad! You don’t do this!”
I Do Not yell and shout “bad girl” and “wtf” and “no” a bunch of times.
Firmly, (without the playful cutesy voice) I tell her, “NO”, show her what the “no” is for and then remove her from the area and put her in time out (yes, I said time out) her crate is her time out (and its big enough to fit a small horse).
My furbaby hates time out, she doesn’t get a toy, she is not in the same room as me, no one is paying attention to her. She knows she did something wrong and she goes in her crate willingly to sit there and think about what she did. (Because she knows she did something wrong).
Now, the next time this happened, (with my brand-new, fuzzy slippers) I told her again, “Mommy said NO, this is bad, you don’t do this.” I then gave her the option; the key word here to make sure she understood me is “option”, I said, “do you want to keep chewing on this and go to time out or do you want a toy or a snack?”
Do not think I am rewarding her for chewing on the slipper. I am distracting her from the bad behavior and then when she makes the decision to abandon the slipper, I reward for the good decision-making ability she uses.
My dog is given lots of options and believe me when I say she doesn’t ever choose time out. She knows lots of words and she knows what is expected of her. The key to solving a problem is consistency.
If you are consistent and you talk calmly and firmly to your furbaby then your kid will begin to understand on a different level. You can laugh but did you see how I gave her the option of the slipper or a snack. Her choice shows you that she is comprehending what you are telling her.
Disciplining a dog or discipling a puppy is not meant to hurt or instill fear into the animal and there are a million different ways it can be done but I have found that taking away play toys and putting them in a crate for 5 or 10 minutes for timeout usually solves the issue immediately!
COLLARS FOR HOW TO DISCIPLINE A PUPPY AND THE DAMAGE THEY CAUSE
If your dog is not behaving correctly on a leash then that is a whole different story. Obviously, you don’t want a dog to pull you and jump on other people and just be wild and unruly.
Choke collars I can no longer advocate for since I believe that this is what has caused my dogs hypothyroidism as I heard something crack in her neck as a puppy when she pulled and was wearing her chain and I believe it damaged her thyroid gland which is why she is now on thyroid medication.
Pinch collars are more extreme and have prongs that stick in to the dog’s neck when choke collars are ineffective some people use pinch collars instead.
That means if you are pulling that metal chain and it wasn’t working you bumped up to thicker metal collar that has all these prongs on the inside of the metal chain and when you pull it sends all those metal prongs into the dog’s neck.
If you have never used one and don’t know what you are doing and if used incorrectly, they can cause far more damage. They are meant to be a quick release snap of the chain you are not meant to sit there and hold back with the prongs digging into the neck constantly.
ALTERNATIVES TO COLLARS WHEN LEARNING HOW TO DISCIPLINE A DOG
Chest harnesses are a great alternative, but I often find that the dog is still able to pull and basically your intention of taking your dog for a walk has now turned into your dog taking YOU for a walk.
I have this KONG harness and I know that it is a bit pricey but really if you know anything about Kong products you know that they are durable and this harness is padded and reflective.
Amazon.com : KONG Comfort Padded Chest Plate Dog Harness (Medium, Pink) : Pet Supplies
The other harness that I love is this reflective, led harness. Now there are others on the market that are cheaper but this one has a bigger surface area for lights. I am a sucker for anything that lights up especially if you are walking your dog at night.
Also, there is no battery as it is completely rechargeable. Personally, I do not clip my leash to this product I use it in conjunction with another harness or the head harness and I always like to double up on the lights with a color changing collar like this one
This harness is really what I believe we should all have been using on dogs from the beginning (again, my personal opinion)
Or this one that I own,
which comes in the most adorable colors and mimics my horse’s halter with the secondary color under the noseband. We use halters like this on cows, sheep and horses to lead them around.
This allows for complete control of the head and where the head moves the body will follow. Better then choking your dog with a big metal chain to get him to respond in my opinion since she is hypothyroid now.
Why we started using a choke collar around the neck of dogs, when it could possibly damage the trachea or the thyroid, I will never know. It’s called a choke collar, that should have been my first clue, but I never had problems with other dogs on it before.
HOW TO DISCIPLINE A PUPPY RECAP
What have we learned?
- Catch them in the act
- Don’t yell or hit
- Talk to them and speak firmly
- Show them what the problem is and talk again
- Distract with options
- Put in timeout if necessary
- Consistency
- Letting them choose the option communicates understanding
Again, this is not advice, it is information on how to discipline a puppy and how I do it. You should always consult with a professional if you are unsure of how to train or teach your furbaby and what equipment you should use, your dog may have a specific issue or need not addressed here.
If you still need more information then check out this directory Certified Dog Trainer and Behavior Consultant Directory – CCPDT
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