| A dog will most likely disobey a command for one of | | | | the case, it is a dominance issue and you need to take |
| two reasons: | | | | active steps to prove to him that you are the top dog. |
| 1) They don't understand you. | | | | But you still need to be a fun person to play with in his |
| Dogs respond more to your tone than your actual | | | | eyes. Below are some do's and don't that will help you |
| words, so if this contradicts your command, he isn't | | | | with this problem. |
| going to understand you. A good example of this | | | | Things You should Do: |
| would be if your dog (lets name him Spike) jumps up | | | | --make sure you have a positive, excited tone of |
| on you a lot and you tell him, "Get down Spike, get | | | | voice. |
| down" and at the same time you're laughing and | | | | --try walking the opposite way ...this will force your dog |
| pushing at him gently, Spike is understanding that "Get | | | | to make a decision which is, get left or go home with |
| Down" means play time and is thinking this is fun for | | | | you and get dinner. |
| him! | | | | --squat down when you call him and open your arms |
| One more example is if you say, "Spike, come here" | | | | to suggest praise when he arrives. |
| and it sounds like "Could you please, please, please | | | | --make sure you DO praise him when he comes to |
| come here? It sounds like you're giving him a choice. | | | | you, no matter how long it takes. |
| Tell Spike to "come." Don't yell or be demanding, just | | | | --create a good environment so they will love coming |
| make sure he knows you mean business. Keep your | | | | over to you. |
| commands simple. | | | | Things you should NEVER Do: |
| Also, when you want them to DO something, make | | | | --make sure you do NOT reprimand them when they |
| sure you make eye contact and use a hand signal to | | | | finally come to you or you'll have the same problem |
| get them to come, sit, lie down, etc. Hand signals along | | | | the next time he does it. |
| with your one or two word command will teach them | | | | --unless safety is an issue, never chase after your dog |
| to understand what you mean. Always praise them | | | | if he doesn't come to you right away. |
| after they have done what you've asked them to do. | | | | --never call your dog over for something they don't |
| 2) They are ignoring you. | | | | enjoy. (getting their nails clipped, taking a bath, etc.) |
| How can you tell if your dog actually understands you, | | | | We all want to be boss of our dogs, right? Just |
| but won't obey? Look at his body language. If he | | | | remember that yelling will stress out your dog, not to |
| shows signs of fear when you're giving training | | | | mention physical punishment is NEVER an answer |
| commands (avoiding eye contact, submissive posture, | | | | because you just never know how hard you're |
| tail is tucked between his legs) then they don't | | | | smacking your dog when you're angry. You don't want |
| understand you. Don't make this situation worse by | | | | a relationship with your dog that is based on fear. |
| being forceful. | | | | Short, simple commands are something your dog can |
| On the other hand, if your dog doesn't appear to be | | | | understand because he certainly doesn't understand |
| stressed and has confident posture, then he has | | | | English. You need to be the top dog in the house, but |
| decided not to listen to you. In fact, they may even be | | | | don't make it sound like a threat to them, because you'll |
| defiant - making direct eye contact, even barking at | | | | get nowhere real fast. |
| you, and running away when you approach. If this is | | | | |