Why why why

Why does he do that?
Why does he herd the kids?

Why does she bark at the squirrels?
Why does she behave better for you than me?
Why does he jump on people?

WHY oh why oh why does he stay outside for an hour and then poop in the house within five minutes of coming back in??
Why does my dog DO the things he does??

I will try and take some of these - and more questions in the next few posts.
But the simple answer to many of our 'why' questions is just a 'because they are dogs and not people'.
Dogs make no moral judgements on poop and pee the way we do, so they sniff, eat and roll in it, much to our disgust.
Dogs need a job and exercise. If you don't give it to them, they will herd your children and dump your trash.
Squirrels are mean and cruel creatures, sent to earth to tease the dog into a frenzy.
Mostly though - we take a living, breathing, thinking, creature into our homes to spoil, to love, to live with and we expect them to act like four legged furry children. And they are not. Are not. They are dogs. Really. Totally different species, no matter how we dress them up and talk baby talk to them.
They will be dogs.

And if we can't be as thankful for that as we should be - we should at least accept and embrace the concept wholeheartedly.

More exercise

I know I harp on this one a Lot, don't I?
And you know why?
It's because most of the issues I see in class would be solved by this one answer.
More Exercise.
More.
More than That.
All that jumping on you?

More exercise - and teaching them another behavior to do besides jump.
That hysterical run through the house every night that knocks over furniture and drives you nuts?
More exercise.
That compulsive chewing everything you have?
Appropriate chew toys, better supervision - and more exercise.

That on going barking? Yes - more exercise.
And on the flip side - got a (younger, healthy) lazy dog who wants to veg on the couch and not play? Guess what the cure for that one is? Go on, guess now - you can do it!
Yes - more exercise. Get that blood flowing and that brain working.

A tired dog is a good dog. I just can't say it any plainer than that.

Aggression

I've got an aggressive Great Dane coming in today for a consultation.
Generally, Danes are not aggressive dogs. But as I always say - never say never. Any dog can bite given provocation.
They swear this one hasn't had any. Hmmmm........
Their vet told them it would help if they neutered him.
I am strongly in favor of spaying and neutering - to the point of rolling my eyes (involuntarily!! really!!) when people say 'I want to breed'. Trust me - there are thousands of dogs just as sweet and wonderful as yours dying all over the country today because of lack of homes. Don't be part of the problem.
Neutering can help with many things - marking behavior, easing frustration, health issues, - some minor behavior changes - but its not a magic wand against aggression.


Once your dog has bitten - and this one has three times - only the last two were 'bad!' I'm told - you can never trust your dog again.
Never.
Again.
You can manage many of the situations dog will find himself in- teach him other things to do - socialize, socialize, socialize, more, bigger and better - put basic commands in place - but I would never trust someone's life, or face, to your dog's judgement again.
Be smart and Be safe.