Pushy Dog Behavior

 Here is my article on Pushy Dog Behavior.

Does your dog demand attention by barking at you, pawing at you, or poking you with their nose? 
Is your dog doing undesirable things while you are otherwise occupied? 
Here are some suggestions to stop those behaviors. 

If you immediately give the dog attention for being pushy this behavior will quickly become an annoying habit. If they are being pushy or demanding ask the dog to do something first in exchange for your attention - THEN you can reward them.

Set boundaries in the relationship with your dog, most dogs thrive on a consistent daily structured life. Everything should be earned by the dog, which includes furniture privileges- those can be given later on if you want. The dog should be trained to politely “ask” to be on the furniture, and immediately get off the furniture when told to.   Right now the pushy dog needs to understand he is a dog, not a human equal- and he needs to earn the things he values.

Asking him to do something basic like an already learned  sit, down, or heel - will encourage calm behavior from him, and helps put you in charge of the situation.

The same goes for nuisance barking, ask them for an already learned basic obedience command, wait them out until they respond, then reward them with praise, complying with their request, and occasionally with a piece of their daily meal as a reward.
Always be more consistent than they are persistent.

I highly recommend using all the dogs daily meals as rewards for training.
Hand feeding gives “ value” to the owner in the dog’s point of view.
Controlling the dogs most valuable resource gives us a huge advantage in training, as well as keeping our leadership position in the household.

Dogs will take for granted what is given freely. In order for the dog to appreciate and value what he has been given- just have one dog toy out per day.  Take one out every day and play with him, use a different toy the next day. This makes the toys extra special because they are not taken for granted by him to have whenever he wants, now he must interact with the human in a polite manner if he wants privileges.  Work on OUT command with the toy, praise him for quick release by continuing the game a bit longer. I have a detailed article on different methods to easily train the OUT command.

Structured walks at least once daily, this  can be practiced inside if weather is bad. Dog should be on a loose leash in heel position, no pulling, barking, or marking. Release word to potty then right back into a structured walk. A backpack with partially filled water bottles can be worn by the dog as well during their workout. This gives the dog another thing to focus on, and burns up more energy in the dog.

Use a properly fitted training collar if needed. I have a very detailed article on various Training Collars. 

Proper crate behavior and training the PLACE exercise are extremely helpful. At the verbal CRATE command the dog should walk calmly in , be quiet in the crate, and wait for a release word from the human before they can come calmly out. I use BREAK as my release word. If the crate door opens and the dog tries to come out before the release command, gently close the crate door before they get their head out. You will see an immediate change of attitude , more respect from the dog, and now the dog is more focused on you and how you want it to behave outside the crate as well.  

PLACE command is very helpful, they will learn to go to their dog cot, lie down, be quiet, and stay there until given a release word. Sessions should be fairly short to start. I have a very detailed article on training the PLACE exercise.

I highly recommend treadmill training for dogs, more for mental focus of the dog, than physical exercise. Just a walk, but add duration.

Treadmill at just a walk daily or twice a day, gradually add duration. 

I have an article on treadmill training at my site.

Articles  on dog anxiety,  crate training, potty training, and more are available at my link below- which is open to the public and free of charge.❤️🐺❤️

https://www.facebook.com/AllBasicsDogTrainingKimChappell/