Dog Training Manual

It is not worth going bankrupt and losing your house over a dog with bad manners. 

What is considered good dog behaviour and bad dog behaviour?  Barking, jumping, nipping, chasing, growling, guarding food and the couch, tug of war and territorial behaviour may be considered acceptable dog behaviour to some people and mortal sins to others.  Sometimes people may think certain behaviours are harmless until an incident occurs and your dog has to be destroyed or you face legal action.  Again, it is not worth losing your house over totally preventable behaviour.

Barking – there are people who like their dog to bark for security of their home.  Neighbourhood disputes commonly start over barking dogs especially if there are a few dogs in the street.  Large dogs have a deep bark whereas small dog can have a high pitched bark.  At night, noise travels well and if one dog starts barking it can set off every other dog in the vicinity.  What is considered excessive barking?  Some councils consider barking for more than 10 minutes/hr to be excessive.  A voice activated recorder put next to a clock that makes a noise on  the hour will let you know how much your dog is barking while you are out.  The most common reason for dog training – barking!
Jumping – it may start as a harmless behaviour when your dog was a puppy and if not addressed immediately can be an annoying behaviour.  It is not polite to have your dog jump up on or all over people.  What is very dangerous is the dog that jumps and tries to nip at the face.  If your dog bites a person or a child or knocks over and injures someone, you may face legal action.  So stop the behaviour NOW! 
Nipping – this can start with a puppy who likes to mouth everything, a dog that is very nervous giving little warning signals to stay away, a dog that has had enough and is telling you to stop, a dog showing dominant behaviour, to get attention or a dog that is so excitable that all rational behaviour goes out the window.   Nipping can occur anywhere on the body but usually hands, ankles and face.  As with jumping, this can start as innocuous behaviour but become a very dangerous habit.  This is not acceptable behaviour and should be stopped ASAP.  If your dog bites someone, it may be destroyed.
Growling is usually a warning to go away or stop what you are doing.  Is the dog growling because it is fearful, going to attack or trying to dominate over you?  Growling is not acceptable when you are grooming your dog.  Your dog has to learn there are certain things you have to do and it has to accept that, providing you are not hurting your dog.  Nail trims, ear cleaning, wiping the eyes, brushing, giving a tablet are something that both you and your dog must learn to do.

I will cover the other behaviours later.  The most important thing is dog obedience training so you are the pack leader where your dog listens and obeys your commands.  You may not mind your dog jumping on you or barking but at least teach your dog when these behaviours are acceptable and when they are not.  Otherwise your dog will be confused when it is suddenly reprimanded for something it has always done.

I strongly recommend having a dog training manual at home.  Have a look at this manual, they cover obedience training and how to deal with problem behaviours – Dog Training Manual