Dealing With Your Hyperactive Dog
Now that you have brought your long-awaited puppy or dog home, you have found that he is driving you crazy. Is he running around like mad chasing his tail, barking like crazy whenever someone knocks at the door or is outside or to your horror chewing away at your favorite pair of shoes. If you are experiencing this, then it is probable that your puppy or dog is hyperactive.
What is important to know is whether your puppy or dog is just being over energetic or is suffering from a condition called true hyperactivity. True hyperactivity is a fairly uncommon medical condition where the dog exhibits frantic behaviors including panting, restlessness, chasing his tail and collapsing with exhaustion. It can sometimes be difficult to tell the difference, so if you are not sure then it may be advisable to see your vet.
What you may need to consider is that your puppy or dog may be hyperactive because that is simply the way it has been bred. For example, Pointers which are herding dogs and Collies which are hunting dogs were bred to have lots of energy in order to carry out their work. This is why it is so important to check out the specific characteristics of different breeds before you choose one to suit your lifestyle.
Training a hyperactive dog can be a challenge. Outlined below are some tips which may help you with this.
Firstly, an energetic dog needs exercise in order to expend his excess energy. This can be done by walking your dog for at least half and hour twice a day and playing games such as fetch, find and frisbee. This is not only exercise for your dog but also a great way to keep you fit and healthy.
For excessive and inappropriate barking, you should command your dog to stop given in a stern voice. If your puppy or dog does not stop barking even after you have commanded him to stop, then pull him away from what he is barking at and give a correction, a sharp tug on his collar will do. If he is outside and wants to come in and you are not ready for him to come in you should command him to stop through the door. If he does not stop then you could try and kick the bottom of your door from the inside. The loud noise will hopefully startle your puppy or dog and stop him from barking.
To help you stop your puppy or dog from chewing everything in your house, it is important to put all valuables out of reach. Choose some sturdy toys for your puppy or dog to play with. In order for your dog to have positive associations with these toys, play regularly with these toys with your dog and he will then be more likely to play with them when left alone.
Using a crate is a good idea when during those times when you are not interacting with your puppy or dog. The use of the crate will act like a tranquillizer as dogs like the comfort of a confined and defined space.
Finally, It is crucial to remember to give a positive reinforcement when your puppy or dog gives a correct behavior and to give a negative reinforcement for an unwanted behavior. I hope that you will now start to employ some or all of these techniques to train your hyperactive puppy or dog.
Visit my Training Your Dog website to read more about training your hyperactive puppy or dog and about how to solve other problems such as a biting dog.
