To Be a Dog's Best Friend You Must Learn to Run Like a Wolf

By David Vanne
To be a dog's best friend you must pretend to be a dog. No, you don't have to run at thirty miles an hour, eat from a dish on the floor orü lift your leg on a tree. All you must do is feign canine behavior.
Dogs view us as other dogs because we are in their lives from the day they are born. A human imprint is being established within a new puppy before they ever open their eyes. Though law prohibits puppies from being sold before eight weeks of age, the smells and sounds of people are having a great impact on them from day one. Dogs are very social creatures and have traits driven by pack hierarchy. Eight weeks is generally viewed as optimum for a surrogate mother, namely you, to take over the responsibilities of the natural mother. At this early age an existing pecking order has already been established among the littermates. Many of these instincts are similar to human social structure and some of the main reasons why our domestic canines and people live together so well. It is easy to attribute certain behavior as human when in actuality it is most likely canine in origin. Licks, for example, to humans are almost always referred to as kisses and easily thought of as communicating affection. For the puppy, licking is an instinctual response to hunger. When directed toward the mouth, licking prompts the mother to regurgitate part of her meal. Fortunately, puppy chow handles this chore for us.
Dogs mature at much faster rates than humans. Forget the old adage of seven dog years for every one of ours. If that were the case, at a year of age, a dog might be regarded as a toddler, which would be totally incorrect. At only six months of age, most dogs are in mid adolescence. Try to tell a human teenager to "Go to school" if they had never done so before. What kind of response do you think you'll get? It might be said at this point that if a dog had no human contact within the first six months of it's life, never would it be able to adjust to living with humans.
Let's backtrack a bit and establish where our domestic dogs come from. Each and every domestic dog can trace its roots to the wolf. There may a very small amount of Red Fox, African Wild Dog, Dingo, or Coyote in a number of different breeds but the main thing to remember is that essentially all of our contemporary dog's ancestors were wolves. Certainly there are enormous differences in both appearance and behavior of today's dogs, which was accomplished through human control of the breeding process. Even though the centuries of breeding produced such diversity as Chihuahuas and Mastiffs, if we understand wolf traights we can get a better understanding of how our own dogs perceive us.
Wolves have learned, most likely through trial and error, that there is strength in numbers. The pack will venture out singly or in pairs, within their territory, during the summer months when food is plentiful. Winter months require them to reunite as sustenance becomes scarce and they need each other to hunt larger prey. Each member has a purpose to fulfill whether it be leading, flanking, tagging, tracking or staying behind to guard the pups. Mind you, wolves are not the nefarious, bloodthirsty and savage animals that earlier authors might have you believe. In fact there is only one documented case that suggests a human death by wolf attack. I say suggests because there is doubt among experts that the single animal involved was a pure wolf. An average weight for a wolf is approximately sixty-five pounds whereas the canine involved in this 19th century case weighed in well over 125 pounds. Experts believe it was a hybrid because of the tendency for wolfs that breed with domestic dogs to somehow turn out much larger than either parent. Just remember that wolves do not kill for fun, sport or revenge. Humans however, with their superior intellect, can lay no such claim. Wolves only hunt for survival and take the path of least resistance, which is prey that is very weak or very old The culling of a less than healthy animal actually strengthens the herd upon which they hunt. Each wolf performs a purpose for the betterment of the whole. If there were no direction or discipline chaos would prevail, thus there must be a leader of the pack.
The leader or Alpha is the strongest, most intelligent wolf within the pack. There is an Alpha male and Alpha female. The Alphas are the ones that install order and discipline amongst the other members. They are the front line of defense, lead the hunt, eat first, appoint puppy-sitters and the only ones within the pack to copulate. An alpha female is usually more aggressive and independent than the male. She will sometimes groom a pup to be her next successor and this pup may be allowed all alpha freedoms of food and territory. She accomplishes this by correcting other members of the pack for disciplining her pup.
Very often in our households when we empower our puppies as if they were human children, they quickly grow into dogs that feel no limits or bounds. All these privileges amount to a puppy perceiving the world with an Alpha mentality. Who does an Alpha want to please? Not one person. The Alpha wants you to please them. How many of our dogs do you see training the humans? They don't come when called, snap or snarl when someone gets to close the their food, demand to be petted, jump on everyone they meet, steel the thanksgiving turkey off the dining room table and the list goes on, The point is, to be a dogs best friend, you must run the pack similar to an Alpha wolf and not merely a litter mate. The only tool our dogs have available to correct us is with their mouths. Unfortunately there are thousands of dogs across this county shipped off to the animal shelter each day deemed " Uncontrollable vicious animals" when they were merely trying to institute order and discipline within their perceived pack You must lead the pack. If you show your dog leadership and direction he or she will follow. If your dog shows aggression towards other animals, or worse other people, you must let your dog know that it is your job as Alpha to defend the pack. A happy dog is a dog that belongs to a pack with a strong leader.
To be the lead wolf in your dogs world you must instill order, direction and discipline within the pack. When you give your dog a directed purpose in life, such as obedience training, you will set up the perception your dog has of you. Through proper reward and correction, you teach them that there are rules, limits, and purposes of life. Once you establish yourself as the Alpha wolf you will naturally and instinctively be your dog's best friend.Original content provided by David Vanne http://www.treemail.us
dave@treemail.us Site continually under construction
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Leash Training – Dog Training

Author: John Williams Dog Training
Leash training or lead training is the discussion of many dog trainers in this modern age and discussions of how to train your dog in the nicest possible way are aplenty. These discussions are brought about by people and dog trainers believing that pulling on the leash to correct a dog’s behavior is causing injury to the dog.
I’m not here to discus this also, but I certainly don’t believe there is anything wrong with leash training if it is done in the correct way and care is taken not to hurt the dog or give any sudden forceful pulls on the leash.
Leash dog training is equally as popular as any other form of dog training within the expert dog training community because when done properly it gets results quickly and effectively.
Leash training is used by correcting your dog’s movements and gently tugging on the leash to force the dog to go in a way they would not have originally gone and to direct them in the favoured way for the training exercise in hand. Often the problems of leash training are with getting your dog comfortable with the leash and collar so I will briefly discus the key aspects of getting your dog to behave when going for walks on a leash and the problems you might face.
Some dogs are excited to get their collar on and other are not so fond of it, train your dog to sit and stay first before learning to take your dog on a leash, many dogs like to wriggle around and run about wile you try to put a collar or lead on them so the sit stay commands will be essential.
While doing any pre-leash exercises or walks if your dog misbehaves by being too excited you should simply remain calm and not go for walks until they are acting appropriately, this should calm your dog down and act as a light punishment for them.
When starting leash training, begin in your own home and then work your way up to more populated and new and interesting places, if your dog misbehaves or is pulling on the leash constantly when they are out then discipline accordingly, and as always practice will be the deciding factor to how quickly your dog will accomplish good behavior.

No More Tainted Pet Food: Using Homemade Dog Food Recipes For A Healthier, Happier Pet

Submitted By: Jennifer McVey
Two common places to find dog food recipes are on the Internet and through your local veterinarian. The Internet is not always trustworthy though. You cannot be sure that someone who posted their own idea for a dog food recipe is the right meal for your dog. Some of the factors might include the type of dog that they have and the types of foods in the recipe. If the dog food recipes are coming from a credible place on the internet like an animal shelter, a veterinarian, or some other place you can trust then you most likely are safe to use the recipe.
The best place to find dog food recipes is through your local veterinarian. Your vet already knows your dog best. He or she knows their digestive tract and what kinds of foods you can start your pet off with and how you can transition your animal from traditional dog food to homemade food. Many veterinarians already have recipes they can give to you so you can go home and make your pets food. Working with your vet ensures the health of your animal.
Switching your dog over to homemade dog food is a big transition. Your animal may not take the food change very well at first. For instance, your dog may not seem as if they like it or they might not be eating as much. You will notice a change in their stools. Your animal may vomit for a couple of days because their digestive tract is not used to healthy food. Be sure during the transition your dog is getting plenty of water. One thing that might be recommended is that you slowly break your dog into the new dog food rather than do a total change at once.
When you make homemade dog food, even the vet will tell you not to change the recipe. You might think you are being creative or making your pet happy by adding bacon grease to the mixture, don't. You also should not substitute foods within a dog food recipe. Stick to the recipe. If the recipes are too expensive for you then you might not be able to afford feeding your dog homemade foods. Many people have made their animals very sick by not properly cooking the foods to save time or substituting foods to save money. For your dog's health, stick to the recipes.
Dog food recipes are fantastic when you find them from the right sources. You should only trust your veterinarian or a reliable source for a recipe and you should follow it exactly. The purpose of making homemade dog food is for your dog's health. So you should follow the recipes and pay attention to how your pet responds.About the AuthorLearn about making homemade dog food and more dog food secrets at http://www.saferpetfood.com