Lifestyle Living with Your Dog

What does this mean? How do we do it? These are some of the questions I will be discussing in this blog.

We just cannot live the same way without a dog in our life as we will with one in our life.

We don’t live in their world; they live in ours. One of the most important things we need to do is training or teaching our new dog how to live with us. It’s not fair for them if we just let them figure it out by scolding them when they make a mistake. Because they don’t know what is right and what is wrong.

First order of business is to make sure they our safe in our environment. The best way to do this is with a crate. Some people think this is to confine or even mean. Dogs are den animals and they find comfort in a crate.

Of course, it has to be used properly.

If you are not playing, training, taking them potty, feeding them, cuddling them they need to be in a crate.

When we do these things, when we put them in the crate, they will be tired. They will also be learning the crate is a great place. This way when you do leave, they will rest peacefully in the crate until you return.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is to only put their pup in the crate when they are leaving. This will make your pup uncomfortable because it’s is so different then how they live.

Lifestyle Living with Your Dog

Setting boundaries, helps our new friend be able to learn what is expected of them. This is the beginning of how they learn what is acceptable and what is not.

For instance, chewing on your new shoes is not but on the new toy you give is perfect. If you make the mistake and say it’s an old shoe it’s ok. Then be prepared to lose a new shoe to them later. It’s not fair to expect them to know the difference.

To them a shoe is a shoe.

One of the best practices to set boundaries is our doorways. Make your pup sit and wait at all doorway’s, then release them with an “ok” to go through. Do this at the create doors as well as a car door getting in and out.

Also do this with your pups’ food.

This are called preventive training as you are setting the stage for your pup to respect doorway. This way you will not have to deal with discipline later when you dog bolts out the door.

These are habits we must get into as a lifestyle living with our dogs. Take the time it is well worth it!

When we live in a lifestyle with our dog, always teaching them how to live with. We end up with a much happier dog, and we are happier too. Doing this teaches our dog by giving direction so they don’t have to make mistakes.