Training Collar | Well-mannered Dogs Go Places

Whenever Jan Gribble sees people out walking or jogging, she wonders if they have a dog at home that they didn't bring because it wasn't trained.
Gribble is the owner of ABC Dog Training, and a member of the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors. From her home in Escondida, she leads all kinds of dog training classes and workshops, from basic manners to competitive dog agility, and she travels all over the state, working with shelters and conducting private consultations with owners.
What Gribble tries to do in every case is understand what owners want from their dog, and give them the tools to achieve it.
"People have different expectations of what constitutes a trained dog," she said. "As long as the dog is not in danger of losing its home, or in danger of hurting someone in the home, and is not a public nuisance " other than that, it's not my place to tell you how and what your relationship with your dog should be."
In her most basic class, she helps owners teach their dogs simple commands, such as sit, stay and come. She also works with owners on house training their pet and on curbing unwanted behaviors such as inappropriate chewing, jumping up on people and bolting through doors. If she doesn't feel she can help you, she said, she'll try to find you someone who can.
"I want to see people getting where they want to be with their dogs," she said. "Everyone that comes has different goals."
Good manners start with good socialization, and for that, Gribble offers a drop-in class called Puppy Antics.
Many dogs are "only children" and don't learn how to interact with other dogs, which can lead to fearful or aggressive behavior when they see other dogs out in public. One option is just to never take them anywhere, but it's not the only choice.
Puppy Antics is for vaccinated puppies between 10 and 16 weeks old, and is a little like a play date for your pet. Gribble also offers socialization walks for older dogs (and their owners) who are enrolled in any of her classes and workshops.
Another class Gribble debuted last year, called Two for the Road, is for people who'd really like to be able to enjoy walking their dogs, but don't, because the dog isn't much fun when it's at the other end of the leash.
Again, Gribble finds that people have widely different expectations. Some may be satisfied with a dog that just doesn't lunge and pull their arms out of their sockets, and others may want a dog that pays attention to their every signal and doesn't mark so much as a single bush.
"One of the focuses of this (class) is to help people understand what it means for your dog to be a good citizen when you take it out in public," Gribble said.
Eliminating on people's front lawns, for example, is not the mark of a good canine citizen.

Varied Toolbox
One of Gribble's philosophies is that there isn't one right way to accomplish a training goal, and the method must fit the dog, the owner and even the situation. There's no one-size-fits-all solution, which is why she's is equally versed in slip collars, prong collars, martingales and buckle collars. Head halters, for example, are not her favorite tool, but if that's what you want to use, Gribble will help you fit it properly and learn how to use it properly. In some situations, a remote training collar that delivers an electric shock may be the best option.
"The key is understanding how to use it properly," Gribble said. "I've seen a lot of people be very abusive with remote collars. I've also seen it done properly. And the fact is, people can be just as abusive with a buckle collar."
Whatever method or technique you use, Gribble said, what the vast majority of people really care about is results.
"It needs to be effective, and effective in a short amount of time," she said.
Efficiency is one of the reasons she prefers not to train with food; at some point, she explained, you have to take the food out of the equation, so you might as well not use it in the first place.
Gribble became interested in dog training as a graduate student at UNM; her landlord had a dog with "issues" and Gribble viewed it as a challenge. She began working with an obedience club in Albuquerque, went through their apprentice program, and worked first as the Animal Humane Shelter and then at the city shelter, where she helped develop their training program.
"After I'd put in 10 or so years as a volunteer, I had enough training to start charging for it," Gribble said.
Now, years later, she works with dogs morning noon and night, both at home and professionally. Two livestock guardian dogs look after her goats, sheep, free-range chickens and turkeys and Guinea fowl, and two working stock dogs help her run the sheep. There are always one or two foster dogs staying at her home that she's helping to rehabilitate, socialize and make more adoptable. Often she has house guests, in the form of pets belonging to her current and former students who are on the road or out of town for a while.
When she's not hosting Puppy Antics and socialization walks, Gribble is teaching. Her Companion Dog series of classes focuses on basic, intermediate and advanced obedience training, from sitting and staying to scent discrimination. Her Magical Maze series teaches beginning agility skills, and can be followed by the Incantations and Spells series, for people planning to compete in agility competitions with their dogs. Add to that her Herding Dog and Therapy Dog classes, and she would be one tired puppy if all those classes were offered at once. Fortunately, Gribble rotates her offerings based on the season and the demand, and to allow herself time for her consulting work.
"A lot of it is working with dogs with aggression issues, to see if they're adoptable, or if they can be rehabilitated and made adoptable," Gribble said. "As the economy has suffered, that work has slowed down. People are not investing so much in their animals."
With the economy the way it is, Gribble said people have suggested that her prices are a little high.
"Part of the reason my class fee is what it is," she said, "is that it comes with a lifetime guarantee. My clients can come back when they need to, to get help with things that come up. I believe in offering ongoing support."
Another reason, Gribble said, is that her fee allows her to weed out a lot of people who are just looking for a "magic wand" to apply to their dog's behavior and aren't going to commit the necessary time to training.
"In an ideal world," she said, "I really would like to see everyone have off-leash reliability."
The real bottom line for Gribble, though, is the welfare of the people and the dogs they own.

Cat Toilet Training | Yes, Some Cats Can Be Trained To Use The Toilet

LOS ANGELES -- Barbara Ogburn was waiting forguests to arrive for a dinner party when her Siamese cat Toby wentto use his litter box.

"The guest bathroom smelled horrible and there was littereverywhere," Ogburn said. "I looked at him and said, 'Dude, yourlitter box is gone.'"

Someone had given Ogburn a Litter Kwitter, a three-step trainingkit that teaches cats to use a toilet instead of a litter box. Shedecided to try it, and it worked. Now Ogburn, who's had cats sinceshe was a child, says she will never again have a litter box. Nomore buying litter, lugging it home, or cleaning it up.

Litter Kwitter and other toilet-training kits on the market forcats work like this: The toilet seat is fitted with a series ofplastic rings the cat can step on so it doesn't fall in. The holein the rings gets larger over time, until the cat can simplybalance on the toilet seat.

But training a cat to use the toilet is not as easy as getting acat to use a litter box. Cats instinctively bury their waste tohide it from predators, and litter fosters that instinct in a waythat using the toilet does not, according to Steve Duno of Seattle,a veteran pet behaviorist and trainer who has written 18 books.

That's why, when switching to the toilet, some cats will scrapethe bowl, the tank or the wall next to the toilet. Outdoor cats arenot good candidates for toilet-training.

In addition, some cats tolerate change in their routines, whilefor others, even a slight change in feeding schedules will maketheir worlds fall apart, said Dr. Meghan E. Herron, chiefveterinarian at the Behavioral Medicine Clinic, part of theDepartment of Veterinary Clinical Services at Ohio StateUniversity.

"Cats are slaves to routine and very wary of danger tothemselves," Duno added.

And there is nothing about the size or height of a toilet thatis normal to a cat, Herron said. "One bad experience with a toiletcan make them never use it again," she said.

Duno, who has toilet-trained several cats, says he's "known catsthat have fallen into the toilet and that's it, you're done rightthere."

You also need patience. "Cats learn at a very metered pace,"Duno said. If you go too fast, your cat might find other places -furniture, plants, rugs or closets - to go, Herron said.

When you talk about toilet-trained cats, most people think ofMr. Jinx, Robert De Niro's beloved, toilet-flushing, mayhem-makingcat in "Meet the Parents," "Meet the Fockers" and "LittleFockers."

Dawn M. Barkan trained all the Himalayan cats that portrayed Mr.Jinx in those movies, including two rescued cats, Peanut andCharlie, who still live with her.

Misha, who has since died, did the original scene, but "wedidn't really train him to use the toilet," said Barkan, whofreelances for Los Angeles-based Birds Animal Unlimited."It's movie magic." The cat sat on a prop designed to look like atoilet and pressed a button so that the toilet appeared to beflushed. Sound effects were added later.

The idea for Litter Kwitter came from "Meet the Parents," saidJo Lapidge, who with her husband Terry invented the kit.

After research and tests, the Sydney, Australia, couple launchedtheir company in 2005. Since then, they've sold 750,000 kits.

Lapidge says the kit has an 80 percent success rate that "wouldbe higher if humans stopped to follow all the instructions andshowed a bit more patience."

In addition to toilet-training products with plastic rings -ranging in price from lightweight plastic for about $10 to LitterKwitter at $50 - there are also online how-to sites and books thatexplain how to toilet-train your cat.

Online customer reviews for the products are mixed. Even thosewho say they've been successful often say it took several months tocomplete the training, with the cat having accidents along the way.One commenter for a toilet-training kit for a product calledCitiKitty gave it five stars but cautioned that the process was"messy."

There is one disadvantage for cat-owners who successfully traintheir animals. Owners may be alerted to health problems by howoften a cat uses its litter box or the odor, color or texture ofwaste. With a toilet, "you can't monitor the cat's health throughelimination evidence," Duno said.

In addition, as a toilet-trained cat ages, it may have a hardtime leaping onto the seat.

Herron cautioned that a cat is likely to find another place togo rather than wait in line at a bathroom door, so a spare or guestbathroom the animal can use works best.

One benefit in addition to doing away with litter: Toiletsdiminish the risk of humans contracting parasites or infectiousdiseases like toxoplasmosis, ringworm or tapeworm from catwaste.

Finally, no matter how happy you might be to have toilet-trainedyour cat, Duno said this is one animal behavior that shouldn't berewarded with a treat.

"You are choreographing it, but you are not actively encouragingit," Duno said. "You can't be there to praise the cat. It's toodistracting."

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Dog Training Schools | 6 Reasons Why You Should Send Your Pet To A Dog Training School

One school of dog obedience is a great place for your puppy to learn some new "tricks" that will keep him out of trouble and are facing legal and / or financial. This article gives six reasons why sending your pet to obedience school dog is a smart thing to do.
1. Training your dog to be obedient is a great way to correct the bad habits that he or she may already have. Dogs can forget the bad and destructive behaviors are taught new behaviors with appropriate training methods.
2. One school of dog obedience is perfect for busy people who simply do not have the resources to train their pets at home. If your pet seems to be little more realistic than most dogs tend to be, could be better than enroll in a school pet that will teach you to be more obedient and well mannered.
3. When you have a dog who follows directions, saving him from potential hazards. An unruly dog ??can become a threat to himself. If you won 't follow the instructions, such as not running into the streets, staying still in the kitchen, and other commands, which can get into a situation where you can be injured or killed.
4. An obedient dog will also save you from potential problems. Your dog can become too rebellious and contumacious and may end up biting the neighbors or children. This can create financial and legal problems, possibly for you. For your pet to obey your instructions will save you money and time.
5. Pet schools have professional coaches that will teach your dog to easily understand the instructions. Some dog trainers also teach dog owners how to communicate properly with their pets.
6. Enroll your pet in obedience school will save you time because you do not have to start from scratch to train your dog to be polite. You simply trust their beloved pets and let the professionals do their job of transforming your dog in a most loving and obedient pet.

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Toilet Training A Cat | Training A Cat To Use The Bathroom

A lot of people who have cats like to get the smelly cat litter home. And when a male cat that isn 't gelding is at home, can be severe. Male cats that have been raised with cats will have a strong smell of urine when the spray area. When toilet training your cat urine odor cat at home will be reduced, especially if toilet training your cat has been raised.

It isn 't possible for your cat to go potty. By marking out their territory, their yard will begin to stink. Marries won 't just smell horrible, but their gardens and shrubs will be destroyed if you allow your cat to the smell of your patio. There is also the fact that the neighborhood cats will be affected by your cat Tom. It is advisable to keep your cat in the house, so no other cats can get pregnant.

If you have patience, then the teaching of any cat to use the bathroom can be simple. Older cats take longer to toilet train than younger .. Do not take more, but the young cats resolve faster. To start training a cat, put the litter box in the bathroom to use. A good idea if you have two bathrooms is to use one of the humans in the house and one to train your cat.

Your cat is accustomed to going to the bathroom to use her litter box. It would be advisable to put the litter box as close to the toilet as you can get. It may be useful after the cat get used to the bathroom if you have a small stool that can set the litter box in the upper. This will help your cat used to jump into the sandbox. The next thing to do when the control is a cat toilet training your cat uses the litter box instead of going to the bathroom.

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House Training Dog | Best Canine Dog Tips For Your Pets

As a brand new canine owner, you'd in all probability get confused of the right way to discover effective sources to your pet's training needs. You don't have to ignore it in any other case you can be facing future issues brought by your puppies' unruly behavior. Given this, you already know that dog training is crucial if you happen to happen to personal a dog. The following question that probably comes to your thoughts is: Do I have to get a coach for my pet or can I just prepare it my self?

It's past doubt that hiring a trainer is very advantageous to both the puppy and its master. His knowledge and expertise alone is enough guarantee that your pet can study within the shortest time possible. He also can teach you to easy methods to assert yourself when issuing the instructions as soon as the training is over.

The service of a coach could be very costly. This has driven many pet house owners to find another different: Coaching their canine themselves.

With the price of hiring a coach, homeowners training their very own puppies are now common. Know-how has additionally helped drastically in helping them purchase the abilities with dog coaching e-books, dog coaching DVDs and dog coaching guides which are offered available in the market today. Learning to train our own canines helps you to keep away from the excessive price of hiring a coach; it also lets you see how fulfilling it is to be able to practice your personal pup.

As a pup owner, you must learn to care in your pet and prepare them. Pet coaching articles comparable to this are useful instruments that may help you already know your canine's nature and behavior. Knowing your pet very well will aid you create a very good relationship with it. A dog that is understood by its master is a cheerful pet.

Deciding whether or not to hire a coach on your pet requires you to make an assessment of you budget. You also have to commit certain interval to be spent with your pet while it's nonetheless undergoing training. Primarily based on observations, many pet homeowners are now switching to canine coaching courses that use tested strategies fairly than employ a trainer which may be very expensive. This doesn't only save them a lot of money; this additionally gives them the chance to learn.

House training a puppy is all a matter of routine, so when you've got reached the purpose the place you are asking "how do I stop my dog peeing in the home?" you might want to understand immediately that that is happening as a result of you have not yet established that obligatory potty training routine for him.

A puppy doesn't come to you already trained. He's just been taken away from his siblings and the setting he was born into and was used to. He is frightened and doubtless very confused.

So-Tip No 1: By no means ever punish him or shout at him for accidents. All this may achieve is to make him even more frightened and fewer receptive to learning what is anticipated of him. This is by far the most important tip. In the long term, persistence and kindness are the quickest route.
Tip Number 2: Don't enable your new pet to have the run of the house; hold him in a restricted space however make it someplace the place he can see you and hear you. I am a very robust believer in crate training a pet, this then makes the method especially easy.
Tip Number three: Instantly you get up within the morning, take your pet exterior to the identical place every time and repeat the identical word to him in a cheerful, encouraging voice. I've always repeated "Quickly", but it can be anything supplied you stick with the identical word. When he has peed, pat him and praise him lavishly. Inform him he is a "good dog".
Tip Quantity 4: Immediately after your puppy has eaten take him outside and repeat the process.
Tip Quantity 5: At all times go out through the identical door in order that it all becomes a part of the routine. As a precaution, keep the ground by the door coated with newspaper and always hold a watchful eye on the pet and every time he walks over to the door and particularly if he begins sniffing the floor or trotting round in circles, take him outdoors to the same old place.
Tip Quantity 6: A pet naps rather a lot throughout the day. Every time he wakes from a nap, take him outside. Again, this requires you to be vigilant. If he wakes up and you aren't round to take him outside, that is your fault, not his!
Tip Number 7: Don't count on a pet to undergo the night with no need to go outside. Place his crate or mattress near yours with the intention to hear him immediately he begins to wake and take him outside to his familiar spot fast.
Ultimately house coaching a puppy is only one a part of the entire dog coaching picture. All through, you will have to be calm and depend on optimistic reinforcement. Shouting and punishment will set you again weeks and will very simply destroy your pet's confidence, making all different training difficult to return my choice for crate training a pet makes it so much simpler prohibit your sure area while you're engaged in other activities around the home provide him with clear comfy blanket and cuddly doggie toy he'll in a short time accept as his house of course ought to never view jail permit out continuously outdoors pee eat drink particularly play video games vigorous sport tire happily peeing nap tired is nice involve romp before settling down night

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Dog Training Course | Video Dog Training Course: Online School Offers Dog Training And Dynamic ...

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Professional Dog Trainer | Dog Trainer Born With Gift Of Canine Communication

As Teresa Tuttle talks about her ability to communicate with andunderstand dogs, she pauses and says, "It's hard to explain, and itmakes me sound crazy."

Tuttle's father wasn't a professional dog trainer, but she grewup watching him be able to communicate with the family dogs.

"My assumption was everybody could do it," she said.

As an 11-year-old, she remembered telling a friend not toapproach a dog because she knew the dog would bite her. The dogwasn't growling, but something about its demeanor was like "aflashing neon light above his head that he was gonna bite."Ignoring Tuttle's advice, the little girl reached out to the dogand it snapped.

"It's just a flick of the ear or tail; it's a cock of the heador a relaxed face," she said. "I truly feel like I'm gifted. My dadhad it; I have it. Everyone has their own quirks, this just happensto be mine."

Tuttle is a self-employed dog trainer and volunteer with thePermian Basin Obedience Training Club.

She began participating in agility competitions in 1996 afterrealizing her energetic 7-pound pomeranian, Kit, was able to jumpand clear a 3-foot fence. She began to see the potential in her petwhen she discovered the competitions on TV, and enlisted in a dogtraining class in Odessa.

She acquired the equipment necessary to train her dog: a teeter,dog walk, a-frame, tunnels, jumps and weave poles. The pairtraveled to advanced seminars around Texas, and after three monthswere competing in agility trials. Soon, others were asking her totrain their dogs for agility competitions, and she began givinggroup lessons. About 20-25 people in the Permian Basin participatein agility trials, Tuttle said.

Five years ago, a divorce led Tuttle to rethink her financialposition, and she took a job as an administrative assistant at theMuscular Dystrophy Association's Midland office. She took time offfrom dog training to focus on her son who has special needs, and inApril this year started giving classes again. She is starting offslow, having just finished her first novice class at an agilityfield located at the corner of Rainkin and County Road 150. Herclasses meet once a week and reach capacity at six dog owners andtheir furry friends.

"I'm teaching the people to teach the dogs," Tuttle said. "Dogsare easy; people can be hard."

The only thing holding Tuttle back from going into dog trainingfull time is the lack of benefits for self-employed professionals.She once got her hand caught in a leash and suffered a spiral breakin her finger. The resulting surgery cost $3,000.

"That kind of stuff scares me," she admitted. "How do you payfor that if you don't have health insurance?"

As a volunteer, one of Tuttle's fortes has been working withdogs that have behavioral problems. She tends to work with dogsthat have agression out of fear more than those with trueagression, oftentimes accepting them into her home.

"I take them to a quiet environment where they don't feelthreatened," she said. "We go through lots of chicken and treats. Adog that's willing to eat is not stressed and is capable oflistening and learning."

She also does temperament evaluations, where she determines thepersonality of a dog by playing with it. By doing so, she's able tohelp ensure a rescue dog will be a good fit for a prospectivefamily.

In addition to her two adult children, Tuttle has three furryfamily members in her rough coat border collie Spree, 7, goldenretriever Caper, 6, and her recently rescued short coat bordercollie Kizzy, 7 months.

"That's my shoe eater," she said, nodding at Kizzy. Chewing isto be expected from puppies, Tuttle noted. On the other hand, shehas lost a pair of blinds to a foster dog because of severeseparation anxiety.

Tuttle has been working with Kizzy on what she currently isteaching her students. She leads the dog to put its nose to herhand and waits for Kizzy to push her hand back. That motion willtransfer to the dog pushing necessary targets in agilityevents.

"Yes! Good girly," Tuttle exclaims when the dog follows through.She walks forward and backward; Kizzy follows perfectly in step,but still needs a little work walking on Tuttle's left side.

"Back, back, back," Tuttle repeats. "Awesome, that wasperfect."

The key to getting a dog to do simple tricks like sitting,laying or rolling over is to reward the dog with a treat or cookiethe moment the command is followed. Faulting more than ahalf-second might make the dog think you're rewarding it for adifferent behavior.

"If there's one thing you need to have working with dogs ispatience," Tuttle said. She spends at least five minutes everymorning and evening with Kizzy working on self control andobedience methods. Without obedience, she said, agility trainingbecomes very difficult. In an average American Kennel Club agilitycompetition, there are 18 to 21 obstacles for those in the"excellent," or top, division.

"I don't force; I shape," Tuttle said. "I want my dog to workwith me as a team. You'll find out they're extremely intelligent ifyou just spend a little time with them."

If there was any indication Tuttle truly can relate to dogs,it's the way she's treated by cats.

"Cats don't like me," she said. "They will come out and find me,bite me, and go back to where they were hiding."

She gives a knowing look to her puppy, Kizzy, saying, "Cats aremean, aren't they? Cats are bad."

Sara Higgins can be reached at shiggins@mrt.com .

Teresa Tuttle can be reached through the Permian Basin ObedienceTraining Club, (432) 570-4335 or www.pbotc.com , or by calling (432)638-7984.