Pet Advice

Submissive urination in cocker spaniel
Why and When do Cocker Spaniels Urinate? Many Cocker Spaniels have a tendency to urinate (pee) when excited or scared, which can happen to other breeds as well, particularly when they are puppies. Excitement urination happens when infant muscles in puppies cannot hold urine if the puppy gets excited, and it pees. The puppy gets so excited when he sees his owner that he loses control of his bladder. The puppy is not aware of or able to control this and punishment will confuse him and is not fair to him. Often dogs outgrow this problem as they mature and gain control of the muscles that control peeing. Sometimes Cocker Spaniels do not outgrow the problem. Common situations in which Cocker Spaniels get excited or fearful and urinate are: Over-affectionate and boisterous greetings when you arrive home Guests entering your home Arguments between people Scolding Loud noises Playing indoors Angry behavior In order to understand submissive urination, you must understand dominance and submissiveness. Young puppies learn this from their mothers. Averting their eyes, rolling on their backs, and urinating, are all used to express submissiveness. In situations where a dog feels intimidated, their response is to give a submissive signal to show the person or other dog that they recognize their dominance. The most important thing is to never scold or punish your dog for excitement urination; it makes the situation worse as the puppy will then start to pee out of fear! Excitement or submissive urination is part of this breed s specific instincts. It is not a behavior ; it is instinctual. The dog is not doing it to be disobedient or punish you! He is excited, scared, or showing submissiveness to a person or animal he perceives as dominant. Excitement urination that causes an owner to get angry can easily become submissive urination. The dog does not understand why you are angry and, in a dog s mind, peeing is his attempt to calm and appease you. Cocker Spaniels often see other animals and people as dominant, so submissive urination occurs. Even a housetrained Cocker Spaniel may show excitement or submissive urination when greeting you or when in an exciting or scary situation. How to Prevent and Handle Excitement or Submissive Urination? The first thing to do is have your veterinarian examine your dog for possible physical problems causing this problem. Sickness and disease can make it difficult for your pet to control their peeing muscles. If physical problems are the cause, discuss options regarding your dog’s situation with your veterinarian, such as surgery, drugs, and coping mechanisms. Dog owners who are too dominant and strict will reinforce submissive urinating. So, calm down and be gentle and kind with your Cocker Spaniel. Get your temper under control! Never scold or punish for excitement or submissive urination. One way to handle the problem is to make sure your Cocker Spaniel is outdoors while you are gone (in a fenced and safe area naturally) so that when you come home, if he urinates, your floors are not damaged. But this does not solve the problem. It is a good idea to do more to help the puppy stay dry. All indoor activities should take place only after taking the dog out for a pee or poop. If a dog is almost ready to pee or poop, but hasn’t gotten around to doing it, any physical activity will trigger the urge to go. So, if your dog wakes up and you start playing with her, you’re asking for trouble! Take a potty break first, have play time second. Play time outdoors is the best idea, especially for the puppies that have small bladders. Don t hover over your Cocker Spaniel when you come home. She will see this as dominance and will become intimidated. Don t look her directly in the eyes. Dogs assume that direct eye contact is a challenge. For a submissive dog, even a moment’s eye contact can be intolerable. Eye contact from above heightens the reaction. Another behavior that challenges a dog is bending over or touching the dog’s head, neck, or shoulders. Dominant dogs often control by placing the neck or a paw over another dog’s neck or shoulders. When a human pats a dog on the head, a submissive dog sees it as a display of dominance and finds it intimidating, leading to peeing. A goal in controlling excitement urination is to prevent your dog from becoming so excited in the first place. Do this by exposing your dog to whatever excites him, over and over until it no longer excites him. If your dog gets excited and wets when you return home, ignore him; don’t even look at him. Then take him outside to pee. Then leave again for a few minutes, return and ignore, leave, return and ignore. Keep doing this until you can see that your dog is actually bored with the whole thing. If excitement urination is a problem when visitors arrive, have them do this too. It may take many sessions to get your dog calmed down. When your dog stays calm and no longer gets excited when you come in, then very quietly and gently say hello. If any signs of excitement appear, repeat the coming in-and-leaving routine. A rapid sequence of heel-sits will capture your dog’s attention to the game of heeling and sitting instead of urinating. Then, take him outdoors. Praise him when he pees outside; this builds self-confidence. Remember to ignore all excitement urination and never scold or get angry at your dog. As the dog matures, he can learn to sit and shake hands when visitors arrive. Use a small food treat as a reward for not peeing in the house when you arrive home or guests enter. It s difficult for a dog to eat and pee at the same time. Take the dog outdoors quickly thereafter. If your Cocker Spaniel pees while being trained, be especially careful not to yell or scold him. Be firm and use a confident-sounding, but kind, No when the dog misbehaves. If your dog’s problem doesn t improve with the above suggestions, there may be other options. For example, drugs can sometimes be prescribed by a vet for excitable dogs to calm them down. But, remember, this kind of training can take weeks or months before Learn all about Dog Adoption from the unique e-book Super Dogs and Puppies. If you are searching for dog breeders, learn how to choose the right dog breeder. Nancy Richards has been a dog lover for the past 12 years. She has owned and handled dogs of different ages and have helped many fellow owners in training their dog
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Trimming Pet's Nails: Take Proper Care Of Your Pet
Most pet owners understand how to take proper care of their pet. Many basic grooming procedures consist of brushing, bathing, and getting their hair cut. Some, however, overlook one of the most important tasks in keeping your pet well groomed. This part involves nothing more than keeping your pet’s nails neatly trimmed. Believe it or not, this is very important for a pet’s health and well being. Several benefits of this process include better mobility, less pain, bonding, and better health. These are all excellent benefits that make this process worth attempting. Granted, trimming a pet’s nails may seem like a difficult job, and it can be because many pets do not necessarily enjoy this and they are not afraid to let their owners know about it. Fortunately, there are some incredible tools available to make the job less painful for both of you. Using them and getting the job done correctly can have many benefits that are too large to ignore. When you keep up with trimming your pet’s nails, you can discover the following benefits: Mobility - When a dog’s claws are allowed to grow too long, basic tasks such as running and walking become painful and more difficult. This may even become a problem for very young dogs with a lot of energy. Dogs in particular, enjoy running and playing and by keeping their nails short, you can increase their comfort level while performing these activities. Keeping your pet’s claws correctly and neatly trimmed can help ensure that he never suffers the unnecessary pain long nails can cause. Better health - When claws are allowed to grow too long over an extended period of time, health problems can arise. An ordinarily healthy dog can become lame from favoring paws while walking. In some cases, broken nails can be an issue and can even cause infections in the paws. Long nails can cause problems for your pet including infections. These infections are caused by the nail cracking or splitting. Increased comfort - If you do not trim a cat’s nails often, they may begin scratching in an attempt to shorten their own nails. They may use a variety of surfaces including your furniture. Unfortunately, this also means that they may scratch you and other objects in your home. Bonding - Nail trimming and other routine health care maintenance can be the perfect time to bond with your cat or dog. Try to make the experience as enjoyable as possible and it can pay off for both of you. When you begin the process by calming your pet and finish by giving your pet a treat, he or she may look forward to a weekly claw inspection and trimming. This is a great experience because you can tell that your pet is happy and you know they are healthy too. Getting the Job Done With Ease If you want to make sure your pet enjoys the benefits of routine claw trimming, you may want to learn how to perform the job yourself. Yes, you can go to a groomer for this, but it can prove costly to keep up with on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. There are several tools and tips for trimming your pet’s nails. To trim a cat or dog’s claws with relative ease, consider the following tips: Getting a nail grinder - There are specialized tools for trimming canine and feline claws. Rather than technically cut, they grind. These devices make it easier for you to handle the job and less intimidating for your dog or cat. A nail grinder is a tool that grinds the nails rather than cut them. This can be less painful for your pet because there is a lower chance of cutting the quick. Using rewards - Do not overlook the value of rewarding your pet for behaving well during a trim. When you reinforce that a treat is coming after a trim, your pet should respond well. Taking it with a grain of salt - If you are new at trimming your pet’s claws and find the job is a little difficult, do not sweat it. Rather than try to trim all four paws in one sitting, do one at a time. If your pet seems distressed, just back off for a bit and come back to the job later. There are many benefits to trimming your pet’s nails. The main benefits include better mobility for your pet, improved overall health, and less pain. These benefits are worth it and even though your pet may be uncomfortable with the process, you should try to find ways to help them get through it. Rewards are important because they show your pet that your care and they were good during the process. This helps them to behave in a similar manner during the next nail trimming.Jeremy Foster is a freelance writer who writes about pet care and pet products, focusing primarily on specific pet care products such as <a href="http://www.taylorgifts.com/prodetail~itemNo~29015.asp">Pedi Paws.</a>
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5 Tips For Training Dogs Successfully
Training dogs is not a hard. You just need patience, dedication and some simple tactics and you will teach them successfully. Here are five top tips on how to train your dogs successfully: 1. To avoid your dog getting confused and so that they can learn to recognize commands easily only one person should be responsible for training the dog initially. If too many people are trying to train the dog at the same time this can stop progress in its tracks. 2. You should use positive reinforcements. If the dog does something good, you should reward this behavior so that he will know that what he did was right. If the dog cannot understand or follow your commands, never push him. Dogs are not as intelligent as humans, they make mistakes. What you should understand is that they won?t easily understand your commands in just one teaching, it takes repetition to train a dog successfully. Do not scold your dog as he might develop fear which will hinder his learning and willingness to be trained. You can use treats in order to encourage your dogs, although don?t overdue it. 3. Teach commands one at a time. Try to teach him one command after the other. If he cannot absorb it, try to stay on that command only because adding additional commands will just confuse the dog. Start with the basics. 4. In executing commands, you should keep your voice cheerful so that the dog will happily follow your commands. Dogs will respond to a low and coaxing voice. If you shout out loud, he may become startled and unresponsive. 5. Train your dog in various places. If you keep your dogs in a certain place like your home, he will not be able to adjust with the environment new people. Take him to the park or through the neighborhood. This will help your dog associate with other dogs and people. Training your dog can sometime be tough, but it will be worth it. In the end, you will be the one to benefit when your dog is trained. You don?t know he might even save your life one day and pay back everything you taught him. Simon Oliver has an interest in Recreational Activities & Hobbies. To find out how you can get more information on successfully training your dog please visit this <a href="http://www.boxer-dog-guide.com">Boxer Dog</a> site.
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