DogBoy's Dog Blog

Humans do a lot of things that just drive dogs insane. We try to make our dogs act like humans, BUT they’re dogs.

Submissive urination is a fairly common problem, especially with smaller dogs and puppies. However, sometimes it can be difficult to determine if the urination is caused by other issues, such as:

Leashes are a necessity if you're a dog owner. Choosing the right leash is nearly as important as making sure you are feeding your dog the right food or getting them the right training. Almost every dog I know will chase anything new and exciting that moves, if given the opportunity.

Sometimes that adorable curiosity can land them in big trouble though. That's where the tried and true dog leash comes in handy. So, it’s extremely important to make sure you're using the right leash for your dog, and avoiding the ones that might harm them.

Here’s DogBoy’s three simple steps to guide you toward the right leash for your dog:

First: DON'T Use These Dog Leashes

Before we discuss our recommendation on the right leashes for your dog, let’s make sure you know the wrong ones first.

One of the most common and most dangerous leashes is the Flexi Leash. It seems so convenient at first, because it gives your dog free rein to go at their own pace.

I understand completely why someone would want to use this leash at first glance. They're inexpensive, have a nice handle, and it seems like it gives your dog a sense of freedom while you maintain control. However, the Flexi Leash is a long, thin line that can easily wrap around a person and trip them up or cause injury. It has caused burns, cuts, and other serious injuries to dogs and humans alike.

You also don’t want to use any leash that cinches your dog’s neck or body. These leashes can actually cause permanent damage to your dog’s trachea and neck. It’s difficult to control the tightness of the leash and accidents can easily happen with an over-enthusiastic dog.

This is a re-post (with some changes of course) of our article about the dangers of mixing Dogs and fireworks on New Year’s Eve and some ways to help. These all are equally true for Independence Day! Here’s our guide for keeping your dog safe and sound this July 4th.

Independence Day is a fun time for a lot of people. They love to go out, watch the fireworks and have a great time with all of their friends. For many dog owners, their dogs are their best friends, so they take their dog along to holiday festivities without hesitation, including to watch fireworks on July 4th.

This is a bad idea.

Here’s why you should avoid fireworks with your dogs on the holidays, and some options for you if you intelligently choose to enjoy the fireworks without them:

1. Fireworks Are Incredibly Stressful For Dogs

On July 4th humans see fireworks and understand the context of these explosions. So, the stress response in the average person has been desensitized and our brains do not sense the need to shift into survival mode. Some people may be more sensitive to the sound, but most of the time, barring extreme or traumatic circumstances in certain individuals, they still understand that fireworks do not present an immediate danger.

Dogs do not understand the context of human holidays or fireworks - they just see and hear big explosions in the sky and fear the worst.

Figuring out how much to feed your dog is something that many dog owners struggle with. Dogs are great at convincing us that they are starving to death using those big puppy eyes. It’s very tempting to cave in and give them more food. But, you have to be careful about how much you feed your dog, and be vigilant with their portion sizes.

Approximately 58% of dogs in the United States are overweight or obese. Obesity causes tons of problems in our dogs, ranging from health-related joint issues, diabetes, and even behavioral issues.

OK, So How Much Should I Feed My Dog?

Unfortunately this question is completely subjective. The easy approach is to follow the guidelines printed on whichever bag of food you buy. Be careful that you feed the recommended amount for your dog's ideal weight, not their current weight.

The higher quality food you buy, the less you need to feed. Higher quality foods are more nutrient-dense and have less filler in them, therefore your dog needs less in order to get their required nutrition.

This is a commonly asked question by clients at DogBoy’s, and for good reason! Lingering misconceptions that come from the old days of training tell you to wait six months to a year before you begin.

While that was true then, the current approach to dog training is more flexible and allows you start right away. Force-free methods let puppy training begin at just a few days old, if needed.

Starting Puppy Classes as Soon as Possible is Vital

Puppy classes are some of the most important and effective means of early development. We recommend starting these basic courses as soon as you get your new puppy.

You and your puppy will learn vital skills. More importantly, you will learn how to communicate with each other and develop a bond that will carry into their adult life. Beyond personal growth for you and your puppy, classes expose them to new people, new places, new objects and new dogs, giving them invaluable socialization skills and experience.

So your dog knows how to sit, down, stay, come when called, leave it, and walk on a loose leash. That's great. Those are extremely important foundational behaviors that all dogs should know, especially when you ask them to. But, what about the behaviors that we'd love our dogs to perform on their own?

Generally, when we think about what a dog should know, we go to those usual basics. While knowing these skills is vital for your dog and you to have an enjoyable relationship, there are some skills that we tend to not think about, or overlook:

 

Self-Settling

This is something that I put a large amount of stock in. It is extremely important for dogs to be able to self-soothe and self-settle. This means that a dog who is not being directly interacted with can simply hang out without trying to do a million things at once. You would be surprised at how few dogs have this skill.

A general frequent question that we get from all of our clients is “How do I train my dog?”.

It’s Between You and Your Dog

Deciding what to feed your dog is a very personal decision. At DogBoys, we see everything from people cooking every meal for their dog, to dogs that are on a raw food diet, or even dogs that eat some bottom of the barrel brand their whole life and nothing else.

There are lots of aversive training tools out there, and pinch or prong collars are among my least favorite. Prong collars have metal spikes turned inward that pinch a dog's neck. If used inappropriately, they can actually put holes in a dog’s skin and cause major damage to a dog's neck. A lot of people use them because they're old school tools used to teach a dog to behave and not pull on the leash. The owner simply has to jerk on the leash and the dog goes “OW! I'll stop whatever I’m doing!” Often times the poor dog doesn’t even know what they did wrong.

There are so many reasons to not use these terrible devices, so I decided to outline just a few of them. If you know anyone who still uses prong collars on their dogs, please send this article to them right away.

1. Prong collars are an OUTDATED and ineffective dog training tool.

There are still dog trainers out there using prong collars, but that doesn’t make it right! There are still several trainers that use a variety of aversive training techniques and tools. I just saw one recently. A local animal shelter had a video on their social media page of a trainer who was proudly showing off a shelter dog's leash walking skills. Here’s the problem, the dog had a prong collar on.

It shocked me, to say the least, especially because it was being used in a shelter environment, where dogs are supposed to be SAFE FROM HARM. And all I could think, besides feeling terrible for the poor dog, was: “Of course he’s going to walk nicely for you on a leash, you have a prong collar on! As soon as you take it off, he's going to run away from you!” If someone tells you that prong collars are perfectly safe for the animal, it’s not true. Even those with the best intentions get frustrated while dog training, and then that gentle tug they claim to use turns in to a rough jerk, which can really cause damage and serious behavioral consequences.