Archive for the 'Golden Retriever' Category

How to Stop a Golden Retriever Barking

Barking is definitely a normal behavior for Golden Retrievers, but it can definitely get old rather quickly. You’ll actually find that barking is a type of communication for dogs, but it can become rather disruptive and annoying when your dog is barking all the time. In fact, if you Golden barks too much, in some areas you may be fined or may end up getting hassled by your neighbors. After all, everyone would prefer to sleep at night, rather than listening to your dog bark through the night. Here is a look at how you can stop a Golden from barking all the time.

One reason that your dog may be barking all the time is because he wants to get your attention. This can occur if you’re not spending enough time with him or he isn’t getting the exercise and stimulation that is needed. How can you remedy this problem? Well, to keep your dog from barking to get your attention, you can work on spending more time with your dog. However, when your dog barks to get your attention, don’t immediately give it to him. You don’t want him to think that barking does get your attention or it will get even harder to stop the barking problem. If you give your dog plenty of attention, he’ll be less likely to try barking to get your companionship.

Many Golden Retrievers bark because they think that someone or something is a stranger. In some cases, this barking can alert you that something is wrong, but it becomes a problem when your Golden barks at everyone and everything. To keep your dog from barking all the time, it’s important to teach him the difference between people that are friends and those who are strangers. Let him know that the mail man and the garbage men are friends, not a danger that he needs to bark at all the time. However, you do want your dog to bark if something is really wrong.

Another way to keep your Golden Retriever from barking is to make sure that he has something to do. He may be barking because he is bored. Give him toys to play with while you are gone. You can also use special adjustable feeding balls and Kong chew toys to make him work for his food, which will give him something to do so he won’t get bored and bark all the time. Make sure you don’t tell your dog goodbye and make leaving a big event as well or he’ll stay home and bark, hoping this will make you come back.

While barking occasionally is fine and natural for a dog, chronic barking is definitely something that you want to avoid. With these tips and ideas, you can work on training your Golden Retriever not to bark all the time so he doesn’t become a nuisance to those who have to hear the barking all the time.

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admin on December 12th 2009 in Golden Retriever

How to Stop a Golden Retriever Digging

Is your Golden Retriever rivaling a professional excavator in your yard? More than likely you like your yard the way it is – free from all those holes. Goldens love digging. Digging seems to be in their blood. While it’s probably fun for him, you are probably sick of having to fix your yard all the time. If the dirt is always flying, it’s time that you learn how to stop a Golden Retriever from digging. Not sure where to begin this type of training? Here are some helpful tips and ideas to make it easier for you.

Probably one of the best ideas for Golden Retrievers is to supply them with a place that they are allowed to dig. They love digging and they need to have a place that they can dig without tearing up your nice yard and leaving you with a lot of work to do to repair the yard. One great idea is to either set aside an area in a corner of the yard where your dog is allowed to dig or to invest in a nice, deep sandbox for your Golden to play in. A sandbox isn’t that expensive and gives your dog a place where he can dig around and play without doing any damage to the yard and leaving big holes that can be dangerous if someone accidentally steps in them. Whenever your dog digs in the designated area, praise him. When he tries digging somewhere else, reprimand him and take him to the area where he is allowed to dig.

Another important thing you need to do is to immediately reprimand your Golden Retriever when he digs. Don’t wait until after he has dug the hole or he won’t really realize why you are rebuking him. It’s important that you catch your dog in the act and reprimand him right when the action occurs. This way your dog knows what behavior he is getting in trouble for.

One reason that many Goldens dig is to stay cool, especially during the summer time. Their coats are pretty thick, so they dig to get to the dirt that is cool and moist. If you can work to keep your dog cool, you probably won’t have him digging to find a cooler place. Make sure your dog has plenty of water to drink and plenty of nice shade to keep him cool. Giving your dog a pool of his own that he can splash around in can be a great idea too. Retrievers love water and the pool will keep your dog cool and happy, which will help to keep him from feeling the need to dig.

Sometimes Golden Retrievers dig because they are bored. This can mean that your dog isn’t getting the exercise that he needs, so he burns off that energy by digging. You can help to keep him from digging by making sure he gets plenty of exercise. If you make sure he’s exercised, then he’ll probably sleep instead of getting bored and digging holes.

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admin on December 11th 2009 in Golden Retriever

How to Stop a Golden Retriever Chewing

Golden Retrievers are beautiful and sweet dogs. They are known for their golden coats and their desire to please their master. These dogs make great family dogs, but like any dog, they do often get in some habits that you may want to break. The last thing you need is your dog chewing up your furniture or thinking that the rug is a chew toy. It’s important that you stop this behavior as soon as possible or something that is cute at first will quickly become destructive. So how can you stop a Golden Retriever from chewing? Here are some great tips that will help you.

If you want to keep your Golden from chewing, you need to give your dog some chew toys of his own to chew on. It’s in a dog’s nature to chew and it is healthy for their teeth – you just don’t want them doing it on your furniture or other items around your home. Purchase some chew toys and rawhide bones for your dog to chew on. If your dog has things that he knows he is allowed to chew on, he’s more likely to leave everything else alone. Teach your dog that those toys are for him to chew on and that everything else is off limits when it comes to chewing.

Whenever a dog does start chewing, it’s important that you correct this behavior as soon as you can. This is why it’s so important to start breaking the chewing habit while your dog is still a puppy so he quickly learns that chewing is not acceptable behavior. When your Golden Retriever is a puppy, you need to immediately correct him when he starts chewing on something he’s not supposed to. Use the command “Drop” to let your dog know that he should drop the item he’s chewing on. Take the item out of the dog’s mouth gently and replace the item with one of the toys he is allowed to chew on. This establishes what he is and isn’t allowed to be chewing on.

It’s also important that you make sure that your dog isn’t bored. Often dogs start chewing because they are bored or lonely. It’s important that you give your Golden plenty of attention or chewing may become a habit when they are stressed, bored, or even lonely. Ensure that your dog gets stimulation each day from play time, obedience training, and more. If your dog isn’t bored, he’s less likely to chew on things that you don’t want him to.

As you are training your Golden Retriever not to chew, it’s very important that you don’t yank a treat out of the mouth of your dog. If you have to remove something, do it gently or offer them something else to get him to drop the toy. You can rip out a tooth and hurt your dog if you just yank a toy out of his mouth, so be very careful as you are training him.

Golden Retrievers love to chew, and that’s fine as long as they are taught to chew the right things. With these tips you can break your Golden of chewing items he’s not supposed to so you don’t end up with shoes, pillows, and furniture that are all chewed up.

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admin on December 8th 2009 in Golden Retriever

How to Stop a Golden Retriever Biting

For the most part, Golden Retrievers have great personalities, but especially when they are puppies, they tend to bit a bit. Of course, they just think they are playing around, but it’s important that you teach them not to bite as soon as possible so they don’t grow up thinking that biting is okay. It’s definitely best to teach your Golden not to bite when they are as young as possible, since they are most impressionable when they are young. If you work with them consistently, you can teach them that biting is not acceptable behavior.

If you want to stop your Golden Retriever from biting, one of the most important things you can do is to make sure your puppy has plenty of toys. Biting the toys while playing is fine, but you don’t want him to bit you. Don’t engage in play time that includes him biting a person. If your Golden bites you, even in play, let out a high pitch yelp or “ouch.” This will startle your dog and will let them know that they hurt you. This is one thing that will help to keep him from biting in the future.

As you are working to train your Golden Retriever to stop biting, it’s important that everyone in the family works together on this. Trying to stop your dog from biting won’t work if everyone is not consistent with the training. If you have children, even they need to keep up the training.

If you want to know how to stop a Golden Retriever from biting, another thing you can do is to hold down loosely on the dog’s lower jaw. You should only do this if you’re sure that the dog won’t bit you very hard. Just make sure you don’t hold the lower jaw too hard because you don’t want to hurt your dog, but within a few seconds of trying this move, usually your Golden is going to realize that they shouldn’t be biting you. When your dog doesn’t bite, make sure you praise him.

Older dogs can be a bit more difficult to break of the biting habit. However, in many cases you’ll find that the reason a Golden Retriever is biting is because they are in pain. If you have a dog is in pain, you may need to go as far as getting a muzzle to put on him to prevent him from seriously hurting someone. If you think your dog is biting because of pain, it’s a good idea to have him checked out by the vet.

Some older dogs bite because they get overexcited when they are playing. It’s best to avoid wrestling around with these dogs and you shouldn’t play games with them that include them biting something. Work to play in short periods of time and ensure your dog is calm. If your Golden gets too excited, ignore him for a bit until he begins to calm down again.

Biting is a habit that can go from cute to dangerous very fast. You should never allow your dog to bit you or anyone else. If your Golden Retriever is biting, use these tips to train him that biting is not okay.

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admin on December 7th 2009 in Golden Retriever