Dogs are really surprisingly complex creatures and so that you can have relationship along with your dog it’s best to learn a bit about their nature.
Dogs are descended from wolves and due to this fact have lots of the same characteristics although some behaviors are a results of 1000’s of years of interaction with humans. Understanding these characteristics could make life along with your dog easier.
Firstly, dogs are very social animals and thrive in a gaggle or pack environment. Within the wild, isolation is a type of punishment of the person by the pack and never a cushty state in your dog. While there are occasions when isolation for brief periods might be used as part of coaching to stop unwanted behavior, locking your dog away for long periods will lead to unwanted behavior problems.
Isolation from contact with humans and other animals invariably results in fear, aggression and other types of ‘bad’ behavior. Dogs need companionship with a purpose to develop healthy behavior patterns. In any human-dog relationship, the human should be the alpha dog, the leader of the pack. Your dog must look to you for tips on how to behave and you should be consistent in what you expect of your dog and what you teach him.
You realize the saying “Curiosity killed the cat”? Well, dogs are also very curious animals and can explore their environment to the fullest. Unfortunately, they do not know the bounds of their environment (until you teach them) and can happily wander off to explore your neighbours garden.
Exploration, for dogs, involves greater than looking and smelling, they like to taste and chew absolutely anything. This might be deadly in your dog. You have to give him some healthy alternatives chew on and a protected area where he can explore and never cause damage to the yard or himself.
Digging is one other a part of exploring and in some dogs, like my terriers, is a really strong instinct. I actually have areas of the yard where I allow them to dig (where the mice are) and others where I stop them in the event that they start which the rarely do. It doesn’t take them very long to have a two foot hole dug. I leave it until they lose interest (the mice have moved on) after which I fill it in and put some sod over it.
The rationale my terriers dig is that dogs are predators they usually are hunting the mice. They’ve incredible hearing and sense of smell and might tell if a mouse has been there in the previous few days. They’ll quickly dispatch them once they can catch them. It isn’t particularly nice to see them dispatch the mice or squirrels and if I can distract them long enough for the critters to get away a lot the higher. My dogs have had the joys of the hunt. After they have been to fast for his or her prey, I grab their favourite treat and exchange the victim for the treat and praise them for giving up their prize. They’ve done nothing improper – they are only doing their job.
One final trait I would like to say is that dogs are scavengers and can eat absolutely anything. Some favourites of my terriers are rabbit pellets (droppings), horse manure (apparently very tasty) and dead animals. They don’t appear to associate what they eat with how they feel afterwards and can repeat the motion that caused them to have an upset stomach time and again. Keep that is mind when attempting to keep your dog protected and healthy.
If you’ve understanding of the true nature of your dog and work with in it fairly than against you will discover there may be less frustration for each you and your dog.
