BUZZER
Buzzer’s a pugnacious young pup with a classically scrappy aesthetic. Part Terrier, Part Labrador Retriever and all heart, he would enjoy a loving place to call home; Paws4You.org.
FREEDA
Found wandering the streets on 4th Of July, do your patriotic duty and make Freeda a part of your household today! After medical care by her rescue, she’s as fit as a fiddle; 100PlusAbandonedDogsOfEvergladesFlorida.org.
BLACKIE
A 10-year-old Black Lab Mix, this is one laid-back lady whose favorite hobbies include chasing lizards, napping on the couch and snuggling with human friends; LabradorRescue.net.
DOWN ROVER!
A little secret to all you new pet owners: The best way to stop behavior problems is to prevent them in the first place. The easiest way to enforce house rules for a new dog is to use a leash indoors for the first week your dog comes home. Your dog should always be supervised while on leash, or should be secure in a crate during the times when you can’t watch them. A leash allows us to gently guide a dog away from things he shouldn’t be doing, and encourages him to follow us wherever we go. During the first week, you should also hand-feed as many meals as possible (no bowl!), which quickly deepens your relationship with your pup; in essence, you become the provider of all good things! When you catch your dog displaying good behaviors like being quiet, lying down nicely, not jumping up, or coming when called, you should use some of his daily meal portion to reward him for great behavior. You have to provide all that food to your dog each day anyway, why not use it to your advantage? By using the leash indoors to prevent unwanted destructive behavior and using the daily food portion to reinforce preferable behaviors, you’ll quickly have a dog that looks to you for guidance instead of one that wanders off and gets into trouble.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
› Dee Hoult is the CEO of Applause Your Paws, South Florida’s largest privately-owned pet dog training company, and one of Miami’s leading users-rated dog training companies on Yelp.com; DogBoardingAndTrainingMiami.com.
