Dog Apartment Living: Tips & Tricks to Make It Work

June 22, 2016 by Fanna Easter

7 Tips for Dog Apartment Living

Dog apartment living can be a bit more challenging than detached home living. In an apartment, your neighbors are so close and you share the same stairwells, hallways and entrances. All of this adds up to creating an uncomfortable environment for you and your dog. I’m sure you’re probably already aware of these issues, so hopefully these tips will make dog apartment living a bit easier for the both of you.

1. Always Keep Your Dog on Leash

As apartment dwellers, there’s a tiny tinge of guilt you feel when your dog must be leashed at all times when outdoors (I know the feeling). It’s important to understand that a leash keeps your dog from running away, walking into traffic or harassing other people and dogs. Basically, your dog’s leash is a safety line.

While we envision our dogs yearning to run freely in a never-ending pasture of green grass, most dogs would rather sniff and explore. Walks are important for releasing pent-up energy, but allowing your dog to stop, sniff and explore will mentally tire her out too. When your dog stops to sniff, she’s basically checking her social media page. She’s finding out what’s going on and who’s doing what in the neighborhood. She may respond back by marking the area. Overall, allowing her to sniff and explore is vital for dog apartment living.

2. Create a Sound Barrier Inside

Apartments share walls, elevators and entrances, which can all cause some creepy sounds. When not home, play soft music or a sound machine at medium level. Creating a calming sound will drown out any other noises and ensure your dog sleeps soundly while you’re away.

If your neighbors are loud, even when you’re home, turn on a portable fan to drown out the noise. I find portable fans provide more white noise than a ceiling fan. By drowning out typical apartment living noises, you prevent your dog from barking when they hear these sounds. Check out the benefits of calming music for dogs.

3. Make Weird Noises Fun

Some neighbors are so loud that even white noise can’t drown them out. In order to combat this, make it rain treats next time. Keep a bowl of tiny, super yummy treats near your chair and toss your dog a treat when a neighbor slams his door. When a nearby dog barks or people argue loudly in the hallway, toss your dog a treat the moment the sound begins. By pairing good things with sounds, you’re teaching your dog that weird sounds will make it rain treats, which prevents barking or stress.

4. Check Out Entrances & Exits

When walking out of your front door, or through the building entrance, take a moment and make sure the coast is clear. As you approach an entrance, ask your dog to “sit” and “wait.” Now, peek out the entrance to make sure other dogs or people aren’t approaching. Once the coast is clear, tell your dog “let’s go” and walk through the entrance way.

Checking out all entrances and exits before walking through them is so important for dog apartment living, especially if your dog reacts to other dogs or people. We lived on the 7^th floor with two Rottweilers, and we learned quickly that rounding the corner with unsuspecting people approaching us will cause screams, spilled coffee and frowns.

Our Rotties were super sweet, but they scared our neighbors, so just taking this extra step reassured our neighbors that our dogs are polite. Afterwards, we witnessed many smiles going forward. Make sure the coast is clear every time.

5. Keep Your Distance

I can’t say this enough: not all dogs want to meet other dogs. Just because you pass another dog walking around your apartment building, it doesn’t mean your dog wants to meet the other dog. I’m pretty sure you don’t shake hands with your neighbors every time you see them because that would be a bit creepy. It’s the same thing for your dog. If a neighbor with a dog makes a beeline for you and your dog, just tell him you’re training a new dog behavior and don’t have time to chat, but thank him along the way.

6. Pick Up Your Dog’s Poop Every Time

Pick it up every time despite rain, sleet, monsoons, hurricanes, blizzards and heat waves. If you forget a poop bag, bring your dog upstairs. Afterwards, grab a poop bag and head back down to pick it up. When this happens to us, I place a stick vertically into the ground that’s right next to the poop, so I can find it easier. Plus, by flagging the area, your neighbors will know you’re coming back to pick up your dog’s poop—because we all know someone is always looking, right?

7. Play Dog Apartment Living Games

Walks are good, but sniffing opportunities are better, so make sure your dog has fun sniffing activities in your apartment too. Toss out your dog’s food bowl because feeding your dog in a bowl is so boring and a huge waste of an enrichment opportunity. Instead, stuff your dog’s food in interactive toys.

For example, hide bits of kibble behind furniture or scatter your dog’s kibble in a shag rug. This encourages sniffing and hunting, which is excellent mental stimulation. For games that don’t involve food (because some dogs are watching their waistlines), grab a bottle of dog-friendly bubbles and play bubble games, or play a fun game of tug. Inside your apartment, your dog can run freely and play, so take advantage of it.

Should You Treat Dogs Like Humans?

June 13, 2016 by Fanna Easter

Do’s and Don’ts of Treating Dogs Like Humans

It depends. There’s a long, fancy word for treating dogs like humans, and it’s called anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism is defined as the “attribution of human traits, emotions, and intentions to non-human entities and is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology” (Oxford Dictionary, 1885).

You’re probably wondering how anthropomorphism applies to you and your dog, which is a fair question. As a professional dog trainer, I have mixed emotions about ascribing human feelings to dogs. I think there are good and bad parts of this puzzle, so let’s discuss whether or not you should treat dogs like humans.

DO: Treat Your Dog Like a Human

Some aspects of anthropomorphism are good. In my opinion, I believe pet owners can relate to pets by attributing certain human characteristics to their puppies and dogs. As pet owners, we watch our fuzzy family member closely. We try interpreting her facial expressions, wagging tail and body positioning to understand her needs. Of course, as pet owners, we tap into the only knowledge we have, which come from our own emotions and body language.

As pet owners, when our dog or puppy whimpers, we run to console her because the sound resembles a small child in need. We want to protect, nurture and love her; it’s normal human behavior. I believe anthropomorphism creates empathy, which I feel is a good thing between pet owners and their precious dogs.

When pet owners dress their dogs in darling little dresses, place barrettes in their hair or push their dogs in baby strollers, this is an example of anthropomorphism. Some pet experts feel treating dogs like human children is taking the behavior a bit too far, but honestly, I don’t have an issue with it. When I see a dog wearing a fabulous polka dot dress or sporting a trendy bandana, I see this as the pet owner loving and caring for his dog intensely, and I feel all dogs deserve this type of love and devotion.

RELATED: What to Do When Your Dog Bites

DON’T: Attribute Guilt or Vengefulness to Your Dog

Attributing human feelings and emotions can get a bit tricky in certain circumstances, and pet owners have a difficult time understanding how dogs really think in these situations. Sometimes, a dog’s body language will portray a certain human emotion, but it’s not always what it seems.

Guilt

Guilt is a big one and probably the most challenging part of anthropomorphism toward dogs. This is the truth: dogs don’t feel guilt. I know you could swear on your life your dog was ashamed for chewing your shoe when you showed it to her, but she wasn’t feeling guilt. Instead, she was scared.

When dogs pin their ears back, freeze, walk away, blink quickly, lick their lips, flick their tongues, turn their head sideways and lower their bodies downward, they’re actually reacting to your angry body language. When you’re angry, your dog’s slinking behavior is trying to calm you down. Your dog isn’t guilty; he’s scared. You don’t even have to say a single word to your dog. Just standing still, staring and breathing deeply in front of your dog will cue her that you’re angry. Still don’t believe me? There’s plenty of research proving that dogs don’t feel guilt; and, as a human, I wish I didn’t feel guilt either. 🙂

Dogs don’t feel guilt. They just don’t think that way.

Revenge

Dogs don’t seek revenge. They don’t pee on your bed because you left them alone all day. Your dog didn’t chew, urinate and poop on your favorite shoe because you yelled at her earlier. Dogs aren’t spiteful.

When I explain how this anthropomorphism concept isn’t true during group dog training class, some pet owners will look at each other with confused expressions and then ask, “So why did my dog do that?” Dogs chew on shoes because you left them out, dogs potty on bedding or furniture because they’re scared from being alone all day or hearing thunderstorms, and dogs poop because they’re practicing marking behavior.

I know, you’re probably saying, “But my dog hasn’t chewed my shoes in over a year.” If the right opportunity presents itself, your dog will chew your shoe no matter how long it’s been since the last incident. Personally, I think this is where dog behavior supersedes human behavior, as we all know revenge and spite will eat you alive.

It’s not revenge your dog is after; it’s opportunity. 🙂

What This Means for You and Your Dog

Continue singing your dog little songs, use baby talk to convince her meal times are a good thing, dress her up in a darling dress, love her, nurture her, protect her and cater to all of her needs, but don’t assume she’s guilty or vengeful. Keep anthropomorphism in check, please. 🙂

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Can You Stop Dog Aggression?

May 26, 2016 by Fanna Easter

How to Deal With an Aggressive Dog

Stop Dog Aggression — Eldad Carin/iStock

Within the dog world, dog aggression is an extremely controversial topic. Not only is this topic hotly debated among dog trainers, but it’s also an explosive topic within the dog rescue world too. Many experts have strong lines drawn in the sand on both sides, so it’s become extremely difficult for pet owners of aggressive dogs to seek concrete answers. I’ll give my honest opinion as a professional dog trainer who has intimately worked with dog aggression cases for more than 20 years.

Aggression in Dogs Never Really Goes Away

It’s true, you can’t stop dog aggression completely. While this seems like grim news, it’s important for pet owners to understand that dog aggression never goes away. Once pet owners are empowered with this knowledge, they can positively change the majority of their dog’s aggressive behavior. However, they must know that aggression will always linger. With that said, pet owners shouldn’t become discouraged. They can certainly teach their dog to react differently in certain situations, but they must have realistic expectations.

Living in a reactive world is a tough path to follow, and I don’t believe dogs enjoy living in a constant state of anxiety, panic and fear. Anxious dogs learn that aggression works to stop a scary behavior from happening. Or they become so anxious, they just freak out and panic. Do know, aggression in dogs is genetic too. If a puppy’s parents and grandparents were fearful or reactive, there’s a high chance the puppy will be predisposed to reactivity.

Can We Rescue All Aggressive Dogs?

I don’t believe you can. Some dogs just can’t fight their anxiety demons and become a danger to society. It’s a horrible decision to make, but sometimes releasing these precious souls from their ever-haunting demons is the best thing we can do.

Have Realistic Expectations

Pet owners of aggressive dogs are probably wondering what exactly to expect from their aggressive dog during and after behavior protocols. Honestly, that’s a fair question.

Before I get into specifics, do know I’m speaking about realistic expectations for the majority of dogs. A small percent of dogs will blossom into friendly extroverts, but that’s a rarity. For the most part, the majority of aggressive dogs can successfully learn to offer a different behavior when they’re face-to-face with a trigger (i.e. thing that causes a dog to react). However, it takes time for an experienced dog trainer to coach an aggressive dog and lots of practice in a multitude of situations while keeping a safe distance away.

How to Deal With Dog Aggression

Dog Aggressive Toward Other Dogs

If a dog has been aggressive to other dogs, don’t expect him to enjoy playing with other dogs. The dog has been pretty clear in letting you know he doesn’t like other dogs, so listen to him. 🙂
Never allow a dog that has been aggressive to other dogs off leash to greet another dog. If this happens, you’re playing Russian roulette with the other dog’s life, which is cruel and punishable by law.
Expect your dog to politely ignore another dog from a safe distance, and your dog to determine that distance. Honestly, that’s a huge win in my book, especially if a dog constantly barks and lunges every time he sees a dog anywhere.

Dog Aggressive Toward Humans

It’s important to understand that a dog aggressive toward humans will never become a gregarious greeter.
If your dog has been aggressive to men, women or children, don’t expect him to enjoy interactions with people. You may need to crate your dog in another room, away from guests, which is what your dog wants. It’s not worth unraveling all your hard work due to a scary encounter with a person, which will likely end up with a dog bite.
Never force a human aggressive dog to meet people; you will only make it worse. Most fearful dogs will run away, which is a good thing! When a scared dog is unable to get away from a scary situation, he will likely bite, which can permanently damage a person and is punishable by law.
Do expect your dog to politely ignore a person from a safe distance, and understand your dog determines that distance with lots of practice.

Pet owners should stay away from false promises and unrealistic expectations from using specific aggressive dog training methods. There are no guarantees in dog training just like there are no guarantees in permanently changing human behavior. Some people will always be afraid of spiders, snakes, heights or dark rooms, but they learn to cope around those triggers.

Don’t Be Fooled By Shut Down Dogs

Just turn on your cable TV and watch a famous dog trainer punish a dog until the dog shuts down. While it looks like the dog is learning to tolerate humans or other dogs, he’s actually learning to shut down around these triggers. You may think “shutting down” is good right? The dog stops doing the behavior, so he must be fixed right? You’re wrong.

Shutting down is a false sense of hope that never lasts, and it’s cruel to dogs. If I punished a person so harshly that he rolled up into the fetal position while spiders crawled over his body, he’s not learning to not be afraid of spiders. Instead, he’s shutting down. He’s learning that spiders are truly horrible creatures, and his fear will become worse. If you’re afraid of strangers, can you imagine being punished harshly and frequently until you allow a stranger to touch you? That’s how a shut down dog feels, and that’s an awful way to live.

When Aggression Does Rear Its Ugly Head

Dogs (and people) can learn to tolerate and react differently (instead of freaking out) around their triggers, but if a scary thing sneaks up on them, they will usually revert back to old behavior. If a dog or person suddenly rounds the corner or pops up in your dog’s face, your dog will likely react. If you allow a dog aggressive dog to meet another dog, your dog will react. If you insist someone greets your human aggressive dog, he will react. Distance is your friend here, so use it often to prevent aggression from rearing its ugly head.

Most aggressive dogs can learn to react differently—they’re actually relieved to have options when it comes to dealing with their triggers. Just never push your dog into a situation he’s unable to handle.

Ask The Dog Trainer: Why Is My Dog Stubborn?

May 23, 2016 by Fanna Easter

Dealing With a Stubborn Dog

It’s highly unlikely your dog is stubborn—he’s probably confused—but not stubborn. With that said, when a dog chooses to chase a squirrel instead of coming when called on cue, that’s not stubbornness; that’s lack of training around such distractions. And know that it happens to the best of us. Dogs are not robots nor should they be expected to be, but stubborn they are not. When a student starts using the word “stubborn,” I know her training message is not clearly reaching her dog.

Getting stuck during the learning process is a valuable part of learning, believe it or not. As the teacher, it’s your job to figure out what will work, so your dog understands not to jump on people, chew your hands or jump up on furniture. You probably just need a few tweaks to make sure your message is crystal clear to your dog.

The Word “No” Means Nothing

If your dog is jumping up or chewing on your hands, figure out what your dog could do differently, so they’re unable to do those annoying things. So many pet owners say “no” loudly or over and over again, which basically means nothing to their dogs.

Since I love a good analogy, let’s look at this from a human perspective. If you walk into a room and someone says “no, no, no,” you would become completely confused. What does “no” mean? Stop? Don’t walk, don’t stand, don’t look, don’t breathe, what? The word “no” is meaningless communication and can cause confusion quickly, so throw that word in the trash can. 🙂

How to Train a Stubborn Dog

Ask For Something Different

Now that we understand “no” means nothing, it’s time to reward your dog for doing something else. If your dog barks, reward him for being quiet. Here are a few other examples:

Reward your dog for keeping all four feet on the floor instead of jumping up. It’s impossible to jump up and keep your feet on the floor.
The moment you feel your dog’s (or puppy’s) teeth on your skin, leave the area or redirect him to another toy. By getting up and leaving whenever your dog’s teeth touch your skin, your dog learns to keep his teeth to himself.
Teach and heavily reward your dog for lying on anywhere else but furniture. Crate him when you leave, so he doesn’t learn to relax on your expensive sofa while you’re away. It won’t be forever; just until your dog learns what is expected.

Take a moment and think about what you want your dog to do instead of an annoying behavior. Usually the opposite behavior is key, such as standing still at the doorway instead of dashing out. If you can’t decide on an opposite behavior, you can always teach stationary behaviors, such as “sit,” “down” or “place.” Usually, dog movement is an underlying part of an undesirable behavior for people (e.g. pulling, running away, jumping up, dashing out doors, knocking people over, etc.).

Remember, teaching your dog an alternative behavior is much more effective than punishing him.

Make Sure Everyone is on the Same Page

To keep confusion to a minimum, make sure each family member understands how to manage a puppy chewing on his hands or what to do when a dog jumps up. Let’s use another analogy to further explain this concept. If you’re learning a new language, let’s say German, and each family member pronounces things completely different, it would be very challenging to learn German.

With that said, once you have figured out when to reward your dog, hold a family meeting to discuss and practice your dog training solution, so everyone is on the same page. I ask clients to keep homework directions in a highly visible place like the refrigerator, so each family member gets a quick refresher every time she grabs a beverage or food.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Now that you have developed a crystal clear solution for your dog’s unwanted behavior, practice it several times a week with really good rewards in a low distraction environment. Once your dog understands to stand instead of jump, keep teeth off human skin, be quiet instead of bark, or lie on his bed instead of the sofa, it’s time to practice with family members around for distractions. Expect a few hiccups until everyone gets into a rhythm and keep dog training sessions short (1-2 minutes long).

It’s impossible to be fluent in German without practicing it over and over—the same goes for dog training. 🙂

Dogs Forget Just Like We Do

Let’s take a step back to the foreign language analogy again. If you don’t practice speaking German several times a month, you’ll likely forget how to pronounce even the easiest words. Well, this applies to training your dog too. If your dog forgets, take a few steps back and practice your crystal clear solutions again. Going forward, vow to practice every week, so your dog doesn’t forget. We all forget; it’s not stubbornness. It’s either confusion or lack of training. 🙂

Do Dogs Like to Be Hugged?

May 2, 2016 by Fanna Easter

No, Dogs Don’t Like Hugs

There’s a pretty good chance you’ve read the latest research showing dogs don’t like to be hugged. This message is spreading like wildfire. It was covered on our local news last night and it’s been trending for several days on social media. Personally, I’m pretty excited this message is finally getting out there because it’s actually true! Dogs don’t like to be hugged.

While there is a very small percentage of dogs that enjoy hugs from their pet owners, the majority of dogs find hugging simply rude. Humans love physical contact; it’s in our DNA and it’s pretty hard not to hug someone you love. Instead of hugging your dog, try these physical contact behaviors instead.

Hugging Dogs May Upset Them

You’re probably thinking this research about hugging dogs is exaggerated since your dog loves hugs and close contact. However, I would challenge that. As a professional dog trainer, I hear: “My dog’s bite (growl) came out of nowhere” or “My dog has no reason to become aggressive; he just turned on me” every day. Honestly, I can tell you these statements are not true. Dogs are always telling us how they feel. We just don’t listen to them and assume dogs are little furry humans. If we don’t listen and continue to push, dogs will resort to growls, nips or bites, if they can’t get away.

If your dog’s body language is happy and he seems to enjoy hugs, then hug away. But don’t expect your dog to enjoy hugs from visitors; it’s different. If you’re not sure, ask a professional dog trainer for his or her opinion. Don’t rely on a friend’s or dog savvy person’s opinion. The person you ask for advice should be an expert (meaning he or she has earned dog training credentials) at reading dog body language.

How to Embrace Your Dog Without Hugs

Pet Your Dog’s Chest

People love to pet dogs. I’ve noticed a huge increase of pet owners petting their dogs when they’re happy, nervous or stressed. Petting your dog is fine; just do it politely. Trying petting your dog on the chest or under her neck instead of on top of her head or back. Head pats are just rude behavior from a dog’s perspective. Yes, some dogs learn to deal with it, but it’s still rude. Think about it from your dog’s perspective: would you enjoy someone patting you on the head whenever he meets you? And when you backed away, this person continued to follow you with an outreached hand trying to pat your head. Creepy, I know, and dogs feel this way too.

When petting a dog, allow your dog to walk up to you first. Slowly pet or scratch your dog’s chest while refraining from making eye contact. Some dogs enjoy scratching under their necks (under their jaw), so slowly move up. While petting your dog’s neck, refrain from bending toward your dog. This keeps your face out of her personal space. If your dog moves away, don’t take it personal and stop scratching her.

Scratch Your Dog’s Back

Dogs love to have the top of their rumps scratched, and will easily swing around for it. There’s nothing wrong with it. Plus, you’re politely keeping your body out of your dog’s personal space. If your dog is comfortable, scratch or rub from your dog’s rump to his rib cage, moving alongside his spine. If your dog moves away, stop scratching and don’t take it personal. 🙂

Let Your Dog Initiate Cuddling

You’re probably looking at your gregarious greeter and thinking, “My dog loves to cuddle and hug.” Well, I live with two super friendly dogs that love cuddling and neck nuzzles too, but, if I initiate cuddling or hugs, it creeps them both out.

When dogs are “creeped out,” you’ll notice their bodies stiffening, ears laying flat against their heads, eyes widening, mouths clamping shut and tails dropping to the ground. Your dog will lean his body away from you and perhaps even growl. It this happens, slowly move away when your dog backs away, and remember not to do it again.

Connect Through Training

Grab some super high value treats, a clicker and your dog, and teach her a new trick. It can be a silly or functional trick–it doesn’t matter; just have fun. What matters most is that you and your dog are bonding through training, and your dog is learning you can both speak the same language.

Dogs are different than people, so respect their space etiquette and ensure children and families do too.