Dog Behavior Tip

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Selection from the official Pet Bed City newletter. To subscribe, visit us at http://www.petbedcity.com and click on the "Free Newsletter" button. I live in a ngeighborhood where I see lots of wonderful dogs being walked every day. Once in a while, I will see a dog being walked without a leash and the owner yelling "get over here!" to stop the dog from wandering so far. When the dog eventually wanders back, the owner punishes him more by yelling at him for wandering the first place. Obedience trainers will be quick to point out two things. First, never walk your dog without a leash unless you're in a place designated as safe (like a dog park). I've seen more than one dog dart out into the street so fast, the owners couldn't stop them. Second, if someone was screaming at you to "get over here!", how likely would you be to come? You wouldn't, especially if you knew you were going to get yelled at or smacked when you got there. Of course, if your dog is leashed, that eliminates the problem. But if he's offleash and you want him to come, ask nicely, but with command. And praise your dog when he comes back. Pet him like crazy. Talk nice to him. That way, when you call him, he's going to know tht something good will happen when he complies. Simple, but effective.