Getting a dog for companionship seems like a great reason to own a dog and many canines do live up to their reputation as being “man’s best friend”. However it is important to realize that dogs are not a substitute for human companionship. Many people spoil a dog to death or lose control over its training because they start projecting the qualities of a human on the animal’s personality. Mistaking a dog for being a human is the number one reason why pets end up being overweight, overly dominant or submissive and aggressive to strangers. They are fed human food, encouraged to sleep on beds just like human children and never chastised as puppies for biting, nipping and growling. An unhealthy emotional reliance on your pet can also lead to all kinds of behavioral and psychological problems for your dog such as possessiveness, submissive urination and separation anxiety. It is also not good for you to develop a codependency with your pet. You may develop anger or resentment issues over a dog that you can’t control or take misbehavior personally. Although it is a great idea to think of your pet as one of the family, he should not become the master of your domain. To make sure that your dog is psychologically healthy and well behaved be prepared to withhold your tendencies to coddle him or her as a puppy. This includes denying the puppy food when he leaps up at the table and being too enthusiastic when greeting him or her when you come home. An inability to establish healthy boundaries between you, the human and your dog, the pet can lead to problems that are so serious that the dog has to be put down. At the very least a dog that is treated like a human may have to take obedience lessons so that he treats humans with respect Sometimes you can acquire a pet so that other pets in your home will not be lonely. . This is a fantastic idea. Just keep in mind that your costs of owning a pet will be double – including food and veterinarian bills. Of course it is important to choose dogs that are peaceful and make easy friends with other dogs. It would be a bad idea to combine a Yorkshire Terrier with a Rotweiller for example, as the Rottie may perceive it as food. You are much better off to pair that Yorkie with a Dachshund who is very sociable with other animals. However just because an animal is small does not mean it is more sociable. Jack Russell Terriers have been known to kill other pets simply because they are jealous of the attention they are getting from the owner. Whether you are getting a dog because you feel that you need companionship or because you feel like your other pets do the key to success is balance. Keep your expectations realistic and don’t try to turn your dog into your boyfriend or expect a dog that chases cats to become your kitty’s best buddy.
Some people figure they will kill two birds with one stone and get a dog that is both a pet and a guardian. Unfortunately, watchdogs and guard dogs do not make the best pets. For one thing, the instincts in any dog that can make it good guardian is the same ones hat can compel them to attack strangers or even a member of your own family.
A particularly good watchdog may be hard to keep quiet at night and may adopt the habit of snarling and snapping at anybody that comes near you or your things and property. Guardian dogs or watch dogs tend to be hard wired to be a little more possessive or territorial then other types of dogs. This is why they don’t make the greatest of pets.
It does not take much of a transgression to set the dog right off or perhaps even put into into attack mode. The best guardians are usually the dogs that qualify as alpha dogs. They respond well to training but untrained they can attack loved ones and strangers, make a shambles of your house and yard and incur lawsuits for noise, injuries and damage to other people’s property. Guard dogs and watchdogs usually comprise the larger breeds such as German shepherds, Bull Mastiffs and Akitas. This means that they can easily overpower a small animal or child. Most of them also tend to shed quite heavily and do not make great residents inside the house.
Of course, I know that there are a lot of owners out there that have these kinds of dogs and that would disagree with me. I am talking in broad generalities here. Some smaller dogs such as Maltese, Daschunds and Yorkshire Terriers do make keen watchdogs but they are not really capable of defending you in case of an attack. In fact some little watchdogs, such as the Pomeranian are more likely to sound the alert and then make friends with the intruder.
The key is to choose the dog according to what you need as security. As a rule of thumb the larger and more “alpha” the dog is the better he will be at protecting your person and your property. The smaller the dog the more likely he is to sound the alert not only when real threats appear but also when he perceives just about anyone approaching you or your yard. Some animal owners find this tendency for small dogs to bark at the drop of a hat to be very irritating (and so do the neighbors.)
A true watch dog needs to be run in an off leash area frequently. Ideally they should be kept in a large yard with lots of shelter, food and water and with some protection between them and the general public. You should also go to great care to take your watch or guard dog to obedience or training classes or else you could end up with a pet that is treated like public enemy number one by the neighborhood.
Acquiring a pet in order to teach a child responsibility about animals is the absolutely worst reason to adopt a pet. You wouldn’t give a seven year old a human baby to look after so why would you do the same with a canine baby? Still people get it in their heads that when it comes to teaching children how to be responsible that a new puppy is the ideal way to do it.
Puppies are more than educational tools. They are living creatures with feelings and needs and should not be part of any experiment when it comes to the development of your child’s character.
Perhaps the biggest misconception that people have about pets is that they can look after themselves and that “mother nature can take its course.” This is simply the worst attitude you can take towards your new animal. All dogs need health care and some measure of training. A child is not really capable of giving that to a new pet.
Technically you are both the parent of the dog (or cat) and the child so you must always keep an eye on both to make sure that the child is doing the basic things required to keep the pet happy including taking him for a walk or changing a litter box. You should also never let a pet be used as part of a power struggle between you and your child. For instance, if your child neglects to take the dog outside or empty the litter box you should do it yourself. You should not wait days for your child to get around to doing it as the personality that is going to suffer the most in this situation is the animal. Both dogs and cats will hold their bladders and give themselves infections if they are not taken out or have a place to go to the bathroom. Of course, it should go without saying that even a worse fate can await a dog or cat that is not fed or given water for days on end because they are in the care of a responsible child.
Remember too that if your child somehow injures the dog or gets bored with it that it is your responsibility to take care of it or find a good home for it.
When selecting a dog it might be of some value to look at why a dog should choose you for an owner rather than at “what’s in it for the dog.” This can also help you decide what type of breed is best. For instance if you have a large yard to offer, you could afford a larger breed than most people. Most of all try to stay away from pets that are notorious for not likening children such as Chihuahuas and Dalmatians. When it comes to dogs usually a bigger dog is better for children. They are harder to injure and tend to be more affectionate. Avoid high-strung cats like Siamese if you are looking for a member of the feline family for your child to take care of.
Asking why dogs bark is like asking, “why do birds sing.” It is perfectly natural for a dog to bark just like it is for a human to talk. It is only humans that think a dog should keep quiet. Like humans some dogs bark simply because they like to hear the sound of their own voice. However a dog that barks a lot may be trying to tell you something. Usually the message is “you are not paying me enough attention.
Many know that a bark might be your cue to take them outside so they can go to the bathroom. Dogs also bark because they are nervous, hungry, lonely, frustrated or suspicious. Some dogs just like to bark. Like some humans, they like the sound of their own voice. However usually a dog barks because he is trying to tell you something. Yet another reason a dog barks is because they spy a threat. This is why a dog will bark at a passerby or a mailman. This is particularly true of breeds that are natural herders or watchdogs.
Some dogs will even bark if they see you try to leave what they perceive as their pack and the bark is a disciplinary warning to you not to go out on your own so that you don’t get hurt. He is talking to another pet in the household – a herding dog like a collie for instance will bark at the other animals in the house to stay together in a group.
Many dogs suffer from separation anxiety and cannot tolerate it when you are gone. A trainer or dog therapist can treat this type of nuisance barking. Some nuisance barkers are simply easily over excited. Their bark is their way of expressing their enthusiasm for spying another animal out the window or seeing a box of treats on the counter. Some will bark excitedly just at the prospect of going for a walk or a “car ride.”
One very unusual reason that dogs bark is that he is responding to a dog that is barking a long ways a way that he can hear but you can’t hear. Dogs can hear all kinds of sounds that we can’t hear. A badly trained dog will also be always being prone to nuisance dog barking. Dogs from rescue shelters and pounds tend to bark a lot because they have never been trained properly in the first place. Also a dog that has spent a long time in a pound has also been conditioned to bark for hours like his former companions in the shelter did.
Barking is usually not a problem until you are losing sleep over it or a neighbor is complaining about it. This means it is time to send your dog to an obedience class of sometime.
It is never a good idea to discipline a dog for barking. Chances are the dog is trying to tell you something and if you discipline him then he will get very confused. This often happens to dogs that are nervous or anxious in the first place. The calmer your dog is the least likely he or she is to be a nuisance barker.
