Dog ownership is a wonderful thing. Your new pet will bring a great deal of joy to your life. Every day you will have a loving and exciting member of the family that will care about you unconditionally and be attentive to your every move. Your dog wants to hear about your day. Your dog wants you to be happy. Your dog wants you to feel relaxed and important. Your dog will show you affection every day, and bring brightness to your life that you will appreciate for years.
Your dog will also do a number of different things that will frustrate you to no end. Dogs are great pets, but dogs are also just that – pets. They are going to do many things that you find nearly unbearable. It is important for new dog owners to understand these basic tips about dog behaviors in order to reduce the frustration you experience with your pet.
5 Tips About Dog Behavior
• Dogs are Dogs
Never forget that although your dog may feel like a member of the family, it is not a child or an actual family member. It is a dog, and as a dog it is going to do dog things. It is going to eat poop off the floor and sniff awkward areas of your guests. Even though your dog may feel like family, it is always going to be a dog, and it will always do things that dogs do.
• Dogs Don’t Understand English
It is also very important you remember that your dog doesn’t and will never understand your language. No matter how much it seems like your dog understands you, they have no idea that the sounds coming out of your mouth are words. When you tell your dog to “sit,” it does not know that “sit” means to sit down. Rather, it knows that when you make that noise, it’s supposed to sit down. You could train your dog to sit every time you say the word “Food” and it would sit every time it hears the word food and do nothing when you tell it to sit. Always remember that your dog never understands what you are saying, it only reacts to the sounds that leave your mouth with the behaviors it has learned.
• Dogs Have Short Memories
Dogs often seem to be so smart. They can tell when you are going to get up from your chair even before you realize you are going to get up from your chair. They can tell when you get a phone call that is asking you to come outside. They appear to be extremely smart creatures. However, dogs have extremely short memories, and an inability to connect periods of time. Meaning if you come home and see that your dog has ripped up your favorite shoes, by the time your dog has greeted you at the door it has already forgotten that it chewed up your shoes. Punishing your dog (or rewarding your dog) for things that happened in the past doesn’t work, because within just a few seconds of completing the task your dog has already forgotten it performed it.
• Unwanted Dog Behaviors are Often Your Fault
While it may be upsetting to hear, when a dog is showing unwanted behaviors, it is very likely not the dog’s fault at all. Dogs tend to show unwanted behaviors for one of three reasons: They did not get enough exercise, they think they are alpha dog in the pack, or they accidentally got rewarded for something you did not want. All of these are your responsibility, not your dog’s.
• Positive Reinforcement Works Best
Finally, dogs learn through a behavioral psychological theory known as “Operant Conditioning.” Operant conditioning is broken into 4 categories: Positive reinforcement (giving your dog a treat when it does something you like), negative reinforcement (taking away something bad in order for your dog to be happier), positive punishment (hitting or yelling at your dog), and negative punishment (taking away something your dog likes in order for it to be punished). Dogs respond best to positive reinforcement by a large margin. Dogs respond worst to positive punishment. Meaning if you hit your pet because it misbehaved, it is likely to repeat the behavior again, because it is unlikely to understand why you hit it. If you must punish your dog when it is misbehaving, you should limit it to negative punishment.
Understanding Dog Behaviors
If you are a new dog owner, it is extremely important that you understand these basic truths about dog behavior. Dogs are great animals. They love unconditionally, they are able to learn neat tricks, and they are able to provide a constant source of life and happiness in your home. If you find yourself being frustrated with how your dog is behaving, remember the tips above and see what YOU can do to make your dog less upsetting to you.