ESSENTIAL TIPS & PRINCIPLES
1: Leave the food bowl behind!
Dogs need mental and physical stimulation. Instead of worrying about tiring out their body, pet owners need to focus more on tiring them out mentally and that starts at meal time. Instead of just placing their food dish down, they eat as much or as little as they like and immediately move on with their day, use that as an opportunity to both entertain and enrich their lives.
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Think of it this way: which would you prefer? Staying inside all day but you have a movie to watch and a book to read OR only doing a 30-60 minute workout then the rest of the day you have nothing you to do?
VIDEO TO WATCH
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If your dog eats a dry formula, rehydrate their meal in hot water for 10-15 minutes before serving.
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This is the time where their bowl can come in handy. Just measure out their proper portion, pour into the bowl, then add hot water and let it soak. Once enough time has passed, you can block the food in the bowl with your hand to drain out any excess water.​
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You can (and should!) utilize your dog's food for training. Measure out their proper portion for either one meal or both and feel free to spread it out throughout the day or use during dedicated training sessions.
TRAINER'S TIPS:
BENEFITS
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Enriches the mind by tapping into their natural instincts
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Entertaining & fun
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Requires very little human effort
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Many options for how it can be done
BRANDS TO CHECK OUT
ARTICLES TO READ
BENEFITS​
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Provides a safe confinement space to prevent accidents in the house and/or destructive behavior when unsupervised, much like using cribs or playpens for babies.
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Gets them acclimated to cages/crates for future trips to the groomer, vet's office, etc.
BRANDS TO CHECK OUT
Most Durable, But Most Expensive:
ARTICLES TO READ:
2: Use a crate and, if you already do,
use it more.
VIDEO TO WATCH
TRAINER'S TIPS:
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Many people make the mistake of only using the crate when it is time to leave the dog alone, whether it be to leave their home or when going to bed. But that can actually have a very negative effect because many dogs will come to associate their crate with being alone, bored, etc.
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Break this cycle by reversing how the dog spends their day. By this I mean; they start out by spending a large portion of the day in their crate with brief, supervised breaks to ​come out to play, go outside, cuddle, etc. Then slowly, week by week, they earn more and more time outside of the crate. It may seem harsh to you, but in reality it will be such a brief period in the long run and think of the lifelong benefits it will have for your dog!
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Make sure their crate is the proper size, especially if your dog is housetraining. If your dog is already potty trained well, then there is nothing wrong with giving them a little extra room if you'd like to size up.