Three Simple Dog Training Tips You Didn't Already Know

By Neil Frank

There are several basic training tips that can help your pet become stress-free and well-behaved:

• Treat training

• Understanding developmental periods

• Sensory training

Treat Training: A healthy diet is one of the most obvious ways to keep your pet well-behaved. Knowing the specific dietary needs for the breed and age of your pet is important. The occasional healthy treat is a great training tool for positive reinforcement when your pet follows a verbal or physical command.

When treat training, hold a treat just above your pet's head and then slowly lower it while giving the command to sit or lie down. This helps teach your pet that by following a verbal command they will be rewarded.

Understanding Developmental Periods: This is vital to training your pet. In the 1950s, veterinary doctors John Paul Scott and John Fuller studied canine behavioral development, finding that dogs at different ages are at different developmental stages and have different learning capabilities.

According to their research, there are five major developmental stages for dogs:

• Neonatal (birth to 2 weeks)

• Transitional (2 to 3 weeks)

• Socialization (3 to 12 weeks)

• Juvenile (12 weeks to maturity)

• Beyond the juvenile period

Before you begin training, you will want to research to learn more about these developmental stages and how they affect your pet's learning capabilities. This will help you cut down on your frustration and theirs.

Sensory Training: This is a stress-relief method for pets that I have discovered recently. This technique uses products that release natural dog appeasing pheromones to help pets cope with stressful environments and prevent destructive behavior.

As an Arizona resident for several years, I have become used to the monsoon rains, thunder and lightning. My dog, on the other hand, has not. He also tends to act up when I leave him at home alone - chewing furniture, getting into the garbage and even peeing on the carpet. When I started using Comfort Zone with D.A.P., a pheromone-based product, this behavior stopped.

If you've tried tactics like leaving the TV on or putting a bowl of food on the ground before leaving home, but your dog is still experiencing separation anxiety or fear, pheromones might help. Pheromone products will put your pet into a less stressful mood on a regular basis and specifically in high-tension situations - no matter how badly behaved they have become.

Find out more at http://www.petcomfortzone.com/. There is no magic method for instant success, but training your dog can be easy. Simply keep these three tips in mind to learn about your dog's personality and maturity level. You will see that training your best friend can be simple and even fun!