Dog B.O.N.E.S.

There are several benefits of teaching your dog to come to your side. One is when someone knocks at your door. You can stop your dog from barking by asking them to come to your side.  On walks it lets you dog know the side of your body you want them to walk on.  When going up stairs this is very useful. Dog and their own could become seriously hurt if they are not on the same page as to who is walking on what side of the stairs.  Start with the dogs name, then a command, and then a gesture. Once the dog gets gets the hang of what you want them to do, go to just the  command with gesture. Once your dog is good with just those two commands, just use the ge sture. A smart dog will pick up the commands in the first couple of days.  Any delays longer then two days, start at the beginning where you left off. Any delays a week or longer start back at the very beginning of the training. 🐕My hope with Truffles is eventually just give him hand signals and not have to give him commands.

  What is the best way to encourage pets to not sit or scratch on furniture or other places? Aluminum foil!  If your pet has made a home on a couch, chair, bed, or other area that you prefer he/she didn’t, cover in foil for a few days.  The sound irritates cats and dogs enough that it can be a great tool teach animals to stay off or out of where you do not want them. 🐕Wrap foil on seats, cushions, legs to discourage scratching or biting. 

  One of the things I did with parents of autistic children is come up with a list of what their child loved doing the most for long periods of time without a lot of supervision. When parents are busy and need to keep their children even busier with little supervision, they pulled out the list. These activities were not something the child would do daily or all the time. It's was for those emergency situations. You can do the same with your dog. Place items on a box and when an emergency arises, get the box. Place in the box: 🐶Special bone 🐶Special toy 🐶Special flavor to lick 🐶Special Crinkle Toy 🐶Special Puzzle Box The special item has to keep your dog busy for at least a half hour. Truffles box has a buffalo bone, a licking matt that I put cottage cheese or yogurt on, and an interactive treat toy.

The best way to use crinkle toys is at bed time!  If your dog sleeps with you, and may not be tired when you are, a crinkle toy might be the best option. Crinkle toys are: Not annoying, the sound doesn't bother most. Washable, so just toss in the washer with the sheets. Inexpensive, so get lots of them for your dog to choose from. Keep a few on our around the bed and if your dog can't settle down, offer the toy. 🐶