Simple things you’re doing may be confusing your dog.

• Insider asked experts about the ways that dog owners may be confusing their pets.
• Giving a dog the wrong kind of name can lead to lifelong confusion.
• Letting them play with your fingers or clothing can backfire later on.

Antje Joslin, veterinarian for Dogtopia, told Insider that a dog’s name shouldbe simple enough for them to understand when they’re being called.

“You will want the name to start with a letter that has a sharp, distinctsound. A name that starts with a ‘D,’ ‘T,’ or ‘K’ sound will be easy for yourdog to learn,” Joslin said.

A name that starts with an “S” or “F,” which are softer sounds, could also bemore difficult for your dog to understand.

“Avoid any names that sound similar or rhyme with the most common dogcommands,” she added. “Names that sound like ‘sit,’ ‘stay,’ ‘heel,’ ‘no,’ and‘come’ could easily confuse your pup.”

You’re putting your fingers in their mouth during playtime.

Puppies love to nibble, and it can seem harmless to allow them to bite yourfingers during a play session.

But Joslin said that letting a dog munch on your hand at any time is actuallytelling them that it’s alright to bite.

“If gently nipping your hand in play is OK, the puppy won’t know that it’s notOK to bite a child or other person that’s trying to pet them,” Joslin said.

If your dog tries to nibble your fingers, immediately remove your hand fromtheir mouth and end the play session — they’ll soon learn that biting isn’tallowed.

You play tug-of-war with toys or clothing.

Using rope toys or spare pieces of clothing to play tug-of-war with your dogcan be a good time in the moment but may lead to undesirable behavior andaggression in the future.

“Though this kind of play is fun for both the puppy and the parent, it’s alsovery confusing,” Joslin said. “For example, if tug-of-war is OK in play, thenwhy is it wrong if the puppy wants to play tug-of-war with the socks on yourfeet?”

Instead of encouraging your dog to resist when you pull, try rewarding yourpet for letting go of items you try to take from their mouth.

You use multiple words for the same thing.

Sara Ochoa, veterinarian and consultant for DogLab, told Insider that it canbe confusing for a dog when their owners use multiple words for the sameobject or command.

“When training your dog, try to stick to the same keywords,” Ochoa said. “Itcan be puzzling for a dog when you ask them to ‘go potty’ one day and ‘go pee’the next day.”

To make training easier, try to use one key phrase for every command and keepthose words as short and distinct as possible.

You’re not consistent with the house rules.

Ochoa said one of the most common ways owners confuse their dogs is by notbeing consistent with training and house rules.

“For example, letting your dog on the furniture one day and then scolding themfor getting on the sofa the next will just confuse them,” Ochoa said. “Try tokeep the rules the same from one day to the next.”

It’s important to decide on house rules for your dog early on and stick withthose decisions — otherwise, you run the risk of undoing their training andcausing frustration for both parties.

You comfort them when they’re acting fearful.

It’s natural to want to soothe your pet when they’re frightened, butveterinarian Heather Venkat told Insider that comforting a fearful pet canbackfire.

“You can actually make your dog think it’s good to be scared if you pet themand say ‘good boy,’” Venkat said. “You’re actually encouraging fearfulbehavior through sweet talk and petting.”

Instead, pet owners should address the source of the fear — this may meantraining your dog to be more comfortable around loud noises, visits to thevet, or unfamiliar people.

You give more attention to one pet than the other.

Showering one dog with praise and attention can make the other pets in thefamily feel neglected and stressed.

“If you always take one pet for car rides or give them treats more than theother, the other dog may become depressed,” Venkat said.

This kind of inadvertent favoritism can easily happen when one dog is muchsmaller than the other or is recovering from a medical procedure, but trygiving each pet equal one-on-one time so that they all feel loved.

You scold your dog for something they did hours ago.

Dogs don’t actually understand that their owner might be angry about somethingthat happened in the past — so it won’t do any good to get upset at a dog whohas had an accident, ripped open the trash, or chewed on something valuablewhile you were away.

“Your dog cannot make the connection that you are mad about what he didearlier that day and will think you are punishing him for no good reason,”Venkat said.

Instead, try to figure out why your dog made the mistake and provide trainingor modify elements in your home, like getting a trash can with a locking lid,to avoid it happening again.

You give them a treat too early or late during training sessions.

Emma Bowdrey, an ISCP-qualified dog behaviorist, told Insider that timing iscrucial when it comes to training your pet.

“When doing something like training your dog to sit, it’s so important topraise them or give a treat at the right moment,” Bowdrey said. “If you give atreat too soon, they’ll simply learn to hover. If you wait too long, the dogwill attempt some other behavior to see if that gets them the treat.”

She said that if you’re training them to sit, you need to wait until yourdog’s bottom actually touches the floor before rewarding them.

You force a shy pet to interact with other dogs.

Many owners think that the solution to helping their pet overcome shyness isto force them to play with other dogs. However, Bowdrey said that thisstrategy can have the opposite effect.

“Forcing a shy dog into social situations with other dogs will often confusethem and intensify their fear,” Bowdrey said.

Instead of overwhelming your pet by seemingly dragging them into a scarysituation, you should try gradually decreasing their “trigger distance,” thespace from another animal at which your dog will start to react fearfully.

Slowly bringing your dog closer to others and stopping when they start toreact negatively can help your pup become less shy.

You punish them for not acting like a human.

Dogs will be dogs, and it’s no use chiding them for following their basicanimal instincts.

“Dogs aren’t humans with fur, and they’re going to roll in the mud and dothings that normal dogs do,” Ochoa said. “Don’t scold them for acting like adog.”

This means that you should expect pups to do things like sniff the rears ofother dogs, bark at unexpected sounds, and eat food that has fallen on theground. Even the best-trained pets will occasionally do things their ownersdon’t approve of.

Source: Sophia Mitrokostas Yahoo News

Previous Southlake’s famous ‘drug-sniffing’ ferret resurfaces after goingviral last year

Next Biewer Terrier becomes 197th dog breed recognized by American Kennel Club