Resource guarding is a challenging behavior to combat for new and experienced owners. Guarding possessions or food can occur between dogs in a household and/or between dogs and humans.  Early training is the best method to preventing resource guarding. It is important for puppies to learn at an early age that people touching their food […]

Chew on This Anyone who has ever cared for a puppy knows and expects chewing; it goes hand in hand with puppyhood. But chewing can be a challenge for owners with adult dogs, too. Here are some tips on how to stop unwanted chewing: Dog-proof your house by putting away anything that your dog can […]

The key to controlling separation anxiety in your Flat-Coated Retriever or any dog is to always leave the dog calmly, with a biscuit and a toy or something to do, and always return with calm control. Some dogs are very prone to separation anxiety. Whining, barking, or destructiveness in the absence of the owner are signs of […]

Going for a walk with your dog is one of the great pleasures of owning a canine friend. Getting outside in the fresh air, getting some exercise, and greeting neighbors and their dogs are all fun parts of taking a stroll. But if your dog gets very excited and starts lunging and/or barking every time […]

The sounds of "Stars and Stripes Forever" were blaring from a CD player in the backyard and children splashed in the pool. Matthew and Susan were hosting their annual Fourth of July cookout. As guests arrived in festive red, white and blue attire, they would ring the doorbell and immediately hear a few quick barks […]

There is a difference between Active and Passive dog training and all interactions with your dog matter. Many dog owners train their dogs daily, are active in taking group classes, and some even compete at high levels.  This is called active training. But you might not be aware that your dog is learning all the time. […]

By AKC GoodDog! Helpline Trainer Breanne Long This is the final installment of a three-part series on using verbal cues/commands correctly. In this segment, we discuss choosing a verbal cue that does not confuse your dog. In this last installment on verbal cues, we will discuss actions that humans use the same word for and […]

When we did agility with our dog, we drove 2.5 hours one way to take lessons from a world-class trainer. I have a friend in Houston who starts a 2-hour drive across Houston in 5 o’clock traffic to get to the best training school she could find. So when we surveyed 3500 dog owners and discovered […]

I think the three most important words to remember in dog training are consistency, patience, and fun. While many of us believe this, we sometimes forget to practice it. Consistency When you are training a behavior, you must consistently reward the behavior. If the behavior is new to the dog, you must immediately positively reinforce […]

AKC GoodDog! Helpline trainer Hilarie Erb explains why it is important to teach your dog each skill separately and to not package them together. In dog training, a good phrase to remember is “one thing at a time.” This means that every behavior you teach should be practiced by itself, not following or preceding any […]