Exhibiting negative behavior is very common even for the most well-behaved dogs. The most common negative problems are inclusive of chewing, biting and barking. In most of the cases, negative dog behavior is not addressed properly by its owners. To properly deal with negative dog behavior, it is important to understand the cause of it.

Destructive Chewing
The indulgence of puppies in destructive chewing can be attributed to a lot of factors. It can be due to teething, boredom, anxiousness. To overcome it, the reason for chewing should be outlined and then one should devise a method to control it.

If the destructive chewing is due to teething, then you should encourage it to chew on the right things. Provide it plenty of chew toys to nib on.  If the chewing is due to boredom or excessive energy, you should indulge your pet in exercise to mellow down its energy. The anxiousness and other behavioral issues can also be toned down by the appropriate amount of exercise.

Barking at Doorbell
There are some reasons why the dog barks at the doorbell. They might be excited, anxious about the visitors. The doorbell might bring out their watchdog instinct. However, some dogs might consider that they condition the owner to open the door when they bark.

To stop barking the dog must be conditioned to behavior another way by implementing reward technique. For example, they must be rewarded with a treat of their choice if they depict the alternate behavior like not barking when the doorbell rings.

Digging
Owing to their instinct, dogs love to dig up. There can be many reasons for digging such as anxiety, to hide treats and boredom. It can be really disturbing that your pet digs up different corners of the yard. It is important to determine the cause of digging and spend extra time with your pet indulging it into extra training and exercise to mellow down its energy level.

In cases where digging is inevitable, you can allocate a portion of your yard and mark it. To make it more attractive, interactive toys and tools should be placed to make sure that your dog digs in that part only.

Begging
Begging can be one of the most annoying on of all the traits listed (especially when you have a visitor around). To cure this problem, consistency is the key, it is very important to ensure that none of the family members feed the dog off the table. In a case where the begging is condoned and encouraged, the problem will escalate into other negative behaviors such as whining and jumping until he gets what he wants. If this happens, try to distract it with toys, puzzles and other tools.

Jumping Up
Dogs tend to jump up to show their excitement. Puppies jump up to reach their mothers. Jumping up can be traced back to instincts or exerting dominance. It might seem like a fun way to express love at first, but a jumping dog can be dangerous.  To discourage this take its paws off you, turn around, don’t make any eye contact and mind your own business. Once your dog is calm, reward it with a treat.

About Wendy Shore

Wendy Shore is a parent of two amazing dogs. She is very enthusiastic about pet health and welfare in general. She regularly blogs at Totally Goldens.