Is My Dog Too Old for Training?

As a dog owner, you may wonder if it’s worth investing time and effort into training your older dog. Whether you have a new adult rescue dog, a dog that has developed behavioral issues over time, or simply want to live in better harmony with your pup, it’s never too late for dog training.

It’s a common misconception that older dogs are set in their ways and cannot learn new behaviors. The truth is that dogs of any age can benefit from training. While it’s best to get started young, training can help adult and even senior dogs live happier lives.

Let’s look at the benefits of training your adult dog and why it’s never too late to start teaching your furry companion.

Training Older Dogs Has Many Benefits

Just as with training younger dogs, training older dogs has many benefits. 

• Mental stimulation. Training is a mentally stimulating activity for dogs of all ages. Engaging your older dog in training exercises helps keep their mind sharp and prevents cognitive decline.

• Bonding and communication. Training provides an excellent opportunity to strengthen your bond with your dog. Clear communication and positive reinforcement during training sessions can deepen your connection and enhance the overall relationship.

• Problem solving. Training teaches dogs the skills necessary to solve problems and make good choices. This can help older dogs navigate common challenges, such as separation anxiety, leash pulling, or excessive barking.

• Adaptability. Dogs are capable of learning and adjusting to new behaviors regardless of their age. Dogs have a remarkable capacity for growth and development, and training can help older dogs adapt to changes in their environment or routine.

What to Expect When Training an Older Dog

There are a few things to keep in mind when training an older dog. Training an adult dog is different from teaching a young puppy, so here’s what you can expect when working with your adult fur baby:

Training May Take Longer

Older dogs may take longer to grasp new commands, so it’s important to be patient and understanding. Every dog is different, but you may need to break down training sessions into shorter, manageable segments to avoid overwhelming your dog.

Find What Motivates Your Dog

Positive reinforcement can help older dogs respond well to training methods, so find what motivates your pup. It may be treats, praise, or affection. Rewarding desired behavior encourages your dog to repeat it and enhances their motivation to learn. It can also generally make training more enjoyable for both you and your dog.

Remember Each Dog Is Different

Every dog is unique, so you’ll need to adjust your training methods and tools to suit your pup. Remember that older dogs may also have specific challenges or limitations when learning new skills. Adapt your training techniques to suit your dog’s physical abilities and any existing health conditions or previous trauma they may have.

Invest in Professional Training

Training a dog properly can be challenging, regardless of their age. Older dogs can pose more of a challenge because of the patience and adjustments it can take. If you’re unsure about the right training methods for your adult dog, consider consulting a professional dog trainer. They can provide personalized guidance and develop a training plan tailored to your dog’s age and abilities to help them learn and thrive.

Nova Pack Works With Dogs of All Ages

Age should never be a deterrent when it comes to training your dog. Older dogs can benefit greatly from training, both mentally and behaviorally. With time, consistency, and a little effort, you can help your older dog learn new behaviors, strengthen your bond, and make their golden years fulfilling and rewarding.

Nova Pack Dog Training works with dogs of all ages, because we believe it’s never too late to invest in training and provide your dog with the mental stimulation and enrichment they deserve. Contact us today to schedule an in-home consultation for your adult dog!

Identifying Boundaries, Limits, and Rules BEFORE You Bring Your Dog Home

Bringing a new dog into your home is an exciting and rewarding experience. However, many new pet parents don’t realize that it’s crucial to establish boundaries, limits, and rules before bringing their dog home to ensure a happy and well-behaved furry family member. 

Why is it so important to identify boundaries, limits, and rules before bringing your pup home? Here, we answer this important question and provide valuable tips on how to get started identifying healthy limits for your new fur baby!

Dogs Do Best in a Home With Structure and Routine

Dogs thrive on structure and routine. If you’re unsure what behaviors are appropriate or desirable for your dog, the sky’s the limit. Not having a clear structure can be confusing for your dog while they try to adjust to their new life with you.

Take time to reflect on what boundaries you want for your dog and what rules you want them to follow. By doing so, you can establish expectations and communicate what is acceptable behavior in your household. This clarity helps your new dog feel secure, knowing their place and how to behave appropriately.

Establishing Limits Can Protect Your Pup’s Safety

Boundaries, rules, and limits play a vital role in keeping your dog safe. By defining areas where they are allowed or not allowed, you can prevent them from accessing potentially hazardous areas or items within your home. 

Deciding on rules and limits before your dog comes home can also help create a safe environment for them outdoors, such as on walks, interacting with people and other animals, or even just hanging out in the yard.

Prevent Behavioral Issues With Clear Boundaries

Clear rules and boundaries help prevent the development of behavioral problems in your dog. Dogs can become anxious or exhibit destructive behavior if they are unsure about what’s expected of them. 

You can help your dog be confident, happy, and secure in their new home by providing structure and consistency. Develop a routine for your dog and stick to it so they know what to expect—this is crucial when bringing a dog into a new environment, whether it’s an older rescue dog or a young puppy.

Tips for Establishing Boundaries, Limits, and Rules for Your New Fur Baby

Here are a few ways you can get started establishing boundaries, limits, and rules before welcoming your new dog.

Determine House Rules in Advance

Discuss potential rules for your new dog with all members of your household. This includes decisions on where they will sleep, should we allow them on furniture, and if they are allowed in certain rooms. Consistency is key in setting expectations, so make sure everyone is on the same page and understands the rules.

Create a Safe Space

Designate a specific area, such as a crate in a particular room, as the dog’s safe space. This gives them a secure retreat when they need solitude or rest, or when you will be leaving them at home alone. Make sure this area is comfortable, equipped with bedding, and has access to water not the same for puppies or exuberant dogs.

Use Consistent Reinforcement

Dogs learn through repetition and consistency. Be firm and consistent with enforcing the rules. Use positive reinforcement, such as treats or praise, whenever your dog follows the established boundaries. Avoid confusing your dog by allowing exceptions to the rules or reinforcing negative behavior unintentionally.

Establish a Routine

Dogs thrive on routine, so establish a daily schedule to help them anticipate what comes next. Consistency in feeding times, exercise, and socialization helps reduce anxiety and promotes good behavior. If you can, determine what the general routine will be before your dog arrives. Action being consistent, not time of event in the routine. Being too scheduled oriented can create issues with dogs anticipating meal times and being obnoxious.

Invest in Training

Working with a professional trainer can help reinforce your dog’s understanding of boundaries and rules. Training helps build confidence in your dog, reduces the risk of behavioral problems, and ultimately strengthens the bond between you and your dog while promoting positive behavior.

Have Patience and Adaptability

It’s important to remember that each dog is unique and will need time to adjust to a new home with new rules. Be patient and adaptable as you learn your dog’s individual needs, temperament, and challenges, and consult a professional trainer to help you and your dog adjust more easily.

Help Your Pup Settle in With Nova Pack Dog Training

Establishing boundaries, limits, and rules before bringing your new dog home is an essential step in ensuring a well-adjusted and content canine companion. Are you preparing to adopt a new dog, or have you already brought your fur baby home? Help your pup settle in with professional dog training from Nova Pack Training!

Why I CAN'T work with everyone who reaches out to me

I get a lot of inquiries from clients who are seeking answers, solutions, and understanding of why their dogs are acting in certain ways, showing aggression, having severe anxiety, or are just generally not well-behaved. While some of these issues may be genetic, most of them can be addressed and improved through training. However, the key factor that determines whether I can work with someone is their willingness and ability to change themselves.

In order to make significant changes in a dog's behavior, it is crucial to get the humans involved to recognize their own role in the situation. Often, we humans unknowingly contribute to the problems with our dogs, and when combined with the dog's genetic predispositions, it can lead to undesirable outcomes. Therefore, to bring about effective change in a dog, it is essential for the humans to acknowledge where they have gone wrong and how their current interactions with their dogs are reinforcing and exacerbating the problematic behaviors.

Unfortunately, not everyone is willing to accept responsibility for their dog's actions or make the necessary changes in their own behavior. Some individuals refuse to acknowledge their role in the situation, preferring to believe that their dog's behavior is beyond their control or that it should not be altered. When I hold people accountable for their behaviors, such as mindlessly playing fetch without considering the consequences, they often respond with statements like, "But he enjoys it!" While it is true that dogs have natural instincts to chase and catch, allowing a dog to indulge in these behaviors without any controls or leadership can lead to further problems.

To effect meaningful change, you must be willing to change your own actions. It may require making yourself and your dog uncomfortable at times, and I will hold you accountable throughout the process. If you are seeking someone who will only provide positive reinforcement without addressing the underlying issues, then I am not the right fit for you. I am here to give you the truth and provide a comprehensive approach to solving the problems you and your dog are facing. However, if you are unwilling to change and simply want a quick fix without addressing the root causes, then I am unable to work with you.

Working with dogs and their owners is a collaborative effort that requires a commitment to growth, learning, and change. I have a responsibility to the dogs and to their well-being, and that includes ensuring that their owners are willing to make the necessary adjustments. Therefore, I carefully select the clients I work with based on their openness to change and their commitment to the long-term well-being of their dogs. This is why I cannot work with everyone who contacts me.

Why Is Professional Dog Training Important?

If you have furry family members, you know their behavior impacts your household as much or more than your partner and kids. Your dog needs to be able to live in your home comfortably, safely, and happily, and one of the best ways to accomplish this important goal is through professional dog training.

A professional dog trainer helps you understand your dog better and keeps you accountable for your role in your dog’s behavior and doing what is best for them. Here, we take a closer look at why having your dogs professionally trained could be the most important thing you do for your fur babies.

Give Your Dog Its Best Life

Professional dog training helps your dog understand which behaviors are acceptable and desired and which are not. Teaching your dog proper boundaries and socialization allows them to share more of your life and have more positive experiences.

For example, well-behaved dogs can generally have more freedom in the house and come on more outings with you and your family. While an out-of-control or anxious dog doesn’t make for fun family trips or long walks in nature, a trained dog that understands boundaries can get out into the world more and join you for more adventures—allowing you to give your fur baby their best life.

Better Understand Your Pup

Dogs, like humans, can be complex creatures. They have a particular social pack order and understanding of the world. Professional dog training helps you not just correct or modify your dog’s behavior but truly understand it. This understanding gives you the appropriate context for making behavioral modifications or requesting different behavior from your dog.

Working with a professional dog trainer helps you gain more experience and knowledge about your dog and can even help you with your future dogs. Understanding your dog’s behavior and how to work with them allows you to make positive changes that will result in a happier life for both you and your four-legged friend.

Keep Your Fur Baby Safe

Professional dog training is about more than having a dog who’s a model citizen. It’s about keeping your fur baby safe and out of trouble. Getting your puppy, adolescent, or adult dog trained can make them safer for you and your family to be around at home, outside or around neighbors, or even at a busy restaurant while you’re enjoying dinner.

Working with a professional to train your dog can:

• Help your dog feel more safe and secure since they know what is expected of them.

• Reduce your dog’s stress and anxiety.

• Channel your dog’s energy into focusing on tasks and commands.

• Improve your dog’s social skills and reduce reactivity around other animals or people.

• Build a stronger bond between you and your pup.

• Minimize the risk of harm by teaching your dog to come to you when called or stop a harmful behavior.

• Make vet visits, grooming appointments, and vacations easier. 

Are You Ready to Invest in Your Dog’s Future?

Whether you’re a first-time pet parent or have had dogs for years, it’s never too late to get started with professional dog training. If you’re ready to invest in your dog’s best and brightest future, contact Nova Pack Dog Training to ask a question, schedule an in-home evaluation, or learn more about our training process.

You Can’t Medicate Your Way Out Of A Behavior Problem

Behavior problems with dogs aren't anything new, but the treatments today are. Veterinarians, groomers, pet store employees, friends, family, and neighbors will tell you "how well-behaved" their dog is since they put them on medications to stop them from being an untrained dog. While medications can help MANAGE certain behavioral issues, it's important to understand their limitations and potential side effects.

There are several types of medications commonly prescribed to dogs for behavior problems, including:

Antidepressants: These medications are used to MANAGE anxiety, fear, and other related behaviors in dogs. Examples of commonly prescribed antidepressants for dogs include fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), and clomipramine (Clomicalm). These medications work by regulating the levels of certain chemicals in the brain that affect mood and behavior.

Anti-anxiety medications: These medications are prescribed to reduce anxiety in dogs and can be beneficial in cases of separation anxiety, noise phobias, or generalized anxiety disorders. Examples include benzodiazepines like diazepam (Valium) and alprazolam (Xanax) or tricyclic antidepressants like amitriptyline (Elavil).

Sedatives: Sedatives are used to calm dogs in specific situations or for short-term use. They are often prescribed to MANAGE situational anxieties such as travel or veterinary visits. Commonly used sedatives for dogs include acepromazine, dexmedetomidine (Sileo), and trazodone.

Behavior-modifying drugs: These medications target specific behaviors and can be used in conjunction with behavior modification training. For example, medications like clonidine and buspirone are sometimes used to address certain types of aggression or hyperactivity in dogs.

But the issue isn't the medications themselves; it's the fact, and I do mean fact, that just like the old school training methods of decades ago, the pills, tablets, injections are just suppressing the problems, not addressing them.

We have this idea as human beings that we can take a pill and feel better instantly, which in the case of a headache could be true. Although when it comes to something like depression, a pill alone won't do the trick. You need to do a lot of work with a professional who knows what you're dealing with, how to address it correctly, when medication can help, as well as when the risk of adding an anti-anxiety medication could be a fatal mistake.

When it comes to us, we can understand that a pill will make you feel weird, different, better, or worse for periods of time, dogs simply can't. They have no way of knowing why suddenly they feel funny, drunk almost, and sometimes that can lead to the dog biting more randomly, and more severely when the issue of fear, aggression, defensiveness is just medicated.

I am not a proponent of medicating dogs for behavior problems at all, but I am not a veterinarian. Do some dogs I see benefit, sure, to some extent, but I haven't seen a fearful biter or a forward aggressive dog look worse when no medication is given, and the dog is given clarity in their lives, rules, boundaries, and building upon the relationship with their humans having mutual trust and respect.

If you and your veterinarian have already put your dog on medication, I am not saying to just stop giving it; that can be very dangerous to go cold turkey. But if that solution works well enough for you, stay the course. I'm just giving my opinion based on experience with many dogs, having worked with trainers and behaviorists who trained dogs for decades, who never had the option of medications and never needed them anyway. Train the dog, learn why they have the issues they have, whether it’s genetic, or learned behaviors, and improve yourself to help the dog get better.