Posts Tagged: Dog Behavior

There are certain badges of honor that we pet lovers wear. Be it traces of fur on our black pants or a carefully hidden toy in our flower arrangement, our animals are a proud part of our lives.

Dog slobber is one of those parts of pet ownership, though, that can be a little trying to live with. While Leon Valley Veterinary Hospital can’t do away with drool altogether, we do think it’s helpful for pet owners to know why dog slobber happens and what they can do to minimize its impact on their lives.

Living with a bossy dog means that you are not in the driver’s seat when it comes to your daily routines. When your dog thinks he is the boss, he might bark a lot to get his way, mark his territory by urinating inside your house, or even bite when he feels like he is not being heard. 

While this can cause some tension at home, there are ways to exert your own dominance over your dog and show him who is the true boss of your household:

Dogs are smart. Their ability to recognize patterns and to anticipate cause and effect relationships is almost humbling to us humans at times. It is easy to harness these traits for good, but sometimes these qualities in our canid friends can backfire, too.

Most pet dogs have picked up some bad habits along the way. Your friends at Leon Valley Veterinary Hospital want you to know that if you have inadvertently taught your pup some poorly received tricks, all hope is not lost. While it can take a lot of work, untraining bad habits in dogs is possible under most circumstances.

Wildlife is abundant in Texas, including those that are venomous and carry zoonotic diseases, which are transmittable to humans. While wildlife are beautiful and necessary, domestic dogs still have their innate prey drive that causes thousands of wildlife related emergencies each year.

Many pet owners lament why they can’t stop the family Fido from running after wild animals, which carry disease and threats of injury. This is why the team at Leon Valley Veterinary Hospital is here to give you some suggestions on how to discourage your dog from chasing squirrels and other wild animals.

While your pet doesn’t have that terrible commute or bad days at the office, stress in dogs isn’t unheard of. In fact, stress is common among our canine companions and there are several reasons for this. 

You may have noticed that there are changes in your dog’s behavior, from being more clingy or acting out, like digging and chewing. If you suspect your pet is stressed, Leon Valley Veterinary Hospital is here to explain stress in dogs and ways you can decrease their anxiety.

Training a pet to eliminate in the right place – at the right time – can be a hurdle for many pet owners. It’s not always easy, and it never happens overnight. But when it finally clicks, it’s an amazing relief for pets and owners alike. Pet pee pads can definitely help the process of house training, but they can also present certain snags to long term success.

Setting Goals

Housetraining a puppy or teaching a newly adopted grown pet is not something that can be done without time, patience, and consistent positive reinforcement.

Every pet is different and each has their own special preferences. Learning what they like goes a long way toward potty training success. Plus, this is an opportunity for pet owners to gain insight into what motivates their new best friends.

As our best friends, it’s no wonder we want to take our dogs with us everywhere we go. And in this day and age, it’s nearly possible! Still, there are some times when we have to leave our dog home alone, sometimes for longer than we’d like.

So what’s a dog owner to do? 

Luckily, there are ways to leave your best friend at home responsibly, without returning to chewed up shoes and stains on the carpet. Come alone with Leon Valley Veterinary Hospital as we show you steps to follow for safely leaving your dog home alone. 

No bones about it: dogs are really smart animals. They’ve managed to live and work with us for centuries, in part because of their brains. By constantly reading body language and tones of voice, dogs understand us pretty well. Wouldn’t it be great if we could return the favor? Consider these 5 things your dog wishes you knew.

1. I Want What You Want

As a pack animal, your dog finds value in group dynamics – even if it’s just the two of you. They want to do whatever you’re doing, go wherever you’re going, and, if left alone, stress or anxiety might creep in. Destructive behavior can be a result of temporary separation, as your dog wishes they were otherwise occupied.

Keep your pup’s mind active with basic training techniques (it really does boost health and happiness!) and increase opportunities for exercise and enrichment. Continue…