Unfortunately, no-one has yet written a handy reference guide, but by following the guidelines set out below you’ll quickly be up to speed on what your dog is trying to tell you.

Here are some of the most common dog language cues you’ll need to know.

Standing Rigid – When a dog adopts a very rigid stance, he could be telling you to back off and leave him alone. He may also adopt this stance when he is protecting some possession. Give your dog a bone or a biscuit when there are other dogs around and you’ll see what I mean.

Showing the Teeth – Dogs don’t just attack out of the blue, they normally give a warning first. Flashing the teeth may be first warning that a dog is about to attack. Your best bet when this happens is to stand down.

Growling – Showing the teeth will often be accompanied by a low, rumbling growl. If that doesn’t work the dog make well bite.Many people scold or punish the dog for growling or showing its teeth. This is dangerous because if the dog is not allowed to give a warning he may escalate straight to an attack.

Raising the Hackles – When a dog raises the hair on his back, he is trying to look bigger in order to scare off a threat. It is often a sign of heightened fear, and means to dog may attack.

Tail between the legs – Typically, this indicates, timidity, fear or anxiety. There may be a number of causes for the behavior, such as separation anxiety, or being introduced to an unfamiliar person or dog. Often the behavior will be accompanied by submissive urination.

Putting the head down – Depending on the context this could be a attempt by a submissive dog to avoid eye contact. Or it could be a playful gesture.

Raised Paw -A raised paw is a playful gesture, which means, “ let’s be friends”.

Wagging the tail – The tail is one of the dog’s most important communication devices, and the one that is most often misinterpreted. A common belief is that a wagging tail suggests happiness, but this is only true if the tail is being wagged loosely.A tail that is flicked side to side in short rigid movements suggests agitation. And if the tail is tucked between the legs and wagging slightly, the dog is insecure and fearful.

Dogs rely greatly on body language and gestures for communication. A dog may learn to obey voice commands, but in their world body language will always mean more.

Learn to interpret their language and you’ll understand your dog that much better.

Want to discover more about dog training tips, dog care, dog breeds a-z and other interesting dog info? Stop by at www.dogsanddogtraining.com

The myth that dog fleas do not bite humans is very much false. This is a scary thought, but it is in fact entirely true. They do prefer the company of dogs more, but that does not stop them from what they do. Most families ignore dog fleas and it is a serious problem of infestation. Taking care of fleas is very simple and usually cost productive.

The most common parasite that gets into the canine body is roundworms. The name roundworms gives a good explanation as to what they actually are. Roundworms pass from dog to dog through touching of the saliva and noses and such, but can also be passed from simply being in the dirt for an amount of time before they die.

The main parasite that sticks to the outside of the canine skin is called the tick. This is a common fear of humans due to their very ugly spider like appearance. The tick is not really the dangerous part, but what the tick spreads is. What they do is jump from dog to dog sucking the different blood types of the canine and mixing them at times. As you can imagine, the mixing of blood is always dangerous with disease.

Claws are very useful parts of a dog’s anatomy. They can help him to hold objects, will provide grip when he is moving and can even be used as weapons. Of the many nail disorders that may affect dogs, overlong claws and broken claws are the most common.

A dog’s claws grow all the time, and under normal circumstances they are constantly worn down through wear and tear. Overlong claws are caused by insufficient wear and tear, and dogs who are inactive because of age, illness or the laziness of their owners are most likely to suffer from them. The outer two claws on each paw and the dew claws are those that are most likely to be affected. Damage to the claws is often the result of digging or scrambling, and is more likely to occur if the claws are overlong.

Overlong claws will affect the way a dog walks, and will make his feet more prone to other injuries such as sprains. If left untreated, the claws may eventually grow around in a circle and bury themselves into the toe pads, causing severe pain.

If you think that your dog’s claws may be too long, ask your vet, a veterinary nurse or a professional dog-groomer to look at the claws for you. If they are too long, he or she will clip them. If your dog’s lifestyle means that this problem may recur, ask for a demonstration of how to clip your dog’s claws properly and safely yourself. Many owners are very reluctant to clip their dogs’ claws from the fear that they may make the claws bleed, or that they may hurt their dogs. However, there is no guarantee that a claw will not bleed even if your vet or a dog groomer clips them, as judging the correct length can be very difficult, especially if the claws are jet-black.

If you do cut a claw and it bleeds, you can stop the bleeding with a styptic pencil. Any pain associated with claw clipping is usually due to the use of blunt or inappropriate clippers, which
squeeze rather than cutting cleanly. Few dogs enjoy having their claws clipped, but those used to having their feet examined regularly as part of routine health-checks will normally tolerate the experience. However, some dogs resent the procedure so much that they have to be sedated.

With a broken claw, if the tip is hanging off but the claw is not bleeding and does not look raw, you may be able to clip it free. The toe may be painful, however, so you should muzzle your dog first and ask someone to restrain him properly for you. If the claw is badly damaged, and particularly if it looks raw or is bleeding, bandage the affected paw. This will stop the claw from moving, and will make your dog more comfortable until you can take him to your vet.

A lovely greyhound named Bronze fit the bill. Just several days later Bronze was welcomed with loving arms in his new home.

Bronze didn’t know a lot of small things right away, such as how to climb up steps or comprehend a see-through glass door and windows, etc. He did not know how to play and was very weary of people, particularly very tall, thin males. And something also peculiar – he was literally afraid of his own shadow!

Any of these things caused fear in Bronze, and the resulting behavior was aggression, snarling and growling. Angelica was worried that his behavior would go beyond this reaction, leading into biting or attacking.

Soon Bronze showed fear towards another specific occurrence: Anytime Angela’s brother would come to visit, and wearing his usual leather jacket and ball cap, Bronze would again start his aggressive stance and snarling. The same thing happened when Angela’s sons would come home with their noisy friends.

The Cause Of Bronze’s Fear

As you know, Bronze was an ex-race dog, so once Angela was able to contact a canine psychologist, the doctor was able to identify the problem right away. He had asked Angela to obtain a picture of the dog’s ex-trainer, which turned out to be a very tall, skinny man that wore a long black coat, along with a specific hat that resembled a baseball cap.

Add to this evidence the obvious experiences of the dog having raced at the track: lots of noisy people, confinement, guns firing, running, more confinement, lots of harsh training commands from his trainer – it was no wonder why Bronze reacted the way he did when he was adopted.

Managing these issues was not going to be an easy task. It required Angela to have constant vigilance. The doctor instructed her to remove the noisy teenagers from his presence, teaching Angela to be cautious of how she gave commands to Bronze, as well as have her brother remove his black leather jacket and ball cap when visiting.

In time, Bronze was able to calm down and within 12 months was less afraid of noise and the appearance of any man that resembled his past trainer became less of a threat. Bronze lived to be thirteen years old and because of his new owner’s love and care to learn to communicate, he was a lucky dog – one that enjoyed the right that every canine has – to be loved and included in a real family.

What You Can Learn From This Story

If you are also considering bringing home an adult dog that has had a history of competing in sports, such as a racing dog, for example, then prepare yourself by taking lessons from the above story. It will not only teach you how to communicate with your problem dog, but could also save him or her from being sentenced to a lonely life inside of the pound.

This tends to fulfill its need for socializing within the confines of its own home, a step necessary for complete correction. This can be accomplished through basic obedience command responses, practiced daily over a 6-week period.

Some problems of this type have been solved by installing frosted glass in the dog’s favorite escape window, eliminating its view of the outside.

However, several dogs have switched to other windows when this has been done, so the owner must be prepared to face this possibility.

The more important adjustment is to eliminate the social gratification formerly sought, such as “bumming around.” If neighbors are feeding or otherwise accommodating the dog, their help must be sought to stop this.

It is always necessary to determine when the dog jumps out of a window. If it occurs shortly after the dog is left alone, the owner must leave the house, sneak back to the premises and apply some strongly distracting stimulus as the dog begins to prepare for the freedom leap.

In every case, a period of initial anxiety behavior, such as whining, pacing or barking, precedes the actual leap.

If the jumping occurs just before the owner arrives home, the owner should arrange to come home earlier than usual to apply the corrections.

Just as in barking cases, the distracting stimuli should not be painful, but should take the dog’s mind off its anxiety.

This may involve a rap on a door some distance from the escape scene, and even stomping on the roof while monitoring the dog behavior problems by listening through an air vent.

If jumping is associated with fear of surroundings, it is necessary to change the area in which the dog is confined (the simplest method) or to switch the dog’s emotional association with the area from fear to contentment.

This may be difficult because the fearful response usually occurs when the pet is alone; conditioning requires the presence of the owner or some other intervening factor.

However, if the dog has been severely punished in the area, especially at homecoming times, it is often practical for the owner to stop the punishment and virtually ignoring the dog behavior problems when arriving home.

Any interaction between the owner and dog at other times should consist of play, training work for command responses and quiet activities, such as just sitting around.

This sort of dog behavior problems correction takes several days to weeks.

Have you ever heard of anyone spanking a baby?  The only thing that would do is make the baby cry, and make the adult feel badly.  A small baby won’t learn from punishment, and puppies are no different.

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Click Here Now to watch Chet’s Free Dog Training Video.

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Just like everything you do with a small baby is designed to let it feel loved, protected and close to you, the way your treat a new puppy can affect the way that dog views you for entire relationship.

If you choose to punish a puppy, the most you will do is scare it and make it wary of you.  If you smack a puppy, even lightly, all it knows is the pain of the strike and the fear it feels at that moment toward you.

It doesn’t learn that it was doing something wrong because it’s too young to understand that concept.

If your puppy is chewing on something for instance, and you punish it with even a light tap, of course it will probably stop what it’s doing.

It’s surprised and possibly feels pain from the smack, and now feels very frightened of you.

It doesn’t link the punishment with what it was doing, though, and has no way of predicting when it might be punished next.

Shouting when puppy training can also do damage to your relationship.  If you startle the puppy with a shout, of course it might stop what it’s doing. But again, the puppy doesn’t understand the relationship between its actions and your shouting.  Even the angry tone of your voice can cause your puppy to be afraid for a moment.

If you use these punishments on a puppy, the puppy will learn to be afraid of you, or at the very least it will learn that you can be mean.

The puppy might not trust you, because it doesn’t understand why you frighten it. This can keep the puppy from every really warming up to you, and you’ll be unable to have a good relationship as the puppy grows.

Some dogs are very passive, and will respond to you in a very defeated way.  Your dog might stay in line all the time, solely out of fear, but it won’t ever trust you.

Other dogs have a more stubborn streak, and because they feel threatened by you may attempt to dislodge you as the one in charge.  Dogs are pack animals, and if your dog thinks it should be the leader, you might be in for many behavioral problems big and small.

At the very least, you won’t have as good a relationship with your dog as you could have.

Just as you would do with a very small child, use gentle correction when your puppy does something he shouldn’t do.

Use gentle movements when puppy training and a kind but firm tone of voice, so that your dog understands to stop without becoming frightened.

Children should also be educated of the correct procedure. Some of their little innocent ways can trigger an otherwise well-behaved dog into aggressiveness and worse, biting.

Dogs normally bite for one of three reasons: Indiscriminate biting, fear biting, and protective biting.

Indiscriminate Biting

Knowing which type of biter you are confronted with depends on the situation you are in at the time. For instance, if you are walking along the sidewalk in a residential street, minding your own business, and a dog suddenly leaves his yard, runs directly at you and bites, this is indiscriminate biting.

This is a spoiled dog that is probably the dictator in his household. He is the type of dog that merely allows his family to co-exist with him in the house. It could be any breed, from a Toy Chihuahua to a Giant Schnauzer.

Fortunately, dogs that fall into this category are in the minority and are usually confined and restricted because the owners are fully aware of the their bad behavior. Undoubtedly, they probably have been the recipients of occasional bites from their own dogs whenever the animals didn’t get their way.

Fear Biting

The fear biter falls into another category because his demeanor could be genetically inherited, or he could be a product of under-socialization with different types of people and situations when he was a puppy. He could be in a panic-stricken mind at the time of the bite.

A friendly but injured dog, he could suddenly become a fear biter depending on the circumstances. If you stop on the highway to rescue a dog that has been struck by a car, the dog may think that you are the one who hit him, rather than understand that you are there to rescue him.

Protective Biting

Finally, a protective biter is one that’s unable to reason any farther than the fact that he feels the need to protect someone or something. Usually, the protective biter is in the group known as the working breeds.

That is, dogs whose ancestors were originally bred to herd livestock or to protect properties and real estate. Most dogs have this protective instinct but it seems to manifest more predominantly within the working group.

To learn more about how to effectively train your dog in all situations check out  Chet Womach’s Hands Off Dog Training

Wrong! The common misconception that your dog is trying to be vindictive and countermine your housetraining efforts by refusing to follow the rules is a complete myth.

Dogs only have the capacity for simple, direct emotions, such as being happy, sad, or scared. Their minds are not capable of plotting ways to seek revenge for that swat on his rear, or how you scolded him an hour ago.

Dogs do, however, remember and draw upon past experiences that they associate with current situations. But it is important to understand that these associations only create an emotion in which they will feel when going through a similar experience.

In other words, lets say that you punish your dog for urinating on the front porch. If you continue to scold him for this behavior then eventually your dog will become fearful of using the bathroom outside. All he knows is that he is “outside”, not on the front porch. Your efforts will countermine your housetraining goals.

For this reason alone, it is important never to punish or yell at your dog when he uses the bathroom inside the house. Most housetraining problems actually stem from owners who completely instill fear in their pets when they go potty on the floor. This creates enough trauma to completely halt all of your housetraining efforts.

The key is trying not to react. Instead, remove your dog from the room and take him outside in a very calm and relaxed manner. Be sure that he does not see you cleaning up his mess. Quietly clean the area and be sure to use an enzyme-containing house cleaner. Vinegar or liquid soap will do just fine as well. By completely removing all of the older, this helps reduce your dog’s need to urinate and mark the same spot over and over.

Tip: Avoid using ammonia because the smell is very similar to that of a dog’s urine and can stimulate him to pee in the same area.

When all else fails, schedule a visit with your veterinarian so that the doctor can do a complete health checkup of your dog to make sure that there is not a health-related reason for his inability to become house trained.

Some dogs can be harboring illnesses that may prove to be the cause of not having the ability to control their bowel movements. Such illnesses could be caused by ticks, such as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, or the most common reason: a urinary tract infection.