Getting Rid of your Dog's
Bad Habits

If your dog has acquired bad habits, try to find out what could have been the cause and try to eliminate it. Dogs that tear apart the house when they are left alone do so because they get bored, they are frustrated or they suffer from anxiety as a result of the separation.

Some customs such as herd chasing or aggressiveness towards other dogs are part of the dog's normal behavior, so they are difficult to correct. However, a slow, repetitive and sound re-adaptation is usually successful.

Comprehension and Prevention
In order to correct your dog's bad habits, it is important for you to understand first how he has acquired them. Even if you think that your dog's behavior is unacceptable, for the dog, that is his natural way of behaving. You should do your best to find out the reason or the cause whenever there is a problem.

Ask yourself why you find your dog's behavior unacceptable and if the dog is aware that you don't approve of such behavior. Try to find out if you can avoid this behavior, correct it or change it by yourself or if you need a trainer.

Acceptable Natural Behavior
Chewing bones or toys that are bone-shaped are normal dog behaviors. Chewing is a way of getting information and getting acquainted with the surrounding environment.

Unacceptable Natural Behavior
Chewing a shoe penetrated with human smell might sound like a natural way of behaving f or a dog, but it is clearly unacceptable for people. You can avoid this bad habit from the very beginning by never giving your dog old shoes to chew on. Then the animal will learn to chew only the allowed objects, ignoring the rest.

Acquired Behavior
A dog's fear of hands is an acquired behavior and this usually happens if the dog has at some point in the past been hit. You can easily avoid shyness towards hands by simply never using them to punish your dog.

Chewing for the Sake Of It
Many dogs enjoy chewing objects, tearing apart newspapers and even tearing the paper off the walls. This desire of being "creative" needs an acceptable relief, like chewing bones and toys for example.

Destructive Behavior
Despite the fact that destructive activity satisfies dogs, it is absolutely unacceptable for people. If you give your dog too many toys, you are motivating him to destroy other objects. Limit the amount of toy available to your dog to two or three, but make them different from the other objects of the house so he can recognize them as his own.