One of the great joys of dog ownership is the enthusiastic greeting your dog gives you when you arrive home. However, with some dogs this soon turns into a frenzy of barking, whining and jumping. In these cases the dog is most likely under-exercised or has anxiety or leadership issues.
I hope you’ve noticed the common thread here. All of these are things you control.
Curing Your Dog’s Boredom
A common thread with over-excitable dogs is that they are bored. These dogs often get little or no physical or mental activity. They become lethargic and frustrated so that any break in their boring routine is greeted with over-the-top excitement.
Fortunately, the solution is simple – your dog needs to be exercised. All dogs, regardless of size need it, but very few get enough.
How much exercise does a dog need? Well that depends on the dog. Age, breed and health are all factors. Your little Peke will be quite happy with a stroll around the garden, but that’s just not going to cut it with a Lab, let alone a Border Collie.
Dealing with Separation Anxiety
A common cause for over-excited behavior is separation anxiety. This is particularly true of dogs that are left home while the owner goes to work. Here are some things you can do to address the behavior;
*Don’t Encourage the Behavior – For Starters you need to stop giving your dog attention when he is in an anxious, pumped up state. Ignore the dog completely until he has calmed down, then, and only then, give attention and affection.
*Change Your Routine – I’ll bet your dog knows your routine even better than you do, and when he notices the familiar things you do before leaving, it sets off his anxiety. By changing your routine, even slightly, you can break the cycle and affect the behavior.
*Restrict his access – Restrict your dog to a small area when you are not at home, maybe just one room. You may even want to buy a dog crate and train him to stay in the crate while you’re away.*Give him something to keep him occupied – A dog gets pretty bored hanging around for 10 to 12 hours with nothing to do. Keep him occupied with some chew toys, and a hidden treat or two to find.
Provide Pack Leadership
A dog that is uncertain of his place in the pack hierarchy will always be anxious, because he’s not sure how to behave. What can you do about it? Give him some basic obedience training like “sit”, “stay” and “down”.
Training provides discipline and mental stimulation. It also establishes your leadership. Once your dog accepts this, he’ll naturally calm down.
Applying these 3 principles will have a noticeable effect on your dog’s hyper-active behavior. Keep in mind that not all dogs were created equal. Some dogs (and some breeds) are just by nature more boisterous than others.
Read more about dog training, dog care, dog anatomy and other useful dog advice at dogsanddogtraining.com
