Three Important Rules of Pet Communication

Your dog doesn't speak English, and you don't speak dog, but you can still communicate effectively with your pet. Your vocal tones and body language communicates volumes to your pet, but you should know that there are some things you shouldn't do when communicating with your pet. Here are three important rules of pet communication everyone should follow.

Don't use your dog's name to stop him from doing something.

Dogs get excited by the sound of their own name. It's usually a sound they recognise and often they associate it with coming in to and pleasing their owner. Always use your dog's name in a light and pleasing tone of voice. Avoid using a gruff tone when using their name. If your dog is doing something that you want them to stop doing, chastising them using thieir name will teach them that their name means they are making a mistake. You may have recall problems later as they think their name means they're in trouble. Use a simple growly sound instead when they're making a mistake.

Never hit your dog

Physical violence and pain are not acceptable tools for communicating with your pet. If you hit or yell at your dog, they won't understand why you're angry. What's more, if you become physical with your dog by pinning, scruffing, or alpha-rolling them, they may become worried about hands and learn that their pack (family) deals with problems by fighting. This is dangerous as a threatened dog is likely to bite and it is often a child that is bitten.

Don't punish your dog after the fact

Dogs live in the moment and they also only learn in the moment. If your dog is misbehaving and you get angry or use a gruff tone when they look at you or comes over to you, they do not connect your displeasure with their past bad behaviour. Always praise them for coming to you and make sure they consider you a safe, inviting place to be. Anything that they did prior to that moment is in the past and they can't reason back in time. Your anger will only make them confused and unsure about you.

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