Typical Dog Problems - and Their Solutions

Problems with dogs

The most common problems with dogs are primarily pulling on the leash or jumping on people. Additionally, dogs often destroy furniture because they cannot be left alone. Does your dog bark at other dogs? You are certainly not alone in that! Many other dog owners also struggle with this problem.

Let's now look at the individual problems in detail so that you can understand why your dog behaves this way in problematic situations and what a way out of the dilemma might look like. It should be said in advance that your dog never behaves this way because he wants to annoy you or because he is offended, as is unfortunately often wrongly communicated! Your dog doesn't know how else to help himself and is even more stressed in these situations than you are!

Problem 1: Leash Pulling

Leash training is particularly difficult for young dogs as it requires a lot of concentration. Dogs have a much better sense of smell than humans and are therefore overwhelmed by smells during walks. Your four-legged friend would ideally want to go everywhere at once and explore everything in detail! This is also why young dogs, and dogs that have never been shown how to walk on a leash, find it very difficult to resist all these stimuli.

It is recommended that you start leash training in short stages of several five-minute sessions per walk. It is best to put a harness and a collar on your dog for this. If the leash is attached to the harness, it means the dog is allowed to pull; if the leash is attached to the collar, concentration is required. Gradually increase the duration of the training sessions until your dog reliably walks on a loose leash, and remove the harness when you no longer need it. It is best to start training when your dog has already relieved itself and has had a chance to expend some energy. You will see that pulling on the leash will quickly subside!

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Problem 2: Dog jumps on other people

Visitors are on their way, and both people and the dog are overjoyed! The door opens, the dog rushes towards the visitors and jumps up repeatedly out of sheer excitement – unfortunately, the dog is a 30 kg Golden Retriever, who is literally "knockout" thanks to his weight! This problem often occurs with dogs who were never taught as puppies to keep all four paws on the ground – after all, a small puppy is so cute! The bigger the dog gets, the less cute people find it when they are jumped on. But what has once been anchored in a dog's brain is difficult to change again.

If you want to train your dog not to jump up anymore, it is recommended that the dog wears a collar 24 hours a day for a while. If the dog jumps on you, stay completely calm, slide your two thumbs from the front into the collar and hold the dog to the ground. As soon as the dog keeps all four paws on the ground, you can lovingly and calmly pet the dog – the same applies, of course, to visitors whom the dog jumps on! You will see that peace will quickly return.

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Problem 3: Dog doesn't stay alone and destroys furniture

Dogs are pack animals and therefore don't like to be alone. Since dogs form a bond with their owners as strong as that of children with their parents, it is especially important to teach the dog to be alone gradually. Otherwise, they will experience so much stress that they will constantly whine and bark, start destroying your home (to relieve stress), or develop diarrhea.

If you want to break your dog of the habit of jumping up, it's recommended that the dog wears a collar 24 hours a day for a while. If the dog jumps on you, stay completely calm, slide both of your thumbs into the collar from the front, and hold the dog down on the ground this way. As soon as the dog keeps all four paws on the ground, you can gently and calmly pet the dog – the same, of course, applies to visitors whom the dog jumps on! You will see that peace will quickly return.

Teaching your dog to stay alone requires patience and calmness. Leave the room for short periods repeatedly and return after a few seconds. Initially, your dog will follow you, but eventually, it will become too annoying, and they will stay put when you leave the room. Now, increase this by leaving the apartment briefly, for example, to go to the mailbox, take out the trash, etc., and film your dog with a dog camera to see how they behave. If this step also goes well, you can gradually increase the time of your absence bit by bit.

If your dog still cannot be left alone despite intensive training, then you should look for a dog daycare center where you can take your dog when you have to work.

Problem 4: Dog not responding to recall

If the dog does not respond to a recall, there are several possible reasons:

• Commands are not clear
• Own body language
• Too many repetitions of commands
• Reward is not applied correctly
• Lack of consistency

It takes a lot of time and patience to train a recall. But once the recall works, it's a relaxed walk with your dog. Your dog will then also enjoy more freedom. The many stimuli in nature should not bother him when he is called back.

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Problem 5: Leash Aggression

Just a moment ago, Fido was completely relaxed, but then it happened: an enemy in the form of another dog appeared on the horizon, your dog's posture changed, his hackles went up, and he started barking hysterically. This problem is rooted in your dog's insecurity and feeling restricted by the leash. Either your dog has had bad experiences with other dogs in the past, or he had too little social contact during his critical socialization period and is therefore overwhelmed. No confident dog barks at other dogs!

How does leash aggression manifest? A dog behaves aggressively on the leash by lunging or pulling wildly.

In many cases, it helps if you specifically seek out other dog owners with whom you can calmly practice such encounters. This way, you can create a controlled encounter by positioning the other dog owner and their dog so that your dog is tense but still responsive. Speak to your dog kindly, give him a treat, and wait until he relaxes a little. This way, you can gradually approach the other dog and create positive experiences.

Please, under no circumstances, yank on the leash when your dog barks at other dogs. That only leads to pain, possibly even health damage, and destroys your dog's trust in you!

The most common problems with dogs are primarily pulling on the leash or jumping on people. Additionally, dogs often destroy furniture because they cannot be left alone. Does your dog bark at other dogs? You are certainly not alone in that! Many other dog owners also struggle with this problem.

Let's now look at the individual problems in detail so that you can understand why your dog behaves this way in problematic situations and what a way out of the dilemma might look like. First, it should be said that your dog never behaves this way because he wants to annoy you or because he is offended, as is unfortunately often wrongly communicated! Your dog doesn't know how else to help himself and is even more stressed in these situations than you are!

Problem 6: Dog barking constantly

Barking is innate in dogs and is part of communication between conspecifics. It shows what the dog is feeling: joy, anger, excitement, or discomfort. There are various reasons why a dog barks constantly. Possible reasons include boredom or too little attention. Lack of exercise or insufficient activity can also be the cause. Here it is important to observe the dog closely to understand why it barks. It is important to find the cause. You can find a small guide on constant barking here.

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Additional tip: Hunting instinct

Every dog has a hunting instinct – some more, some less pronounced. This can often lead to problems if the dog owner has not trained against misbehavior. A hunting drive manifests itself, for example, when the dog chases other animals during walks. Even if dogs with a low hunting instinct are advantageous for inexperienced dog owners, the hunting drive can be easily trained away. You can find all information on this in this article: Anti-hunting training