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NewsSeptember 21, 1997

Chuck Rhodes held Cosmo, a 12-week-old boxer, during an exercise to build trust in the dogs. Socialization between dogs at an early age is important. Dog trainer Carla Karr showed how to discourage a puppy from biting. Yes, you can teach an old dog new tricks, says Bruce Masterson...

Chuck Rhodes held Cosmo, a 12-week-old boxer, during an exercise to build trust in the dogs.

Socialization between dogs at an early age is important.

Dog trainer Carla Karr showed how to discourage a puppy from biting.

Yes, you can teach an old dog new tricks, says Bruce Masterson.

Just don't expect him to forget the old ones.

Masterson and Carla G. Karr, both dog trainers based in Cape Girardeau, regularly deal with human beings who are unhappy about the way their dogs are behaving.

Sometimes the dogs have too much energy. Often, the dog won't come when it's called. Or it jumps up on guests, or any of a host of annoying habits.

That's where obedience training comes in. The human being learns to lay down the law, and the dog learns that the law exists.

"Not every dog requires it, but I feel like it can increase the human-animal bond and make it a better pet over being a pest," said Dr. Ann Seabaugh, a Cape Girardeau veterinarian.

"What's unfortunate is that the number one reason animals are euthanized is because of behavior. It's not because of illness. It's because of problem behavior."

Oftentimes, Karr said, behavioral problems develop because people don't want to be the boss.

"Dogs look at the world in very black and white terms. Dog societies are not democracies," she said.

A dog views its life from its place in the pack, she said, and someone has to be the leader of that pack -- and it should be the human being.

"What I find sometimes is that people don't want to put discipline in their dog's lifestyle," Karr said. "But the dog doesn't see that as mean. They want to know what the rules are, where the lines are drawn, because they're not going to figure that out for themselves."

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Masterson recommends that obedience training start when the dog is about 6 months old -- although the basics can begin when the puppy is as young as 8 weeks.

Choosing the right puppy is the first step in successfully training a dog, he said.

"The number one way is in choosing a puppy. Take a puppy out and set him in the yard, and if he follows you, that's a puppy that needs to be with you," he said. "If he turns and walks the other way, he's going to be pretty independent and be harder to train."

The breed of dog and the individual dog's personality will determine how easily trained the dog will be, Masterson said.

And it's important that people be consistent when they set the rules.

"If you've got a Doberman pinscher puppy and you don't want him to be on the couch when he's 100 pounds, don't let him on the couch when he's 8 weeks old. He doesn't know he's 100 pounds," he said. "It's easier to train a dog than it is to untrain a dog."

Once a dog learns bad habits, those habits could show up again, so it's important to start training young, he said.

Praise and rewards are also important, he said. People often have a problem with the dog running away when it's called.

If the owner puts the dog into a pen or on a leash every time the dog is called, the animal will make the connection eventually and will run away to avoid being tied up, Masterson said.

"Well, don't put him in the pen every time he comes to you. Give him a treat and praise him. Make it fun for him to come to you," he said.

Another problem is that owners often want their dogs trained when they haven't learned any of the basics.

"It's like trying to teach a kid algebra, but saying, `I don't want to learn arithmetic or practical math or any of that. I want to start right at algebra,' and you can't do that," Masterson said.

The trick is to teach the dog to obey in abnormal situations -- when company comes over, for example -- so that there won't be problems in every day situations, he said.

Masterson also recommends that dog owners work with their dogs in obedience training rather than hiring a trainer to work one-on-one with the dog.

"If I train the dog, the dog listens to me," he said. "The owner becomes a substitute."

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