May 2nd, 2013
By Eric Letendre
My mom did something that was brilliant when I was growing up.
What she did was get me some comic books. I loved (and still do) reading comic books.
Reading those comic books lead to a lifelong love of reading and learning.
You see, she never forced or demanded that I read. She came up with a way that developed a desire for me to read.
And that, my dog loving friend, is the “secret” to crate training.
The problem with crate training is that most dogs or puppies are forced into the crate. If you take a little time you can turn this around and train your dog to LOVE the crate, to go into the crate on command with no struggles or fighting.
Most trainers will tell you to toss treats into the crate and let the dog go in. There is one HUGE step that they are missing.
And I am going to share it with you:
You need to add a little frustration to the mix… just a little.
Start by holding your dog’s collar and take out a treat.
Make a big deal out the treat. Show it to your dog, let her sniff it, get her a little excited and then toss it into the crate BUT…
…close the crate door.
When the crate door is shut let go of your dog’s collar. The treat is now on the inside of the crate and your dog is on the other side.
Your dog is now thinking, “How do I get inside this crate.”
Chances are your dog will start pawing to get inside – good!
You are building desire to go INTO the crate.
There are a few more steps that need to be followed but you get the gist.
The good news is that all of this and MUCH more is covered on The Dog Training Inner Circle with a forum where you can personally ask me any of your dog training questions.Get all the details by going here NOW:
Dog Training Inner Circle
Best,
Eric
August 22nd, 2012
By Eric Letendre
My wife loves to sleep in on Sundays.
Last Sunday I brought some coffee to her in bed and she was watching the old “I Love Lucy” show.
I loved watching the re-runs of that show when I was a kid but she had never seen it.
I told her that Ricky Ricardo would be a great dog trainer.
She asked why? I answered that Ricky could really dance and his little “Cha Cha” step can really help anyone that has a dog with a jumping problem.
You see, I’ve been training dogs for a long time and I know first-hand that one of the biggest problems experienced by dog owners is jumping.
I would say that about 80% of dogs jump when they greet and the problem is not really the owner’s fault.
Dogs get very excited when anyone comes over the house. They are extremely social animals and love to greet.
Most of the time we either intentionally or UN-intentionally reinforce the jumping behavior.
We either push and yell at the dog to get down or we call the dog up and reward the jumping.
For years, dog trainers have advised to knee the dog in the chest – NOT good advice.
The dog learns to avoid the knee or gets hurt.
All you need to do is watch Ricky do a few dance steps and do the same. A quick “Cha Cha” movement towards your dog as he jumps will discourage the behavior and most importantly it will not in any way reinforce the behavior.
Here’s the rub – this won’t work on every dog. Not one technique does. It is also the reason I show four different ways to stop jumping on the Good K9 Manners course.
There are video instructions, clearly showing how to stop jumping, begging, barking, stealing, and a whole lot more.
If you’re ready to end unwanted behaviors with your dog check out
You’ll be glad you did!
All the best,
Eric
July 23rd, 2012
By Eric Letendre
Got this email over the weekend:
“Hi Eric, Love your emails. Very informative and fun to read but I have one problem. I have a little four month old yorkie that my husband and I adore but she has one problem. She still poos inside the house. We need her 2 poo outside, any suggestions?”
No fun having a yorkie that poos in the house.
This would be described as a behavior problem by many of the dog training “experts.”
Let me make this very clear – This is NOT a behavior problem. Your dog peeing and pooing is a normal, natural function that all living creatures need to perform.
When your dog pees or poos in the house it is a LOCATION PROBLEM.
Sorry for the all the captial letters but I really want you to understand this because when it is called a behavior problem it is often lumped in with bad behavior and bad behavior is always viewed through the lens of punishment.
When a dog poos inside it is not bad behavior and a dog should not be punished.
In fact, punishment can quickly backfire and cross associations can develop.
A cross association is when your dog makes a negative association with your presence, not the event you were punishing for.
For example: A dog pees in the house. The owner gets mad drags the dog over to the urine and stuffs his nose in it and yells “BAD DOG.”
The dog now learns to hold it when the owner is around. They hold it in the house and they hold it when they are outside with the owner.
The dog has to eventually go so guess what the dog does?
He hides.
He finds a place where no one can see him and he pees behind the couch, under the table anywhere he can’t be seen.
Instead, we need to think of this as a location problem and apply the M.U.T.T. Method as discussed in Friday’s email.
So if your dog still pees or poos inside the house, remember that housetraining is like real estate:
Location, location, location.
Teach your dog the right location and your dog will be housetrained faster than you can say “Amazing Dog Training Man.”
BTW – The Housetraining Handbook is included on The Dog Training Inner Circle which shows you the step-by-step method to teach your dog or puppy the right location.
Get all the details here:
All the best,
Eric
June 23rd, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Training your dog to pee and poop on command is a must here in New England. You see, winters get real cold and it tends to rain a lot in the spring. It is no fun standing there freezing or standing in the middle of a down pour waiting for your best friend to do his business.
Much better to run outside, give the command “Get busy” and have it all wrapped up in a few seconds. This is also very easy to teach your dog and this video will show you how.
January 22nd, 2009
By Eric Letendre
Monday night I was doing an interview with a good friend of mine.
The interview was on how to be your dog’s pack leader. One of the questions he asked me was how long have I been training dogs.
I told him my first job was way back in 1988.
Over 20 years ago!
I thought about how much dog training has changed and evolved since I began training dogs. Luckily some of the old myths are starting to fade away. Here is a top 10 list of them:
1. Never start training until your dog is six months old.
2. Never play tug o war with your dog.
3. Always use a choke collar to train your dog.
4. Never use treats to train.
5. If your dog does not respond to a command give your dog an alpha rollover.
6. Dogs learn that you are the pack leader by scruff shaking and growling at them.
7. Never allow your dog on the furniture.
8, Never feed your dog "people food."
9. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
And thankfully this last myth is going away…
10. Stick your dog’s nose in his mess when you find it in the house.
But…
Some old myths die hard.
Not too long ago I got an email from someone that was told to shove her dog’s nose in his mess every time he has an "accident." I decided that it was time to sit down and put together a complete guide on housetraining.
My new HousetrainingHandbook will show you:
Check it out:
All the best,
Eric
P.S. The "How To Be The Leader" interview is included with the Housetraining Handbook.
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Eric Letendre is a professional dog trainer from the United States. For more than 20 years, he has been developing dog training techniques that have worked for dog owners all over the world. Eric operates from a home office or a laptop while traveling and draws on his experience and passion for dog training to show others how to develop a dog that is truly “Man’s Best Friend”.
Eric is the author of numerous reports, the E-Book “101 Ways to Hack Your Dog’s Behavior,” “The Amazing Dog Training Man Book,” and produced and stars in his DVD “Secrets of a Professional Dog Trainer.”
