How to raise a perfect dog

<>It is extremely easy to raise a well behaved, obedient dog and I'm about to tell you exactly how.<> There are just a few strict rules that apply before I begin. First and foremost, you must never hit, beat, torture or in any way harm your dog - no matter what. This is crucial in establishing and maintaining a bond between you and your mutt and this bond will last forever (not to mention that physical abuse is immoral and cruel). There is no getting around this rule and there is no bending or beaking this rule. The next most important rule for raising the perfect dog is to watch and learn about your dog - from day one. To do this, you need to spend time with your dog! Yes, lots of time. The time you spend with your dog watching and learning about them will be rewarded in several ways: you will be creating a loyal friend; you will be having a good time (maybe getting out of the house); you will learn how to think like a dog (if that's something you want to know); and most importantly for the purposes of training, you will begin to understand your dog's behavior and his/her subtle motivations, needs and expectations. Now, assuming you have a puppy, the first thing you will need to do is train your dog not to pee or poo in the house. This is simple and so many people do not understand this. All you have to do is take the dog outside when you notice that it is about to eliminate. If you are not home and leaving your dog alone for long periods of time then maybe you should take a little time off to get this training down because it is crucial that you do this early and not let bad habits develop. If your dog tries to go in the house and you are in the room, say "NO" and be firm and take them outside and wait until they go. When they do go outside to eliminate, congratulate them and show your genuine appreciation for their respect of your rule by giving them a treat or doing something fun with them. Another important part of a puppy's upbringing is the establishment of security. Do not leave your puppy with strangers when it is young and do not leave your puppy alone for long periods of time - this might cause neurotic behavior. If you have to leave, make sure they are in a safe place and have plenty of food and water and have been outside to the bathroom and have had some kind of exercise. If you leave them alone all day in a large empty house without wearing them out first you are just asking for the dog to destroy stuff. This is not the kind of behavior you want to encourage! Moving on, the next thing that I believe is very important is exposing your dog to the world. There are many frightening and dangerous things in our man-made world that you need to explain to your friend and familiarize them with. To do this, I think it is important to take your dog with you almost everwhere, as much as possible. Your dog needs to meet other dogs and meet other people and he/she needs to feel that they can do these thing with your support and care. The younger you begin this type of exposure, the better. You should not try to protect your dog from the dangers of the world by keeping them in the house all day or by never letting them off the leash. You should try to let your dog feel like he/she has the freedom to explore the world. If your dog does something that is unacceptable on these outings, be firm and tell them "NO" - simple and easy. To continue, feeding your dog does not have to be big deal. Too many people give their dog way too much food and make the dog's life revolve around food and then they wonder why their dog is too fat! Just put down a bowl of decent dry food twice a day, without making a big deal about it, and give them some biscuits or peanut-butter every once in while, when they do something good. That's all you have to do. If you want to mix some wet food in with the dry food to make it taste better then fine, but that isn't needed. To train your dog, the formula is simple. When your dog does what you want them to, reward them. When they do something bad or fail to do what you want do not get anrgy but correct the behavior as best you can as many times as you have to and they will eventually get it. It may take awhile, but that's just part of training - it takes time and effort. I hope this has been helpful and I encourage your comments. Peace