As the weather warms up for the summer months ahead our thoughts start to turn towards our weight, hiding under the layers of winter clothing is not possible now so we begin to think of ways to lose weight. Now our canine chums are much the same as us, obviously not literally as they do not wear clothing in the first instance but they will find any excess weight a burden in the hot weather.

The first thing to ascertain is whether your dog is actually overweight and the easiest way to do this is to look down on your faithful friend when he/she is in a standing position, you are looking for your dog’s natural body shape to slope inwards at their waist to show that they are not overweight.
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I am going to be completely optimistic now and say that the rain outside my window will shortly turn to brilliant sunshine and that we will actually experience a summer, when we do it is important that we remember our faithful friends need to keep cool as much as we do.

There are numerous ways to help your canine chum remain calm and cool during those hot summer days. The initial one which we are reminded of on a regular basis and have no excuses to forget is do not leave your dog in a car during the summer months, even on an overcast day the temperature will still be high and deadly to your dog.
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As dog owners most of us have probably encountered the term ‘hierarchy’ either through training classes, literature or the good old television shows concerning all things doggy. Many problems seem to be blamed on the hierarchy being misplaced; trainers very often like to say that the owner needs to reaffirm their position of hierarchy with their dog, which loosely translated means that the said dog is ruling the household and walking all over their traumatised owner!

According to the English dictionary the term ‘hierarchy’ means, ‘system of people or things arranged in a graded order’ so basically a pecking order.

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The initial point to comprehend when it comes to training puppies and adult dogs is the basic fact that they are all different from one another, I know this sounds like common sense but a lot of dog owners simply assume because their breed of dog is supposed to be ‘intelligent’ it should learn quickly.

Just because you may have acquired a Border collie for instance do not simply think that he/she will instantly know what is expected and to learn in turbo speed, not only are different breeds of dog different from each other but so are the same breed. You can place two of the same breed side by side and they will learn at varying speeds. Allow yourself the opportunity to become accustomed to your puppy’s/dog’s individual personality and character prior to beginning too much intense training.
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