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There are more than 150 breeds of dogs all over the world. Each breed has a distinct set of characteristics and features, and lives well in particular environments. They say that pets eventually reflect the personality of their owner, with their inherent characteristics remaining intact.

Choosing the right dog for you will entail a little reflection on what kind of lifestyle you have, what kin ...

As I sit here and type this, my 45 pound dog is literally in my lap. Oh the joys of being a pit bull owner. If you’ve ever gone looking for an apartment complex that allows you to house your dog(s) with you, you know it’s difficult to find one. That difficulty is compounded depending on the weight of the dog and the breed makeup. Chances are, however, that anyone who thinks pits are mean, aggressive, toddler mauling monsters has never owned one nor been around one for any length of time. I would even wager that these people don’t know much about dogs in general. I can‘t speak for the breed in general, so I’ll delve into my personal experience to see if I can shine some light on the subject. ...

Chewing, Digging, Barking, Chewing, Digging, Barking, Chewing.

Obsessive behaviors are one of the most common reasons that dogs are brought to animal shelters. Most of the time, these are family pets that are friendly, loyal, and all-around good dogs. But their "people" cannot handle their chewing, digging, or barking any longer. Unfortunately, a lot of these dogs are then placed in new homes and exhibit the same obsessive behavior, and a terrible cycle is established.

Why do dogs DO THAT?

All three of these behaviors are quite normal for a dog to do. A dog that lies down with a good "chewie" is one happy dog! Dogs make their own "beds" by digging a good hole in the ground. It keeps them warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Wild dogs, and some domesticated ones enjoy the sound of their own voice, and like to "sing to the moon." The problem arises when we people feel it is not appropriate for the dogs to do what comes natural to them. ...

Five years ago, I rescued a 14-month-old Border Collie, who had several very severe behavioral problems. One of those problems was his fear of humans. I’d like to share with you some of the things that I did to help this dog overcome that fear.

One of the major problems Jack had was that he knew that biting and snarling, showing his teeth and growling had always worked for him when he wanted to keep people away. I had to help him get used to people being around him BEFORE he got so stressed that he’d begin to show these behaviors. ...

So… you say your dog won't let you near his food bowl? And, he won't let you take something out of his mouth? Oh my goodness, he's growling at you or biting you when you do try to take something away from him? Well guess what? Your dog is just acting like a dog! His survival instincts tell him that giving something up that's valuable to him isn't normal behavior for dogs. Okay, we need to talk:

Before we tackle the guarding problem, we need to work on gaining your dog's trust and respect. In order to do this, you'll need to implement an everyday training regimen with him called "Nothing in Life is Free" (aka NILIF). This program is very simple, it doesn't take much time or additional effort to work with it, AND, you will probably see some nice results before the end of two weeks, or less. Any dog that is food or object/toy guarding has to be considered as on the verge of biting whenever someone interferes with his ownership of his possessions. I know you'll agree that this is a potentially dangerous situation, especially if you have young toddlers or small kids in your home. ...