Want a short list on how to ruin that cute ball of fluff in your lap or at your side?

Okay, so “ruin” is a pretty harsh word and dogs are very resilient; but there are some things that you can do either knowingly  or unknowingly that put the odds in favor of your dog ending up at a shelter and losing his life instead of staying with you and becoming a great pet.

#5.  Yell At Him With No Constructive Information

If you want to ruin your dog be sure and yell at him “NOOOOOO!!!!!” but don’t help him learn by teaching him what you want.

Just yell spontaneously whenever he does something you don’t like and hope he realizes what you want.

Why This Doesn’t Work

Dogs need to be taught specific information, if you don’t want him jumping on the counter teach him to stay with you or give him constructive information like “off” or “leave it” when he jumps up so he learns specifically what you want.

Dogs are not mind readers and yelling NO!!!  Just teaches them to ignore the NO!! and they will continue the bad behavior.

#4.  Teach Him That His Name or Coming When Called is Bad

If you want to ruin your dog be sure to use his name when you are mad at him and punish him when he comes to you; when he comes throw him in his crate so that he associates coming to you with bad things instead of happiness and enjoyment.

Why This Doesn’t Work

Dogs don’t realize if time has passed between your calling, his romping and then his coming; instead he associates the last behavior with being bad or being wrong.

So, if your dog finally comes to you after 20 minutes be happy that he came and don’t dwell on the 20 minute romp.  Instead, don’t let the romp happen again and teach your dog to Come No Matter What (for more on that click here). 

Also remember to only use his name for good things or he will associate his name as a bad thing or bad command.  Dogs aren’t children and you can’t use their name and then yell at them without having severe consequences arise when you use their names.

If your dog gets loose you WANT him to WANT to come back or he is likely to be run over by a car or never seen again.

#3.  Don’t Potty Train Him, He’s So Small You Won’t Mind

If you want to ruin your dog, don’t potty train him; or be super lax with his potty training inside by letting him potty wherever he wants whenever he wants.  He’s so small that you won’t mind cleaning up after him for life right?

Why This Doesn’t Work

People eventually do mind.  They get new carpet, they move, they move in with someone, they have children or they just get bothered by constantly stepping in dog urine and feces.

Nothing sends a small dog to their death faster than not truly caring about potty training.  Dogs need to be taught and small dogs need to be educated even more so than the bigger guys because they are more likely to have accidents in the house without being bothered by them.

For help with potty training outdoors click here. 

For help training your puppy to go potty indoors click here. 

#2.  Avoid Training and Structure and Be Sure to Baby Him

If you want to ruin your dog be sure to avoid dog obedience training, structure or discipline because these things will only diminish their personality or make them unhappy; after all nothing likes to work right?

Why This Doesn’t Work

Dogs that end up at shelters are the ones no one works with on obedience or manners.

Dogs that feel entitled or are spoiled are usually the ones that develop severe aggression and aggression is a death sentence when they go to a shelter.

Dogs not only need obedience, they also like structure and working, even small dogs!

Who would rather work until old age and not want retirement?  YOUR DOG!!!

Over-bonding could actually be dangerous for you and your dog; for more on that read I Love You to Death; Why Over-bonding is Bad, Even Dangerous for Your Dog

Dogs love working and working dogs are often happier than spoiled pets because they get to use their minds and do something constructive.

#1. Physically Punish Him; Punch Him in the Face, Use Prong Collars, and “Correct” His Behavior However You Can

If you want to ruin your dog be sure to physically punish him.  Hit him, kick him, yank him with a prong collar or zap him with a shock collar.  This will ensure a terrified or aggressive ball of fur when you finally give up on his behavior and drop him off at a shelter.

Why This Doesn’t Work

Although most people think that physical correction and punishment solidify behavior and increase their likelihood of not happening again studies show that this is not the case.

Not only is punishment not effective for learning, because it comes AFTER the fact it is also not conducive to learning!

Fear inhibits learning.  What is your biggest fear?  Now imagine yourself; locked in a coffin, covered in spiders, or falling off of a skyscraper…could you LEARN something new while dealing with your fear?   Chances are your ability to learn a new skill would be seriously affected.   During this stress could you listen to and comply to given instructions even if you knew how to do it?  I probably couldn’t!

If you use your body does that mean others could?  So your dog threatens to bite you and you hit him; he might not threaten to bite you again but he might threaten to bite your nephew.  Not everyone is willing or capable of issuing a good correction and sometimes dogs kill their owners when a fight breaks out.  Are you willing to die to correct your dog?  Truthfully your physicality is putting others at risk.

As the thinking animal we should be able to use our minds to get our dogs to do what we want them to do; not our bodies.

Your dog is probably terrified when he incurs a beating, and compulsion  and even if it is during or after he has jumped on you, chances are he doesn’t understand the intricacies of why you just lost your temper.  In his mind, he is simply excited to see you and wants to be closer to you!

If you are a reformed punishment, or physical type trainer and you are looking for success….you must go back to square one and build your relationship together.  Start over and teach him to trust you.  YOU are in control of your emotions and you know when you are reaching a point that you need to stop if you get frustrated.  But hopefully as you change your style and you dog recognizes how your relationship has changed he will be more willing to learn and make mistakes and build a strong relationship together!

– See more at: http://www.thedogtrainingsecret.com/blog/top-5-ways-ruin-dog/#sthash.PZ8qwq4s.dpuf