Teach Your Dog To Stay Still In 4 Steps

One of the most useful exercises that we can teach our dog is to stay still in any circumstance in which we indicate it; this learning will be beneficial in various situations of daily life, it can even be decisive if the dog escapes us by the street.

Practice first at home to keep your dog quiet to order

Until the dog progresses in this exercise, you must start practicing at home, for his own safety. The first thing is to choose the order that you are going to give it always: `quiet´,` high´ `for,´` stay ´ or any word you decide, but always the same.

To teach your dog to sit still to order, you can use the doors of your house to help. With the door closed and your dog in sight, open the door and give it the command to ‘stand still,’ at first your dog will want to go through the door instantly, block his path with your body and give him the order again, repeat until the dog remains still, waiting to pass. At that moment, you give him the order of ‘release’ or end of the exercise: ‘come on,’ ‘go ahead,’ or whichever you choose. You can also practice near his toy basket, next to the sofa, at the foot of a ladder, in the kitchen or at the exit door to the terrace or portal, anywhere the dog wants to go, and you decide to stay still first.

Verbal commands can be accompanied by hand prompts, so many dogs learn to stay still with just a simple hand gesture from their owner.

Increase the amount of time the dog must stay still on command At first, just holding still for a few seconds will be enough to say ‘come on!’, So you understand the purpose of the exercise. Little by little, we will increase the time that the dog must remain still waiting, and whenever it does well, we will reward with prizes or petting.

A long leash helps you teach your dog to stay still when you practice on the street.

 When we go out to the street to practice this exercise, the dog must always remain on its leash to control it and prevent it from running away; Taking advantage of the length of the leash, we can move further and further away from the dog while he remains still.

We will practice without a leash only when we are sure that you have fully learned the exercise and preferably indoors.

Finally, practice the exercise of `quiet ‘with distractions.

When you fully trust that your dog has perfectly learned this exercise, it is time to start practicing it in places where there are distractions for the dog: the street, the door of an establishment of the park, places where there are movement, noise and bustle and where the dog has to focus on being still without being distracted by anything.

It is normal that on the first occasions, he gets up to the least distraction that arises, but little by little, you have to get him to stay still as long as possible until finally, he only gets up to order and the environment does not influence him.

It is very useful to practice giving the order to stop before crossing a zebra crossing or a traffic light since, in this situation, they usually learn it quickly.

How To Put The Thermometer On A Dog Well?

Placing the thermometer on the dog is the only way to check its body temperature, and you may have to do it sometime throughout its life. Dogs are not usually collaborative in this task, so it is advisable to follow certain guidelines in order to do it well.

When does a dog have a fever?

How do you know if a dog has a fever? As a general rule, fever in dogs starts at 39º and can be considered very worrisome after 41º. A temperature of 41º, which cannot be lowered, can even lead to the death of the dog; therefore, you must urgently take it to the vet. To lower the fever to a dog, the professional must do it, never ourselves, since the fever itself is not a disease, but a symptom that something is happening to your dog.

Circumstances that can alter a dog’s normal body temperature

There are several situations that can momentarily alter the dog’s usual body temperature. A healthy dog ​​can see its temperature affected by factors such as stress, moving, traveling, the presence of females in heat, or doing intense physical exercise.

It is important to take the temperature at different times, to check that there is no fever since, also depending on the time of day; the temperature varies: during the day it may be slightly higher (always within the values ​​accepted as normal) since its metabolism is active to cope with the day, especially after eating food (which is why it is advisable to take its temperature before eating), while at night it usually drops slightly due to basal metabolism.

 

How to put the thermometer on the dog

To use the thermometer in a dog, keep in mind that the rectal temperature is taken because it is the most significant inside the body and the most stable, since not all parts of the body are always at the same temperature.

To take the dog’s body temperature rectally to the dog, a digital thermometer (because it is quick to read) and unbreakable material are necessary. Gently use a little petroleum jelly to gently insert the thermometer tip through the anal opening. The tip of the thermometer must remain inserted into the anus for a minimum of twenty to thirty seconds or until the thermometer warns us with its acoustic signal.

If it is a female, the temperature can also be taken through the vagina.

Placement of the dog to put the thermometer well

Generally, no dog welcomes us to put a thermometer on it, and we will probably need help holding it (at least the first few times until we catch up on practice). If our dog is small, we can place him on a table (which is something that will give us a few seconds of advantage while he is paralyzed at height), and with the help of another person so that he does not fall, we will proceed to take his temperature.

The correct posture of the dog must always be supported on all four legs, neither lying down, nor sitting, nor ‘standing.’

Sometimes it works that the dog is not focused on what is happening in the “back of his body,” and while one person puts the thermometer, another can be placed next to his head and can distract him by stroking him, but without a move.

What to do after putting the thermometer on the dog

You have to disinfect the thermometer with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol and write down the result, the time and the day at which the temperature was taken, as well as any other observation that may be useful to the vet: if it was after the meal, before eating, the general condition and mood of the dog, etc.

Our vet will tell us how long we should do this check and how many times a day we should put the thermometer on. Generally, if it is for a long period, dogs get used to this maneuver.

Symptoms of fever in dogs

These are some of the symptoms of fever in the dog: the sudden rise in body temperature is usually preceded by a shiver. Other symptoms can be confusion, lack of coordination, gasping, increased heart rate, and constipation, followed by diarrhea.