Welcome back to the ACI Newsletter. In our Spring edition we'll cover crate training,
teaching your dog aggressive behavior by accident, helpful springtime hints, and a tried and true recipe submitted by one of our students.

Please send your favorite treat recipes, stories, pictures or contributions to our
editor at editor@dogskool.com. We really enjoy getting feedback from our
readers. Happy Springtime!

For those of you who have not had the opportunity to use a crate and think it is a harsh or cruel way to train your puppy or dog, you should know crates are far from being cruel. In fact, when used in a positive manner, crate training can be the answer to many problems faced by dogs and their owners. Dogs have a natural instinct to be in a den, something that they inherited from their wolf ancestors. Wolves find a small cave, or dig themselves one, and this is where they sleep, rest and hang out. It is home for them. Providing your dog with a crate satisfies his desire to be in a den and provides a safe and secure place for your dog. It is one of the most effective ways to train your puppy or dog to become a happy and well-adjusted family member. Crate training makes life easier for you and your dog.

Advantages to Crate Training

Many people crate train their dog for the simple reason that the dog can do no wrong while in the crate. Your dog cannot urinate or defecate on the rug, harass the mailman, chew on the furniture or get into the trash. The dog learns to relax and go to sleep while you are away. This teaches the dog good habits, one of which is to sleep while his family is away. And while your dog sleeps, you can go to work, run errands, or take in a movie without having to worry about what condition your house will be in when you return. You put your dog in the crate, shut the door and leave for a few hours, knowing when you return it will be a happy homecoming and not a one-sided yelling match with your dog cringing in the corner not knowing what he did wrong.

There are also advantages if you travel with your dog. A dog that feels secure in his crate is much easier to take on long trips than a dog left to jump excitedly around inside the car. Your dog is also much safer should an accident occur. Hotels or motels are much more willing to allow dogs to stay if you bring your dog's crate, plus the maid can't accidentally let the dog loose into the street if your dog is crated in the room. Dogs being shipped by plane or train feel much more secure and can handle the stress of traveling much easier if they have their own crate to travel in.

Online training advice is a very sticky area, since every dog, owner and situation is different. Everything written in the ACI News merely offers suggestions to get dog owners thinking. We encourage all dog owners to take obedience classes, talk to their vets, and work with professional trainers so that their relationships with their dogs can be everything they should be.