Shih Tzu Training – Make up Your Own Rules!
Shih Tzu training, or at last being consistent with your little friend will keep your pet happy every day of his life. That said, Shih Tzu training need not be formal and it can be as simple as you like, as long as your dog knows exactly where he stands.
On ShihTzu.web we share a lot of dog training information. We like to cater to each and every one of you when offering advice on Shih Tzu training, care and well-being.
Whether you are quite a formal Shih Tzu dog trainer and look forward to our precise and professional training advice or you don’t really mind if your dog sits on the sofa, eats scraps from your plate and shares your bed we want to cover all of your needs.
For the above reason I wanted to share some information that might just surprise you.
It really, really doesn’t matter what you allow your Shih Tzu to get away with as long as he knows you allow it.
There are most certainly people out there who would disagree with me wholeheartedly. Some dog trainers will say that there must be a set of careful rules which have to be followed during Shih Tzu training and your lives together or your dog will become out of control.
These rules include:
- Not sharing your food with a dog.
- Not allowing the dog to share your bed or other space such as the sofa.
- Not allowing your dog to pull you through doors.
The idea that dogs need rules is true to an extent, everyone needs guidelines to live by, to know what is good manners and what is a terribly bad mannered act, yet the rules you choose can be pretty fluid as long as your Shih Tzu understands them.
It makes absolutely no difference to your overall relationship if your dog goes to bed with you. If you want to take your Shih Tzu to bed then do it, just make sure that you understand that he will expect to come to bed every night thereafter so don’t chop and change or you may hurt his feelings (also watch out for over attachment-detailed here).
It doesn’t matter if your dog begs from the table assuming you don’t mind those big brown eyes gazing at you whilst you eat. If you do mind then take a look at some of my professional training tips to see what you can do about it.
Shih Tzu training certainly does not need to be some kind of caveman like “I lead -you follow” mentality. The relationship you share with your dog should be fun, relaxed, loving and with mutual understanding. You are cross-species friends not both random imitation wolves.
So, decide on your rules and stick by them. Don’t think you have to follow someone else’s rules. Your relationship with your dog is completely unique to the two of you and so should your Shih Tzu training be.
