How I House Trained “The Dog From Hell”
By: LaShonda K. Rogers
Proud Puppy Owner/ Part Time Dog Walker
About two years ago as a birthday gift, my husband bought me a new puppy after I hinted about getting a puppy for weeks prior to my birthday. I have never owned a dog before, nor have I ever even touched a dog until that day.
I was presented with Hazel. Hazel is a Beagle/ Jack Russel Terrier Mix. The name suited her perfectly because at first sight, Hazel seemed to be the cutest sweetest thing ever. Little did I know Hazel was the furthest thing away from ‘sweet’.
After bringing Hazel home, I quickly started to realize that maybe Hazel was more than I had originally signed up for and that house training her would quickly move up the ranks of things I need to do fast.
Firstly, Hazel’s barking abilities even as a tiny puppy was quite flamboyant. Her bark was so loud and constant that I would always wake up to knocks on my door from my neighbors complaining about my dog barking throughout the night. Hazel would bark profusely towards strangers.
I tried giving her food to get her to stop, I tried playing with her to get her to stop, I even tried barking with her to somehow get her to stop barking. Needless to say, all my efforts were futile.
Secondly, she turned out to be a biter. I lived in a house with very small kids and this was indeed a huge problem. Although her teeth at the time were not enough to severely injure them I still wanted to get her to realize that biting is/was not okay.
Nipping at my feet as I walked, and always biting my fingers as I slept seemed to be a hobby of hers. Not only did she attempt to bite others, but she also was responsible for chewing up a pair of shoes, ripping holes in my carpet, ripping the carpet of an “Extended Stay Hotel” I stayed at, tearing & ripping countless toys and stuffed animals I bought her and the list just goes on.
Thirdly, Hazel turned out to be a complete troublemaker. She would make huge messes in the kitchen or bathroom whenever she thought that someone wasn’t looking and would hop onto the dining room table to steal food when she thought that she was alone. Leaving her alone anywhere was taking a huge risk.
I would have to clean up the entire area of anything that I wanted to not be damaged before letting her roam around because she would absolutely destroy anything that she was able to fit into her mouth.
After about 5 months and hundreds of dollars spent repairing damages made by Hazel, I decided that it was now time to begin seeking help. I spent countless hours researching and looking up videos about dog training to understand how I would be able to discourage Hazel from continuing her unpleasant and unwanted behaviors.
Lucky for me I ended up stumbling across an online puppy training program that guaranteed to “FIX” my dog. I thought that these were some bold claims being made but decided to purchase the program anyway to tell myself if it was worth it or not.
I managed to complete the entire program and finish all the modules with Hazel and to my surprise, the training course satisfied every claim they made. This was the greatest thing to ever happen for Hazel and I.
The program knows how dogs think and teaches the owner how the dog’s brain works and how we can use that knowledge to our advantage.
The course has turned my “dog from hell” into the sweet dog I had originally expected her to be. Hazel now barely ever barks unless at the dog park, Hazel is great with little kids now and she has also learned that certain things were not supposed to go in her mouth to be chewed and destroyed.
I recommend this course to anybody struggling with their puppies and is at the end of their wits in training them.
