At Last You've Time To Train A Companion Dog
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You live longer if you train a companion dog that is eager to respond to your every whim. My theory is that if you have an untrained dog it only seems to make your miserable life longer.
Nobody knows why a dog has such therapeutic value, but many hospitals encourage a selection of well-trained dogs to visit the wards, because of the health benefits to the patients.
The patients aren't getting any more exercise, so that can't be the reason. However, if you get a dog to train, it will force you to get some exercise every day. I don't have a dog just now, and I walk for an hour each day...well, not if it's raining...well, not if I have something important to do instead...well, not if I forget...
Have you tried explaining to a dog that there's a blizzard blowing outside? If you have a young dog he will want you to chase him in circles round the park, and a few weeks of that will have you fitter than ever. Then you get smart. You teach him to retrieve a stick, and spend half an hour each day throwing sticks in the park. Is that really less energetic?
What if your German Shepherd puppy likes to hang onto a stick while you whirl round, giving him a merry-go-round ride? Are you going to stop the fun when he weighs 70 pounds? Try explaining to your Great Dane why you don't want to have a tug-of-war any more once it weighs more than you do.
You should groom your dog each day. When you get your puppy, lift it onto a slippery table, with one arm under its chest and the other arm under its tail. Give the command "Stand...Stay" which will be ignored until your puppy has slipped and fallen a few times in the first few minutes.
Each day you lift up your puppy and give the same command before you start grooming. Guess which command your dog will know best for the rest of his life! Guess how fit you will be when you are lifting your 250lb adult dog onto the same table!
I used to have an Alsatian bitch that I was training for obedience competitions. The trouble was that I had to go to work each day, so I promised myself that I would train one properly when I retired, so that I would have all day to train a companion dog.
Well, I'm retired now, but I want to do some travel round the world, which would mean leaving my dog behind. So I'll postpone getting one until I really have time to train it properly.
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