How to Change a Pet's Behavior

You may have heard psychologists say that praise is better than punishment. This is true for animals as well as humans. Pets respond better to positive feelings because they can share those feelings with us, whereas our distress is more mysterious to them. If you can associate positive feelings with what you want your pet to do, it will be much more effective than a mere command.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Spend time bonding with your pet. If you want to change her behavior, she must first know what it's like when you're happy with her. Sometimes a new pet causes a lot of initial stress and you may find yourself in a state of impatience whenever you're around her--especially if your new puppy isn't pottytrained. It's important that your pet doesn't come to see this as normal, or disapproval will have no effect.

2. Seize the moment. Once you've established a good vibe between you, take a quiet moment to communicate with your pet. Sit down with him and stroke him. When you have his attention, visualize him doing the correct behavior. Verbally thank him for doing the right thing. It doesn't matter that he doesn't know what you're talking about yet. He will remember your happiness and associate your words with this feeling.

3. Speak in positives. Just like our unconscious minds, animal minds don't understand "not" and "don't." So when you speak, say "Thank you for treating the cat so nicely," as opposed to "Thank you for not chasing the cat". Repeat daily for maximum effect.

4. When necessary, use a gentle rebuke to stop your pet from doing something, like clawing the furniture or chewing on your shoes. Some tried and true methods are squirting a cat with a water bottle and tapping a dog on the nose. This is a symbolic gesture, so it must be done immediately, while the animal is still in action. If you only find the chewed up shoe hours later, rebuke is pointless.

5. Show the right way to do it. When you need your pet not only to stop doing something, but to do it in a different way, rebuke is not enough. You have to show her. Whether that means picking her up while peeing to put her in the litter box, or holding his collar when visitors come to the house to keep him from jumping on them, demonstrate the right way with a positive attitude. If your pet feels your anxiety, it will confuse him.

6. After correcting the behavior, praise a job well done. Use the same words you used before and try to evoke the same feeling of affection and camaraderie between you and thank your pet. Your pet will pay attention when your mood and manner changed and try to make the connection between what you are saying and what he has done.