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Michel Gerard ⁽⁸⁵⁾ United Kingdom

Michel Gerard

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Known Solutions to Stop Dog Barking?

Posted Friday, November 20, 2009 (2 days 8 hours ago.) Viewed 3 times.

A lot of dog handlers do not know what to do when their dog barks and is a nuisance for their neighborhood. When the reasons of the dog barking are known, it is much easier to correct the bad behavior. A dog handler who wants to keep problems at bay with his neighbors has many possibilities available from positive training tricks to the use of mechanical gadgets.

Why does a dog bark? A dog barks to communicate a message, show excitement or draw attention. The sound can't be taken as a rich information message similar to human speech because it is not a language. There are differences in the tone of a bark that can be identified: disturbance barks are rough and low frequency while play barks are of a more tonal and higher frequency. A bark along with a certain body attitude may allow the owner to understand what his dog is up to.

The main types of barks are warning barks and alarm barks. A warning bark is a response to a territorial intrusion and starts as a low growl becoming more loud and ferocious. If the dog feels threatened, it may also show its teeth. An alarm bark is a reaction to an unusual event and voiced by one or two barks, which are in no way aggressive. The dog may keep on barking until action has been taken by the handler.

The other kind of barks are playful barks, need barks and on command barks. A dog barks for a treat or during a play session with its owner. It barks in order to have the owner satisfy its need such as providing food when it is hungry or letting it going outside to do its business. Some owners also teach their dogs to bark on command, which is part of a dog obedience training course.

When barking is a nuisance, the behavior can be controlled in different ways, with the easiest solution being the first, and the last the most controversial:

- Finding the reason of the barking and if possible eliminating it.
- Correcting the behavior with positive training methods.
- Attending a dog training course.
- Using a bark collar.
- Surgical debarking.

If a dog barks at another family pet such as a parrot, the solution would be to isolate the cage in another location. Positive training is a way to correct the behavior without punishment. Time needs to be spent with the dog in order to stimulate the animal to remain quiet, and give treats or praise when the barking stops. Dog training classes are also a wonderful way to go, but they need commitment and training centers are not always conveniently located close to one's home.

There are a few types of very effective bark collars, which are more or less well received by dog lovers. Basically the device produces a response to a bark that annoys the dog and makes the animal stop. A citrus spray collar sprays citronella, that dogs do not like, to disrupt the pattern of barking. A vibrating ultrasonic collar produces a tone that humans can't hear but irritates the dog and progressively discourage barking. An electrical collar produces a mild stinging or tingling sensation after each bark. The latter is the most arguable mechanical device of all for obvious reasons.

Surgical debarking is a procedure to modify the dog's voice box so that a bark makes a reduced noise. This is the last option available for a stubborn dog that won't stop to bark despite all the efforts made by its owner. It is very contentious and also not legal in some countries.

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Michel Gerard is a freelance writer located in Asia. His expertise is wide and varied in a number of topics. Visit the Bad Dog Training Tricks blog and claim your *free* dog training 6 day course => http://www.baddogtrainingtricks.com

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Thai 7s - Phuket Island as a Soccer 7s Hub

Posted Tuesday, November 17, 2009 (5 days 12 hours ago.) Viewed 3 times.

Phuket, the famous tourist hub in Thailand, is not simply an island where the beaches and vibrant night-life can be experienced by visitors, but also a top sport destination. Each year, hundreds of overseas football players from many countries participate in the three favored International soccer seven-a-side tournaments.

These tournaments provide a socially competitive environment for soccer players who wish to compete with the right attitude and spirit. Only foreign teams who love soccer participate in the events in not only an atmosphere of competition, but also a flavor of friendship. There is no prize money to be awarded, but Cup, Plate and Bowl trophies, as well as medallions, are presented in the Open and Masters categories.

The oldest of the three football tournaments, which is the "Phuket International Soccer 7s", started in 2003 with 10 teams and has grown as the biggest soccer 7s event in the region. South-East Asian's soccer 7s teams made of foreigners of many nationalities, but also teams from South Africa, Australia and Europe get together for a two-day tournament in November.

Due to the growing demand of teams wanting to participate, a second tournament, the "Andaman Soccer 7s", was created in 2006. This 2-day event has proved to be very successful and is following the path of its predecessor with more and more teams joining each year. It is organized the next week-end after the "Phuket Soccer 7s" in November.

The newest of these tournaments is the "Phuket Spicy Soccer 7s" and started in February 2009. This event is also held on 2 days and was created in order to enable teams that can not join the two other soccer 7s tournaments in November to participate. It is predictable that a lot more soccer teams will participate in the 2010's second edition, and the years to come.

Tournaments are played in accordance to the FIFA laws of the game and held on a top quality green pitch with International and local professional referees. During the years many different outstanding playing venues have been used: "Karon Stadium", "British Curriculum International School", "Phuket Rajabhat University", and "Phuket FIFA Tsunami Football Center".

Additionally, soccer players can also enjoy two night parties. All teams, referees, sponsors and organizers meet together during a Welcome Party in a friendly atmosphere, the night before kick-off on the next day. They will be together two evenings later for the Awards Party where they will enjoy the performance of a live band, and a Thai buffet dinner.

During the years these Thailand tournaments have been welcoming some 300 teams from more than 25 countries. Teams of ex-pro players from the Australia National team, but also English and French professionals have also joined the regular events.

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Michel Gerard is a Travel author living in Asia. Visit the Thailand Soccer 7s website to know more about the International Soccer 7s tournaments in Thailand. => http://www.thai7s.com

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Known Solutions to Stop Dog Barking?

Posted Saturday, November 07, 2009 (14 days 20 hours ago.) Viewed 4 times.

A lot of dog handlers do not know what to do when their dog barks and is a nuisance for their neighborhood. When the reasons of the dog barking are known, it is much easier to correct the bad behavior. A dog handler who wants to keep problems at bay with his neighbors has many possibilities available from positive training tricks to the use of mechanical gadgets.

Why does a dog bark? A dog barks to communicate a message, show excitement or draw attention. The sound can't be taken as a rich information message similar to human speech because it is not a language. There are distinctions in the tonality of a bark that can be recognized: disturbance barks are rough and low frequency while play barks are of a more tonal and higher frequency. A bark combined to a particular body posture may send a proper message to the dog's owner about what is going on.

The main types of barks are warning barks and alarm barks. A warning bark is a response to a territorial intrusion and starts as a low growl becoming more loud and ferocious. If the dog feels in danger, it may as well show its teeth. An alarm bark is a reaction to an unusual event and voiced by one or two barks, which are in no way aggressive. The dog may keep on barking until action has been taken by the handler.

The other kind of barks are playful barks, need barks and on command barks. A dog barks for a treat or during a play session with its owner. It barks in order to have the owner satisfy its need such as providing food when it is hungry or letting it going outside to do its business. Some owners also teach their dogs to bark on command, which is part of a dog obedience training course.

When barking is a nuisance, the behavior can be controlled in different ways, with the easiest solution being the first, and the last the most controversial:

- Finding the reason of the barking and if possible eliminating it.

- Correcting the behavior with positive training methods.

- Attending a dog training course.

- Using a bark collar.

- Surgical debarking.

If a dog barks at another family pet such as a parrot, the solution would be to isolate the cage in another location. Positive training is a method to fix the behavior without punishing. Time has to be spent with the dog to motivate the animal to stay quiet, and give praise or treats when the dog stops barking. Dog training classes are also a wonderful way to go, but they need commitment and training centers are not always conveniently located close to one's home.

There are a few types of very effective bark collars, which are more or less well received by dog lovers. Basically the device produces a response to a bark that annoys the dog and makes the animal stop. A citrus spray collar sprays citronella, that dogs do not like, to disrupt the pattern of barking. A vibrating ultrasonic collar produces a tone that humans can't hear but irritates the dog and progressively discourage barking. An electrical collar generates a gentle irritation or buzz impression after a bark. The last option is the most debatable mechanical gadget of all for evident reasons.

Surgical debarking is a procedure to modify the dog's voice box so that a bark makes a reduced noise. This is the last option available for a stubborn dog that won't stop to bark despite all the efforts made by its owner. It is very controversial and also illegal in certain countries.

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Michel Gerard is an independent writer living in Asia. His expertise is wide and varied in a number of topics. Visit the Bad Dog Training Tricks blog and get your *free* dog training 6 day course => http://www.baddogtrainingtricks.com

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Bad Dog Training Tricks - How to Correct Bad Dog Behavior

Posted Saturday, October 31, 2009 (21 days 19 hours ago.) Viewed 17 times.

Training a dog to obey is not that easy when the dog's owner has never trained a dog before or joined a training course himself. Dog owners in general do not know how to train their dog and are disappointed when the animal do not think like humans. It is recommended to learn simple training methods by reading obedience training books or watching dog training DVDs, as well as participating with the dog in training sessions provided by a qualified professional dog trainer.

The key to training a dog is to use adequate simple communication that the dog is taught to understand and obey. There are 5 basic commands which are the standard in the English language, that every dog should obey to: sit, down, stay, heel and come. The command words used are not important but consistency in their use is. The same words in Spanish will be understood by a dog that has been trained in the corresponding language.

The purpose of training a dog is to have the animal behave properly when around members of the family, invited strangers and other pets. It is recommended to begin training when the puppy arrives in its new home to correct unwanted dog behavior and teach discipline. Basic training classes with a professional trainer start with puppies of a least 3 to 6 months old, and before that time, the owner should prepare himself and read a few books on the subject.

Training a dog is all about good communication between the dog and the owner. The dog has to understand and obey basic commands while the owner has to recognize the dog's signals when it is confused, nervous, excited or happy. Obedience training is to teach the dog, from the perspective of the owner, what behaviors are correct and which are incorrect.

There are four signals used by dog trainers to communicate with the dog:

- The reward signal for correct behavior, letting the dog know it has earned a reward.
- The keep going signal for correct behavior, telling the dog it has to carry on in order to get a reward.
- The no reward signal for incorrect behavior, to tell the dog to try something new.
- The punishment signal for incorrect behavior, letting the dog know it has earned a punishment.

These signals can be given verbally or with the help of a small mechanical device called a clicker.

Obedience training is most of the time a short course of 6 to 10 weeks when the owner learns how to communicate and train his animal with a few basic commands. Breeds like the Doberman Pinscher or the German Shepherd are easier to train than others with a minimum amount of time but all dogs can be trained, even the most challenging.

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Michel Gerard is a freelance writer living in Asia. His expertise is wide and varied in a number of topics. Visit the Bad Dog Training Tricks website and start to correct your bad dog behavior right away => http://www.baddogtrainingtricks.com

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