Welcome to Week Forty-Two!

Dog trainers who use the Positive Reinforcement methodology, with lure/reward training techniques, use food rewards. Just like the lure/reward-based articles written for MyPetTrainer.com, these food rewards are used because they're convenient and give quick success. Once behaviors are learned, you can use rewards beyond food; rewards that have special meaning to your dog. There is a process to using rewards. Read more on this week's Understanding Your Pet, "Rewards Beyond Food."

Here's an easy way to teach your dog to go into her crate. No pushing, no shoving, no forcing, and no frustration! Your dog will soon love when you tell her to "kennel up" and in her crate she'll happily go! Use this clicker-based in this week's instructions in Kids & Pets, "Kennel Up!"

Can your dog get poison ivy? Absolutely! And not only is your dog affected, YOU can get poison ivy from the oil in her fur! Poison ivy can be found most anywhere, close to the ground, a vine on your fence or wrapped around your bushes, at the base of a tree, hiding among other plants. Where your dog roams, so does poison ivy. Read more about your dog's howling in this week's Perfect Pet column, "Do Dogs Get Poison Ivy?"

A tired dog is a calm dog. A busy dog is a happy dog. Your dog needs activities beyond a chew bone; she needs mental stimulation. She needs to exercise her body, her jaw AND her brain, or she'll end up bored, looking for something interesting to do, like chewing your area rug, wall, furniture, and anything on the coffee table. Dogs with inadequate mental stimulation vent their frustrations and boredom with destructive behavior, compulsive and anxiety disorders, and house soiling issues. Read more in this week's Training For Success column, "Much Needed Mental Stimulation."

We hope you enjoy your Week Forty-Two issue of MyPetTrainer.com. The staff of the MyPetTrainer.com and LostMyPet.com community is here to support you!

Together in success,
The staff of MyPetTrainer.com