One of the things about saying "no" is that you have to sound like you mean it.
My husband has never had dogs before, and when we got our first one together, I noticed that when he said "no" he said it with his voice going up at the end of the word, almost like it was a question. Dogs, especially in the beginning, respond more to tone of voice than to the word. If your voice sounds commanding (what my horse trainer actually called a "command voice") the animal recognizes the firmness. If you use the word "no" but your tone of voice says "no, but only if you agree" or "no...I think" or "no???" then the animal won't take you seriously.
So, next time you tell your baby "no," check your tone of voice and make sure it matches the word. It will go a long way towards helping establish yourself as the dominant animal in the house! |