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The Toy Poodle is one type of the breed of Poodle. There are three types of Poodles: Toy, Miniature and Standard, each type denoting a size. Poodles are considered gun dogs, for their bird hunting skills and ability in water. Though some dispute the claim, France is officially recognized as the origin of the Poodle. The Toy Poodle lives an average 12 to 15 years. To be considered a Toy Poodle, its size can only be up to 10 inches with a weight of 6 to 9 pounds.

Toy Poodles are considered intelligent and are among the easiest to train. Without consistent training, Toy Poodles will become willful, independent and may bark a lot. Toy Poodles like to be around people, but can be reserved among strangers, making them good watchdogs. Some Toy Poodles are known to be high strung and will snap. For this reason, it is important to socialize a Toy Poodle early and to exercise caution around small children. This does not mean that a Toy Poodle does not make a good family pet. Toy Poodles tend to be loyal to their families and some are good with children. This breed has a lot of energy, but does not demand a lot of exercise, making it a good choice for apartment dwellers.

It is a good idea to exercise a Toy Poodle at least once a day to alleviate any boredom that might occur. The familiar curly coat of the Toy Poodle grows constantly and must be clipped every four to six weeks to maintain it. Failure to maintain the coat can result in matted fur that can only be removed with scissors. The familiar ‘Poodle Cut’ was actually important for the dog when it was used for hunting. The cut helped protect vital joints and organs in the cold water. Now the clip is not necessary and many owners opt for an all around short cut.

There are a variety of coat colors for Toy Poodles and the coat tends to be relatively shed free, making them a good choice for allergy sufferers, though they will create dander. There are health concerns that exist with this breed. Toy Poodles are prone to ear infections, runny eyes, digestive tract and heart disorders, skin conditions, slipped stifle, PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy), IMHA (Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia), cataracts, entropion, epilepsy, inverterbral disc degeneration, Legg-Perthes, patellar luxation, trichiasis and urolithiasis.

There is a website that has great information on Toy Poodles and most other breeds of dogs. It has details that pertain to a dog breeds health, grooming, living conditions, best food choices and more, the website is called: Dog And Cat Facts, and can be found at this url =>http://www.dogandcatfacts.com

By Robert W. Benjamin Copyright © 2007

You may publish this article in your ezine, newsletter, or on your web site as long as it is reprinted in its entirety and without modification except for formatting needs or grammar corrections.

Robert W. Benjamin has been in the software business on the internet for over 5 years, and has been producing low-cost software for the past 25+ years. He first released products on the AMIGA and C64 computer systems in the late 1970′s-80′s.

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Teaching your dog Poodle tricks is the best way to make your pet more lovable, smart, and rewarding. Using praises and small treats as a reward will drive your pet more to follow and remember every trick you introduce to him. But beware of practicing those new tricks for a long time or he will get bored, which means everything you have taught him will just fly out in the air.

Start by the very basic Poodle tricks like “shake hands”, “turn around”, “lay down”, and so on. Here are the easy tricks you and your dog will love:

Shake Hands. Have your dog sit on the floor facing you, say shake hands and take his paw with your hand. Hold his paw, say “good dog” as a sign of appreciation for following you and then let go.

Repeat the activity after a few minutes but do not take his paws this time. If he does not respond to it, take your Poodle’s paws again, repeat the process until such time that he responds to the command.

Turn Around. Let your Poodle stand up facing you for him to see a treat in your hand. Stand still, say turn around, lead his nose around with the treat so he walks in a circle. When he is back facing you, praise him and give him the treat.

Lay Down. Allow him to sniff the treat you are holding but do not let him have it. Lower the treat to the floor while your dog follows it down, too. Be sure to say lay down as your dog begins to lower himself. Only give him the treat once he has lowered himself all the way on the floor, and repeat the words many times.

After your Poodle has learned to lay down, you can practice him with stay. It is okay to let your dog stay for 15 or 20 minutes or even to fall asleep, for it is helpful when he needs to calm down once in a while. Give him the treat while he is lying down and not after he gets up.

Crawl. Let your dog lay down, hold a treat just in front of his nose and say crawl. If he starts to stand up, say crawl again and again while pulling the treat away, keeping it low near the ground. When he moves even an inch or two without standing up, praise him and reward him with the treat.

Speak. Choose a game that your Poodle loves to play, like catch with a ball, or hide and seek with a toy. Then get him excited by saying, “Let’s play! Want to play?” and show him the ball or toy. Jump and act silly so he barks and then say, “Good dog, speak!” Then play the game as his reward for learning “speak”.

Easy Poodle tricks like those mentioned above work because words are being put with something your dog does. Pretty soon, every time your dog hears the words you often say like “shake hands” and “turn around”, he will just give you his paw or walk in a circle. At this point, give him a hug, rub his ears, give him a treat and say, “Good boy!” because he deserves the praise and dogs love that.

Richard Cussons knows a lot about the Poodle dog breed. Check out this site to discover more Poodle training tips.

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