Bird dog: A sporting dog bred and trained to hunt game birds.

Bitch: A female canine.

Breed: A dog classification based on it's heritage. For example: German Shepherd, American Bulldog, Boxer, etc..

Canid: A family (Canidae) of carnivorous animals including dogs, wolves, coyotes, foxes, and jackals.

Clip: The method of trimming the coat in some breeds.

Choke Collar: The typical collar used as a training aid with dogs. A chain link collar that constricts around the dog's neck when the collar is attached to a leash and pulled by the trainer.

Coat: The dog's hair (fur) covering. Most breeds have two coats: an outer coat and an undercoat.

Come on Command: The dog responds to the spoken "come" while a short distance from the trainer.

Crate: A portable cage made of plastic or metal used to transport the dog and/or as a place for the dog to spend the night.

Dam: The female parent.

Dog: A male canine. Also used to refer generically to all canines, male or female.

Doggy Hearing Aid: A means to get the dog's attention. Common examples are: a squirt bottle
to squirt water in the dog's face to get it's attention, an old plastic milk jug with 10 or 20 coins in it. Shake the jug to make noise that will alarm the dog to attention.

Doggy Pushups: A control exercise that is going from "sit" to "down" to "sit" to "down" repeatedly. This teaches the dog the difference between "sit" and "down".

Electronic collar: A collar that provides a warning sound and/or an electric stimulation to the dog upon receipt of an electronic signal given by the user. Used as a training device.

Fetch: The retrieving of game by the dog. Also, the command spoken to retrieve game.

Gait: The pattern of footsteps at various rates of speed, each pattern distinguished by a particular rhythm and footfall.

Genealogy: Record of family descent. Syn: Pedigree.

Groom: Brushing, trimming, and other actions to make a dog's coat neat.

Harness: A leather, nylon or cloth strap shaped around the shoulders and chest, with a ring at its top for the
lead.

Heel: Your dog walking on your left side on a leash. The dog should walk at your speed.

Lame: A problem moving a leg due to injury, disease or being born lame.

Lead: A length of leather or rope of about five feet. One end is in the owner's hand and the other end attached to the dog's collar or harness. Syn: Leash.

Leash Correction: A quick jerk on the leash by the trainer to discourage incorrect behavior. Should always be used with voice correction.

Litter: The puppy or puppies of one birth.

Mane: Long, thick hair on top and sides of neck.

Markings: Contrasting color or pattern in a dog's coat.

Mate: To breed a dog and bitch.

Muzzle: The head in front of the eyes: nasal bone, nostrils, and jaws. Syn: Foreface. Also, a strap or wire cage attached to the foreface to prevent the dog from biting and/or from picking up food.

Neuter: To castrate or spay.

Pack: A group of dogs in the wild. A pack has a leader and all other dogs are subordinate to it. In dog training, the dog's family is the pack, and the trainer will be the leader of the pack.

Pads: Tough, shock-absorbing projections on the underside of the feet. Usually black.

Pedigree: The record of a dog's genealogy for at least three generations.

Puppy: A dog under 12 months of age.

Register: To record with the American Kennel Club (AKC) a dog's breeding details.

Scent: The odor left by an animal or bird on the ground or carried through the air.

Seeing Eye Dog: A dog trained as a guide for a blind person.

Sire: The male parent.

Snap and Release: Widely used form of correction for dog training. It is used to tell the dog about incorrect behavior. The snap and release is a quick, upward pull on the leash so that the choke collar constricts the dogs neck - just for a second.

Spay: To remove a bitch's ovaries to prevent conception.

Speak: To bark.

Stance: The way a dog stands. Examples: proud stance, nervous stance, anxious stance.

Training collar: A collar made of nylon, leather, or chain, fitted to the dog's neck in such a manner that the degree of tension exerted by the hand tightens or loosens it. Also called choke collar or slip collar.

Trot: A rhythmic two-beat running/jogging in which the feet at diagonal opposite ends of the body strike the ground together. For example: right hind with left front then left hind with right front.

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