Title: Simple yet Powerful Principles for Dog Obedience Training
Author: Moses Wright
Simple yet Powerful Principles for Dog Obedience Training
Obedience training is important and essential to every dog.
It not only establishes lines of communication so that you
can understand each other better, it is also a bond
building process to increase the enjoyment, companionship
and satisfaction of your relationship with your dog.
Ideally, you should start to train and correct undesirable
behaviors as early as possible when your dog is 8 to10
weeks old. This is the period where they learn best and is
a vital time for influencing your dog's future behavior.
It's always easier to train a young puppy than an older
dog. Nevertheless, it's still possible to train older dogs,
you just have to correct his bad habits first and then
teach him the proper ones.
There are many incidents where owners abandon their dogs at
shelters because they cannot understand what their dog is
up to. The dogs display annoying behavior such as barking,
chewing and defecating all over the place and in worse
cases, show aggressive behavior towards the owners.
These incidents can be avoided if obedience training is
implemented. Most obedience training is used to create a
groundwork from which the dog and his master will learn how
to effectively correspond to each other.
In addition, obedience training is also an alternative dog
owners can turn to when their dogs are behaving badly. It
is one way of incorporating discipline in the dog's
behavior. Obedience training makes the dog realize that
certain behaviors are not allowed and that he should not
act that way. Done correctly, obedience training can
regulate your dog's behavior and he will be able to respond
properly with the right behavior that is expected of him.
Many dog owners wonder if it would be better to let
professionals handle their dog's obedience training. In
most cases, it can be much easier to have a professional
trainer or an obedience school to teach both owner and his
dog the proper way to follow a command. However, if the dog
owner feels he can follow simple instructions and do just
the same, then, there is no special need for a professional
trainer. A good dog training book is usually more than
sufficient.
No matter where you choose to train your dog, at home or in
a school, there are some universal dog training principles
that never change and all dog owners should follow them
strictly:
1. Fun and Reward - Obedience training does not necessarily
mean that strict rules should be imposed. This is because
the dog is not aware of the reasons why he should obey the
commands. Therefore, for him to respond to the commands,
the training must be done in such a way that the dog sees
the activity as something that is fun.
The dog will be able to respond positively if he sees that
whenever he follows what he is asked to do, he gets rewards
or praises, and that is fun for them.
2. Consistency - It is important to have consistency in the
course of training especially when correcting unwanted
behaviors. Always use the same "command" for a specific
task you require of your dog. Don't confuse him by using
different commands for the same task.
Once you've establish some house rules such as - keeping
the cooking area or sofa out of bounds to your dog, enforce
them constantly. If the dog learns that he can get away
with breaking these rules now and then, your previous
efforts will go down the drain.
Simple routines and precedents like this should not be
taken for granted. It is extremely important to teach the
dog what he can and cannot do and stick to it consistently.
Confusion will only make matters worse. Lastly, make sure
everyone in the family accepts and enforce your rules
consistently.
3. Timing - Timing is critical to successful training.
Praise your dog whenever he is doing something right.
Giving him a small treat he likes will work wonders for
most dogs.
On the other hand, do reprimand him on the spot whenever he
misbehaves or fails to respond to your command. Praises and
reprimands that happen later will have no effect on your
dog.
There are two main approaches concerning the timing of
correction when your dog misbehaves. The first approach is
the "Direct Approach". It simply requires you to reprimand
your dog on the spot whenever he misbehaves – chewing,
barking, digging and biting. This is a more tangible and
straight forward approach to training your dog and is easy
to understand for most trainers.
The second one is the "Endurance Approach" as it'll require
you to ignore your dog when he misbehaves. Using the cause
and effect to your advantage, this approach requires you to
ignore the dog, especially when he behaves in a certain
manner to seek attention.
This approach requires you to pay attention to your dog
only when he's a good boy. The reason for this method is
that dogs love attention and are hugely motivated by it.
Unlike man, dogs do not know how to differentiate between
positive and negative attention. They see things in a
simple way. If a certain action gets reaction and
attention, you'll bet they repeat it over and over again -
cause and effect.
Unfortunately, for most dog owners, we usually give our dog
negative attention. For example: Do you let him out of his
crate when he groans or do you give him more attention when
he jumps onto you excitedly whenever you comes home? These
are considered negative attention and acts to motivate him
in continuing his bad behavior.
Fortunately, the opposite is true if you pay enough
attention to your dog when he behaves himself. Once the dog
understands that he'll get attention only when he's
behaving, he'll learn that only good behavior attracts
attention and he'll repeat his good behavior always.
What you should do is to focus your attention on your dog
only when he is behaving; praise him or give him a treat,
let him know that he's getting the attention. If this
technique is used correctly, he'll be a well-behaved dog
for a long time to come.
4. Training Session - You need to be in the correct frame
of mind before you train your dog. Don't train your dog
when you are under the influence of alcohol or drugs or if
you've had a bad day and not in the best of moods.
It's best to find a training ground where your dog can
concentrate on training and not be distracted by activities
around him. You should start your training slowly
especially with young puppies. Avoid training a pup for
more than 5 minutes and older dogs' training should not
last for more than 15 minutes. They will not have the
mental stamina to concentrate on training. It's always good
to take breaks in between training session.
You should learn to set up the training session to your
advantage. The best time to train a dog is when he is
hungry; he will be mentally more alert and response better
to treat rewards.
Dog obedience training is not rocket science, once you get
the basics right, it will come naturally to you. Every dog
owner has the right to enjoy the companionship of their
dogs – Start training your dog now.
About the Author:
Moses Wright loves to spent time with his 3 beautiful dogs
and he loves to help fellow dog owners stop their dog
problems whenever possible. You can get a free copy of his
book filled with invaluable knowledge on dog ownership here:
http://www.dogsobed
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