Dog training is one of those skills that seems rather simple, but never seems to go right whenever amateurs attempt it on their own. The most common problem pet owners make when it comes to dog training is they forget that every animal has its own personality and its own likes and dislikes – just like people. You simply can’t train a dog by working from a book and then become frustrated when those dog training methods don’t seem to work.
Work with the following tried and tested dog training methods; many will do the job with one dog and not with another one. Methods involving treats will have to be modified to include something that your pet really enjoys. And the most critical point to bear in mind when you are training any animal will be to have patience. They do not fully understand why you’re yelling at them whenever they do something wrong and in the same way that yelling at kids can be counterproductive, yelling is only likely to get dogs over-excited and unwilling to respond to commands.
One of the most commonly used approaches is to use positive physical contact once your dog follows an instruction correctly. No matter how smart an owner thinks their dog is, a dog isn’t going to fully understand the words “good dog.” He does, however, recognize that lots of attention and patting is a pleasurable experience, and he’ll ultimately start to associate that with the positive language commands that owners employ.
Occasionally this love of attention can result in problems for people who haven’t applied dog training methods appropriately. A vicious circle can start to form, in which the owner only seems to take note of their dog when they do something bad, such as run off with the newspaper. And so the dog is going to continue with that behavior because it is the only real way they gain the attention that they crave, pretty much like a mischievous child playing up to get mom and dad’s attention. Consistently ensure that you only reinforce positive behavior with contact and attention, and ignore the pet any time he’s doing something he should not be doing.
Dog toys are often an effective aid in training, but be sure the dog doesn’t have access to his toys all the time, or their effectiveness when it comes to training is going to be reduced. Some owners spend a fortune on fancy toys for their pooches, only to find out that their pet is a lot more amused by a length of rope or an empty box. Be certain your pet’s toy collection is a good mixture of toys he can play with by himself and those you play with together.
As a final point, all dog training should be enjoyable for you and your pet. When either owner or pet is starting to become distressed in the course of training sessions then something is completely wrong, and it is quite possibly time for you to try a different approach. Even when the dog has to be disciplined during a training session or when out working, always make sure it is followed with positive praise and perhaps a treat; there is no point in having a perfectly behaved pet if he’s afraid to be near his owner.
Are you looking for tips to more effectively train your dog? Be sure to visit Dog Training Answers for tips on how to house train a puppy and crate training puppies.