The Rewards of Training Your Dog

A well trained dog is a joy to be around. Beyond being well socialized, trained dogs are less likely to jump up on people and are less likely to bite someone. They also tend to stay calm in distracting situations.

Also, well trained dogs are more likely to stay with the same owner as opposed to being abandoned to the pound. One research report from the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association found that 96% of shelter dogs had never had training of any kind.

Training your dog helps to teach him what he can and cannot do, making him more comfortable around you, your family and strangers. There are many different dog training programs and many professional dog trainers. However, just because someone has a business card stating that they are a professional dog trainer doesn't mean that they are a qualified trainer. Just like many professions now-a-days, there are many charlatans out to make a quick buck from unsuspecting dog owners.

To find a good trainer, start by asking everyone you know if they can recommend a good trainer. Check with your veterinarian and the breeder or supplier of your dog. Also, while walking your dog at the dog park, ask other dog owners whom they recommend. There have been dozens of different training methods for dogs that have been in and out of fashion over the years, so once you have found a trainer, ask him or her what method of training they use. Ask why they use it and what the benefits of it are. Also ask for references.

Whether you train your dog yourself or find a professional, teaching your dog commands and socializing it is very important. Areas to cover in training include:

1.Socializing your dog to strangers: This is easy to accomplish while out walking your dog around the neighbourhood and introducing her to people you meet. Until you get her to respond calmly and in a friendly manner, it is best to keep her on a short leash when meeting new people.

2.Socializing with other dogs: You can do this at dog parks, or even better, in a dog training class. Again, until you see how your dog interacts with other dogs, keep her on a short leash. The last thing you want to create is a dog fight.

3.Leash walking at a steady pace: You can start this training as soon as you get your new dog. If he starts to strain against the leash in an attempt to go more quickly, stop walking until he settles down. The first few walks could be quite short (in distance) because of the amount of time you spend standing still while he strains against the leash.

4.Crate training: This is important, especially to build up your dog's ability to calmly stay in a kennel environment for several hours at a time. If you have to leave him home alone and he is not fully trained, it is best that he be left in a crate to prevent him from getting into something he shouldn't, or causing damage.

5.The sit command: This is usually the first command new owneers teach their dog. It is good as a way of keeping her from straining against her leash or from lungeing at other dogs.

6.The stay command: This command is important for your dog to master, especially in an environment with a lot of distractions.

7.The down/stand command: These commands help to develop boundaries for your dog.

There are many other commands and behaviours that your dog should be taught as time goes on, but the above are some of the first that should be considered.

There are many benefits to having a well trained dog. But it doesn't necessarily mean that your dog will not develop behavioural problems down the road, such as separation anxiety, food guarding and other undesirable habits, however, these are not related to training or lack thereof. Simply put, a well trained dog is a joy to be around and the training strengthens the human-animal bond.

Until next time,

Teia

An Overview of Dog Training

Dog training is the process of teaching a dog to exhibit certain desired behavior in specific circumstances. Training your dog should be an absolute top priority. Fundamentally, dog training and dog behavior are about communication. The goal of dog training is to build a bond between pet and family and to ensure that all enjoy the process. Dog training should ALWAYS be fun for your dog, so if you or your dog begin to get tired, take a break and come back to it later.

Obedience, herding, agility, tracking, retrieving, hunting, guard, and schutzhund are common areas of dog training. Training social skills is a continuous process. Training starts shortly after your pup comes home, beginning with teaching her to come when called. You also want to begin “potty” or “paper” training your dog so that she learns early where she should go to the bathroom. Waiting until the puppy is older and has already learned undesirable habits makes the training much more challenging. The old saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” isn’t completely accurate, but it is much more difficult training an older dog than it is a puppy.

All dog training must be founded upon educating the dog, that is, teaching the dog what he can and cannot do. Bribery can also be a great dog training method. In dog training, the term "bribery" means that the dog is aware of the presence of the reward before he is asked to complete the command. Don’t be disheartened if it seems you are not getting anywhere with your dog training, because it generally takes people longer to learn how to train their dogs than it does for their dogs to be trained. The hardest part of training is communicating with the dog in a humane way that he understands. Until a few years ago, dog training used to consist of punishing the dog whenever it did something wrong. Fortunately that inhumane way of dog training is mostly a thing of the past. Today’s method involves rewards for good behavior. Clicker training has also emerged as a valuable method of training. Check with local obedience training facilities to find out what methods they use. Pet shops also have numerous books on training your dog. Peruse several the next time you are at the pet store and find one that makes sense to you and appears to fit into your lifestyle.

The emotional state of the dog is an important consideration in directing the training, as a dog that is stressed or distracted will not learn efficiently. Failure to reward the dog after he has done what you asked, diminishes the value of the reward method and makes training more difficult. Most training revolves around giving the dog a reward for his good behavior, in the hope of influencing the behavior the dog will exhibit in the future.

Most modern trainers say that they use "positive training methods,” which is a different meaning of the word "positive" from that in operant conditioning. Positive training methods generally mean preferring the use of reward-based training to increase good behavior over that of physical punishment to decrease bad behavior. The goal is to produce a dog that will perform even on occasions that the handler has no reward to offer, since the dog's training has taught him that the handler may have a reward even if the dog cannot see it.

Some trainers, fortunately a diminishing minority, suggest the use of electronic dog training collars as useful tools, especially in the training of a dog who has a barking problem. Mom and dad have researched these collars and found that they do not work very well, as the dog quickly learns the built in sequence that activates them. The dog then varies its barking so that the collar does not shock him and as a result, the barking doesn’t end. The dog also tends to become paranoid, because it does not associate the shock with the barking, as barking is a normal habit for a dog. It has the same effect as spanking a dog when you get home and find a mess on the carpet. The dog has no idea why it is getting spanked, because it can’t associate the spanking with the mess it made earlier. All that is accomplished by these methods of training is to make the dog fearful.

Although dog training can be hard at times, it’s important that you remember to keep things positive for you and your dog at all times. If you experience problems with your training, do not hesitate to seek professional help from a certified dog trainer. After all, half the training involved with training a dog is training the owner how to communicate what is required in a manner that the dog understands. If the dog understands what is wanted, training becomes much easier for both of you. Dogs are creatures of habit. If you are consistent with your training and your expectations, the dog will soon learn what he can and cannot do.

Until next time,

Teia