"Dog Obedience, Dog Training
and Dog Health Tips"
dogs: Page 12 of 13
Some Tips for a Well-Behaved Dog
by: Brett Fogle
Train your dog early. Start training your puppy early on. While old
dogs can be taught new tricks, what's learned earliest, is often learned
quickest and easiest. Moreover, the older the dog, the more bad habits will
likely need to be "un-learned". When it comes to raising and training a
dog, an ounce of problem prevention is certainly worth a pound of cure!
Train your dog gently and humanely with PLENTY of praise, and whenever
possible, teach him using positive, motivational methods. Keep obedience
sessions upbeat so that the training process is enjoyable for all parties
involved. If training your pooch is a drudgery, rev things up a bit, and
try the "play training" approach: incorporate constructive, non-adversarial
games (such as "Go Find", "Hide 'n' Seek", retrieving, etc.) into your training
sessions.
Does your dog treat you like "hired help" at home? Does he treat you
like a human gymnasium when you're sitting on the furniture? Does he beg
at the table? Jump up on visitors? Demand your attention by annoying you
to death? Ignore your commands? How well your dog responds to you at home
affects his behavior outdoors as well. If your dog doesn't respond reliably
to commands at home (where distractions are relatively minimal), he certainly
won't respond to you properly outdoors where he's tempted by other dogs,
pigeons, passersby, sidewalk food scraps, etc.
Avoid giving your dog commands that you know you cannot enforce. Every
time you give a command that is neither complied with nor enforced your
dog learns that commands are optional. He gets confused and that frustrates
you, which in turn frustrates the dog.
This is important and will be discussed further as we move forward.
One command should equal one response, so give your dog only one command
(twice max!), and then gently enforce it. Repeating commands tunes your
dog out (as does nagging) and teaches your dog that the first several commands
are a "bluff '. For instance, telling your dog to "Sit, sit, sit, sit!"
is neither an efficient nor effective way to issue commands. Simply give
your dog a single "Sit" command and gently place or lure your dog into the
sit position, then praise/reward.
Avoid giving your dog-combined commands, which are incompatible. Combined
commands such as "sit-down" can confuse your dog. Using this example, say
either "sit" or "down". The command "sit-down" simply doesn't exist.
When giving your dog a command, avoid using a loud voice. Even if your
dog is especially independent/unresponsive, your tone of voice when issuing
an obedience command such as "sit"," down" or ""stay", should be calm and
authoritative, rather than harsh or loud.
NOTE: Many owners complain that their dogs are "stubborn", and that
they "refuse to listen" when given a command. Before blaming the dog when
he doesn't respond to a command, one must determine whether or not: a) the
dog knows what the owner wants, b) he knows how to comply, c) he is not
simply being unresponsive due to fear, stress or confusion.
Whenever possible, use your dog's name positively, rather than using
it in conjunction to reprimands, warnings or punishment. Your dog should
trust that when it hears its name or is called to you, good things happen.
His name should always be a word he responds to with enthusiasm, never hesitancy
or fear.
Correct or, better yet, prevent the (mis) behavior, don't punish the
dog. Teaching and communication is what it's all about, not getting even
with your dog. If you're taking an "it's-you-against-your dog, whip them
into shape" approach, you'll undermine your relationship, while missing
out on all the fun that a motivational training approach can offer. Additionally,
after-the-fact discipline does NOT work.
When training one's dog, whether praising or correcting, good timing
is essential. Take the following example: You've prepared a platter of hors
d'oeuvres for a small dinner party, which you've left on your kitchen counter.
Your dog walks into the room and smells the hors d'oeuvres. He air-sniffs,
then eyes the food, and is poised to jump up. This is the best, easiest
and most effective time to correct your dog: before he's misbehaved, while
he's thinking about jumping up to get the food.
Often, dog owners inadvertently reinforce their dogs' misbehavior, by
giving their dogs lots of attention (albeit negative attention) when they
misbehave. Needless to say, if your dog receives lots of attention and handling
when he jumps up on you, that behavior is being reinforced, and is therefore
likely to be repeated.
Keep a lid on your anger. Never train your dog when you're feeling grouchy
or impatient. Yelling hitting or handling your dog in a harsh manner can
never accomplish earning their respect. Moreover, studies have shown that
fear and stress inhibit the learning process.
About The Author
Brett Fogle is the author of Dog House Training Secrets An Easy-To-Follow,
No-Nonsense, Ebook about Dog Training. Learn To Train Your Dog in 7 Days
or Less -- Guaranteed!
Click Here Now: http://www.Dog-House-Training-Secrets.com
sales@macarthurwatergardens.com
Copyright 2005 by Jay Jennings. All rights reserved.
|