| To have your dog sit when you
say ‘sit’, to have your dog stay when you say
‘stay’ and to have your dog obey other prompts
like ‘heel’, ‘let go’, ‘’no’,
etc. is something that every dog owner wants. Dog obedience
training not only makes managing a dog easier it also opens
up a whole new world for you and your dog as both begin to
understand each other a little better.
Before we begin discussing dog training, let us understand
dogs a little more. Dogs are essentially social animals that
lived in packs. These packs had a master who they were submissive
to, and a number of other dogs that were viewed as equals.
If a dog does not have a master, he will behave any way he
wants from soiling your new carpet to biting you. His behavior
that is normal to him will seem ‘unruly’ to you.
Dog training is therefore very important to both your dog
and you. The key to dog training is to ensure that your dog
views you as his master. Before beginning training your dog,
please visit our Pre-training Requirements page. Common bad
behaviors like soiling of the house, chewing shoes, curtains,
furniture, etc., excessive barking, aggressiveness and biting
can be stopped through proper dog training.
What we need to understand is that all of the above is perfectly
normal doggy behavior that was developed to survive in packs.
Don’t reach for a dog training collar as soon as something
goes wrong. What we need to understand is that these natural
behaviors can be channeled into behavior that is acceptable
to you. You need to begin training your dog as soon as you
get him home and if your dog has not been trained ever, then
begin training you dog now. Your dog may take a little longer
if he is older but with a little patience and a lot of persistence
from your side, you will well be on your way to success.
A few tips for dog owners that will help you in your dog
training:
- Consistency- The same command for the expected behavior
should be used and this command should be given in the same
tone. If there are others in your home, let them know what
prompts are for what behavior. It is best to have one person
taking the lead on training the dog to ensure complete consistency.
- Discipline- Once you begin dog training spend a few hours
everyday to teach new prompts and to practice old prompts.
- Encouragement- Encourage your dog through the training
session making it a positive session. You need to coax your
dog with the command, pat and praise him when he does it
right and also end every session with something that he
already knows well so that he feels as though he has done
a good job. Even if he has not been successful with some
prompts, if you end your session with a command he already
knows it will end on a positive note. This will make your
dog love dog training sessions.
- Focus- During dog training, do not allow yourself or your
dog to be distracted by other things. This way you will
prevent your dog from getting confused or losing interest
in your dog training session.
- Familiarity- Choose a place for training and stick to
it as much as possible during dog training. You can term
this your classroom and you will ‘be a teacher’
during these sessions so that the dog knows that it is learning
time. As the dog begins to understand the command a little
you can move to other locations within your home and then
move out with your dog on a leash. When you are absolutely
sure that your dog has learnt to follow your command, you
may let him loose in a dog park or wherever he is allowed
to roam free.
- Adaptation- Your dog needs to be familiar with seeing
other vehicles and with people which you can initiate by
taking him for his usual daily walks. This way he will to
understand that this world belongs to others and that every
other moving thing doesn’t deserve his barking or
worse still his bite.
- The Arena- You may need your dog to follow some prompts
in certain areas (eg. your car, your farm, etc.), his stage.
While your dog is yet a pup, take him to these places so
he feels comfortable. Later, you can practice these prompts
in the said area. Do not expect your dog to follow your
command as soon as you get him to the area so it is best
to practice with him while your car is parked (if he is
supposed to obey while in the car) or while he is on a leash
(if he is supposed to work on your farm, etc.). This will
ensure minimum damage to you, to others and to anything
in and around the vicinity. Use dog training supplies that
are available to help in the dog training.
- Dog Training Sessions- Ensure that the sessions are short
and interesting for your dog. And to reiterate his learning
include practice sessions in your daily routine. As you
proceed with your daily activities, call out prompts and
ensure that your dog obeys them. Praise them when they are
successful and let them know when they have not done it
right by showing your displeasure in your voice while you
say ‘no’ or ‘not done’. Irrespective
of whether the ‘training session’ is on or not,
you need to ensure that your dog behaves well at all time.
If you are training or have trained your dog not to bark
unnecessarily, and if your dog begins to bark for no reason
then you need to reiterate that it is not acceptable by
a firm no even if your session is not on.
- Rewards- You can either reward your dog with simple verbal
praise or by pats or by a little treat which could be in
the form of a good walk or any fun activity that your dog
enjoys. Some dog owners also give their dogs, food treats
which is acceptable as long as you don’t overdo it.
A reward basically makes your dog feel happy and therefore
he is more inclined to repeat the same behavior.
- Punishment: This should be a simple, short and firm ‘no’,
‘get off’ with your displeasure showing in your
voice, followed by showing your dog what you expect and
when he does what you want him to, then praise him. The
scolding should be when you catch your dog in the act and
not later. Moreover, don’t bring it up later as he
would have already forgotten about the act in a few minutes.
If you find your dog repeatedly making the same mistake,
whack him very lightly on his side with a rolled up newspaper.
Don’t ever hit him with a stick or kick him as you
will soon have a dog showing behavioral problems that are
much harder to deal with. Punishment if given properly will
discourage your dog to do or repeat an activity.
Ensure that your normal interaction with your dog is mostly
one where you dish our ample praise. This will ensure that
your dog doesn’t get so accustomed to your scolding
that he stops paying any attention to them.
Here is list of some dog training equipment and other dog
training supplies you may need while training your dog:
For dog training in general: Dog leashes
or harnesses, dog collars, dog crates, dog water bottles,
dog bowls, dog retrieving dummies, balls, .
For dog agility training or dog obedience training:
Weave poles, agility cones, heavy weight cones, agility tunnels,
contact obstacles, contact training hoops, jump cups, start/
finish markers, clickers, .
The training pattern you follow will be the same for all
prompts of any dog training, be it dog obedience training
or dog agility training:
- Take your dog and any tool that is required for the training
session and the fun session at the end
- Say the command that you want to teach and show your dog
what is expected. For example, take your dog’s hand
is yours and say ‘shake hands’. Repeat the word
and the action and keep praising your dog. Then say the word
and check if he responds. If not, don’t lose patience,
show him again.
- Repeat each command for at least 5-6 minutes and show him
what is required.
- Shower ample praise especially if he manages to get it right.
- Move on to a fun activity or to a command that he knows
well even if your previous session was not successful.
- Go back to the old command that you were trying to teach
once again showing him what to do.
- The following day, retake the same command.
Remember your dog will learn through consistent and repetitive
training, given with firmness and not harshness.
We can give an example of training your dog to respond to
the word ‘come’. If you have been spending time
with your pup, you will find that he naturally runs to you
when he sees you. Just before you see him moving towards you
say the word Come and then pat him when he gets to you. Try
and do this every time he is about to approach you. After
some time, say the word come when he is not looking at you.
Your voice will draw his attention and then coax him to come
to you while saying the word ‘Come’. If you find
your pup unable to understand within a couple of weeks or
so, you can put a leash and gently tug at it drawing your
pup towards you while saying the word ‘come’.
The point to be made is that you want complete obedience and
although you will not do this by punishing him the firm tug
should work. You will use the leash in this method only after
your dog is comfortable with his collar and leash so that
he doesn’t look at the command negatively. Don’t
switch to any other method and don’t give up. It may
take a little time but with consistency in your training,
you will soon have your dog running to you at the word ‘come’.
For specific training lessons, please refer to our article
titled Specific Dog Training Lessons.
While you are out, your dog will end up doing things that
come naturally to him which is usually eating, chewing or
investigating what’s in your house. He may even think
of urinating or defecating. This comes naturally to him when
he is left alone so don’t presume he is angry with you
for leaving him. You need to take a few precautions. You can
leash him with a long enough lead to give him enough space
but ensure it is not so long that he can get to things that
he should not be chewing or pulling at. You can leave a chew
or a toy near him. As soon as you get back don’t forget
to take him out so he can relieve himself (it is best to keep
track of how often he needs to go and after what duration
in conjunction with his feeding schedule. This way you can
better plan your trips out without having to come back to
a mess).
Dog training can become what you want it to be- boring or
exciting, enjoyable or painful. If you plan it well you will
not only have your dog responding well but also have a strong
bond built with your dog. You can be creative and use toys
while training or even end a training session with a game
your dog enjoys. Find out what he enjoys playing by trying
out various games like chasing a flying Frisbee, fetching
a stick, playing ball, etc. It is not necessary to use treats
at dog training sessions especially if you have made it enjoyable
for your dog. If your dog needs a little motivation you can
give him small treats only in the beginning but get him to
move from obeying you because of the treat to obeying you
because you have to be obeyed. Dogs usually feel rewarded
by praises and pats- you will be surprised that they feel
rewarded by having the quality time with you. Your praise
should follow the correct action immediately and give more
praise if it was a tough dog training session and give less
praise if it was a simple training session. Dogs need to know
the difference. |
