Understanding dog training

Understanding dog training

If you want to become a dog trainer you need to have these three 3 things:

1. Love dogs. Dogs must enjoy being with you, push against you and want you to be their leader.

2. Be compassionate – Care for them and protect them. Be patient with them while training them.

3. Knowledge – Learn and read as much as you can about training dogs and how they learn. A strong background in training allows you to understand the reason for the dog’s difficulties and how to correct them. Ask questions and make sure that you understand what you want to teach your dog.

All dog owners are also dog trainers and dog training never really ends, like it or not!

Good dog trainers are pro-active and will help their dogs and prevent mistakes from happening.

Dogs do not work to please us! They work for what happens immediately after they have done something such as being rewarded with words of praise, food, play or a leash correction etc.

They do not have a sense of right or wrong while being trained. Dogs do not know that they have made a mistake and do not know why you have become upset.

Fighting and jerking will only confuse beginner dogs. What works for children does not work for dogs! You will never pull or push a 2 year old child because they did not do what you asked them to do. So why do it to a dog that is just like a 2 year old child?

Don’t worry about what others think of what your dog is doing. Don’t be embarrassed! You are helping your dog and that is all that matters. Soon you will be very proud of him.

Dog training is based on VOICE control and not leash control. However, always do your training on leash even indoors to prevent the dog from goofing off in the middle of a training exercise.

The biggest secrets in dog training are: Consistency and Persistency!

Show the dog one thing he must do again and again in exactly the same way until he gets it and repeat it over and over again. The dog must be able to predict what will happen. Never fewer than 5 times – do it more like 30 times. Do not show it in different ways because to a dog it will be different things.

Changing a bad habit takes time for both you and your dog.

Simple steps to solve your dog’s behaviour problems are to start hand feeding his regular food to make the dog work for food. It is known as the “Mothering effect” and to say, “Yes” when he gets it right. Dogs also need regular feedback to know you are happy with them. Dog training is an activity you must put enough time in and you must do constant repetition until your dog can do it correctly and with reasonable speed. Consider how many balls a golfer hits? Most do it 100 000 times. How many balls a tennis player has to hit to be good enough to play in matches and how many miles road runners cover? So, depending on whether you are interested in competitive obedience training or not, your fun level with your dog will definitely increase the more your satisfaction with his performance increases.