DIY : Dog Training Tips That Work – eCom Tips – Medium
When your dog is demanding your company, you’re not always ready to play with him. What do you do? You know that while you were at work, he was home alone, and now that you’re back, you don’t want to leave him hanging. When you get home you are probably greeted at the door with excitement and a request for attention. Good training makes this easy to deal with by keeping your dog on a schedule of expected activity time making a simple greeting suffice on arrival.
Another example of having a dog is:
Who’s that at the door? When your dog doesn’t know, he may feel compelled to protect your family with numerous barks, passionately defending your homestead against the friendly deliveryman. Dogs are masters of persistence, and although some may calm down after confirming that everything’s okay, others feel that it’s better to bark until the coast is clear altogether.
Tip
When distracting your dog, timing is everything. Giving your dog an edible chew while he’s barking, begging, or jumping up may encourage him to repeat these behaviors. However, anticipating problem behaviors and giving your dog a chew before he gets carried away can help him coast through previously challenging situations with ease. Giving your dog occupying edible chews can also help him form positive associations with thunderstorms, strangers, and other common anxiety-inducing situations.
To train your dog try the tips below.
Principles of Successful Training
1 Be Consistent: Apply the same rules and the same words all the time.
2 Be Concise: Give your command just once. Repetition of commands teaches your dog to ignore them because it sounds like you don’t care if he obeys or not.
3 Be Generous: Reward your dog for being right. Give him a treat, verbal praise, or an ear massage.
4 Be Smart: Don’t give a command unless either you are confident that your dog understands and will respond to it correctly or you are in a position to help him get it right.
5 Be Prepared: Have a leash handy in case your dog does not come to you when you call him.
6 Be Happy: Because your dog is your friend and your training partner, keep your voice upbeat and smile at him. Dogs are sensitive to our tone of voice and body language, so use both to let him know that you will be so happy when he does what you ask him.
Don’t Train When Puppy’s Not in the Mood
Don’t train your puppy when he’s hot, tired, or in the middle of vigorous playtime. You want him focused and eager for a training session.
Keep Training Sessions Short
Begin teaching your dog good manners a few days after he’s had a chance to settle into the household. Keep your training lessons short — about 10 to 15 minutes at each session. You can repeat the session later on in the same day, but each one should be brief. Plan to engage in several training sessions a day because no puppy learns to do something perfectly in only one take.
Say a Cue Word Only Once
Say a cue word, like “sit” or “down,” only once. Dogs are smart, so they hear your command and can follow it the first time. Repeating the cue word multiple times doesn’t help your pup sharpen his listening skills, and like a teenager, he’ll tune you out.
Schedule Training Before Meals
Schedule your training session before your dog’s regular meal. This way he may pay closer attention to the instructions so that he can earn a tasty bite.
Use Positivity
Your dog will respond to your direction if you make it fun. Animal behaviorists believe that the old ways of harsh corrections may work once or twice, but they are often inhumane and ineffective in the long run. Your dog will not understand why you are angry with him.
Don’t Get Angry With Your Puppy
If you ever become frustrated with training your puppy, don’t get angry with him. Just quietly end the session and try again later in the day. Many dogs become nervous and will stop paying attention to their trainers if they are yelled at. They can become scared of training and decide that following directions is not for them. Stay calm and relaxed so that your puppy will learn in a positive environment.
To teach your dog to stand on cue:
• Have your dog sit.
• Hold a treat at nose level about 6 inches away from his face.
• Say “Stand.” As you say the word, move the treat away from your dog’s face, being sure to keep the treat at nose level. As you move the treat away, your dog will stand in order to move forward and follow the treat.
• As soon as your dog is on all fours, mark the behavior with the word “yes!” and treat.
• Repeat this sequence until your dog is performing this behavior consistently and reliably.
How to Teach Your Dog to Place
• Leash your dog.
• Say “place” (or “bed,” or “nighty-night,” or any other word or words, as long as you use those same words consistently) and lead your dog to the place where you want him to go.
• Say “Yes!” and treat.
• Repeat until he appears to understand what you mean when you give him the cue. At this point, remove the leash and give the cue. If he responds, say “Yes!” and treat. If he doesn’t, reattach the leash and lead him to the place where you want him to go.
• Once your dog can take himself to his place on cue, ask him to lie down and stay. Have him remain in the down position for about 15 seconds. Then say “Yes!”, treat, and give him his release cue, “Okay.”
• Repeat until your dog can remain in his place for about three minutes.
General Precautions
• Avoid waving your fingers or toes in your dog’s face or slapping the sides of his face to entice him to play. Doing these things can actually encourage your dog to bite your hands and feet.
• Do not discourage your dog from playing with you in general. Play builds a strong bond between a dog and his human family. You want to teach your dog to play gently rather than not at all.
• Avoid jerking your hands or feet away from your dog when he mouths. Jerky movements might seem like a game to your dog and encourage him to jump forward and grab at you. It’s much more effective to let your hands or feet go limp so that they aren’t much fun to play with.
• Slapping or hitting dogs for playful mouthing can cause them to bite harder. They usually react by playing more aggressively. Physical punishment can also make your dog afraid of you — and it can even cause real aggression. Avoid scruff shaking, whacking your dog on the nose, sticking your fingers down his throat and all other punishments that might hurt or scare him.
Pets are awesome
