Learn How Simple Training Your Dog Can Be
If your dog is one of those innately obedient dogs, then congratulations, you don’t need these tips, but most dogs need a little of training, whether it’s to stop them from being overbearing with strangers or ripping up the upholstery. Utilize the following tips to help turn your dog into a well behaved family member.
Ask yourself how your dog is seeing things. You need to exercise patience with your pet, even if you think he should be learning at a faster rate. Try to think the way your dog does. Imagine the world like they do and that can provide you with a fresh perspective on training.
Have a good reward system when training your dog. Giving your dog treats at the right time and in the right amount is important. This is because dogs tend not to understand what it’s being rewarded for when they do not get it at the proper time.
Make sure that you set a calm tone whenever you set foot in a room where your dog is. Playtime is great but sometimes it is just not appropriate. Avoid acknowledging him as you enter. This helps to maintain a controlled atmosphere.
Encourage your dog to be as active as possible. Dogs are easily bored. A bored dog is very difficult to train. Your dog needs proper exercise to function to his highest potential. Go for a long walk with your dog.
Feed your dog a healthy diet. Too many table scraps can unbalance your dog’s diet. It is damaging to their health as well as making them more prone to bad behaviors. Sometimes, it is possible to improve your pet’s behavior and cooperation simply by improving the quality of his or her diet.
Make sure that your dog’s crate is the right size for him if you are going to use it to train him. Keep in mind that your puppy will eventually grow into a bigger dog. Select a crate that is large enough for them to fit in when they are older. Dogs need room to move about and lie down, and they should not be cramped.
Provide your puppy with his own chew toys to alleviate the pain of teething, and try to keep other items out of reach. Take it away, and give him a chew toy. If the puppy is suffering any pain from teething, freeze a wet washcloth for him or her to chew on.
Patience is key in canine training. Patience is the best way to keep your dog from becoming confused and for you to remain calm. Remember that your pet desires to please you but he gets confused due to him not understanding what you want him to do.
Always remain consistent when crate training any young pups. As soon as the puppy is out of the crate, let them have an opportunity to go outside and relieve themselves. Your puppy will eventually become able to relieve itself less frequently.
Don’t extend training sessions. Since dogs do not have a long attention span, short lessons will prevent them from getting bored. Instead, have multiple, short sessions with breaks for playtime in between.
Use an even tone when commanding your dogs. This will let him know you are serious and he needs to listen. It is important that your dog be able to distinguish between a command and a reprimand.
Be sure to always grab your dog’s attention the same way. Use his or her name when giving a command. Get his attention with his name and then follow that with what you want him to do. Dogs often respond to their name immediately and know you intend for them to pay attention.
Use your dog’s name often to get and keep his attention. Use it constantly in the first few weeks that you have your dog: your puppy should associate this sound with paying attention to you. It is important to use a name the dog easily understands.
Stick with positive reinforcement when it comes to puppy training. Reward your dog with happy words, petting and an occasional very small treat when he pleases you. Never punish your dog with words or your hands. Doing this will cause your dog to act out even more and lose respect for you. The ideal results from training your dog come from efforts that are positive in nature with consistent and firm applications.
To enforce positive behavior when it comes to training your dog, be sure that you praise your dog. Positive reinforcement, shown through your tone and attitude, lets your dog know he has done a good job. Never reward unwanted behavior as the dog will also relate the unwanted behavior to something positive as well.
An effective training tool is to use different tones of voice for various commands or purposes. Your commands should be said in the same tone and volume time and time again. Always be firm when issuing a command. Corrections should be even sharper. Praise should be offered in your natural tone.
When you train your dog, remember to keep sessions short. You should use at most 15 minutes for training. Any longer and the dog will become frustrated and will not respond correctly. End each session by praising your dog.
During leash training, it is necessary to ensure that the leash stays loose. Dogs like to explore new places when they are out on a walk. Their eagerness will cause the leash to be strained. Rather than allowing this behavior to continue, a looser leash walk should be encouraged by the person in control of the animal.
There really isn’t room for error when teaching your dog right from wrong. This means everyone living in the house needs to enforce the boundaries you set. These inconsistencies can cause significant setbacks.
One tip to keep in mind when training your dog is to never, ever reward bad behavior in an effort to quickly end a behavior. This only tells your dog that it has the choice to do whatever he wants and that you are under his power. For instance, giving a dog a treat each time it barks.
You should use the name of your dog as a positive reinforcement more often than you use it as a reprimand. Your pet needs to understand that his name can represent something good. He should not be afraid to come to you when he is called.
Your dog should enjoy being trained by you. Training sessions should be kept to 10-15 minutes maximum so your dog enjoys the full benefits of his attention span. Give your dog rewards that vary and come often. The more you reward your dog the more he will continue the positive behavior. Your dog will be more receptive if you make training time fun!
Make sure you are consistent when you train your dog. Keep a list of commands to use, and make sure everyone who might need to command the dog knows them. Also, make sure to be on the same page regarding rewarding good behavior and never rewarding bad behavior. If other people are not following your training program, it can make your dog confused, which will set back your dog’s training.
Is your dog a leash puller? This is something that a lot of dog owners want to learn how to break, and it is easy to do so. Trade your leash for a dog harness. Harnesses can be more comfortable, and allow you to enjoy a walk without your dog pulling on its leash.
A large breed dog needs a large dog bed to be comfortable. You could buy your dog a big, rectangular bed, or another alternative might be a crib mattress. A crib mattress is convenient because you can use a fitted crib sheet as a cover, which can be changed very easily and as frequently as you desire. They’re waterproof, too!
Punishment is an ineffective tool for training your dog. Try to stop your dog from performing unwanted behaviors, but if he does, redirect him by demonstrating the correct behavior. Training sessions help build communication with your pet, and help you build a good relationship.
If you want your dog to get in a sitting position, have them stand while you hold a treat above their head. Make a path with the treat over his head towards his hind end. He will automatically stretch his head backwards to follow the treat. Dogs naturally sit when they do this.
Give a treat to your dog when it responds to an order and is obedient. Once they understand, start phasing out the treats.
Reinforce your dog’s positive behaviors. This does not mean to punish your pet when he does something bad; instead, simply do not reinforce negative behavior. If you rely solely on negative reinforcement, it is possible that your pet may become frightened and resentful of you. Positive reinforcement helps dogs do more positive things to gain praise and rewards.
Keep a close eye on what environments cause your dog to bark more. Knowing the triggers will help you control the behavior. If the dog barks at visitors, have people come to your house and be prepared with a plan.
When training your dog against improper chewing, be sure to set them up for success. Furthermore, a dog that chews inappropriately needs to be kept away from danger. Common household items like nylons and hairbrushes pose a grave threat to your dog and can cause him to choke.
Even your disobedient dog can be trained. Patience and information are all that are required to train that dog. Make use of the tips you just read to minimize the hardship involved in training your dog while maximizing the results at the same time.
When potty-training a puppy, stay away from the disposable training pads that you can place on your floor. Wee-Wee pads can leak, which leaves both feces and urine on the floor. Dogs also believe that anything shaped like a pad is acceptable to use as a potty. Your dog should be trained to know that outdoors if where they should be using the bathroom.
