Dog Training Archives - Page 12 of 15

Is A Professional Dog Obedience Training Necessary?

May 28, 2010 by admin 1 Comment

Obedience training for your dog is an important part of responsible pet ownership.

While common puppy behavior problems and housebreaking are discussed in many books and publications, here we’ll discuss your options for basic obedience training and whether you want train your dog yourself or hire a trainer.

Training can begin as early as three to four months if yon train the dog yourself. Most trainers believe puppies aren’t mentally or socially developed enough to benefit from group obedience class until they are six months old.

Any sincerely interested dog owner can train his or her own dog, provided your dog hasn’t already acquired a lot of bad habits.
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Training Tips To Get Your Dog To Obey!

If you’d love to discover EXACTLY how to get your dog to stop urinating on your carpet and actually ring a bell when he needs to potty. . .

Train puppies to NEVER chew on furniture or expensive rugs – even when you aren’t there to supervise. . .

Learn simple techniques for getting any dog to stop barking at strangers or from begging you to let him back inside – Plus a TON more step-by-step dog obedience strategies THOUSANDS of regular people are already using,
check out –
The Hands Off Dog Training Method

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You and your dog may want to attend a couple of lessons at a good training club. You may also want to arm yourself with a good dog training book.

Wait until your dog is six months old before taking him to a group obedience class, which is a popular option for many dog owners. Obedience groups not only provide an excellent
source of training, but also helps socialize your pet with other dogs.

When you first visit an obedience training class, make sure the instructors treat their pupils kindly – no punishment or yelling should be taking place or be permitted by those in charge. Your local parks department or school district may sponsor an obedience group.

If you’re having trouble finding one, ask your veterinarian.

Professional training is a good option for some larger breeds or for dogs that have acquired bad habits. If you are looking for a professional obedience trainer, find one who favors working with your dog in your own home.

No matter how appealing it may seem to send a problem dog away to be trained, the reality is that this often is a waste of time and money.

The dog may behave perfectly with the trainer and then ignore you once it arrives home. A professional obedience trainer will
equip you with the knowledge and confidence you need to train your dog.

The best way to find a good professional trainer is through a veterinarian or breeder’s recommendation.

Also, if you have any family or friends that can refer you to a reputable trainer then this would be the most ideal option. Arrange for an exploratory meeting with the potential trainer, you, and your dog.

Then, make your decision.

Training takes time and patience and a capable trainer will stress this fact. Length of training depends not only on your dog’s intelligence, temperament, and age, but also on how many bad habits he has acquired.

Obedience training requires you to take the lead, both as teacher and enforcer. After your dog has been trained you must not let him drift back into bad behavior patterns.

When It Comes To Dog Training, There Is No Such Thing As A Perfect Dog

May 18, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

As any reputable trainer or dog training book will tell you, canine learning is based largely on repetition. When a behavior is repeated enough times, dogs develop habits, or conditioned responses. Assuming that those habits are positive ones such as eliminating outside, coming when called, lying down and staying when told, and others – you will have what you want: a trained dog. That’s because dogs are creatures of habit. Once you set up a routine of various signals and conditioned responses (sit, down, stay), the dog will do exactly what you tell him every time. Right? No exactly…

No conditioned response is infallible. Creatures with advanced brains can think. They can defy conditioning. They also can make mistakes. Think about two of your own conditioned responses. You have a habit of answering the telephone when it rings, but one day you decide not to take any calls. The telephone rings but you keep reading your book. You know what you usually do, but today you decide not to do it. You also have a habit of stopping your car at a red light. But one day you are tired or distracted and you roll through an intersection. Even the most experienced drivers sometimes make mistakes.

Similarity, there will be times when even the best-trained dog will either defy conditioning or make a mistake. Therefore you must avoid becoming complacent or overconfident about learned behavior. Do not rely on conditioned responses in potentially dangerous situations. For example, you should never unleash even the best-trained dog near a busy road. One mistake could result in injury or death to my dog.

Owners need to reinforce their dog’s conditioned responses. Certainly the more practice and proofing you do with a dog, the more reliable his response will be. Skilled human beings, from tennis pros to typists, need practice to stay in top form. This is because all learned skills need reinforcement.

When you feel you have achieved a well-trained dog, continue to practice obedience exercises once in a while. It can be fun for both you and the dog. Plus it reinforces the good behaviors you worked so hard to achieve. When you need to call on those skills in real situations, such as doing a stand-stay at the veterinarian’s office, you will be more confident that your dog will comply. Your dog will be more confident by doing something that is familiar – and for which he can earn your praise.

Timing: One Of The Most Important Aspects Of Dog Training

May 17, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Timing is probably the most important factor in how fast your dog learns something. What we mean by timing is this: Let’s say that your dog put his nose on the hot oven door. A few moments later he walked into the family room, looked at the TV, and then felt the burning sensation on his nose. He would associate the burning sensation with the TV. Because of the lapse in time, he would never in a million years associate the experience of his burned nose with the oven door.

Timing is vital when teaching your puppy the rules around your house, such as not to chew the rug. For example, say you walk into the living room five minutes after the puppy has finished chewing the rug. You find him sleeping in the corner and drag him over to the rug. You point to the rug and scold him. Your correction is too late. Your pup will never figure out that the disagreeable experience he is having now has anything to do with what he did five minutes before.

Correcting a dog more than a few seconds after he does a behavior is too late. He will no longer associate your correction with his previous deed. Of course, if you come into the room even many hours later ranting like a maniac, your dog is going to cower and act apprehensive. Do not misinterpret apprehension for “guilt”. To help your dog learn rapidly and efficiently, it is up to you to develop good timing.

So what is good timing? Good timing is correcting or praising your dog as he is thinking about doing a behavior. That’s the best way to get a dog to associate your correction or praise with the behavior you are trying to influence. You do not have to be a dog mind-reader to know what your dog is thinking. Canines are open, honest creatures. Everything they are about to do is written all over their faces.

The ability to anticipate a dog’s next move is called “reading the dog.” It’s not as hard as it may sound. The more time you spend with your dog, the better you will become at “reading” him. Imagine this scenario: You are expecting company and put out a plate of cheese and crackers on the coffee table. Your dog looks at the cheese and takes a few steps toward the table. Now is the time to tell him “Naaaa!” Chances are good that he was thinking about taking the cheese. Well-timed corrections will teach your pet to avoid stealing food.

The next best time to correct your dog is just as he is doing the unwanted behavior. Using our example, this means a tough “Naaaa!” just as the dog’s mouth is reaching for the cheese. The worst time to correct is ten seconds after the dog has done the unwanted behavior. Yelling at the dog when you discover an empty cheese plate will not effectively teach him to avoid stealing the cheese in the first place.

3 Important Training Tips For Every Dog Owner

May 5, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

1. Be fair with corrections. Make sure your dog understands what you want before you correct him for not doing it. And let the punishment fit the crime. A correction should not be a release of anger, a clearing out of pent-up feelings by unloading them on the apparent cause of the problem, your dog. Instead, a correction is another way to communicate with your dog, to foster in him a clear understanding of his place in your human pack. As such, a proper correction is another way to strengthen the bond between you and your pet. At its mildest level, a correction is the absence of praise. Remember to always ask yourself if you’re being fair before you give in to the knee-jerk reaction to leash-jerk.

2. Be positive. This tip refers to having the right attitude, of course, but it’s more than that. Praise that’s well timed and appropriate is essential to your dog’s learning process. If all you ever do is tell your dog “no,” your relationship isn’t going to be a very good one. How would you like to work with a boss like that?

Praise is cheap and free – so use it, lots! Use praise when your dog tries to get it right. Use it more when your dog succeeds. Use it when your dog just pays attention to you, because that’s the first step in the training. You don’t have to be some gushing goof, but you do need to let your dog know when you’re proud of her.

3. When training your dog, be on the same team. Don’t think of training your dog as a you versus your dog endeavor. Think instead about the two of you being on the same team, albeit in different positions. Consider yourself the quarterback, if you like: You call the plays. Winning is a team effort. Of course, your dog has to learn the plays first, and you’re the one to teach him. And this relationship is still not an adversarial one. You show your dog the things he needs to learn, and you do so with love and respect, which your dog will return in kind.

To bring your dog onto your team and show him the plays you’ll be calling, you need to spend time with him. Bring him into your life. Let him sleep in a crate in your bedroom, practice his “sits” in the kitchen. The more opportunities for interaction and practice you have, the faster and more reliably your dog performs.

Dog Care Tips With Dog Training Tips

April 29, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

A dog is considered to be “a man’s best friend”. The companionship between a pet dog and the owners is priceless. Imagine how delightful it is seeing your own dog behave so good, that you don’t have to yell or scream at him, ever again.

The best way to train dogs remained a perpetual concern for the dog training enthusiasts. Before training your dog, there are some things you might want to know in order for you to be an efficient trainer.

This will also help your pet dog on how to adjust with all the new tricks you will give.

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Training Tips To Get Your Dog To Obey!

If you’d love to discover EXACTLY how to get your dog to stop urinating on your carpet and actually ring a bell when he needs to potty. . .

Train puppies to NEVER chew on furniture or expensive rugs – even when you aren’t there to supervise. . .

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Whether you have a puppy or an older dog for an instance, you can still teach them new tricks. Dogs are intelligent creatures thus they can always be taught new things.

It is helpful to start training a puppy, between the age of six to eight months. In this stage, the dog is a lot eager to learn things. Somehow, a dog is more receptive between these ages.

It is best that you understand how to use reinforcements so that your dog can really absorb the new tricks you teach. A positive reinforcement is favorable in training dogs.

Like what most people want, dogs appreciate it much when they are praised and fed with dog treats. When dog is able to perform commands in a correct and precise manner a treat must be given. This can be in a form of food.

Dogs are brilliant companions and are very trainable. Their gregarious nature sets them aside from other pet animals. They can interact and attach emotionally with their owners.

While training your dog, you will soon appreciate the connection that you have both made.

Be firm but friendly in dealing with your dogs. Like when you are dealing with toddlers you have to be firm in giving those orders but in a very positive tone.

This approach in teaching dogs fosters learning and being friendly towards your dog avoids intimidation. When you start to give command try a calm voice coupled with a little tone of being friendly.

Make use of your voice to give commands. Learn when to use high pitch voice and low pitch voice. This will also enable the dog to get familiar on the usual voice usage that you might implore.

Punishment is a type of reinforcement. It is classified as a negative reinforcement which is unfavorable when training dogs. It is imperative that you should not punish the dog in any manner.

Otherwise, the dog will develop that fear and will be distracted along the course of the training. Be consistent in all your commands. Consistent training techniques can hasten learning of the dogs due to the fact that they are familiar with the sounds, words used in the command given. In addition, it is important that the command must be given by the same person.

This will also help the dog to associate the commands to who is giving the commands.

The dog must not be confused in any manner.
On top of these, you might want to solicit an advice from a dog trainer, better if it is a certified dog trainer.

Yes, there are many dog training resources out there, including dog training videos and dog training e-books, but nothing compares with the advice you will get from a certified dog trainer professional.

Increase the happy years of your dog by checking out my free dog training cd. In it, I reveal all the secrets I’ve used to develop a happy, well behaved dog. Visit Dr. Alfonso’s dog training blog right now!

Article Source: ArticleSpan

Stop Barking Electronic Dog Training Collar

April 17, 2010 by admin

If you have a dog which barks constantly you owe it to yourself to get an electronic collar to stop excessive barking. The peace of mind you will have by stopping your dog from barking into all hours of the night at anything that moves. Sure it is great to have a good watch dog to let you know if someone is intruding on your property. But when your dog barks at every single sound and sometime at nothing at all. It seems that the dog likes to hear itself bark. Get yourself an electronic dog collar for such a purpose.

The collar is not meant to be a punishing tool but a training device instead. Most are designed not to send a shock when other dogs barking or send a signal when he barks once or twice, just for the annoying excessive barking. When using the basic training manual that comes with the collar, you will have your dog trained safely in no time at all.

Your neighbor’s will love their once again peace and quiet they once enjoyed before you found your new pet. They will probably learn to like you once again. Lets face it, a dog who loves to bark can quickly get on your nerves. Well I am here to tell you it gets on other people nerves many times worst. It is annoying and the owner should do their best to train their dog to stop. If you have tried conventional methods and they have not worked, an electronic dog training collar for this purpose can certainly be your answer.

Some dog owners can sleep through a war zone and have no idea that the constant barking of their dog is bothering other people in their neighborhood. In my opinion these people are brain dead. There is nothing more irritating than the constant barking of a dog. It will even send the calmest of people to the loony bin after a while.

The people who make these stop barking electronic dog training collars are not fly by night companies. These companies have been in this business for a long time and they know what works. If you purchase one of these dog collars you will soon see what I am talking about. Modifications have been made over the years through testing and customer support to bring the models they have on the market today.

You should never keep the collar on the dog at all times. Especially when it is unsupervised. After all, it is a training device and needs a trainer to make sure that it is working the way it was meant to. Your dog will learn to stop its excessive barking and the collar will no longer be needed. This will please everyone concerned.

I would always try conventional methods first, but when you are at the end of your rope and the only thing your dog does when you tell it to stop barking is answer you with a flurry of barks, it is time to try the stop barking electronic dog training collar. Conventional methods can work well if you have proper training or are instructed how to make it work.

They are preferred by most people because of the idea of giving a dog an electric shock to get it to stop doing a bad habit. I myself prefer conventional methods but they sometimes will not work. Do not be afraid to use the stop barking electronic dog training collar. The shock is tested by experts and is found to be quite safe.

Whether you wish to try conventional methods to get your dog to stop excessive barking or you wish to try the electronic collar, you will find both at this link. Stop Dog Barking Electronic dog training Collar

Article Source: ArticleSpan

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