Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Dog Training: How To Make Dog Training A Family Affair 2

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Making dog training a family affair is a fun and rewarding experience for everyone. To start, you must commit to declaring the rules that will govern your dog’s behavior, and let everyone know that these rules must be followed by everyone – because family-wide consistency is essential to achieve good results from training.

Establishing The Rules

Make sure everyone knows and follows the same rules with your dog, or your best-laid dog training plans will unravel. If one person allows the dog to jump on them or play rough games, for example, your dog will try these behaviors with other people. And when your family isn’t consistent about keeping the rules, don’t expect your dog to either!

The best time to establish rules is before  you bring your puppy or adult dog home. That way, everyone can be consistent right from the start. Chances are pretty good, however, that if you’re reading this article now, you probably already have your dog at home with you. So the best thing to do is to start right away – establish your “good dog rules” today, make sure the whole family knows what they are, and have everyone agree to follow them, starting immediately.

Family Meeting Time

Call the whole family together to create a list of the important rules regarding the dog. Encourage each person, including the children, to offer ideas and describe how they’d like the dog to behave so everyone will feel included.

Discuss reasons for each rule you decide to implement so its importance is understood. Big rules – such as not feeding from the table or the types of play that will be allowed – must be the same for everyone.

Write down your list of agreed-upon rules and let the children illustrate the page by drawing pictures of your dog being good. The more personal involvement each family member has with the list of dog rules, the more likely everyone will be to abide by them. When your list is finished and illustrated, post it in a central location, such as the refrigerator, so no one forgets the rules (or pretends to).

I cannot stress enough just how important it is for your children (and everyone else in the house) to all have the same mindset and understanding of how you want your dog handled during training.

In the next article we will discuss how to teach the rules, how to initiate training games, and how to keep dog training consistent – all of which will fail if you do not set the entire family on the same path.

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Click Here Now to watch Chet’s Free Dog Training Video.

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Leash Training: Your Leash Training Questions Answered

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Leash training is hugely underestimated by new dog owners. The process of getting your puppy or adult dog used to being on leash is fairly simple and just takes a little bit of your time. Trust me, this small investment of properly training your dog to walk politely on his leash will pay high dividends in the near future, especially if your puppy will grow up weighing 50 or more pounds.

Leash Training Questions

I get at least a dozen or more questions each week from new dog owners that ask me about leash training. They want to know what type of leash is best, what type to avoid, how long they should walk their dog,  how to get the dog to stop pulling, etc.

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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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Below I have listed a few of these common leash training questions for your benefit.  Remember, there is no one best way to do anything so when it comes to dog training, whether it involves leash training or other lesson, it is okay to mix in your own training ideas so long as you keep it 100% positive.  Negative dog training is not recommended and highly discouraged.

Having said that, here are a few basic leash training questions:

1. How much room should I allow the leash to extend when walking my dog? According to most dog trainers, your puppy or adult dog does not need anymore than 5 to 6 feet of distance to roam when you are walking him. This is plenty of room for you to keep control of the situation, while at the same time giving your dog a chance to sniff out small areas along the way.

2. What type of material should my leash be made of? If you walk into any pet-specific store you’ll find that the majority of leashes for sale are made of nylon.  Nylon is easy to wash and comes in all kinds of pretty colors.  However, they will burn your hand if the dog suddenly pulls and the leash moves through your fingers.

My recommendation is to use a leather leash. In fact, a 6 foot leash made of leather is the perfect size and material. It will last a long time and you will not experience any type of burning sensation if it is pulled. The grip is firm and your control is increased.

3. What about using chain leashes? Chain leashes are practically indestructible and will last a very long time, but just like nylon material, a chain leash can hurt your hands if the dog yanks hard and your grip slips.  In fact, the injury could be much more severe than a nylon burn.

4. How wide should the leash be? This answer is very simple. A leash that is approximately ½ inches to ¾ inches  is ideal. Try to avoid heavy, bulky leashes, when leash training.

5 Dog Training Tips When Teaching The “Come” Command

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Here are 5 quick dog training tips for teaching your dog to “come.”

1. Use it sparingly. When you overuse “Come”, puppies stop paying attention. When your puppy understands the command, avoid using it all the time. Say it infrequently and make it extremely rewarding.

2. Do not chase your puppy if he does not respond. Practice on-lead for now.

3. Never call for negatives. If you have to groom, bathe, or isolate your puppy, do not use “Come.” Also avoid using it when you are angry. You will only scare your puppy out.

4. If your puppy runs away from you, do not repeatedly call or correct him.

5. Use a different command to bring your puppy inside. Coming in from outdoors is a big drag, no more fun than being left alone or ignored. Using the “Come” command when you want to bring him in makes it a negative command.

Instead, pick a dog training command like “Inside.” Start using it on-lead when bringing your puppy into the house. Quickly offer a treat or ball toss.

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Click Here Now to watch Chet’s Free Dog Training Video.

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Proper Clicker Training Means Using Perfect Timing

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With clicker training, timing is everything. You must capture the exact moment your dog is doing something right. Also start thinking in terms of stage-by-stage training.

Let’s say I want to use clicker training to teach my dog to make a left circle. I sit with my dog and click when my dog takes one step to the left.

That’s stage one. Then I hold out my click for two steps, then three,  then a full circle.

Training this way definitely takes longer than pulling my dog in a circle, but once my dog figures out the sequence, he’s doing a circle with far more zest and enthusiasm than if I tugged him around and around.

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Click Here Now to watch Chet’s Free Dog Training Video.

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The second secret of clicker training: Don’t attach a spoken command to behavior until your dog has figured out what is making the clicker work.

To explain, think of the behavior Sit. Each time your dog sits, click and reward.

After your dog is sitting, quickly start saying “Good, Sit” when feeding your dog his reward. Next say it simultaneous to the time your dog is sitting.

Next say “Sit” before a reward is offered and click good behavior. Yes! Soon you’ll be able to say “Sit” away from clicker training exercises, and your dog will be spot on.

Here’s an easy one, teaching your dog to lick your hand on cue. Spread a dab of peanut butter on your hand; offer it to your dog.

Click the second your dog licks you, then quickly offer his favorite reward. Timing is everything with clicker training, as your dog will know the sound soon after you introduce him to it.

Click the very moment your dog does what you want. Keep your clicker and treats with you and click each time your dog offers a kiss.

Once it becomes apparent that your dog has got the message, add the cue word “Kisses.”

No clicks go unrewarded. If you click, you must reward. One click, one reward. Treats should be small and easy to swallow so that your dog can wolf them down and not fill up.

Don’t treat your dog when he’s not having lessons or getting a reward won’t seem as exciting.

You can use the clicker to reinforce each step of your dog’s trick progression. Here are just a few more examples of how to reinforce everyday behaviors – basic stuff your dog probably already knows but exercises to help you understand how the clicker works.

House-training: When your dog eliminates in the right area, click and reward. After your dog associates the sequence, say “Get Busy!” When he’s eliminating, click the instant he finishes, treat, and praise.

Jumping: When your dog jumps on you, look away. Click, treat, and pet your dog once all four paws are on the ground. “Four on the Floor” can be commanded once the sequence is understood.

Chewing: Anytime your dog is chewing an appropriate object, click, treat, and praise warmly. Put the words “Bone” or “Toy” on the behavior once the clicker training sequence is understood.

4 Things To Look For In A Dog Training School

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Enrolling in a dog training class can be a rewarding experience for both you and your dog, but choosing the wrong class can make the experience unpleasant for both of you.

If you are lucky enough to live in an area where you have a selection, shop around. Observe the class prior to taking your dog.

Below are 4 things to look for in a dog obedience class:

Individual Attention: Is the size of the class such that the instructor is able to give individual attention when needed?

Pleasant Atmosphere: Is there a relaxed friendly atmosphere in the class?

Tension and disorder will affect both your ability to learn as well as your dog’s.

Training Concept: Is the approach to training used in the class consistent with your own feelings about dog training?

Does the instructor wants you to do something to your dog that you are unwilling or reluctant to do?

Instructor Expertise and Ability to Teach: Does the instructor seem knowledgeable about dog training?

And beyond that, is the dog training instructor able to communicate his or her knowledge effectively?

2 Activities Your Dog Will Enjoy

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If we want our dogs to do things for us, we need to know how to make them feel good. Below are two positive inducements that can win the heart of any dog.

Get A Ball: Preferably, use a tennis ball because it bounces and is easily controlled by the owner. In training a dog with a ball, the more powerful the dog’s attraction to it, the faster he can learn how to obey his owner and the more irrelevant distractions he can exclude from his attention.

Praise Our Companions: Our dogs will work well for us if we can make them feel good by being with us. Praise must come from the heart and be deeply felt.

The sound of our voice, the touch and stroke of our hand, should be capable of raising our dog’s spirits to a joyous state.

When a dog is part of a group that heightens his drive, he becomes stimulated to maintain his good work.

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