The Importance Of Dog Training

Basic Obedience Training For A Dog Is Essential

​There are many of us that long for the type of amazing relationships that we sometimes  get to see between some dogs and their owner. The trust, loyalty and companionship is to be envied. They are a team.

When you see these relationships it’s hard to believe that it didn’t just happen. That they one day picked up a pup took it home and it grew to be this amazing companion all on its own .

It takes a lot of training, patience, time and dedication to create that type of relationship and bond with your dog.   These owners will have gone through their struggles and frustration to get to that place. You just have to make up your mind if it’s worth the effort to you.

At the very least for everyone’s sake dog owners need to do basic dog training with their pet.  It’s irresponsible to do otherwise.

A Badly Behaved Dog Reflects On Its Owner

Just like unruly children that most people would rather not be around, the same goes with badly behaved pets. Friends and family may tolerate them but would rather avoid, and that’s not the dogs fault, that’s on the owner.

There are a number of ways to train your dog. Having had different experiences with dogs over the years I discovered that you need adequate time and patience to train a dog properly.

The first dog we trained was at time before we had children.  We were able to give our dog so much time and attention, we took him out and spent hours training him.

Reap The Benefits When A Dog Is Well Trained

​Our border collie dog was amazing, so obedient and well behaved. Everyone that came in contact with him commented on him.  Also he was welcome anywhere. People were amused and amazed he was that good and smart.

Years later when we did have children and by then another dog it was a different story. With a family and home to take care of plus a job meant limited time.  We did train him in the necessary basic commands the best we could, and the dog turned out fine.

This time it took longer and he certainly wasn’t as smart as our first dog, but he had all the basic social skills and manners. This has happened a few times over the years as new puppies came into our family.

A Dog Training Challenge Can Occur When You Have Multiple Dogs.

My daughter had three dogs a large well behaved polite, quiet dog, a Pomeranian, and a Shih Tzu.  And then much to the disgust of one of the smaller dogs a Leonberger pup came into their family. It was important with a puppy that would get to be such a big dog that they have him trained sooner than later.

My daughter enrolled the newest arrival into puppy training classes. He did amazing even the first time he went. He was so well behaved, listened and for his age he did well at everything he was asked. That was while he was there, he was so good .

The girl doing the training also had a doggy daycare so he also went there a couple of half days a week for some extra time with his trainer.

The problems occurred at home with the other dogs. The Shih Tzu was not at all happy having the new arrival and bullied him whenever possible. He growled and barked at the pup constantly intimidating him. The difference in size made no difference to the little intimidator at all.

Be The Leader If You Want A Well Trained Dog

Because it was becoming such a problem the dog trainer came to the house to see how the dogs interacted.  She explained the main problem as being these dogs were now a pack, and in a pack of animals one takes the role of  leader.  In this case the “little shit” as we got to call him took that role.

That role of leader needed to be my daughters role. She needed to be the leader of this pack to prevent this aggressive behavior. The moral of the story is, it can be harder trying to train a dog unless you are the leader, especially when it’s more than one dog.

You do need to know what you are doing and be involved with your dogs training even if someone else is training them for you. In the long run its you that they are going to be with not the trainer. A lot of people find that by investing in a good training course they can follow along with step by step instructions. For some this is the answer.

Train Your Dog The Correct Way

When you find the right dog training course and you have it at your disposal you can go back over it and repeat the exercises as needed and take a bit at a time. If you’re going to teach your dog something teach it the right way.

To train and teach a dog is a tough job, especially when you don’t have a trainer or a really good training course to follow. It’s important that you know your pet’s nature before you start training them.

You need to understand your dog’s temperament and moods. Dogs can be moody yet easy to deal with if properly taken care of.

Learn From A  Professional Dog Trainer

There are many question dog owners have about training. We can suggest a few little tips here but you need to learn from an expert dog trainer.

Is It Ever Too Late To Train A Dog?

The good news is that it’s never too late to train your dog. Depending on age many dogs may have already picked up some bad habits which have to be unlearned. There are tips to training an older dog that over the years may well have picked up some bad manners.

One thing you do regardless of their age is what you would use with any dog and that is giving them a reward for good behavior.

To begin with you have to teach them what behaviors will get them a reward. To learn what they should do to earn a reward and how to respond when asked to perform that behavior.

What Is The Best Age To Train A Dog?

You can start them off quite young even as young as 8 weeks or so but don’t expect too much of them. Get them used to some simple commands like down, stay and sit. Young puppies have short attention spans but you can begin to teach those simple obedience commands.

As for more  formal dog training it’s usually best to start around 6 months of age. Young dogs are so active and it can be challenging but so worth it.

How Long Does It Take To Train A Dog Basic Commands?

With persistence you can probably teach your pup some simple commands in as little as a few days. However, obedience training is really a lifelong process.  The main thing is to focus on the basic commands first.  They only have so much focus and just like a toddler they keep on learning a bit at a time, your job is to make sure it’s the correct things that they learn.

You want them not to jump up on people, or run away. So you want them to learn the commands of “come”, “down”, “stay”.  And also to discourage them from taking things that don’t belong to them or chewing shoes etc so teach them the command “leave it”, and of course “sit”.

How Much Time A Day Should You Spend Training Your Dog?

Keeping in mind your dogs short attention span it’s best to keep the training session short and frequent. If you’re taking you pup to a training class usually they are for about an hour. Those doing the training are usually good about making sure the dogs have several breaks in that time and it’s important that they do.

When you’re doing the training yourself if possible try to do it a couple of times a day for about 5-15 minutes. Do this at least a couple of days a week. You’ll probably find this will bring you quite good results.

​Prevent Pet Stress

My grandson has a small dog that would bolt as soon as anyone opened the front or back door. He took off like a bullet. He didn’t know where he was going but he was going anyway and of course they would be chasing after him. This was a real problem and caused a lot of anxiety for them.

It was so stressful as they worried he’d get hit by a car, cause an accident, be attacked by another dog or that they just wouldn’t be able to find him.

They had to get a baby gate for the doors and would take it with them wherever they went visiting. Or given enough time they could pick him up and hold him when someone was coming in or leaving. Things are better but they still don’t trust him so they are working on that.

Some habits are dangerous both to the dog and could be to others too. These are the type of behaviors you really need to deal with.

Stop Your Dog Jumping Up

While it may seem like fun and games when they are little it can soon become a problem. Little dogs can nip and scratch people, especially small children. The big dogs can do the same, also they may knock people over sometimes causing quite serious injuries. It can also scare people and make them afraid of dogs when they have a bad experience.

How Do I Train My Dog To Come When Called?

First it’s important not to confuse your dog by calling or shouting different commands. Some people whistle for their dogs and the dog learns that it means I’m being called. So decide what consistent cue you are going to use.

Be patient and keep doing it until they get it and as always every time they come when called reward with treats and a big fuss telling them what a good dog.

Getting your dog to come to you when you call is something you should start teaching your pup really early. Practice it every single day.

​Do You Have A Dog With Selective Hearing?

​Do you have this problem, your dog  just won’t come when you call them? Here’s a tip, have your dog on a long leash and call them to you, give the leash a little tug and as they come towards you.  Show them how pleased you are and give them praise and a treat when they get to you. Then give them a bit of space to try to wander again while you’re still holding the leash and do the same thing again.

Call their name only once just to get their attention don’t keep calling them, give the leash a little pull if they don’t respond to just the call. When they come to you give them a treat do it again and again. Keep letting them have a wander about and call them keep repeating the process.

How Do I Teach My Dog To Stay?

Some people use a clicker and treats but it’s important to get somewhere quiet where your pup isn’t going to have a lot of distractions, you want them to focus on you. Just gradually taking a step back giving the command “stay” while you do it then if they did stay give them a reward.  Next time take another step, each time a little further then reward and repeat. Don’t do it too quickly take your time.  Gradually remove yourself a bit more until you can actually remove yourself out of your dogs site while still giving them the command.

At What Age Should A Dog Be Potty Trained?

Some pets catch on faster than others and anything to do with dog training is about consistency, patience and reward. The same applies to house training your pet. Typically it takes between 4- 6months before a puppy is fully house trained and some can take longer.

How Do You Potty Train A Puppy In The Winter?

Ideally when you have a pup there’s someone around to take them outside regardless of the weather on a regular basis, like every hour or so. Take your puppy to an area where you want them to get used to using. After they have been eating and drinking would be a good time to get them outside to their selected potty area.

If there isn’t anyone around to do this on a regular basis you should start by keeping the puppy in a small area not to have them peeing and pooping all over your home. A playpen, gated area or crate would work for this.

How To Train A Dog To Walk Without A Leash?

It’s always a good feeling to know your dog is well trained and you can trust them . When you can let your dog safely walk without a leash that’s a good place to be with your pet. When you know that you can totally trust them and they’ll listen to your commands you know it’s worth the work.

To get started always begin with the collar and leash on your dog. Standing with your dog on your left side give your dog the command to sit.  Have your pups favorite treats with you and that your pet knows this. At this stage they will probably already recognize that when they make you happy they get a treat.

Start to move forward with your dog walking close by your side. When you stop give them the command to sit and stay.  Encourage your dog sit and wait, then give them a treat for obeying. Eventually you can practice without the leash until they get the hang of it.

How Do You Stop A Puppy From Peeing And Pooping In The House?

Finally curbing this behavior is always a relief. Get some small treats that you can keep by the door you use to go out with your pup. Always pick them up and take with you when you take your pup outside. Only use those treats for this training process. Your puppy will only get some these treats after pooping or peeing outside.

Make sure potty breaks are frequent for young puppies. Be sure to do this at least every 2-3 hours. Take your pup to the same potty training spot and praise and reward them when they go.

How Do You Discipline A Puppy?

This is something you need to begin early on and you have to be consistent. When your pup is doing something you want to change such as barking, jumping up and nipping you need to distract your pup and redirect their attention.

Use rewards and praise when they respond to your commands. It’s important that you avoid physical punishment but use time outs when needed.

The Reward Is Definitely Worth The Effort!

There are many things a puppy needs to learn and it takes time to train a dog so remember to be kind and patient. The results are truly worth the time and commitment. You will be so glad you did it and so will those around you!

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