Training Your Dog - The Basics

By Blue Dawg

Training your dog can be frustrating and overwhelming at first, but do not get discouraged. Remember you are the trainer and the dog is the trainee. There are some simple rules to follow that will help you get the training done and without the major problems. Remember to keep a level head, stay consistent and reward your dog for doing well. We will discuss these three basics in the following paragraphs.

In the daily lives of dogs the routine is everything as they are creatures of habit. They know when you are coming home and wait for you or they know when it time to eat. If you miss a feeding some dogs will bring you the empty food bowl or do something to alert you that something is wrong. New dog trainers can use this knowledge to their advantage and make their job easier. Dog training must involve repetition of actions as repetition becomes habit or routine. Having your dog respond with a certain action when you give a command is the goal you are trying to reach. To make use of dogs being creatures of habit, be sure to be consistent with your commands. Teach your commands the same way every time and keep at it until the dog responds the same way ever time before you move on to a new command. Consistency is the first basic of training a dog and will help you achieve what you want from your dog.

A very hard point in training is keeping a level head. When you have had a long day and you are tired it is very frustrating when the dog does not comply with your command and you become angry. This is the time when some dog owners say that the dog just can’t be trained or I am not good enough to train my dog. If this happens to you then don’t give up but wait until another time when you are more rested and can have more patience with your training. Keep in mind that your dog will not be trained in one day and that taking your time and having patience will get the job done in the end. Keeping a level head is a basic you don’t want to overlook.

A very important part of training your dog is giving a reward for following your commands. The reward part of training will help build a relationship between you and your dog. Now you don’t want to give your dog a treat or food on every command because this is unhealthy for the dog and will build a habit in the dog that you don’t want. When you are training, give the dog a “Good Boy” or “Good Girl” if they follow your command and remember to be consistent. You could even let the dog play with a favorite toy for doing well and you will always want to show affection for your dog. The reward you give will build a relationship and make other training much easier.

What you need to remember is consistency, patience and rewards as a way to start training your dog with success.

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Posted by mbuhlah, Monday, April 21, 2008 5:49 AM

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