 |
 |
|
It’s a good idea to sit down as a family before you get your dog and agree what breed would suit you best and what ground rules you want to set for the dog. You should then all agree to stick to those – a confused dog is never a happy dog! There are two basic things that you should teach your dog. The first is obedience, so that he does what he is told and the second is to get him socialized so he is used to having other people and other dogs around. Taking your puppy or dog to a good obedience class will help, as he will have to get used to being around lots of people and dogs, as well as learning to understand you better! There is no set time to start training your dog. Ideally his training should start as soon as he comes home. It is much easier to teach your dog good manners when he is a puppy, so you should set aside some time every day to work with him. Five minutes a day is plenty for a young puppy, as puppies don’t have the attention span for long lessons. You don’t need to have guilt driving you to use up a lot of your time. When training your puppy, you should always try to finish on a good note. If he doesn’t want to sit, then don’t force him. Simply ask him to do something he does understand. If he’s tired and lies down say "down" and then praise him. Your puppy may not understand but at least you will have used a command that the puppy has followed (even if he meant to anyway!). If the next day he sits first time, give him lots of praise and stop straight away. He’ll soon catch on.  There are some basic things to remember
when training your dog PRAISE & ENCOURAGEMENT Too often owners can focus on correcting with dogs’ behaviour, and don’t say a word when things are going well. If your dog is lying quietly on the floor chewing a bone, tell him what a good dog he is! If you have had a difficult time getting your dog to come back to you, being angry will only make it worse. You need to let him know he is good for coming, after all, he DID come to you. Always enthusiastically praise your dog when he’s doing what you want. There is a huge difference between your dog respecting you and being fearful. By treating your dog with respect, you will end up with a dog that knows if he does what you ask, it will please you. Good dog training is based around praise and encouragement – your dog will want to do what you ask him because he’ll feel rewarded for it - even more so if he gets a Champ biscuit as a treat! BE CONSISTENT & FAIR If you do not want your dog on the couch, then he should never be allowed on the couch. Likewise if you don’t want your dog to jump up on you when you are dressed for work, then he also should not be allowed to jump up on you when you are wearing jeans. Dogs do not understand sometimes or maybe. They only understand always or never!.You have to be fair to your dog and not confuse him by telling him different things on different days. FUN Break up training with energetic games. Learning becomes boring and stressful if ideas are drilled. Games give everyone a stress break! TIMING All dogs, especially puppies want attention and they will do a lot to get it - even if you don’t appprove! If you scold your puppy for doing things you don't want him to do, and ignore him when he is being good, you are giving the wrong message. The timing of corrections and praise must be right. Behaviour reinforcement must happen as the behaviour is happening. If your pet has pooped on the floor and then you find him chewing a bone, it is way too late to correct for messing on the floor! If you put the time and effort into showing your dog what is right – he will learn to be good. If you find your dog chewing something he shouldn’t, remove it and give him one of his toys to play with! Then praise him for playing with something he should be chewing!  Handy training hints from a Guide Dog trainer 1. Teaching your dog to come when called. A handy way to make sure your dog always come to you when you call him is to use a whistle, rather than calling his name. In busy places he may not hear his name, or may not want to come back to you straight away. One way of getting him to come back every time is to start by training your dog not to eat until you whistle. Each time you feed him get him to stand or sit and wait don’t allow him to eat from the bowl until you whistle. Over time, he will come to hear the whistle and think of food. That way he’s likely to come running when you whistle! Take some biscuits with you the first few times he call him from across the park and reward him when he comes back. Then take them intermittently so he never knows when he’s going to get a treat. 2. The value of "Sit" If you regularly have visitors coming to your house, it’s best if your dog will sit quietly. A small puppy jumping up at strangers can be very cute, but a fully grown big dog like a rotweiler, can be quite frightening to people who don’t know your dog. Teach your puppy to sit every time you have someone new to your house and let them get to know each other gradually. Then praise him for being good. Teaching your dog to sit can also help you cross roads more safely as your dog can sit quietly until it is safe to cross. Ideally, your dog should always wear a collar so that if he ever leaves your property he can be identified, but so it’s easier to keep control of him wherever you are. 3. Cuddling Having a puppy sit on your lap when he is small can be fun, but you need to think about how it will be when he is fully grown. Very big dogs can weigh up to 60kg, the same as some humans! If you want to cuddle your dog, it might be best to do it on the floor. That means that you not only have more room, but it can stop your dog jumping up onto the couch or your bed. www.teachingonline.org is published by s&s Publishing P.O. Box 229, Turangi, (Southern Lake Taupo) New Zealand. Phone in NZ: (07) 386 6667 Phone Outside NZ 0064-7-386 6667 email: sspub@reap.org.nz |
Dog Training Tips brought to you by Champ