Helpful Dog Training Tips

Here are some important points to remember when teaching your dog to be a well mannered member of society.
 
Firstly, a really good habit to get into is to regularly praise your dog whenever you see him behaving in a way that you think is appropriate, instead of falling into the trap of only offering him attention when he is acting inappropriately. For example, if your dog is led down quietly whilst you are eating, try to notice this and tell him that he is a “good boy”. Rewarding this good behaviour with your attention will make it much more likely to occur again, and will help to prevent him from sitting and drooling in front of you as you eat!
 
Remember that dogs rely heavily on interpretation of body language and are not born with an understanding of our spoken word. With this in mind, try to keep any verbal requests short, clear and consistent.
 
Whenever you are trying to teach your dog something new, keep your sessions short and begin in a quiet environment with minimal distractions. Just imagine how difficult it would be to try and learn a new language with your favourite television show playing in the background! Like us, dogs can get easily distracted, hindering the learning process. When the new behaviour has been taught and can be performed reliably in a quiet environment, it should be attempted in areas that gradually offer increasing levels of distraction.
 
Dogs live in the moment, so it is important to reinforce the behaviour you want within a second of it occurring, otherwise the association may not be made.
 
Finally, teaching can never be considered complete. It needs to be maintained throughout your dog’s life. If it is done in the right way, using a positive, reward-based approach, you will both enjoy learning together and you will have a well-behaved, happy dog to be proud of.

Why not sign up for one of our classes? Your dog will thank you for it!©