Are you all set to begin working with your dog student? The foundation of a dog’s excellent conduct is a well-designed training program. It’s been said that the only horrible dogs are those with ignorant owners.
Boundaries and routines are essential for most dogs’ well-being. They have no idea what to do or how to behave unless they have received obedience training. Dogs that have received proper training are more content and healthier than those who have not.
What is dog obedience training? Dog obedience training may be done in many different ways. A dog training class, individual sessions from a professional dog trainer, or even boarding your dog with a trainer are all options.
Many others, on the other hand, have had great success training their dogs on their own. An excellent method to save money on training expenditures, as well as a great way to connect with your dog.
To successfully teach your dog, you must have a strategy in place. You’ll need to acquire some equipment, put up a timetable, and understand a few basics about training before you can begin your training.
You must also be prepared to make a daily commitment. What you’ll need to start your own dog training program is outlined below.
How to Do Dog Obedience Training
If you’re a novice pet owner, training your dog might be a little scary.
Regardless of how much experience you have with dogs or how new you are to the world of dog ownership, the fundamentals of teaching your basic dog obedience training remain the same: perseverance, diligence, and consistency.
Attending an obedience school with your dog may be a rewarding experience. When professional programs are out of your price range, a do-it-yourself method might be a fun (and successful) substitute.
These are the dog obedience training tips you can follow to help you get started.
1. Seek Professional Guidance
Ask your dog’s veterinarian for advice before embarking on an obedience-training journey. Your veterinarian may offer suggestions particular to your dog’s breed on how to train it to comply.
If you have a dog that was rescued, has a medical issue, or suffers from anxiety, you may need to alter your obedience training methods. Get the information from a professional before moving on to the next stage.
Getting expert guidance doesn’t imply abandoning your own self-taught training. In addition to private training sessions, you may be able to find a professional dog trainer who offers dog obedience training online as well.
As a result, many dog owners opt to enrol in a local dog obedience class rather than pay for individual training sessions. Classes also provide an opportunity for your dog to learn in a distraction-free environment.
It is possible to supplement your own training program with dog training courses or individual lessons.
Having a dog trainer on hand might help you refine and tailor the curriculum to your dog’s specific learning style. When it comes to teaching your dog, be as hands-on as possible. It is better for you and your dog to be part of the training process together.
2. Proper Equipment
There aren’t many things you’ll need to successfully teach your dog, but having a few essentials on hand will make things a lot easier and more effective. Consider your dog’s size and weight when selecting a collar or harness for him or her.
Make your final decision on what kind of dog leash will be most effective for your training needs. When it comes to canine training, a retractable leash is out of the question.
Dog training goodies that your dog appreciates and can eat rapidly will be necessary as well, since the incentive will need to be more instant.
Alternatively, you may use anything you prepare at home, such as little bits of plain cooked chicken or turkey, or you can buy fantastic treats from pet shops.
There is no need to spend a lot of money on training your dog. However, you must begin with the correct materials. The following items should be included in your dog training toolkit:
A short leash. It will be much simpler for both of you if you train your dog to walk well on a short leash (no more than four feet in length). Once you’ve mastered the fundamentals, you may go to longer leashes for more advanced training.
Small, nutritious dog snacks. Cheese sticks chopped into little pieces or cereal-sized snacks for training are examples of this. Using tiny, readily digested rewards is the key to avoiding overfeeding and sluggishness during obedience training sessions.
An incentive for being active or engaged. After a successful training session, rewarding your dog with an activity such as tug-of-war, fetch, or a peanut butter chew toy is a great idea.
3. Decide on an Approach
Decide on the finest form of dog obedience training for you and your dog before beginning. Dogs react best to positive reinforcement, such as praise or food, according to most trainers. The use of conditioned reinforcers is a typical feature of clicker training.
Many books and websites are available to help you learn about various dog training methods and decide which one is best for you and your dog. Don’t forget about the importance of socializing while preparing your training approaches.
4. Plan Meetings
The path to success is often a series of tiny steps. Your dog’s training sessions should run between 10 and 15 minutes, twice or three times a day.
Puppies in particular are prone to this due to their short attention spans. Adult dogs might grow bored with sessions that go longer. To begin, focus on teaching simple instructions. To avoid confusing your dog, keep each training session focused on a single task.
5. Commands at a Basic Level
Even if you’re anxious to show off exactly how clever your best friend is, reserve the sophisticated stuff for later.
Your dog’s obedience may be taught by teaching it to come, sit, heel, and stay. With the help of these terminologies, you and your dog may develop a common language.
A command like “Come” is a great place to begin because of two reasons. Playing outdoors and spending time off-leash becomes much safer for your dog if he or she knows how to come to you on command.
Second, your dog generally comes up to welcome you spontaneously plenty of times throughout the course of a day. Thus, he or she may not require too much coaxing.
Act surprised the next time your dog comes leaping up to you. Listen for a few seconds before responding with “Come!”
If your dog “responds,” reward him with a treat, then step back and try the order again to see if he repeats it.
It’s probable that your dog will quickly learn that obedience is rewarded. To avoid confusion, focus on learning one command at a time and not getting bogged down.
It will be much simpler to teach new instructions to your dog after he has mastered the notion of obedience.
Start by saying the word “sit” before you physically move your dog into a sitting posture to begin teaching your dog the command. Convince a reward and see if you can get them to repeat the “obedience” again.
Small snacks may be used as a reward for your dog to follow you while you walk. In a small room, go from one side to the other, calling your dog’s name after each “Heel!” instruction.
After arriving at your location, instruct your dog to “Sit!” and give them a reward. Until your dog understands, keep repeating the technique.
The sit command is often the first command that your dog will learn. As a next step, teach your dog how to lay down. Work on training your dog to stay at the same time. Additionally, your dog should be taught to respond quickly to your commands.
I think this command is among the most crucial ones. If you’ve taught your dog the fundamentals of dog obedience, you may go on to more complex commands and amusing tricks.
6. Be Clear Who Is In Charge
Dogs in the animal world use the language of dominance to communicate with one other. When it comes to obedience training, this does not entail humiliating, punishing, or attempting to physically control your canine companion.
No matter how old a dog is, negative reinforcement is never a good way to teach it new skills. Older dog obedience training is still the same with young dog obedience training, you just have to be more patient with your old dog.
Instead, whenever you give your dog a command, be sure to look them in the eye. Until the directive is carried out, maintain eye contact and don’t look away.
As a dog owner, it’s important to retain a commanding presence over your pet by establishing a daily “pack” walk with your family, eating before your dog eats, and keeping your dog at arm’s length while walking up stairs or down a short corridor.
7. Be Consistent
It’s understandable if you’d rather chase and play with your dog than continue with obedience training.
The implication is that training dogs isn’t vital. It’s important to remember that your dog is modeling its behavior after you, so don’t take it lightly.
Consistently schedule training sessions at the same time each day, and attempt to teach your dog in 15-minute increments.
8. Use Positive Reinforcement
Training your dog to obey is a process, but it doesn’t last a lifetime. In order to improve your bond with your dog and establish open lines of communication between you and your pet, this method is recommended.
Your dog may advance more rapidly if he perceives that you are having fun together, which is facilitated by positive reinforcement.
During training sessions, praise your dog by giving him tiny, healthful goodies. Spend time in free play, such as fetch or tug-of-war, at the conclusion of each session.
Offer a special reward or a new toy when your dog achieves milestones, like learning a new command or doing the full walk without tugging on the leash.
9. Dog-Proof your Home and Yard
Dog obedience training at home, like acquiring a new skill, has a learning curve. While teaching your dog, you don’t have to sacrifice having a beautiful house and a lush, healthy yard.
In the interim, you can perform some doggy-proofing. When your dog is alone, keep shoes, handbags, and other personal belongings out of his reach.
Make sure your dog knows your expectations by removing rugs and moving throw blankets and cushions that might be targets of anxious energy, such as clawing and gnawing.
10. Problems and Proofing Behavior
There may be setbacks in your dog training journey, so be patient with yourself and your canine companion. There may be some reluctance or intransigence shown.
Positive reinforcement and using a reward your dog will work for should always be your goal while training your dog.
Additionally, you may observe frequent behavioral issues like leaping up, barking or even hostility in your dog. Interrupting a misbehavior is the greatest approach to remedy it.
Turn your dog’s focus in a more positive direction. Follow up on signals and incentives your dog has learned. Maintain a calm and confident manner, and be clear about what you’re trying to communicate.
The key to success is constant positive reinforcement. Punishing your dog or becoming angry during training is a typical blunder. This is a recipe for confusion, not clarity.
Even if you succeed in keeping your dog’s interest with goodies and excitement, you should know when to call it a day when your dog shows signs of boredom or fatigue.
It’s best to leave meetings with a smile on your face. Perseverance and consistency are the keys to a successful training program in the end.
11. Effectively Manage Consequences
In order for a reward-based training to be effective, your dog must realize that bad behavior has repercussions. The punishment here is to withhold their prize if they don’t follow your command.
For example, an elderly person may be harmed by a dog that jumps up to meet them when they get home. If they leap up at you, don’t welcome them or pay attention to them. This will teach them not to.
Turn around, go back out the door, and repeat this process until the dog does not leap up. While you’re doing this, keep a candy bar in your hand.
Reward your dog for not jumping when you enter the house, and then continue the exercise until your dog does not greet you with a leap.
Your dog’s favorite persons should be on the list of individuals you attempt this with. As a result, your dog will always get the reward he deserves for good behavior.
Best Obedience Training for Dogs
1. Clicker Training
Clicking sounds are used in this way to recognize the actions you like. After that, you’ll reward with a goodie. Pick a little, scrumptious reward for your dog just when he’s in training mode.
Begin by teaching your dog to sit. Click and give them the reward as soon as their tail touches the floor.
When they see you, they’ll either paw at you, bark, or whimper. Keep your mouth shut and don’t try to intervene. Click and reward them when they sit down again.
Sitting for treats will become a habit for puppies as soon as the “lightbulb” moment occurs for their reward. Puppies learn that excellent behavior is rewarded via clicker training.
They’ll go out of their way to make you happy. They’ll quickly pick up on the meaning of “sit” if you give them a name for it once they offer it. Any behavior, like a paw wave or a fun trick, may be taught using a clicker.
2. Lure Training
Clicker training takes longer than lure training to show results. Puppy training may be made easier by using a favorite toy or reward.
You don’t have to touch your dog or push them into poses using this approach. Instead of luring them to the desired spot, you use the favorite reward as a bait. The prize is theirs when they cooperate.
A tasty meal or a lovable toy can entice them in no time at all. Make sure you choose something they’ll love and that they’ll only receive while in training. Hold it above and in front of your dog’s head to keep it out of their grasp.
Next, advance the lure forward so that it is just over their heads. Your dog’s tail should touch the floor in a sit position to keep them stable as they follow the movement. When they pose, immediately say “Sit!” and give them the food or toy they’ve been looking for.
Trainers vs. Behaviorists
Trainers and behaviorists have a few key distinctions to keep in mind. Not all behaviorists are trainers or veterinarians.
However, trainers are not trained to deal with the root causes of symptoms. Through behaviorst, you will know the cause of your dog behavior and training them would be easier.
Separation anxiety may be lessened by teaching a dog new skills and allowing him to become accustomed to being alone.
In order to get to the base of the problem, a behaviorist would likely be needed, who would then suggest you to a trainer if the behaviorist couldn’t assist.
Some trainers are certified by training organizations or institutions. If your trainer isn’t qualified, it’s always a good idea to verify their credentials.
CGC (Canine Good Citizen) examiners of the American Kennel Club (AKC) are another kind of canine training expert. In order to become an AKC CGC Evaluator, a person must be certified by the AKC to assess dogs for the Canine Good Citizen exam.
Separation anxiety may be reduced by training other behaviors, such as making a dog acclimated to being alone.
In order to get to the base of the problem, a behaviorist would likely be needed, who would then suggest you to a trainer if the behaviorist couldn’t assist.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. How much does dog obedience training cost?
Generally, the cost of dog obedience training is $50 a session. However, depending on your region and the trainer, this price of dog obedience training may vary.
2. What does it mean to teach a dog to obey?
Training your dog to obey basic directions, behavior, socializing, and even basic grooming activities is an important part of raising a well-behaved pet.
3. What age should you begin teaching your dog to obey commands?
Obedience training may begin as early as six to seven weeks of age with puppies.
4. How long does it take to teach a dog to obey its commands?
After a few weeks of courses, you’ll still need to practise what your dog has learned every day.
5. What happens if my dog doesn’t react to the marker?
This is most commonly the result of training in an overly stimulating or interesting atmosphere. Begin by working out in a quiet, uncluttered area of your house, such as your living room, where you won’t be interrupted.
Practise each new ability you teach your puppy in different areas, such as the yard or in the home when there are no dogs or strangers present. And then in the presence of strangers as the puppy becomes better.
Dogs may benefit greatly from participating in a positive reinforcement puppy class or puppy kindergarten to practise working together with their family even when there are interruptions.
Ensure that your goodies are of excellent quality, that your puppy is feeling well, and that he is still at least a little hungry if he regularly reacts to the marker by seeking for a treat and suddenly stops.
Final Thoughts
Dog obedience training commands like sitting, heeling, and lying down may take a few weeks to teach your dog.
Once your fluffy best friend has mastered the fundamentals, it will be much simpler to teach additional cues. It’s well worth the time and effort to keep your dog in obedience training.
Classes for early pups may also be a great opportunity to introduce your new puppy to a wide range of people, dogs, and other stimuli in a safe setting. It’s possible that your dog may meet some new pals of the same age.
Afterwards, you and your pet might go on playdates and fitness sessions with your buddies (or the other way around). Eight weeks of age and above are the optimal time to enroll your puppy in puppy socialization lessons.
A healthy, parasite-free, and vaccinated puppy class is a safe and rewarding experience for both the pups and their owners.
We appreciate you taking the time to read and make use of the information we have provided. Let us know if we’ve overlooked anything in the comments below.
Share your thoughts and ideas with us, and we’ll make the necessary changes to share with other dog owners.
Recommended Reading
How to DIY Obedience Train Your Dog
5 Quick Tips for Dog Obedience Training
