Many people get a new puppy or dog on a whim. If you are a new pet owner or are considering adopting a new family member, you’re in for a real treat! When your dog is trained and disciplined, you are more likely to enjoy a beautiful, lifelong relationship. Pets always know what they need to do in this case, even when you aren’t home. Continue reading to enhance your relationship with your pet.
Unless you offer a distraction or stimulus, your dog will probably focus exclusively on a single thing. After you repeat these cues enough, your dog will learn to focus on you, primarily, as he or she waits for signals.
As your dog progresses in training, you can provide more freedom. This balance between obedience and freedom will provide your dog with a very satisfying life. Don’t give too much at any one time, of course, or it could take your training back a step.
During your training sessions, you should keep a close eye on the time. Dogs can quickly lose focus when you prolong activities. Keep the lessons down to about 10 minutes or so.
Training Sessions
Exercise your dog for at least an hour each day in addition to regular outside potty breaks and training sessions. Making sure your dog has enough exercise makes training sessions more effective and encourages regular good behavior from your dog. If your pet can exercise regularly and be active, he will be far more happy and responsive.
Positive reinforcement is an essential component of canine training. Rewards include treats, kind words and physical touch. Refrain from any physical contact if your dog does not follow directions. It only abuses the dog and causes him to be even more disobedient. To get the best results from your puppy training, you need to be firm and consistent, staying positive at all times.
Use your dog’s name often to ensure you have its attention. Use it constantly in the first few weeks that you have your dog: your puppy should associate this sound with paying attention to you. A short name which sounds distinct from many other words is preferable.
Use various tones of voice when training your dog. Each tone that you give should represent the emotion of the command that you giving. You should use a firm tone of voice for your commands, a loud tone for your scoldings, and a natural, pleasant tone for your praise.
The first step in leash training a young puppy is to get him or her used to the collar during play. Leashes are important for control and identification if you lose your pet.
Praise your dog often so that they look forward to training sessions. Give treats, smile, and get excited so your dog will associate good behavior with a positive result. Do not reward your dog after bad behavior, it will get confused.
Make sure your dog understands the “down” command. This is an important command for your dog to know in social settings. If you teach your dog how to get ‘down’, this might help in an emergency.
Although it’s sometimes difficult to be patient with your dog, it’s important that you try to be as patient as possible. Your dog doesn’t understand English, and they’re not a person. An animal cannot grasp your thoughts and can only interpret your tone and nonverbal cues like gestures and facial expressions to some degree. Therefore, make sure you stay calm, and if you discover that you’re too heated during a session, then take a break.
Avoid using punishment as part of your training routine. While it’s best to prevent bad behavior to start with, if your pet is misbehaving, make sure he does it right the second time. A very big part of training is establishing a good working relationship with your dog.
Make sure you are not giving your dog the wrong signals when he behaves badly. If you seem to be amused by unacceptable behavior, your dog will assume his behavior is acceptable and will do it again. If you do, training will be damaged. No matter how your pet is when he does something bad, you need to correct him right away.
Never let your dog pull you. You must be the leader, no-one else. Use a training collar, and see to it that your dog follows you by going ahead of it when you pass through gates or doors. It is important that your dog respects your authority.
To achieve results when training for obedience, it is necessary to routinely spend sufficient amounts of time on the task at hand. Dogs require consistency and repetition. When you make an effort to consistently spend time working with your dog, you are demonstrating that you are fully committed and reliable. This will help you establish yourself as pack leader.
Preventing offspring from your pup is a good idea when they are half a year old. You need to do this at the same time you start obedience classes. A newly neutered or spayed dog is more obedient. This will make your pet healthier and happier, and make your ownership experience happier, too.
Hopefully, the above article has given you some tips you can use to improve your relationship with your pet. Use the information for your specific circumstances. No doubt, your heart is or will be tied up in a cute little puppy or faithful dog. Training is an important part of your dog’s life. Make sure your pet is well trained. Best wishes to you and your furry family member.