4 Excellent Dog Training Tips
Training a dog requires a lot of patience and hard work, but it is not as cumbersome as most people make it to be. As long as you have the right skills, tools, and techniques at hand, it can become one of the most rewarding experiences for you and your pooch.
Here are four tips to keep in mind so you can make dog training more enjoyable and effective for you and your four-legged best friend:
- Positive reinforcement is key
When you are crate training an adult dog, it can get difficult at times. But if you want to guarantee results, you should start incorporating games, toys and treats in your methods. Start by throwing in a toy and command your dog to go in and get it. If he comes out with the toy, give him or her a treat. This will allow your dog to associate the crate as a fun place where he can get treats!
- Take it slowly and surely
Don’t expect your dog to execute the command correctly right at the get go. It’s unfair to your dog and will give you unnecessary frustrations. Instead, when training your dog to execute a command, make sure to break it down into little milestones. For example, if you’re training your dog to sit and stay, start by getting him to sit first. If he has held that position for 15 seconds, give him a treat then repeat the process until your dog can sit and stay for as long as you want!
This technique doesn’t only work for teaching new tricks, it’s also effective in teaching your dog how to enjoy baths and car rides. The premise is that you don’t want to overwhelm your dog. Instead, you just slowly get them accustomed to the idea.
- Engage your dog both mentally and physically
Just like humans, dogs can get bored with activities that don’t stimulate them mentally. In the same way, they can get pretty frisky and destructive when they have too much energy that doesn’t get released. You should make sure that your dog gets a good balance of both, so it remains happy and healthy at all times. A lot of dog owners enjoy creating obstacle courses for their dogs or enrolling them into agility training sessions, as these activities provide a good mix of both physical exercise and mental stimulation for dogs.
- Avoid jumping with a water spray bottle
No one should tolerate a jumping dog. While it can be an extremely irritating habit, it doesn’t take much to correct this bad behavior. All you have to do is equip yourself with a water spray. When the dog approaches you to jump, say “no jump” as you aim to spray twice between the dog’s eyes. A lot of dog trainers swear by this method, as it is very effective and you only need to do it at least three or four rounds to teach your dog that jumping is not allowed. Just make sure not to spray vigorously in your dog’s eyes, as this is physical abuse and dogs do not respond well to violence.
If you want to improve your skills in dog training, these tips will surely help you get there. Good luck in making your dog as well-behaved and obedient as you want him or her to be!