As the title suggests, praise and positive re-enforcement are your keys to quick and easy obedience training for your dog.

The old saying “dogs are man’s best friend,” didn’t work its way into our every day life by accident. It has taken centuries of man working alongside the Canine and breeding desirable traits into the popular breeds of today. From the tiniest Chihuahua to the biggest Bull Mastiff and everything in between, each breed carries a desirable trait for its master. Along with size, color, type of fur and demeanor. The inherent trait of wanting to please its master, is probably the most desired and useful trait a dog could own. Using your dogs trait to please its master is the most effective way to train any dog. Ever hear the old saying “You attract more bee’s with honey?”  Well, the same holds true with training your dog. Good dog obedience training is simply about praising the good behavior of your dog and ignoring the bad.

Praise that can re-enforce wanted behavior can be anything from a simple “GOOD BOY” to a nice piece of steak! A good pat on the head or scratch behind the ears are a couple of my favorites. This type of training can be done under many situations. Let’s say you are working on the command “sit.” If you find your dog in a nice sitting position even without your command. You can use this as an opportunity to positively re-enforce the command”sit.” As the dog is all ready sitting you can tell him/her “good boy! Sit, that is a good sit!” (pet or give him a treat).

Now lets talk a little about handling the not so good behavior. I know that this can be the most challenging part of training a dog. Let me point out the most important thing you have to remember when it comes to dealing with bad behavior. IF YOU DON’T CATCH YOUR DOG IN THE ACT there is no chance for learning or correcting the behavior. If you do catch your dog in the act of say chewing on your brand new dinning room table, (which has happened to me), you must first control your emotions. Then firmly say,”NO!” and re-direct them to what they are aloud to chew on. Now comes the really hard part… praise them for chewing on the correct chew toy. Keep your rage for that Saturday morning kick boxing class.

So, remember “Good Dog!” Obedience Training. Is the best and fastest way to train your dog. And you will be rewarded as you develop confidence in your dog and your relationship with your dog. An unbeatable combination for a long lasting rewarding companionship.

Happy training, thanks for reading.

Matt

There are various dog trainer techniques, but it’s difficult to find which one will work best for you and your pet. Sure! The majority of techniques will work, if done properly, but you need to find one that’s comfortable for you.

One technique that you may of heard of is Clicker Training. What the heck is Clicker Training? Clicker Training has been around for some time now and began being used to teach marine mammals tricks for performance.

So Clicker Training isn’t some magical item that makes dogs listen. It isn’t a gimmick either. The key to making it succeed is to use the click noise with food. It pretty much works as a bridge between dogs finding out that the click means they did something good and is rewarded for it. It’s best described as an event marker and lets the dog know what they did right. Within time, you won’t need the clicker for your dog.

Dog Training Techniques: The Recall Game

I found this one on the internet and found it interesting. It was written by Rebekah Pless. A way to teach your dog to run to you every time you call them is, for starters, is never call your pet unless you can enforce the command. Every time you call your pet and they don’t immediately receive a food reward, then they won’t come to you. Always give them a treat. Keep treats in your pocket all the time. Every good act deserves a reward.

Also never call your pet over for something unpleasant. If you need to groom your dog, don’t call them over to you. Go to the dog instead of calling them over.

Now what you need to do is get 2 people involved in the training. Have the person point to the person calling them. Have them clap, whistle or call the dog. When the dog comes, they get a reward. Use the dogs name every time you call them, so they will become familiar with their name. You only tell the dog to come when they are coming to you.

Once the dog comes to you, hold them by the collar and give them their treat. This prevents them from grabbing the treat and leaving. After they receive the treat, point them to the next person they need to go to and repeat the same process. Not only will the dog learn to come when called, they will also learn to respond to pointing where they need to go too.

Dog Training Techniques: Crate Training

One last technique that you may of heard of is Crate Training. Providing your dog with an indoor kennel crate can help your dogs need for a type of den enclosure. It works as an excellent housebreaking tool, because it helps the dog from not soiling their sleeping place, plus it will also help reduce separation anxiety in puppies, also prevents chewing shoes and furniture and keeps puppies from getting into hazardous things around the house.

Furnish the crate with treats and toys. Make sure the toys are large enough to prevent them from eating them. Also be sure to put water in the crate and bedding. You want your dog to be as comfortable as possible.

Place the crate next to you when you are home. This will help the dog feel more comfortable with the crate. Every now and then, put dog treats in the crate. This will make the dog think of the crate as a positive thing.

Remember to only put the dogs in the crate for short periods of time in the beginning. Puppies have small bladders and usually need to pee over 12 times a day. If your dog has an accident in the crate, don’t punish them.

This technique doesn’t always work, especially with dogs who were bought from pet stores due to their having been forced to eliminate in their sleeping area.

Eventually they will be potty trained and will no longer have separation anxiety.