Dog Training Tips

Daniel Waser couldn’t have put it any better. As an expert and dog lover, he shared with us insights on how we could train our dogs.

Training a dog can be done relatively easily, despite what some people believe. You simply have to keep a few training tips in mind. You must teach the dog that you are in charge, and not him. You must also use a tone that exudes superiority and confidence. Lastly, you absolutely must be consistent in your training methods. Learn to master these three tips and your dog will learn whatever you want to teach him. 

You’re in charge. Even when you see your dog’s adorable face, you must keep in mind that you are the one giving commands and your dog must obey your commands. If you’re too soft with your dog and let him be in charge, your rug, shoes and many other belongings will likely suffer. That’s not mentioning the other people who will be affected by your dog’s lack of good manners. Set boundaries and let your dog know what is and isn’t appropriate. Use appropriate tone of voice and gestures like pointing. 

Be strict. You know the expression "give an inch and take a mile"? That’s exactly what will happen to your dog if you are not consistently strict. Dogs can sense if you are being strict by your tone of voice. Be strict and use appropriate tone when you order him to stay in the yard. If you want to go out for a walk, you don’t have to use the same tone. Be enthusiastic instead. If your dog starts running away, be strict again and he’ll understand who’s in charge.

Be consistent. You must maintain a certain consistency in intonations, gestures and words when dealing with your dog, otherwise, the dog will get confused. Always use the same commands and always act the same way when he does something that is unacceptable. By being consistent, your dog will become better trained, which will improve your confidence in your training skills. The more confident you are, the better trained your dog will be! You can also establish consistency in your actions by always using the same door to take the dog out or by always using the same night-time routine.

By being in charge, strict and consistent, you can better train your dog and better predict his behaviour. Don’t forget to show your love and affection for your dog as well! Treat your training sessions as games and reward him for his good actions.

We have to learn how to listen to our dogs. One of the reasons why they bark could be that we do not pay enough attention to their needs and emotions. Dr. Mayra Alfonso, an expert on the dogs, gives this advice.

“Fundamentally, dog behaviour training is basically about communicating with the pet. From a human perspective, the trainer is the one who communicates to the puppy which conducts are desirable and which ones are not positive, as well as circumstantial conducts and when to do what. From the dog's perspective, the trainer must in addition understand what things inspire the puppy to help reach unsurpassed results.

Applying extremely consistent hand signals as well as verbal commands would enable your dog to comprehend them more quickly. It is additionally important to note that the prize of the dog is not similar as the reward marker. The reward marker is a dog hand signal that allows the pup understands that he has earned a prize.

A prize can be a treat, a dog toy or anything else that a pet will find pleasing. If you neglect to prize the dog after doing the reward hand signal then the significance of the reward gets smaller thus making the dog training harder.

Using classical conditioning you can also teach your flurry friend the punishment marker in conjunction with the punishment itself. But recall that dogs cannot generalize commands very freely. A hand signal which might be effective in the house might cause confusion for them the minute you do it out of the house. So the dog command would need to be instructed further in every unfamiliar occasion. Frequently called "cross-contextualization" it means that a dog has to apply what's he's learned in one meaning to the others.

As for punishment the trainer have to take into consideration what's applicable to the pet's identity, experience, age as well as their mental and physical conditions. A firm "no" works on many pups but there are those that demonstrate signs of apprehension or terror towards tough verbal corrections. Negative reinforcement should also only be applied if the unacceptable puppy behaviour is something that can be rapidly corrected, and the punishment should never entail physical punishment. Dog behaviour training should be fun for you and your pet.”