Welcome everyone my name is Lisa and welcome to my world seeing as you have found my blog i guess we have something in common, love of dogs. My world is full of dogs (and not just my own) i own my own dog walking company (www.thedogwhispererwal.wix.com/service) situated in Loughton Essex i have been doing so for 3 years now and i can truly say its the best thing i ever done i wish i had found my passion sooner.
So lets get onto the matter in hand, you have brought or just re homed a dog and their training is not up scratch they need some training but where do you start do you go down the old fashioned route of Dominance training or the more modern route of Reward based training? Which one is best?
Dominance training does get results but its based on fear and to me personally that has never felt right even throughout the 20th century when it was the popular way to train your dog, i just felt it wasn't right. Dominance training works by getting the dog to respect and listen to you through fear or even resentment, our dogs are our best friends we want them to be happy, and healthy so why would you want your best friend to act on your word out of fear or to feel anxious if he gets something wrong! Lets make a change today and have fun learning some new modern reward based training techniques for puppies and dogs of all ages.
Here's some information all dog owners should remember:
. Dogs don't speak human and its up to us to to make ourselves clear in an easy way for them to understand.
. Lack of ground rules? the dog can get away with bad behavior? then just like a naughty child he will do. For example, if a dog is used to barging first through doors because he’s never been taught not to, then he will. This is nothing more complex than plain old bad manners.
. Dogs are all individual and each has their own things that will get their attention and makes them tick - so identify your dogs "thing" and use this in your reward based training.
. Dogs love leadership and to follow rules but you must have a household who are on the same page and know what the rules are for your dog so everyone can enforce these rules.
. Consistency is key.
. Most adult dogs have the same mental and emotional development as a 2-3 year old child so give them a chance (break down large challenges into small tasks so the dog can learn the large challenge in baby steps)
. Did you know that most people experience a rush of the love-hormone Oxytocin when they look at their dog? And vice versa too the dog gets a rush of Oxytocin too when looking at us owners! Oxytocin is the hormone that bonds a mother to her baby and it seems it’s also a force linking man to dog, puts us in a position of great responsibility, doesn’t it?
. Dogs obey the law of the family and go by the rules:
"Those who raise you are the most likely to cherish you the most"
. Loving too much in an unstructured way is a big mistake and can cause big problems, look at these paragraphs below:
#1: Your dog is a not allowed to touch food or plates put on the coffee table. However, once a year on his birthday he gets his own cake and as a special treat he can eat it off the table.
#2: Just as in #1 the dog isn’t allowed to eat off the table, only on this chap’s birthday he gets a special cake which he eats in his usual place in the kitchen.
Perhaps the answer may not be obvious, but the correct answer is #2. This is because dogs crave consistency. The dog who is invited to eat off the table once a year, is going to be mighty confused and even feel conflicted inside on his birthday. He has no idea why he gets told off for approaching the table on 364 days, and then bizarrely he’s encouraged to for just one day in the year.
The dog in #2 who gets the treat but in a way that doesn’t cause him internal conflict is a much more contented dog.
. Dogs find security with a strong leader - you don't have to be loud, a gentle quiet person can command attention from a dog more than someone who shouts!
. Leadership,guidance,love and security is what a dog needs, its your job to have a consistent routine with rules and to reward him when he is good and to guide him on where he went wrong.
. This is a quote from my Dog behavior and training teacher, its so true and makes me sad but it will help owners to put themselves in the dogs paws as so speak
"Imagine being a stranger in a country where you don’t speak the language. Someone tries to tell you something important but you have no clue what they’re saying or what they want you to do. Despite your best efforts, they get progressively more and more angry. You try harder, but instead of cross words, they punish you."
TIPS ON TRAINING:
. First off buy your equipment it will make training easier (see links below)
. I recommend using a clicker and a whistle my pup done ok with verbal commands but was still a little unruly so i brought a whistle and a clicker the difference is truly amazing, here's the one i bought:
. A bumbag is also extremely helpful with pockets for poo bags, keys,phone etc whilst walking and training and you can attach your treat pouch to it, here's the one i have:
. Get a treat pouch it makes training so much easier and quicker to reward which makes a big difference, here's the one i brought:
. Start training puppies straightaway
. Don't overtire your dog 5-20mins of training two to three times a day is perfect.
. Make learning fun use toys,games and walks as reward.
.Use a firm but fair voice.
. Give lots of praise when the dog does what you wanted.
. Use a brief "uh oh" (or a sound of your choosing) when your dog does something wrong its tempting to punish but dogs are more likely to link the punishment to you and not the action thus them becoming anxious around you. So just mark the unwanted behavior with the noise so he/she knows its wrong just be brief though and then move on. If continued correction is required withdraw your attention and go into another room for two minutes come back and try again.
. Practice makes perfect.
.Always end your training on a positive note eg doing a command the dog knows and performs well.
