By Linda Cole
The best teachers are those who first figure out what motivates a child, and then help them learn by communicating clearly. Training your dog is basically the same. If you know your dog and understand his point of view, it’s easier to teach him when you’re both on the same page. The following positive dog training tips can help you be more successful.
Reward positive behavior and ignore non-aggressive negative behavior. Dogs are quick to learn what works and what doesn’t, and when it comes to getting attention, even negative feedback is acceptable, from a dog’s point of view. Yelling at your barking dog might stop him for the moment, but it doesn’t change his behavior. If you don’t want him jumping up on you, don’t reward him with attention – ignore him. Teach him what’s acceptable with positive attention, and reinforce his behavior with CANIDAE TidNips™ treats and lots of praise. Dogs learn what you teach them, good and bad.
Remember the high school teacher who gave you positive reinforcement and helped you work through problem areas until you understood? Staying calm, patient and consistent is the respectful way to teach kids and dogs. Yelling and losing your temper isn’t cool and tells your dog you need to work on leadership skills. No one, including dogs, likes to be yelled at.
You have less than 2 seconds for your dog to learn to associate an action with a behavior. When training, treat/praise your dog as soon as he completes a command so he learns to connect his action with your command. With a “sit” command, treat/praise the second his butt hits the floor. Dogs live in the now and you can’t punish him for what he did hours or even minutes ago. If you catch him in the act, however, you have a chance to change his behavior with positive reinforcement.