Training Basic Command Tips
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Ever see a dog that snaps at you when you get
near his food or growls when he's in your chair and you try to move
him? These dogs don't respect you as 'leader of their
pack'. YOU must be the Alpha Dog in their eyes.
Dogs are pack animals that have a distinct pecking order. The
leader of the pack (alpha dog) eats first, then the next alpha dog gets his fill and
so on. Your dog should never eat before you ~ and I believe
the dog should see you eating. When they are sitting there
watching, they aren't begging & they usually aren't hungry, they are
watching and learning that YOU are the leader. [If
you start feeding them while you are eating, the learn that they might
be in the same pecking order as you and may even start to challenge
you. ] After everyone eats, even the children, THEN you can
feed the dog. AND as the dog is a pup, I will take away the
food occasionally for a few minutes. I want them to know that I
am the leader and I can take their food if I wish.
I believe in Rewarding Good Behavior - it fosters a good relationship
between you and your dog.
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All dogs need to learn the basic commands: COME,
SIT, DOWN, STAY, NO |
Ever had that dog that you gave a command
to over and over again to FINALLY have him obey it? I've
seen dogs have to be told to SIT - 3 times before they actually
sit. Think about how you are training and cueing your dog, give
your command once and expect it to be followed... don't reward behavior
that you don't want to reproduce. Following these methods - I've taught several dogs to SIT & DOWN
in just one lesson. It is surprising to me what dogs will do for
liver treats. Many don't like the liver the first time (I can't
blame them), but the large percentage of the ones I've worked with
develop a true love for it. I can start cooking it and my dogs
will start sitting, downing, speaking, heeling while I'm in the
kitchen. It's comical. Young Puppies will learn easily
but require slightly more training and reinforcement.
I started making my own liver treats when I started
attending obedience classes with Blackfoot. I haven't found any
bought treat that any of my dogs like as much as the liver treats - plus
the bought treats aren't that good for dogs.
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| COME - There are many ways to teach the commands COME.
I put the dog on a long lead and sit on the ground with my liver
treats in a fanny pack. As the dog plays around me and wanders
off, every once in a while I will call him by saying "name_of_dog
COME" (only once) and tug gently on the lead until he comes.
When he comes to me, I praise him and give him a liver treat and let
him go play some more; repeating the process several times. I
do this adding distractions making sure that each time I only give
the command once and expect him to come to me, always praising and
treating when he comes. If he doesn't come on call, I will
very gently guide him to me - NEVER drag him, try to make him think
it is his idea. |
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| SIT - There are equally as many ways to teach the command SIT.
I take a liver treat, show it to the dog, give the command "name_of_dog
SIT"
( only once) and move the treat down & over the dog's
head. The object is to get the dog to watch the treat and to
have to raise his head to follow your hand. In doing this most
dogs will sit. As soon as he sits, praise him, and give him
the liver treat. Then release him from the sit with a enthusiastic
" OK". I repeat this several times and give the
treats less often as soon as possible. Soon I give replace the treat with a simple
"Good Boy" or "Good Girl" and a pet or a rub in
their favorite spot |
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| DOWN - Once you have the dog sitting, it is fairly easy to teach
the dog to lie down. Put the dog in a SIT, take a liver treat
in front of their nose and lower your hand to the floor and then
move your hand towards your feet as you say, "name_of_dog
DOWN"( only once). Their nose and body should
follow the treat to the floor and the dog will usually extend out
his legs as your hand moves along the floor. Praise the dog,
give him the treat and repeat the entire process several
times. Release the dog each time by saying something
like "OK". |
Occasionally you will have to put a litter pressure on
the dog's shoulders to get him to lie down, but NEVER exert a
lot of force - you want to make the entire process "his
idea". |
| NO - This should mean "stop whatever you are
doing". Commands should always be spoken with quiet
forcefulness. You don't want to be seen by your dog as a
screaming lunatic, but you do want your commands obeyed. This
is a harder command to teach and frankly - every dog learns this in
a difference manner by a different approach. This is a harder
command for me to explain to anyone to teach - since each dog is
different and have to be dealt with in a different way. A loud
"AINNNNNNT" whenever they start doing something
they shouldn't is a good start. They associate that type of
sound with something that isn't good. |
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| To teach a dog not to jump up on you: (work wonderful with
puppies - but be careful not to push too hard) ~ As they jump
up and are in mid air - raise your knee to block them, say "No
Jump" and push them slightly backwards by pushing your knee
forward. Puppies will actually flip over on their backs when
you do this so you MUST BE CAREFUL NOT to push too hard or
too fast. My father used to step lightly on an older dogs toes
while they had their paws on him; but I was never too successfully
in teaching a dog not to jump in this manner. |
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