Congratulations is in order for your decision to get a new dog. It will soon become an integral part of your family. You will find this is a very rewarding experience, but knowing what to do next can be stressful. Proper training will benefit both you and your canine companion. Training your dog begins with knowing methods and best practices. These tips will help you understand these.
Enforce the commands that you give your dog. Do not let up until they complete the task you have asked them to do. If you are not serious about making them do what you have commanded, then they will learn that they don’t have to do it. Follow through is key to training.
Watch what sort of activities you are encouraging your dog to do. Sometimes we may perform actions with our dog without realizing that they are training them to do something we dislike. If every time your dog chews something up you send him outside, you are teaching him that chewing something up is the key to getting outdoor time. Be careful with the actions you take, especially ones that tend to be consistent practices.
Puppies tend to nip as a way of communicating, and this should be curbed. It is normally a signal that they want to play. If you observe a puppy with his litter mates, this is the way that they interact with each other. When your puppy nips you, say ‘no’ firmly, and immediately give him a toy to play with.
Do not train your dog through fear of physical punishment. Teaching your dog to respect your commands and dominance will create a healthy and stable pet. Dogs learn to respect the pack leader in the wild by being dominated, not attacked. Physical punishment can lead to an irrational and often violent pet.
Puppy chewing is a natural and necessary behavior, but it can be redirected. A puppy’s chewing is one way that he explores the environment around him. Provide your puppy with clear leadership and a lot of human interaction and stimulation. Also, provide him with fun chew toys. This will help stop him from chewing on the things that he should not be chewing on.
As you plan out your dog training sessions, focus on only teaching your pet one new skill at a time. Too many instructions and expectations can cause your dog to become confused and frustrated. You will achieve much better results if you work on one skill, achieve mastery and then move on.
Crate training is a good skill for a dog of any age to have. Teaching your dog to stay in their crate quietly takes time and patience but can be a valuable tool while potty training or a safe place for him to stay while you are away from the house.
As your dog gets better with training, you can start to give him or her more freedom. This balance between obedience and freedom will provide your dog with a very satisfying life. Try to remember that you shouldn’t provide a lot freedom at one time, as it could regress the training that you’ve been doing.
When giving a dog a flea bath, start at the neck and work towards the tail. To prevent fleas from getting into your dog’s eyes, ears, or nose, begin the bath by creating a barrier of wet, soapy fur around the dog’s neck. As you work your way down, fleas will have no choice but to head for the tail, and inevitably, their death by drowning.
Allowing everyone in the family to tell your dog different things will completely defeat the purpose of training him. Have a family meeting or keep a list of dog training rules on the refrigerator to remind all people that interact with the animal to be consistent with commands, punishments and rewards. Otherwise the dog will be in a constant state of confusion and every family member will be completely frustrated.
Crate-training is an excellent way to curb bad potty habits. Your puppy or dog will benefit from a sanctuary fitted to his size. Dogs are evolutionarily designed to stay away from where they ‘go’, so a crate uses this fact to your advantage. This also makes it more likely that your dog will hold it until you get home, however, never use the crate as a form of punishment.
A dog that has been trained well is more happy and disciplined, and its owners are more likely to be happy as well. Use the advice you’ve read to start training your dog properly.