Problems with Dog Training

Here is a quick article on some of the most common mistakes done by owners when they are starting to train their pets. Remember dog training comes in many different aspects of the dog’s life, we have house training, training your dog to do tricks (fetch, lie down, etc) and obedience training. With our tips we will make your training sessions more enjoyable and hopefully speed up the process of training your dog / puppy.

1) Lack of Attention to Detail

When you are training your dog, you should take the time and effort to focus entirely on him. By not paying attention to him, and correcting him when he does something wrong you run the risk of your dog thinking that it is okay to do these bad actions. If your dog does something wrong, correct him, and show him the right way to do something. Repeat as necessary, but always be consistent when it come to dog training.

This consistency point is not to be underestimated.  By not being consistent you will quickly confuse a dog. See point #4!

2) Start later than necessary

You may think that your puppy is too young to begin training, but this is not the case. Puppies can be trained to stay, be obedient on a leash or answering to his name from as little as 10 weeks old. Start when they are as young as possible to listen to your voice, and to react when you ask them to do something.

Again if they step out of line, you should chastise them accordingly. When you are training your puppy to do a new trick be careful not to belabour the training. Young puppies will become bored easily, so try to think of something that will also interest the puppy and keep him focused on the task at hand. If you find your dog not responding, finish up with the days training and return to it the following day.

The younger the dog the shorter the session should be. You should dedicate a portion of each day to train your puppy, take them away from distractions, new noises, smells, people and create a calm work environment.

4) Forgetting to reward good behaviour

If your dog has done something right, and performed as you wished, you must let them know that they have done good. This positive re-enforcement could be a quick game with a ball or some tasty treats. Dogs need encouragement, and they need to be know that when they do something right that they will be rewarded. T

ry as much as possible to reward and gratify your pup as soon as possible after they have done something good. Using your voice in a positive way also helps to reassure dogs that they have done something correctly.

5) Failure to be Consistent

Along the lines of rewarding good behaviour, you should also try as much as possible to be as consistent as you can. This could mean that one member of your family takes responsibility for the training, so that dog gets the same human response every time. Whether your dog has done something good or bad, you need to be consistent in the reward or level of chastisement.

Your dog is likely to naturally gravitate to having one person as its “master”, someone who they will listen faster to, this should be the person who should be leading the training.

Do I need to hire a trainer or can I learn from a book about dog training ?