Here’s a shortlist of dog training tips we humans should always bear in mind. I’ve decided to mention these because I believe, they are the most important.
To be honest with you this list has more to do with teaching ourselves how to communicate with our dogs than it does with dog training tips. Because, when it comes to dog training, we too need to be taught in a sense.
We as human beings need to learn how our “best friends from the animal kingdom” think. If we send our dogs confusing signals when training, we won’t get the positive results we’re aiming for.
Perhaps I should have called this article, “human training tips” instead. Oh well, let us begin:
1.) Whenever you’re feeling a little cranky, you might want to put off training your dog till a later time. If you’re not enjoying your training session, most likely your dog won’t enjoy it either. So for take-away dog training tips number one I would say, “If you’re in a bad mood, don’t do it, you’ll only make things harder on yourself and the poor mutt.”
2.) You want to make each training session as much fun for “Fido” or “Fluffy” as possible. That way, in the future, your dog will respond with alacrity to your commands rather than fearful obedience. Take-away dog training tips number two: “For crying out loud, stop scaring the dog and have fun!”
3.) Never spend too much time training your dog. Usually, fifteen to twenty minutes a day will be sufficient for your dog to learn. Take-away dog training tips number three: “Take it easy, no need to overdo it.”
4.) Always praise your dog when your training sessions come to an end. That way your dog will know that you are pleased with its progress. Take-away dog training tips number four: “Don’t worry about your dog getting a big head. Dogs don’t have egos.” (Yeah, I know. I don’t know your dog, right?)
5.) Whether training or not, always reward your dog’s good behavior with praise and maybe a treat. Take-away dog training tips number Five: “Read tip number six.”
6.) Not too many treats though, or you won’t have a dog anymore! Take-away dog training tips number six: “Don’t overdo the doggy biscuits.”
7.) Don’t punish your dog when it behaves badly during training. Try to correct it. If it doesn’t do well or is confused with a new command, resort back to one it knows. That way you can praise your dog and try again later. Take-away dog training tips number seven: “Lighten up! If you’re not perfect, neither is the pooch.”
8.) If you become angry at your dog during training, resort back to tip number one.
Remember, you want to make training as fun as possible, for you and your dog, not a chore. Take-away dog training tips number eight: “This one speaks for itself.”
I decided to keep this one short and sweet, so you could take-away something to chew on. We humans can only take-away so many dog training tips, right?