THINK LIKE A TRAINER

Tip #2  Dogs need to “Learn to earn”. Dog are always being rewarded for their actions  anyway, why not reward them for listening,  instead of rewarding them for just standing there looking at you, jumping on you, getting all excited and plowing into your leg? You have something a dog wants and needs: treats, toys, praise, exercise etc. You need to teach a dog to “earn it” in order to get it. Have them use their brain to offer you behaviors that get them what they want. i.e. sit, stay, walk,fetch a ball or come on command etc.

Tip #3.  Never ask a dog to do something unless you’re going to back it up. If a dog doesn’t listen, you need to follow through, if a dog listens, you need to follow through. If you don’t follow through, a dog will start to ignore you!

Tip #4   Teach Basic Obedience commands. People don’t give this one the credit it deserves. As humans we start out learning the basics, from there we can achieve greatness. Dogs need to understand at least 5 basic commands and 3 advanced ones (shaking paws doesn’t count as one). Don’t be so impressed that your dog sits at a curb, thats really setting the bar low.  I’m also not talking about the dog in the kitchen with you holding a treat in front of their nose, luring them into position. I’m talking about control from a distance, around distractions with or without treats.  If done correctly obedience training not only teaches them what to do, but also teaches them what not to do.

Tip #5  Don’t use one word that has different meanings. If you want your dog to get off you, don’t say “Down!”, say “off!” if you want your dog to sit, don’t say “Sit Down”, say “sit!” if you want your dog to jump off of the couch, don’t say “Get Down” because they will be very confused if you then want them to “Lay Down”.  At first your dog will not learn the position that you are rewarding them for, they’re learning how they got there, so try to think of using a word or words per body movement.

If you have a bad habit of saying “down”, use  “Drop” “flat” “Lie” or “banana” for down

Tip #6   Teach a dog to ” Check in”. Dogs are not aware of the dangers in the world and for their own safety you need to teach them to “check in” or wait until you give permission to do the things they want.  Things like jumping in or out of the car, running to play with another dog, greeting someone, jumping up on the sofa or on you – all these may sound innocent but there can be dangers associated with them. To condition them to “Check in” you need to teach them a good “STAY” and more importantly, a “Release” command, “OKAY”, “FREE” or “BREAK

Tip # 7  Actions have consequences:  Dogs learn by trial and error.  When conditioning them, we can help speed things along by giving rewards for behaviors we like and using redirection techniques, or “soft corrections” for behaviors we don’t like. Using only positive consequences doesnt work, I’ve been there done that. Although it can work if you have lots of time, training talent, a border collie (or other smart dogs) or a bait bag glued to your hip, a young puppy or a dog with no bad habits.   We wouldn’t have to teach them that their actions also have negative consequences. Like when a child  does something wrong and is given a “time-out”, they to learn by trial and error. Yes, dogs are that smart. It’s not a correction using pain but mostly startling them- using touch, sound, smell, even time-outs. The goal is to mark the moment of their actions, both good and bad, so they realize their actions have consequences.

Tip # 8  Hand, body and facial cues are what your dog learns first – before learning the tone of the word or words, then finally learning the word. Only after all that, the words can be said in a different tone, then they can be said with or without any body cues. Think of a deaf person who has specific cue to correspond with a specific meaning. Use specific body gestures when teaching and using in real life examples.

I will be posting new “Think like a trainer” tips, please keep checking back. If you subscribe with just your email, you will be notified when I post something new