In essence, there are two main approaches to dog training – do it yourself, or take your dog to a dog training school. Both of these have advantages and disadvantages and which direction you take really depends on your personal preference and circumstances Best dog training Houston.
When starting dog training, especially if it is your first time, there are often more questions than answers. How to train a dog to bite or not to bite, how is dog obedience training done, and how to train my puppy dog not to wee in the house are but a few questions. Taking your dog to the local dog training school means you will receive invaluable practical advice that you can apply immediately. This is the best and quickest way in which to get the answers to the above questions.
An alternative to dog training schools is to do the training at home. This is definitely an option if you cannot attend dog training classes with your dog for whatever reason. Training your dog at home is quite feasible as the principles of dog training are not difficult, especially if you have had experience with dog training before. Doing socialisation training with your dog will however not be as easy as it would have been if you were attending dog training classes together with other owners and dogs. A very important aspect of any dog training is getting your dog used to interacting with other dogs and people. You will have to create opportunities for your dog to interact with others if you do the training at home, rather than it happening automatically as would be the case when attending training school.
No matter how many dog training books you read or how many DVDs your watch, the theoretical knowledge must still be translated into practice, and this is not always as easy as it seems. For the first time dog owner / trainer, this could present quite a challenge. A few key concepts need to be understood in order to successfully train your dog to do what you want:
- Your dog’s main aim in life is to please you, the alpha of the pack. Dogs do not do things because it wants to spite you or is naughty – those are human traits. What you have to learn how to do is to communicate with your dog in such a way that he understands what is expected and what behaviour is not acceptable. Once they understand, they will be more than happy to oblige.
- Show your dog what to do, don’t tell him. Remember that, just like a baby, puppies initially don’t understand the spoken word – you have to teach them (and the language does not matter). This is done by showing them what they should do, whilst at the same time giving the command that you decide to use. Your dog will gradually associate the command with the action until the show part is no longer a requirement.
- The key is to be patience, persistence and repeating the same lesson as many times as is required. Don’t expect your dog to immediately do what you ask him to after the first or even the second attempt – this is not going to happen, no matter how adorable or intelligent your dog is.