Whether you’re already experienced in dog ownership, a new dog owner, or about to become a dog owner, then training your dog is one of the most important things to consider. Similarly, if you currently have a dog with behavior problems, then dog training is essential.
However, knowing that you need to train your dog and actually training your dog are two completely different things. Where do you start?
To successfully train your dog, you need to consider and understand a few key facets of dog behavior. Knowing and understanding these 5 facets will greatly improve your dog’s training.
1. The origins of dogs. Dogs are essentially descendants of modern wolves. While domestication has deadened or eliminated many traits, some key natural instincts remain. Like wolves, dogs are pack animals. What does this mean?
Well, there are several traits that come from being a pack animal. The important ones when it comes to training are dogs that are naturally social, used to routine, and used to a social structure (ie the famous alpha male).
As social animals, dogs thrive on interaction with other dogs. A dog does not consider you a human being, but a funny looking dog. Therefore, dogs thrive on interaction with you. Like a wild wolf, shunned by the pack, if you deprive a dog of this interaction, he will become unhappy and highly agitated.
When it comes to training, you can use it to reward or punish your dog. Interacting with your dog (eg, patting, talking encouraging/excited, etc.) can be just as rewarding as food treats. Likewise, ignoring your dog (eg, turning your back on him, speaking harshly, putting him in another room, etc.) can be a harsh punishment for a dog. It’s definitely better than hitting them.
As with all animals (including humans), dogs thrive on routine. If they know what and when they are likely to do certain things, then they are relaxed and comfortable. They know what to expect and are not confused by ever-changing circumstances.
Training should also stick to a routine. Decide what is the best time of day to train your dog and stick to that time as strictly as possible. Your dog will soon get into the routine of waiting to be trained at, say, 3:00 pm every day and will be prepared for when it’s time for training. If your dog is ready and waiting to be trained, it goes without saying that he will actually train better.
Within a pack there is always the alpha male. The dog that leads the pack, protects it and ultimately makes sure the pack feeds and survives. As mentioned, a dog sees you as a funny looking dog and not a human being. To be a good dog owner, you absolutely have to be the alpha male. How many nature shows have you seen where the alpha male is being challenged by one of the other alpha males? Similarly, your dog will challenge you to be the alpha male; this is a natural instinct for them.
You must establish yourself as the alpha male early on. Providing food, interaction, punishing bad behavior, body and vocal language all help to assert yourself as the alpha male. If your dog doesn’t think of you as the alpha male, then he won’t listen or act on your training instructions.
2. The memory of a dog. We all know that goldfish have short memories. However, you may be surprised to learn that dogs also have short retention memories. If you could say something to your dog, it is likely that the next day or a few hours later, he would have forgotten it. On the other hand, dogs with paws (or paws) have incredibly good associated memory. Basically, this means that if your dog can associate something with what you say, he will probably remember what you said for years to come.
For example, if you tell your dog (assuming you can speak dog language) that the chocolate chip cookies were in the cupboard, your dog will probably forget in a few hours. However, if you were to show your dog where the chocolate chip cookies are by repeating the words “chocolate chip cookies,” every time you say “chocolate chip cookies” he would probably go straight to the cupboard. You can also search the cupboard every few hours for the rest of your life for those chocolate chip cookies, but that’s not the point.
Therefore, when you train your dog, you need to associate the topic of training with something. For example: if you are teaching your dog to sit. If you associate the word ‘sit’ by making your dog physically sit and then giving him a treat. Repeat this a few times and soon your dog will associate your ‘sit’ command with physically sitting down and then receiving a reward. The hard part is dissociating the reward – ask yourself why almost all dogs naturally sit up when food is in hand.
3. Doggy language. Despite the above comments, we cannot speak the language of dogs and dogs cannot speak our language. This is important when training. You have to choose words for the commands that both you and your dog will remember. Be careful not to choose very common words or your dog will be easily confused when this word keeps appearing in the middle of a sentence. A common word often used in dog training is ‘come’. For this example, it may be better to use a slang version or combine ‘come here’ into a single short word.
The important thing is that when you decide on a word for a command, stick to it and be consistent, otherwise your dog will get confused.
I know it can be difficult, especially if you come home with your new TV out of the cabinet, to always use preselected words when you talk to your dog. Your dog does not speak human language and will only know what those few words you have trained him with (and the tone you have used). So if you start using other words or different tones your dog will not understand.
For example: imagine that someone speaks to you in a foreign language and asks you how to get to the town hall. You can’t understand a word they’re saying, but they get more and more frustrated and speak faster and louder. Is it your fault that you can’t understand them? Why do they get angrier when you have no idea what they’re saying? What’s your problem? What will I do? Likewise, if you haven’t trained your dog to understand what ‘sit’ is and you start yelling ‘sit’, ‘down on hind legs’, ‘down’, etc., is it your dog’s fault that he he is looking confused and increasingly scarred.
4. Puppy Behavior. Just like babies, puppies don’t know how the world works or how they’re supposed to behave within that world. They need to be taught and learn what is good, bad, right or wrong.
A healthy, happy pup will be a ton of energy, desperate to explore as much as he can as fast as he can. Dogs don’t have good eyes that can see things or hands that can sense the intricacies of objects. Instead, they have noses that can smell things and mouths that can chew on objects.
While this can come through training and general maturation, the importance of this is that you need to be patient and understand where your dog is coming from and why he does what he does.
5. Structure and enjoy. Although I have mentioned these two aspects indirectly, no information on dog training would be complete without mentioning these two aspects alone.
However you decide to train your dog, just like with routine, you need to have a structure to your training. If you have never trained a dog before, how do you know when your dog can start learning to sit, stay, etc. and when can he run to the local store and pick up the paper for you?
You need to know what you really want to train your dog to finally be able to do and what steps you need to take to get there. Personal dog trainers, dog training classes, and dog training guides can do this. Personally, I prefer to train my own dogs and I think you develop a much stronger bond with your dog in the end. Also, your dog is more obedient to you than to the trainer. However, at a minimum, and particularly if you have never trained a dog before, I would recommend purchasing a dog training guide.
The small amount of money for a dog training guide, compared to the time you’d waste searching for free tips online that will be a mix of training and provide no structure, just isn’t worth it. More than that, the time saved on training and the end result of a properly trained dog for the rest of his life (around 15 years) is worth many times the cost of even the most basic training guide.
If you, and more importantly your dog, do not enjoy training, then you will never properly train your dog. The training will take longer and will be much more difficult. When you start training your dog, remember that he will most likely be a puppy, and at that age, all you want to do is run around and explore his new world. Be flexible with the time you plan to spend on training. Try to keep the training short, but if your dog seems to really enjoy it, be prepared to train longer. Similarly, if your dog just isn’t concentrating, then maybe leave it for a bit before doing it again. With a routine and structure to her training, your dog will soon learn that when it comes to training, she needs to focus for a short period of time and will be able to do better.
I hope the above has been helpful in your desire to train your dog. By knowing why and how your dog does what he does, you should be able to understand his behavior much better. By using this understanding, you can better bond with and train your dog. A good training routine and structure, as well as a lot of patience, and you will eventually have a well-trained dog. Always, always make sure the training is enjoyable for you and especially your dog.