Ten Natural Steps to Training the Family Dog

Naturally Pawsitive Dog Training

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Bark as other dogs pass by? Maybe pulls you along to chase squirrels, bicycles or skateboards? This class is tailored for your dog's needs. You will learn techniques to keep your dog safe and below threshold while your dog learns to stay calm in distracting situations as well as enhance their loose leash walking skills. Puppy Start Right is for puppies ranging from 9 weeks to 20 weeks of age. This is a foundation class, the first step in your dog training journey. Your puppy will be introduced to basic obedience, including sit, down, stay, leave-it, come when called as well as attention-behavior exercises.

Whether new to training or in need of a refresher, the Family Dog Foundation class begins to teach the basic obedience necessary for your dog to be an active member of the family. During this class, your dog will learn skills such as sit, down, stay, leave-it, come when called, how to walk loosely on a leash as well as many others.

The goal of this class is a solid foundation that your dog can use and build upon. Now that your dog has the basics under their belt, it is time to bring their training to the next level. Your dog will learn new skills such as settling, how to greet people politely and an Emergency Recall, for when coming when called really counts all while having fun. You began training with a 6-foot leash, but you want your dog to come longer distances than that.

Try attaching two leashes together to increase the distance. Work up to training your dog off the leash in a fenced environment. This will teach him to come over long distances. Ask someone to help with off-the-leash training. Because this command is so important, the praise you give for performing it should be extravagant. Responding to the "come" command should be the best part of your dog's day. Do not create a negative association with this command. No matter how upset you are, never reinforce the "come" with anger. Even if you're furious that your dog slipped the leash and ran free for five whole minutes, lavish him with praise when he finally responds to the "come.

You can undo years of training with one bad experience. Never do something your dog won't enjoy after giving a "come. Praise the dog along the way for being calm and accepting of the task.

You can use treats, of course. Go back to basics. If you have a scare where your dog runs loose and ignores the "come" command, go back to leash training. Continue working on the leash until he responds reliably to the "come. It's too important to do half-heartedly. Because this behavior is so important, it must be reinforced throughout his entire lifetime. If you take off-leash hikes with your dog, keep treats in your pocket to reinforce the command. You also want a command to let the dog know that it does not have to be right next to you all the time. Keep the fun going.

Acclimate the dog to collar grabs. When you lean over to reward him for the "come," include grabbing the collar in your hand and petting around the neck as you give him his treat. Leashes should mean fun things are about to happen and we get to go places. There is no room for harsh corrections. Understand the purpose of the "listen" command. Also known as the "watch me" command, the "listen" is one of the first commands you should teach your dog.

That way, each individual dog will know when you want it to focus on you. Prepare a handful of treats. These may be dog treats you buy at the store, or hot dogs cut into small pieces. Choose a treat that you know your dog loves and will perform for. Stand near your dog. If he reacts to your presence, stand still and look away until he loses interest. Say "Listen" in a quiet but firm voice. If you're using your dog's name instead of the "listen" or "watch me" commands, say his name instead.

The tone and volume should be the same as if you were calling a person's name to get their attention. Don't raise your voice to get his attention. Shouting will no longer be regarded as something that commands special attention. Dogs have excellent hearing — far better than ours. A fun twist on this command is to see how quietly you can whisper and have your dog respond. Give an immediate reward for the desired response. As soon as your dog stops what he's doing and looks toward you, praise him and give him a treat.

Make the click sound before giving praise or a treat if you're using clicker training. Remember that your response must be immediate. The faster you reward him, the better he'll understand the relationship between command, behavior, and reward. Once he's mastered the command, you shouldn't give him treats for performing it; however, you should still use your clicker or give verbal praise.

Weaning the dog off treats is important because he may start to expect treats all the time. You'll end up with a dog who only performs when you have food. Praise your dog regularly even after he's mastered a command, but treat him intermittently. That's the way to keep it solid in his doggy vocabulary. Once he's mastered command, you can use treats to shape the behavior to be faster or more accurate.

He will soon realize that the treats come with the command or activity that follows the "listen. Get your dog into a standing position. The purpose of the "sit" is get your dog to transition from standing to sitting, not just continue sitting. Walk into your dog or step away from him to get him into a standing position.

Position yourself in his line of sight. Stand directly in front of the dog so that his attention is focused on you. Let him see that you have a treat in your hand. Focus the dog's attention on the treat. Begin with the treat held down at your side. Give him an immediate treat and praise. He may be slow at first, but more treats and praise will speed up his response. Make sure that you do not praise him until his butt touches the ground. If you praise halfway through the sit, the dog will think that is what you want.

Also, make sure that you do not praise him for getting back up, or you will get that behavior instead of the sit. If your dog does not sit with the treat technique, you can use your leash and collar. Stand next to the dog, facing the same direction as him. Place a little backward pressure on the collar to encourage a sit. Gently lean the dog backward with the help of the collar while doing this. As soon as he sits, give him immediate praise and reward. Don't repeat the command. You want the dog to respond on the first utterance, not the second, third, or fourth.

If the dog does not perform the behavior within 2 seconds of your command, reinforce the command with the help of your leash. When you begin training a dog, never give a command that you are not in a position to reinforce. Otherwise, you risk training the dog to ignore you because there is no follow through from your end and the commands have no meaning. Create a positive meaning for the dog with praise and consistency. Praise natural sitting behavior. Look for times throughout the day when your dog just sits on his own. Praise that behavior, and pretty soon you'll have a dog that sits for attention instead of jumping or barking at you.

Get some food treats or a toy and find your dog. Hold the toy or treat in view so he focuses on you. Use the treat or toy to encourage your dog to lie down. Do this by moving the toy or treat onto the ground in front of the dog, between his front legs. His head should follow it, and his body should follow shortly thereafter. Be accurate with your praise, too. If you praise him halfway down or up, that is the behavior you will get. Always praise him immediately when his belly is on the ground.

Dogs read body language well and learn hand signals quite quickly. If he pops up to get the treat, do not give it to him, or you will be rewarding the last behavior he did before the treat. Just start again, and the dog will understand that you want him all the way down on the ground, as long as you are consistent. Don't lean over your dog. Once your dog has caught onto the command, stand up straight when giving it. If you loom over him, you'll have a dog that only lays down when you are leaning over him. You want to work on being able to get your dog to lie down from across the room, eventually.

Teaching a dog to respect the threshold is important. You do not want a dog that runs out the door every time it opens — that could be dangerous for him. Doorway training doesn't need to happen every single time you go through a doorway. But you should make the most of your training opportunities early in your puppy's life. Place the dog on a leash. You should have him on a short leash that allows you to change his direction from a close distance.

If your dog moves to follow you when you step through the door, use the leash to stop his forward movement. Praise him when he waits. When he realizes that you want him to stay in the door instead of walking through it with you, lavish him with praise and rewards for the "good wait. Teach him to sit in the threshold. If the door is closed, you can even teach your dog to sit as soon as you place your hand on the doorknob. He'll then wait while the door is opened, and not cross the threshold until you release him. This training should be done on leash at the beginning, for his safety.

Veterinarian-Approved Advice on How to Train a Dog - wikiHow

Give a separate command to encourage him through the doorway. You might use a "come" or a "free. Practice leaving the dog at the threshold and do something on the other side. You might get the mail or take out the trash before you return and praise him. The idea is that you do not always call him across the threshold to meet you.

You can also come back to him. Have him wait patiently while you prepare his meal. Eventually, he will sit on his own as soon as he sees his feeding bowl. Hand feed your dog. At meal time, start feeding your dog out of your hand. Then use your hands to put the rest of the food in the bowl. This should help fix or prevent any food aggression tendencies.

To teach this command, do the following: Hold a treat in your closed hand. The dog will probably lick, sniff, and paw at your hand in an attempt to get to the treat. Eventually, when the dog moves his nose away, praise him and give him the treat. Hold one treat in your palm in front of the dog and one behind you in the other hand.

Place the treat on the floor. Move the treat from your palm to the floor. Continue to reward your dog with the treat you have behind your back. If he eats the treat, go back to an earlier stage. Give your dog a toy to play with.

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As he takes the toy in his mouth, reward him for the behavior with praise. Plus, he gets to play with the toy! Transition to less rewarding objects. It's easy for a dog to learn "take" when the object is so much fun! When he's mastered the connection between command and behavior, move on to boring objects. Examples might include newspapers, light bags, or anything else you might want him to carry.

Do not get into a tugging match with the dog. When you tug, the dog tugs back harder. The value of the "sit" and "wait" seem obvious, but you may not understand at first why the "stand" is an important skill to teach your dog. You won't use the "stand" every day, but you'll need it throughout the dog's life. For example, a dog who can stay calmly in a "stand" is the ideal patient at a vet clinic or client at a groomer's. Prepare for the training session.

Grab his favorite toy or prepare a handful of treats to both focus your dog's attention and reward him for learning the command. Put the dog in a starting "down" or "lie down" position when working with the "stand" command. He should move from lying down to standing up to get his toy or treats. You want to coax him into the standing position by having him follow the toy or treat.

Hold the toy or treat in front of his face, at nose height. If he sits, thinking that will earn him a reward, try again, but with the treat or toy slightly lower. Encourage the dog to follow your hand. Flatten your hand with your palm down. If you're using a treat, hold it with your thumb against your palm.

Start with your hand in front of his nose and move it away a few inches. The idea is that the dog will stand up while following your hand. You may need to use your other hand to encourage him from underneath his hips to get the idea at first. As soon as he reaches the standing position, praise and treat.

Although you haven't yet started using the verbal "stand" command, you can use it in your praise: Add the verbal "stand" command. At first, you will work only on getting your dog to stand by following the hand that holds his toy or treat. When he's mastered that concept, begin incorporating the "stand" command into the training sessions.

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There are many ways to combine commands. Eventually, you'll have your dog performing these commands from across the room. On its own, this command is something of a novelty. Inexperienced trainers sometimes find "speak" training spirals out of control. They end up with a dog who barks at them all the time. Clicker train your dog. Teach your dog to associate the click sound with a treat by clicking and treating a few times in a row. Continue this clicker training until your dog sees the click sound as a reward in and of itself. The treat will come later.

Figure out when your dog barks most. This will vary from dog to dog, so you have to observe your specific pet. He might bark most reliably when you withhold a treat, when someone knocks on the door, when someone rings the doorbell, or when someone honks a horn. Recreate the triggering event. The idea is to encourage him to bark on his own, then praise him for the action. You can see how this might be dangerous in the hands of an inexperienced trainer. That's why "speak" training is a little different from the other commands.

You'll incorporate the verbal command from the very beginning. That way, the dog doesn't think you're praising him for his natural behavior. Use the verbal "speak" command from the beginning. As soon as your dog barks for the very first time, give the verbal "speak" command, click, and give him a treat. The other commands thus far have taught the behavior first, then added a command that preceded the behavior.

5 essential commands you can teach your dog

However, "speak" training gets out of hand too easily that way. The dog gets rewarded for barking at first. Thus, it's better to associate the verbal command with the behavior already in progress. Never reward the dog for barking without the verbal command. If you have a dog who naturally barks too much, you might not think teaching him to "speak" is going to help your situation.

However, if you teach him to "speak," then you can also teach him to "quiet. Give the "speak" command. However, instead of rewarding the "speak" barking , wait until the dog stops barking. Give the verbal "quiet" command. If the dog remains silent, reward the "quiet" no barking with a click and a treat. Understand the value of crate training. You might think it cruel to pen a dog up in a crate for hours at a time. But dogs are instinctively den animals, so confined spaces are not as oppressive to them as they are to us.

In fact, crate trained dogs will seek out their crates as a source of comfort. Crate training is a useful way to manage your dog's behavior when he's unsupervised for extended periods of time. For example, many owners crate their dogs when they go to sleep or leave the house. Begin crate training young. Although older dogs can be taught to enjoy their crates as well, it's easier to train a young dog. If your puppy is a large breed, don't train him in a large crate that you think he'll grow into. Dogs won't relieve themselves where they sleep or relax, so you need the crate to be appropriately sized.

If you use a crate that's too large, he might urinate in the far corner of it because he has so much space. Make the crate an inviting space. You want him to create a positive association with the crate, so that he enjoys his time in there. When you begin the crate training process, place the crate somewhere the household gathers.

The idea is to make the crate part of the social scene rather than a place of isolation. Place a soft blanket and some of your dog's favorite toys inside the crate. Encourage him to enter the crate. Once you've made the crate an inviting space, use treats to lure him inside. At first, place some outside the door so he can explore the exterior of the crate. Then, place treats just inside the door, so he will poke his head in to retrieve them. As he grows more comfortable, place the treats further and further inside the crate. Do this until your dog enters the crate without hesitation.

Always speak in your "happy voice" when acclimating your dog to the crate. Feed the dog in his crate. Once he's comfortable entering the crate for treats, reinforce the positive association with mealtime.

Place his dog bowl wherever he's comfortable eating. If he's still a little anxious, you might have to place it right by the door. As he grows more comfortable over time, place the dog bowl further back into the cage. Begin closing the door behind him. With treats and feeding, you'll find that your dog is growing more acclimated to being in the crate. He still needs to learn how to cope with the door being closed. Begin closing the door at mealtime, when the dog too distracted by his food to notice what's going on at first.

Close the door for very short periods, lengthening the time as the dog grows more comfortable. Don't reward the dog for whining. When a puppy whines, it may be adorable and heartbreaking, but when a grown dog whines, it can drive you nuts. If your puppy whines inconsolably, you may have left him inside the crate for too long. However, you cannot release him from the crate until the whining stops.

Remember — every reward you give reinforces the dog's last behavior, which was whining in this case. Instead, release the dog once he's stopped whining. The next time you close the door on the crate, leave him in for a shorter period of time. Comfort your dog during long crate sessions. If your puppy cries when he's alone in the crate, bring the crate into your bedroom at night. Have a tick tock clock or white noise machine to help the puppy get to sleep.

Young puppies should be crated in your room at night so that you can hear them tell you they need to go out in the middle of the night. Otherwise, they will be forced to mess in the crate. My puppy wants to bite my feet. I'm having a hard time knowing how to stop it without giving him attention. I offer his toys, turn and walk away, tell him "No," but all of those things just make him do it more. What should I do? This is a tough one, as the puppy sees your feet as great toys! Be sure to stand still, and try distracting with an especially squeaky toy which you toss for him to chase.

As a last resort, keep a small spray bottle of water in your pocket. When he goes for your feet, say "Stop" firmly, and if he doesn't, squirt him with water. Not Helpful 19 Helpful Find a tasty treat he loves and make him earn it as a reward. Work on one command at a time "Sit" is a good one to start with in a room without distractions. Use the treat to lure him into a sit, and, once his butt hits the ground, say "Sit" and give the treat.

Train every time you remember you have a dog. Keep a pouch of treats on you, and train him a little bit at a time, but frequently, all day, every day. As he gets the hang of things, take his training outdoors where there are distractions, and persevere in the same way. Not Helpful 7 Helpful Eating feces, or "coprophagia," is a common problem among dogs. Make sure the dog is fed nutritious food so that he has no dietary deficiencies. If his poop is abnormal, get him checked by a vet, because he may be trying to correct a digestive issue.

If the problem is entirely behavioral, avoid swooping on the poop to pick it up before he gets to it, because this only makes it more highly prized. Instead, try and distract him with a favorite toy or game, and then praise him for ignoring the poop.

Likewise, teach him a "Leave It" command, so he learns to get a truly tasty reward when he leaves the unsavory offering alone. Not Helpful 10 Helpful She is now 14, but she goes nuts if left in a crate. I am fostering her now, and she is going to have to be crated for a long trip to her forever home. How can I help her cope better? This is a tough one because she obviously has a learned, deep-seated fear of crates. Forcing her into one will only make the problem worse. You can try desensitizing her by feeding her in the open crate, playing with toys in it, and seeding it with treats, but this all takes time.

If she is truly distressed, then a gentle sedative from the vet is going to be the most humane option. Not Helpful 16 Helpful

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