Breaks in dog training

How often to train a dog? Is it possible to take breaks in dog training (give it a kind of vacation)? And what will the dog remember in this case? Such questions often torment owners, especially inexperienced ones.

The researchers studied the learning abilities of dogs and came to an interesting conclusion. If you expect to form a reliable skill for a long time, then classes 5 times a week (that is, with days off for the dog) are more effective than daily ones. In the first case, the dog makes fewer mistakes and is able to remember the skill after a longer time.

In addition, there is such a thing as overtraining, when the dog repeats the same thing so often and for a long time that it completely loses motivation. And the desire to do it as quickly and better as possible sometimes leads to the opposite result – the four-legged student completely stops executing the command! Or performs “slipshod”, very reluctantly and “dirty”. But if the dog is given a break for 3-4 days from time to time, it will work more clearly and recklessly.

That is, in training dogs, more is not always better. However, if you train your dog once a week or less, this will not lead to significant success. Such breaks are still too long in dog training.

If you take a long break in dog training (a month or more), the skill may completely fade away. But not necessarily.

What exactly a dog remembers (and remembers) depends both on its individual characteristics (including temperament) and on the training methods that you use. For example, a dog that learns a skill through shaping will remember it better than a dog trained with guidance. And a dog trained by induction remembers what was learned better than a dog trained by rote.

To learn more about how to effectively educate and train dogs in a humane way, you will learn using our video courses.