How correctly to train a dog?
Every dog owner must understand that he is fully responsible for the life, as well as for the physical and mental health of his pet. The animal must be controlled. This is necessary for the safety of both the owner and other members of the society in which it lives. Therefore, immediately with the appearance of a puppy in the house, an important and responsible process of its socialization and education begins, which gradually develops into a real training of an adult dog.
How to train a dog at home?
If you plan to start training with a puppy, then the best age to learn the basics is 4 months. Success depends on the following factors:
1. Motivation. In order for the dog to join the process of training with pleasure, it is necessary to interest it in this. Therefore, each correct execution of the command should be rewarded with treats, praise and stroking.
Timing – it is important to give a reward in the form of a treat or praise with a stroke – only after the command is completed, but IMMEDIATELY. If you delay with a treat, the dog will not associate it with the action performed, the effect of reinforcing the command will not work. If the dog has not completed the command to the end and receives a reward before this moment, it will also not learn to follow the commands correctly.
Negative motivation or negative reinforcement is used only to stop unwanted (wrong or even dangerous) dog behavior. However, if the dog complied with the command, albeit not immediately, being distracted in the process or after several repetitions, but nevertheless complied to the end, many scold the dog, which should never be done. For example, if you gave the command “Come to me!”, the dog was stubborn for a long time, but after 5 minutes it still came up – you can’t scold the dog, otherwise it will understand this as a suppression of unwanted behavior and will stop coming at all. You will achieve the opposite effect, which will be difficult to correct.
2. The readiness of the animal to work. In order for classes to be productive, the following factors must be taken into account:
- The puppy should be slightly hungry. This will make him try to win the treat and actively complete tasks. A well-fed pet has much lower motivation, besides, after eating, you can’t load the puppy, because active games, running and jumping can cause intestinal volvulus;
- before class, you need to take your pet for a walk so that he goes to the toilet. Natural urges distract dogs from the training process.
3. Favorable weather conditions. If the weather is too hot outside, then you should move the dog training to the early morning, when there is no scorching sun. Otherwise, the animal will become lethargic, it will be difficult for him to concentrate on the tasks assigned to him. Also, do not work with your pet in the rain, because. he will be distracted by the abundance of new smells.
4. External stimuli. They must be introduced gradually, as the command is mastered. The first dog training is best done in a quiet place away from people, roads, places for walking other animals, so that the pet is not distracted. For starters, you can try to give commands at home.
5. The mood of the owner. When training a dog, it is necessary to have a calm and friendly tone, even if the animal fails over and over again. Your negative reaction may discourage your pet from further training. The more you get mad at him while executing the command, the more he gets confused. Reconsider your methodology, perhaps you are making a mistake in something that prompts him to act incorrectly. For example, when teaching the “down” command, inexperienced trainers hold a piece of treat away from the dog’s muzzle, which causes it to crawl towards it.
What commands are useful to learn at home?
If you intend to pass the standards for OKD or ZKS, then all the necessary information about the rules for conducting tests can be found on the website of the RKF (Russian Kennel Federation).
If you conduct dog training classes just to make the animal manageable and make it easier to live with him in society (calmly walk the streets so that he adequately responds to all external stimuli, etc.), then you should teach him the following commands :
- “to me”;
- “sit”;
- “Lie down”;
- “a place”;
- “fu”;
- “nearby”;
- “voice”;
- “Aport”.
These commands are easy to learn – you will be able to conduct training yourself, successfully teaching them to your dog. But under no circumstances should you try to independently master the ZKS course with your pet. Its study should take place only under the guidance of a professional cynologist and after passing the OKD. Otherwise, you can damage the dog’s psyche by such training, making it cowardly or overly aggressive. Only a specialist can correctly “put” an animal on a sleeve, teach it to react to a swing, etc. Those who neglect these rules and conduct such training at home, most often then euthanize their pet, because it becomes dangerous, and its behavior cannot be controlled. No self-respecting cynologist will undertake to train an ZKS dog without first completing the OKD course. This is comparable to giving a five-year-old child a loaded machine gun.
