One of the best ways to spend time and build a strong bond with your dog is to teach him new cues. In so many cases, we teach our dogs every day without even realising it. By following these tips, you can make the most of every training opportunity you and your dog get.
Importance of training
Behaviourist Katherine Brown explains why training is so crucial for our dogs. “Your dog is going to have to navigate a highly complex human world involving requirements that are not quite part of his natural repertoire of experiences. Dogs are expected to toilet outside, greet visitors calmly and only chew on certain items. No digging is allowed, and neither is any degree of aggression or pulling when on the leash.
“But this is not something that comes easily to most dogs, as they are perfectly normal behaviours. If we want our dogs to live successfully and harmoniously with us, it’s our responsibility to teach them these skills and provide them with opportunities to express their innate behaviours.”
Not only will you help your dog navigate through the human world, but you will also stimulate his mind by teaching him new things. You will also build a special bond with your dog, and you will learn more about your dog, which will help you understand what your dog is trying to tell you. This is extremely important when training your dog.
Patience is key
Before you embark on teaching your dog anything, do some research yourself. Do a course or two with a reputable training school and spend time with professional people. Learn about positive reinforcement and reward-based training (see the article on page 56) and start with the basics.
Then, when you’re ready, remember that you will need patience. Don’t expect your dog to learn new cues immediately. Sometimes it will take some time before your dog grasps what you’re trying to teach him. And then you will have to practise, practise and practise some more to reinforce the cue.
When to stop
Don’t try to teach your dog for hours on end. His attention span isn’t that long. Remember that the average dog has the intelligence of a two-year-old child. Start with short sessions of two to five minutes at a time and gradually increase the sessions. You can rather have three or four training sessions of five minutes each in a day, which will work much better than an hour at a time.
Also, don’t try to teach your dog something when he is tired or not feeling well. He will struggle to focus on the task at hand. Rather let him rest or take a nap; wait until he has more energy and try again. If your dog is distracted or giving you any signs that he has had enough, stop the training session immediately.
Would you like to read the rest of this interesting article? Get the March/April 2024 edition of Animaltalk magazine now or order a digital or printed copy from www.coolmags.co.za.
