Positive Dog Training Blog

Its easy in dog training to move too quickly through the exercises. The biggest problem I see in my dog training clients is that they see some success early on, and then progress quickly through adding in distractions and the dog begins to fail rather than to learn. This article will guide you through how to plan your dog training sessions for success!

Start by choosing one specific behavior to work on. Try to be specific about what it is you want from the dog, dont just work on "heeling", work on one portion of heeling – whether it be attention while walking beside you for a few steps, or where the dog is positioned. If you are doing stays, choose something specific about the stay to work on – either adding distance between you and the dog, or adding distractions, but don’t work on both at the same time.

Once you have your specific behavior for dog training, choose your location. It should be somewhere quiet where the dog can easily focus. If your dog is too interested in the outside, then go somewhere inside. If you are working on distraction dog training, then being outside is a good idea, provided you are working on some very simple behaviors.

Bring your timer and set it for 5 minutes. Work for that time period, SOLID – no taking breaks, no answering the phone, no letting the dog run off to pee, just practice over and over.

To make dog training successful you want to go by the rule of 3, if 3 times its too easy, make it more difficult, if 3 times its too hard and the dog doesnt get it (even if its something they know) do something easier! Set them up to succeed and they will work longer for you. If you notice yourself or the dog getting frustrated with the dog training, go back to something simple, keep to the 5 minutes, and come back to it later. Doing 5 dog training sessions throughout the day is wonderful if you can do it!

Dog training is a slow process, just like learning a foreign language. You have to get the basics of dog training, work on small increments, and over time you and your dog will become fluent!

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