Are you ready to get started training your puppy or dog? Puppies continually pick up new skills, whether it comes from their surroundings, interacting with people and other animals, or receiving formal training. Among your dog’s basic needs are socialization and proper obedience training.
Start teaching your dog to sit, stay, come, go to their kennel, and go potty outdoors as soon as you can. And, believe it or not, even a newbie can do it themselves. This establishes a crucial base that will prepare them for maturity. Puppies can develop into self-assured adult dogs by receiving the proper socialization and early training.
(Photo from istock)
When you initially start training your dog, especially if it’s your first dog, you can feel very overwhelmed. Gradually you will realize that it’s a huge undertaking to train your dog. The task will seem far less difficult if you approach it individually.
Here are a few steps you can follow to start with obedience training with your dog:
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Teach them Basic Commands as the first step of obedience training
Your dog will constantly learn the sit command which will be the first and easiest to learn. The next step is to teach your dog to lie down. Work on training your dog to stay at the same time. Additionally, you should train your dog to come when called as soon as you are able to do that. These are one of the most significant basic commands that you should teach your dog. You can go to entertaining tricks and challenging commands once your dog has mastered these basics of dog obedience.
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Shorten obedience training sessions of your dogs
When practicing a basic command, keep your sessions brief—around 5 minutes each—and aim to spend a total of 15 minutes per day on average. Due to their incredibly short attention spans, puppies are particular example of less attention. To prevent your dog from being confused, try to limit your training sessions to just one command.
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Include Games in obedience training
Training your dog should be joyful for both you and your pet. Try including some games in your dog’s obedience training schedule. Since, everyone is aware that learning is easier when you are having fun.
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Use Reward-Based Training
Giving a reward to encourage a behaviour you want is known as positive reinforcement. Avoid using harsh corrections, regulating tools like shock, choke, and prong collars, and handling tactics based on dominance. These can have long-term effects that cause your dog to experience different types of fear and anxiety as an adult dog.
Find out which rewards your dog responds to best before putting this into practice. Some puppies could find it interesting enough to learn with something as simple as a piece of their regular food, while others may want something better, like a special training treat.
(Photo from istock)
Then there are the dogs who are completely disinterested with food. Find those puppies a toy they like that they can get when they behave well. A puppy can also be positively reinforced through praise. You might only need to pet the puppy, show excitement, or say, “Good job!” to begin basic puppy training.
You may have heard of or even witnessed a dog trainer in action using a variety of training techniques on a young puppy. However, there is only one real training technique that is supported by science, and that is the use of positive reinforcement.
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Teach your dog self control
Through obedience, your dog will learn that nothing in life is free and that he must earn things like food and attention.
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Practice in a Variety of Environments as a part of the obedience training
Training a puppy at home is very different than taking it to a new place, like a park or the beach, and asking for a command. This is because they will experience a wide range of new sights and scents outside the house.
Try to train in various environments so that your dog will be comfortable in any circumstance. Please remember that until they have finished their puppy vaccination series, puppies shouldn’t go to regions where there are a lot of dogs.
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Be consistent while training your puppy
It’s crucial to be consistent in how you use commands and train. When teaching your puppy basic commands like sit, stay, and come use the same phrase and/or hand gesture.
Consistently rewarding desired behaviours is also crucial, even when it is not practical. Therefore, if your puppy is at the door and needs to use the restroom outdoors, stop what you’re doing, let them out, and give them a treat.
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Patience in an important thing in obedience training
Just like young toddlers, puppies are developing and learning as they go. They will error, and sometimes they won’t comprehend what you’re asking.
Since every puppy learns at a different rate, be patient and try not to lose patience. Your puppy will feel secure if you follow a regular schedule for feeding, bathroom breaks, naps, and playing. A puppy that feels secure is ready and able to learn.
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Train them not to bite
(Photo from istock)
Puppies start acting out at this age. It’s important to teach your pet not to bite your hands or ankles since they enjoy putting things in their mouths to investigate the world around them. When they start biting you, direct them toward something more appropriate to bite, like a toy.
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Potty Training
For potty training, keeping to a schedule is crucial. After eating, after playtime and naps and throughout the day, and first thing in the morning, make sure to take your puppy outside. By now, they should be able to learn to contain their bladders with enough control. Give your puppy a treat each time they relieve themselves outside.
Hence, these are a few tips and tricks which you can use on your own with considerations to give your dog obedience training.
References:
Want to know about 10 fun games that you can play with your dog in winters, click on the link below:
https://theperfectblogger.com/10-fun-games-to-play-with-your-pet-dog-in-summers/
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