Positive thinking and action has always been the way to accomplish and create good and this also applies to dog obedience training. Most people think of dogs as animals that can be abuse and use to release their anger. Dog have feelings and you can use this idea to train your dog to behave for you.
When you think positive thoughts to train your dog, your dog will respond. Dogs have a natural sense of what humans feel and think. So, when you use abusive action, your dog will get confused and not know what to do.
Dog may not have a lot of brain power, but they understand love. This is what you need to give when you are doing dog obedience training. Sometime people try to force change in others and this does not work and it does not work with dogs either. Once you understand this, your training will take new leaps.
Dog obedience training with positive reinforcement training allows your dog to learn positive behavioral patterns at their own pace without being forced to exhibit these behaviors. These are some ways to make the positive reinforcement training easier for you and your dog:
1. Do dog training with good rewards. While your dog does like being praised and getting a pat on the head, this will only go so far in training your dog to behave well. To really keep your dog’s attention, you need to use food rewards. These are what dog trainers call “primary incentives” – and every dog owner knows how food-motivated a dog can be!
2. Give rewards at the right time. Timing is everything when you are training your dog. Give a command, if he follows it, give him a reward immediately. Delayed rewards will get confused training results. You dog will not know what to do to get that reward. You will lose control of your dog obedience training session.
Many people use a clicker for dog training. A clicker is a small metal device which makes a click-click sound. Click your clicker at the exact moment that your dog obeys a command, followed immediately by a treat. Your dog learns to associate the action, click and the treat.
A click is not a necessity for dog training. If you have a strong voice you can use voice like clicker. Use a comment like “yes”, “good boy”, with a voice tone that is happy, loving, and strong. Be consistent with the words you use. Do not change from one phrase to another.
When you train your dog obedience commands, decide if you want to use a clicker or a verbal command. Use whatever you have decided you like to work with and maintain it throughout your dog training.
Even if your dog is exceptionally smart, you need to keep in mind that your dog can only understand a few words. You can teach your old dog new tricks, but you have to be consistent with both markers and rewards in order to be successful in teaching your dog desirable behaviors.
With your patience, love, and care during your dog obedience training, you dog will start to see and understand what you are trying to teach him or her. Don’t rush the training, since your dog has a mind of its own and knows what it want to do and does it instantly. But with repetition, you will be rewarded with new behavior from your dog.
