Dog Training Methods - Negative Dog Training Methods Of 30 Years Ago

I know it is hard to believe that your tiny, adorable, and helpless little puppy may grow to be 30, 40, or up to 100 more pounds of rambunctious flesh in just a few months from now. Of course this all depends on the type of breed, but the point here is that if you allow your puppy to get away with behavior issues early, such as jumping up on people or laying his paws all over you, these actions will become a nightmare when he is full grown.

The best thing you can do to avoid these issues from coming up is to start training your puppy correctly from the very first day you bring him home. Proper manners begin with you, and puppies that do not understand the importance of respect from the time they are small will end up being a huge burden to you and the rest of the family.

It wasn't too long ago when dog training included harsh methods that were more punishment-oriented instead of the positive training protocols that are standard today. However, it was a basic rule of thumb that dog trainers could not work with puppies until they were at least six months old.

The reason was because harsh, physical corrections could not be bestowed upon puppies that were too young or too small. Ironically enough about dog training in the old days is that by the time a puppy reached six months of age, they were already equipped with bad behavior and obedience problems.

Cleaner Training Methods
Fortunately for the industry, and for the benefit of our beloved pets, dog training has embraced a more positive, loving approach to teaching dogs and young puppies obedience lessons.

Unlike dog training from 20 or 30 years ago, today's trainers have classes that except puppies as young as eight weeks old. Puppy kindergarten and socialization classes are offered in practically every city across the United States.

Instead of the old-school methods of harsh and negative reinforcement, positive dog training includes your basic commands such as sit and stay, in addition to leash training, and other fun tricks such as raising the paw to shake your hand, how to calm down and relax, and greeting people politely, without jumping up.

Today, More Dog Owners Are Personally Involved With Training Their Pets
Also observed as a major change in the dog training world over the past 20 years is that it has become more and more common for pet owners to become heavily involved in training their dogs. The reason for this is largely the result of the information age and an abundance of dog training magazines, books, and online articles.

In addition, many of these dog training publications include teachings that are based on scientific principles of animal behavior, instead of just plain old negative training from yesteryear. Such breakthroughs in dog training protocols includes clicker training, which uses a small clicking device to replace a reward, and luring training, which is simply to use a tasty snack or treat to lure the dog into adhering to a specific rule or act in a specific way.