The cornerstone of good behavior in any dog is a good obedience training program. It is true to say that there are never bad dogs; the dog owners are the uneducated trainers. All dogs are always trying to please their master but the poorly trained or untrained dogs have no proper ways to do that and resort to the ways that they consider best. A well trained dog is healthier and happier, and so will be its owner. If you are planning to train your dog yourself, here are a number of guidelines that will assist you conduct an effective obedience training program.

Dog obedience training equipments

An effective dog obedience program does not demand a lot of equipments or supplies. However, a few equipments are necessary to make the exercise easy and smooth. The two necessary equipments are a dog collar and a dog leash. Choose the most appropriate, easy to use and comfortable equipments to ease the training process.

Getting started with the training

Choose the most appropriate and practical training technique prior to starting the training exercise. There is a wide variety of training techniques available but dogs respond more to positive reinforcement training like treats and training. The “clicker training” is the most common reinforcement training that uses a conditioned reinforcement.

Dog obedience training sessions

Success always comes in small steps, never in a bulk. Dog obedience training sessions should last between 10 and 15 minutes 2 to 3 times a day. This is more suitable for puppies because their attention spans are very short. Having longer training sessions will bore the dog and make it distaste the training sessions.

Start by training the dog basic commands like “sit” then “lie”. These are the easiest commands to learn. Once they grasp these commands, move forward to other commands like “stay” and “come. Once the dog has mastered the obedience basics, you may then train it fun tricks and other advanced commands.

Troubleshooting during dog training

Training a dog takes time and the process has its hurdles and frustrations along the way. The most common problems to obedience training is obedience problems like aggression and display of defiance. The best way to correct such behavior is by interrupting it and shifting the dog’s attention to positive things. You should also practice rewarding the dog when it masters a command to reinforce its dedication and skill.

During training, always keep your demeanor confident and cool and be clear in every command you give. Positive reinforcement always works well with dogs and you must never get angry or punish a dog under circumstances it finds unclear to avoid causing confusion. Hold the dog’s attention with enthusiasm and treats during training but you should also know when the dog is getting bored or tired.

Training resources

If you are not very confident of training your dog, you should study how to do it using the many online resources including eBooks, animations and videos. If after this you still cannot do it or have no time to do it, you should consider hiring a professional dog trainer to do it.

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Dog parks can be a great way to socialize your dog, but can also be unsafe if proper measures aren’t taken. The following tips will help you keep your dog safe and happy at the park.

1) Know your dog. Not all dogs enjoy meeting new dogs. Don’t let your dog get overwhelmed by meeting too many dogs at once. If your dog has not interacted regularly with other dogs, find out how he will react. You can perform a test by introducing your dog to a friend’s dog that you know interacts well with other dogs. Testing your dog in a controlled environment is ideal before you go into the dog park.

2) Keep your dog healthy. Be sure your dog isn’t vulnerable to picking up infections from other dogs by keeping him up to date on his vaccinations and worming medications.

3) Observe. Consider visiting the park without your dog for the first time to familiarize yourself with the park itself and the dogs that play there. Before bringing your dog inside the park, spend a few minutes watching the other dogs and how they interact. If the dogs seem too rough for your dog, come back at another time or try a different dog park. On your next visit you may want to bring your dog and sit quietly with him outside the park. Having your dog with you to observe from outside the park enables you to watch how he reacts to seeing the other dogs.

4) Start out slow. The first few visits to the dog park should be short, no longer than 15 minutes. Slowly increase the length of your stays as your dog becomes more comfortable with the dog park atmosphere.

5) Choose a time that is less busy for your first few visits to the park. Weekday evenings are peak, high-traffic times at dog parks, and weekends and holidays tend to be busy all day long. Acquaint your dog with the dog park when the park isn’t as crowded.

6) Closely supervise your dog. Don’t get distracted while talking to other owners. Keep an eye on your dog at all times to make sure his interactions with other dogs are safe. Watch his body language to help you avoid any trouble before it begins. Watching his actions also enables you to quickly clean up after your pet.

7) Let your dog off leash as soon as you enter unleashed areas. Mixing leashed and unleashed dogs can create a hostile situation. Leashed dogs, and their owners, often display body language and behavior that is threatening to the unleashed dogs and may encourage them to be aggressive and defensive in return. A leashed dog cannot make the choice his natural instinct tells him of “fight or flight”-if he cannot take flight, he may have to fight.

8) Watch for potential hazards. Be aware of potential hazards that may be in the park, such as toxic chemicals, garbage or noxious plants. Be sure to wash any chemicals, such as fertilizer or pesticides, off of your dog’s feet and legs to ensure they aren’t licked and ingested.

9) Leave children at home. Don’t bring children with you to the dog park. You will not safely be able to watch your kids and your dog at the same time. Many dogs have not been socialized to children. Both frighten and excite easily-and react differently-creating a dangerous atmosphere. It’s simply too easy for a child to get hurt at a dog park.

10) Leave small puppies at home. Puppies less than four months old aren’t fully immunized yet and are at higher risk for contracting diseases. They are also very vulnerable to being traumatized by another dog’s aggressive behavior.

11) Do not bring toys or food. Most parks are already littered with balls and toys that other people have brought. Rewarding your dog with treats or giving him toys in front of other dogs can create jealousy and aggression.

12) Interpret canine body language. Educate yourself about dog body language and communication signals so you can tell the difference between fear, play and anger. Your local Bark Busters trainer can help you learn to “read” your dog’s body language.

13) Know when to leave. You should remove your dog from the park if he is being threatened or bullied and seems fearful; begins to display aggressive behavior by becoming overexcited or threatening toward other dogs; is panting heavily; or seems overly tired. Keep your dog’s welfare a top priority.

14) DO NOT physically intervene in a dogfight. Never reach in to break up fighting dogs. Squirt the dogs in the face with a water bottle or try to distract them by throwing something near them, but never physically intervene.

15) Prevent injuries. Be aware of the signs of a possible dogfight before it might happen. Don’t allow a dog’s overexcitement turn into a fight. If your dog injures a person or dog, give your name and phone number to the injured party. Report to law enforcement authorities any handlers who refuse to take liability for damages or injuries and who are endangering the safety of others.

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Dog owners have many methods of training their dogs to choose from today. A number of these methods use only positive reinforcement; others utilize positive and negative reinforcement while others use incentives like treats. The difference in dog training techniques mainly lies in the specific procedures and commands that the dog is being trained. The most appropriate training technique for a dog depends on the dog owner’s or the trainer’s preference and the desired end result.

No matter the training method, these tips will substantially assist you understand and choose the best training technique for your dog.

Dog training Tip 1

Start the training when the dog is still as young as possible. However, it is not practical to train a dog younger than 49 days.

Dog training Tip 2

At the beginning, the training sessions should not last over 15 minutes. At advanced stages, dog training may go on for up to several hours but a beginner dog has a short attention and interest span. Even after the dog is accustomed to the training, obedience training should not last over twenty minutes. If you suspect that the dog is losing interest, end the session.

Dog training Tip 3

End all dog training sessions on a positive note. It will not go well if you end the session with a bad note, like after you just disciplined the dog. If necessary, create a positive situation just before you end the training session.

Dog training Tip 4

Schedule the dog training sessions at a certain time of the day. After awhile, the dog will learn the timing and will even show excitement when it is almost time for the next training.

Dog training Tip 5

Use light weight leashes or leads that are about six feet long for all training sessions. Using heavy leather leashes are heavy and very distractive.

Dog training Tip 6

Consistency in the command you use to train the dog is very important. The dog gets accustomed with certain words that it takes as keywords. For instance, if you train the dog to understand “sit” to sit and “Dowd” to lie down, it would be very confusing to it to tell it to “Sit Down”. Try as much as you can to avoid using negatives. The best example is telling the dog “Don’t Sit”. It will just grasp the word “Sit” and do what it understands by it. Other phrases that should not be used are phrases like “Please sit”, “come and sit”, “Sit boy” etc.

Dog training Tip 7

Play the dog’s favorite game for at least 5 minutes after the training to make the dog excited about the training. This will boost a positive experience and make it look forward to training sessions.

Dog training Tip 8

Use the same volume and tone in instructing the dog. You can make a special “command tone” so that the dog can have an easy time understanding the commands each time. However, after the training, practicing with different tones, volume or even by different people will assist reinforce the commands.

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Friendly, energetic, playful, loving, eager to please, and highly intelligent. These are just a few of the adjectives that apply to Golden Retrievers. What these adjectives mean is that these dogs not only bond with their owners but, also makes them easy to train. However, Golden Retriever puppy training should begin early, before your dog has a chance to train you. Don’t think it can’t happen, it can and it does. These dogs like routine and knowing where they stand within a family and if you don’t set the boundaries for them, then they more than likely will establish their own.

There are three things these dogs need to be completely happy and well behaved. Routine, basic obedience training and early socialization.

Establishing a routine should begin the moment you bring your new pet home. He needs to know where his food dish is, where and when to sleep, and where to relieve himself. Because of this dog’s intelligence he will quickly learn the routine you expect him to follow as long as you are patient and consistent in your Golden Retriever puppy training.

Included in his routine should actually be times for obedience training and socialization. By incorporating everything into his routine your puppy will be better able to know what to expect and to follow any program you lay out for him. Obedience training should take place two or three times of the day and be of short duration usually 10 to 15 minutes at tops. The best time to practice obedience is right after your puppy has had play time and is calmer and is able to pay attention. An excited puppy who wants to play will find it difficult to concentrate and obey commands.

Golden’s learn best through repetition and rewards. Affection and treats are both great rewards for successful Golden Retriever puppy training. Always try to end your training sessions on a positive note so that your puppy will look forward to the next training session.

Early socialization is also a must for this breed of dogs. While they are naturally friendly, socialization will help to bring out this trait and will avoid any anxiety issues that might develop later. Always remember that the more new situations your puppy is introduced to in the Golden Retriever puppy training, the better able he will be to deal with the new situations with calmness and acceptance.

It is essential that you start as you mean to go. If you are not going to let a full grown Golden Retriever on your sofa or bed than do not allow your puppy access to those areas. Always keep in mind that it is much easier training a puppy than it is to retrain a dog.

Potty breaking this breed of dog is relatively easy if you keep in mind that he needs to go out 15 or 20 minutes after eating, immediately after taking a nap and both before and after active play. Keep alert for signs that your puppy needs to relieve himself such as sniffing or walking in circles.

If you are unsure how to go about Golden Retriever puppy training then get a good book on training this specific breed. While a good training book for dogs in general will work, one dedicated to this specific breed can make the entire process easier.

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