Think training your pooch is a walk in the park? Not always. And faulty methods can condition your dog to respond incorrectly to commands.
Pet Pro Luciano Aguilar says that you can correct your dog's behavior -- and yours.
"If you want to train a dog, you have to think like a dog," he says. "Dogs can easily misinterpret our actions."
A common mistake is losing your patience. You've asked your dog to "come" repeatedly, but he just wont listen. As a last resort, you grab him by the collar and yell at him to come to your side.
Your dog just associated the "come" command with an angry tone -- which results in a dog that only listens when he's yelled at.
Instead, tell your dog to "come" in a calm, clear tone. If he doesn't obey the first time, calmly walk over, grab his collar and walk him over to you so that he understands the response that you want. Then validate it with praise.
Another training misstep is found in your body language. If you push back on a dog that jumps up or licks excessively, you're really engaging the dog in play, which just validates the wrong behavior.
Instead, your body language should be dull and uninteresting. Ignore the dog if necessary. This lets him know you don't like what he's doing. This also works if your friend's dog tries to jump all over you.
Lastly, follow through. If you give your dog a command, make sure they obey. It's going to take practice, but don't give up just because you think your dog is tired, or that maybe he'll get it later. If you mistrain a dog to believe he doesn't always have to listen to you, you'll really have a problem.
"Be consistent and persistent," adds Luciano. "Dogs learn through repetition. With a few adjustments to your training techniques, you should start getting the response you want."
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