The Technique To Test Whether Your Dog Is Ready To Train And ...

By Jonathan Cheong
Coming when called is a vital skill that every dog must learn, both for its own safety and that of those around it. A disobedient dog that refuses to come when called could easily be hit by a car, get into a fight with another dog, or suffer a variety of other bad experiences.



A well trained dog that comes when called can safely be taken out to play in the local park, at the beach, on the hiking trail, or anywhere else the owner and dog may wish to go.



Basic training to come when called is relatively easy and straightforward, and involves providing praise, treats and other perks when the dog does as his owner wants. After these basic come when called training exercises are mastered, there are a number of fun exercises that can be introduced to challenge the dog and pique its interest.



Making training into a fun game is one of the best ways to motivate dog and handler alike. It is easy for training sessions to become routine and boring, and it is important to keep them from degenerating into this state.



Before beginning any food based training exercise, it is important to make sure that the dog is properly motivated and ready to respond to treat based training. Testing the dog is simply a matter of taking a piece of his regular food and waving it in front of the dog’s nose. If the dog shows great enthusiasm for the food, it is ready to start the training. If not, it is best to wait until the dog is in a more receptive mood.



The treats that work best for treat based training games like hide and seek are cut up quarter inch or smaller pieces of chicken, cheese or liver. In other words, something your dog will love. It is best to use very small pieces to avoid overfeeding the dog during he training sessions.



One great game for you and another family member or friend to play with your dog is simply back and forth recall. This is a great exercise for teaching your dog to come whenever it is called by a member of the family. Dogs often learn to only respond to one person, and this can be a problem when other people are watching the dog.



That is one reason why professional dog trainers always insist on working with the owner as well as the dog. A well trained dog must learn to respond to whoever is in charge, not just the owner or usual handler.



In the back and forth recall game, two or more people stand approximately ten yards apart, in a safe place like a fenced in yard. One person calls the dog and asks him to sit and say until another person asks the dog to come.



When the dog responds to the command to come, it is rewarded with a treat. Most dogs respond wonderfully to this exercise and love playing this game. When playing the back and forth recall game, it is important that only the person who called the dog be allowed to give the dog a treat.



After the dog has mastered the back and forth recall game, the humans in the game can start to spread further out, thus turning the back and forth recall game into a fun game of hide and seek. The hide and seek game starts with two or more people in the center room of the house. Every time they call the dog to come, they spread out further away from where they started.



As the game continues, one person will be at one end of the house, while another may be at the opposite end. What makes the hide and seek game so much fun for the dog is that he must seek out the person to get the treat, instead of simply running up to a person in plain sight.



This type of seeking behavior appeals to many of the dog’s natural instincts. After all, dogs are naturally hunting animals, and seeking out food is second nature to them.


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Dog Training - When To Give Your Dog The Freedom Off The Leash

By keith londrie
Many dog owners are anxious to give their four legged companions the freedom of going off leash, but it is important not to rush that important step. Dogs should only be allowed off their leash after they have become masters of all the basic obedience commands, such as walking at your heel, sitting and staying on command.

Another skill that must be completely mastered before the dog can be taken off the leash is the come when called command. Even if the dog can heel, sit and stay perfectly, if he cannot be relied upon to come when called, he is not ready to be taken off the leash.

Taking any dog off the leash, especially in a busy, crowded area, or one with a lot of traffic, is a big step and not one to be taken lightly. It is vital to adequately test your dog in a safe environment before taking him off his leash. After all, the leash is the main instrument of control. You must be absolutely certain you can rely on your voice commands for control before removing the leash.

After the dog has been trained to understand the sit, stay and come when called commands, it is important to challenge the dog with various distractions. It is a good idea to start by introducing other people, other animals, or both, while the dog is in a safe environment like a fenced in yard.

Have a friend or neighbor stand just outside the fence while you hold you dog on the leash. As the friend or family member walks around the outside of the fence, watch your dog's reactions closely. If he starts to pull at the leash, quickly tug him back.

Repeat this exercise until the dog will reliably remain at your side. After this, you can try dropping the leash, and eventually removing the leash and repeating the distraction. It is important to vary the distractions, such as introducing other animals, other people, traffic, rolling balls, etc.

After your dog is able to remain still in the face of distraction, start introducing the come when called lessons with distractions in place. Try inviting some of the neighbors, and their dogs, over to play. As the dogs are playing in the fenced in yard, try calling your dog.

When the dog comes to you, immediately give him lots of praise, and perhaps a food reward. After the dog has been rewarded, immediately allow him to go back to playing. Repeat this several times throughout the day, making sure each time to reward the dog and immediately allow him to go back to his fun.

After the dog has seemingly mastered coming when called in his own yard, try finding a local dog park or similar area where you can practice with your dog. It is important to make the area small, or to choose a fenced in area, in case you lose control of the dog. If you cannot find a fenced in area, choose an area well away from people and cars.

Practice with your dog by allowing him to play with other dogs, or just to sniff around, then calling your dog. When he comes to you, immediately reward and praise him, then let him resume his previous activities. Doing this will teach the dog that coming to you is the best option and the one most likely to bring both rewards and continued good times.

Only after the dog has consistently demonstrated the ability to come when called, even when there are many distractions around, is it safe to allow him time off leash. Off leash time should never be unsupervised time. It is important, both for your well being and your dog's, that you know where he is and what he is doing at all times.

It is easy for a dog to get into trouble quickly, so you should always keep an eye on him, whether he is chasing squirrels in the park, playing with other dogs, or just chasing a ball with the neighbor's kids.

For more information please visit http://about-animals.info/


About the author:

Keith Londrie II has been a pet lover and trainner for 8 years. He has posted a web site for you to learn more about various pets.
Please stop by http://about-animals.info/ to learn more...

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Effective Dog Training For Obedience

By Davion Wong Wong
Dog training for obedience is a continuous process. Dog obedience training for obedience is basically a program that requires active involvement of both the owner and the dog. The whole dog training teaches them how to communicate with each other effectively. In case you do not know, dog training for obedience is vital to building a strong and close relationship with your dog. To achieve that, house training your dog is the most effective and quickest way to accelerate the dog training for obedience of your dog.

Proper dog training for obedience is built on the principle of proper and strict reinforcement of discipline. Dogs are naturally social creatures and are able to live in packs. As such, they are not loners and they are inclined to conform to social hierarchy or authority within the pack of dogs. Likewise, because of this, they are ready to listen and obey your commands. But dog obedience training is effective and easier for you if you know what you are doing. Otherwise, a lot of times, your dog training efforts become futile and counter-productive.

One common goal in dog training for obedience is to train your dog to respond to your command willingly and quickly every time you issue it. Dog obedience training is basically communication between you and your dog so that your dog understands how you want it to respond to you. At times, you will realize that training your dog is more about training yourself the owner. This is because your attitude, patience and effort towards dog training for obedience are so critical to the training success. One more tip for you is that dog training for obedience is an ongoing process.

The ideal dog obedience training method is using a consistent reward and punishment system as dogs respond well towards this especially when they are young puppies. Dog obedience training starts first with sit and come training. Make sure that it pays attention to your commands and not get distracted. Your dog needs to know that you are serious about the training and command. Do not merely threaten to punish it. Carry it out consistently so that he/she senses you are serious about the dog training session. The same goes for rewarding your dog for executing each command. Other basic dog obedience training techniques include training your dog to stay and keep down.

Dog training for obedience of course includes other more advanced commands such as off leash training. You will find a fair bit of information online. On top of these, you can find a good dog obedience training school for your pet. But be sure to use only Certified Pet Dog Trainers as they are professionally trained to handle most dogs.

Dog training for obedience is something you should begin from the very day your pet dog arrives at your doorstep. It is not something you can procrastinate or delay as your dog would quickly form its habits. It can become difficult down the road to change and correct any dog behavior problems like excessive barking, chewing etc as they stay longer at your home. Remember that dog obedience training is an excellent way of communicating and building friendship with your best friend. It also ensures he/she is under control and safe for the whole family.

Dog training for obedience need not be tedious and challenging. Find out more useful tips through the recommended websites at my dog obedience training website.

About the author:
Davion is a successful author and dog lover. Learn the special 4 - day dog obedience training system which any dog owner can use to stop dog behavioral problems at Train-A-Dog-In-4Days.Etc-Now.com and make your dog as obedient as a little puppy.

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