Looking After Pets

Obedience training is one of the most important and most effective things any owner can do for their dog.An untrained dog can be destructive and sometimes dangerous, while a properly trained dog is a productive and happy member of the family.

Dogs are designed by nature to follow leaders, and to look for that leadership.   As pack animals, dogs naturally follow the directions of their pack leader. Absence of a strong leader, the dog might take over this role on itself.  Dogs that consider themselves as the leader of their human pack can become uncooperative, destructive and even dangerous.

Proper obedience training opens up key lines of communication between owner and dog.The foundation of any good dog obedience training is to obtain the cooperation and respect of the dog.Gaining respect from your dog cannot be obtained through mistreatment or rough training methods.  It must instead be earned through leadership and proper dog training techniques.

Basic obedience training consists of teaching the dog what to do and what not to do.  When it comes to desired behaviors, it is important for the dog to learn and respond to basic dog commands, such as heeling when walking, stopping on command, sitting when directed, coming when called and staying where the handler directs.

The list of what not to do is also important when it comes to obedience training.  Some of the don’ts of obedience training include – not jumping up on people, not forging ahead when walking and, not chewing the furniture or your property, and not getting out of control when exposed to unusual situations.

Essentially, obedience training involves establishing the social hierarchy that is so important to dogs as pack animals.  When your dog follows your obedience dog commands, such as – come, stay, sit, heel, etc., he or she is showing compliance and submissiveness.  This is the same type of behavior a submissive member of a wild dog pack would show to the alpha dog in that pack.

As with any type of dog training, it is important that obedience training sessions be fun and rewarding for both dog and owner.Having a healthy, happy dog can succeed in learning best, and keeping the dog happy during the training sessions will make life easier for both your dog and yourself.The dog and owner can benefit from obedience training in may ways.You can permit an obedient well trained dog with a greater amount of freedom than an untrained dog.  For instance, a dog that has been properly trained to come when called can safely enjoy some off leash play time at the local dog park.

There is always a debate over whether it is easier to obedience train puppies or older dogs.Both older dogs and puppies can be very successfully trained to be obedient and willing companions. It can be easier to train young dogs and puppies than it can be to retrain dogs that have already created bad behaviors.You can successfully retrain using basic obedience training and control techniques with even problem dogs.

When obedience trainingpuppies, however, it is important to remember that puppies generally have a shorter attention span than to do full grown dogs.Holding short dog training session in beginning is key.  It is also important to incorporate lots of play with other puppies, dogs and other animals, as well as lots of different people.  Proper socialization is very important to creating a safe, healthy and happy companion dog.