The old adage “January is National Train Your Dog Month” may be an advertising hook, but training your pet should be part of your life all year. Regular training teaches your dog basic commands, builds trust and improves the quality of your relationship with your pet. It can also protect your dog from dangerous situations that arise when they’re off the leash, such as running in front of a car or bolting out of a home during a fire or natural disaster.
It’s important to know how to train your dog in a positive manner, so you don’t use harsh correction methods that may hurt or scare your pet and damage their trust in you. Instead, animal behaviorists recommend a reward-based approach to training. This involves rewarding your pet when it obeys a command and providing high praise or treats to encourage the behavior. Negative reinforcement is also effective when addressing undesirable behaviors. Reprimanding your dog by turning your back on them or stopping play may be enough to stop unwanted behavior in its tracks, but you must repeat the admonishment consistently.
Training should be short and repetitive to avoid frustration for both you and your pet. The American Kennel Club recommends keeping training sessions to five minutes at a time. Too much longer and the dog may lose interest or become frustrated with the exercises.
Start your training with your dog in a sitting position and give the verbal commands “sit,” then “down.” Once they’ve learned to do this, move them from the indoors to the outside with a variety of sights, sounds, smells and other distractions. Keep moving them to new areas, increasing the intensity and amount of distraction.
As your dog progresses in his or her ability to listen to and perform the “heel” command, you can begin removing the leash while practicing at home. You can also practice in other places, such as public parks, and gradually increase the distance you move from your pet to test their adherence to the command.
If your dog begins to pull on the leash, you can teach them to heel by putting on a pair of walking shoes and holding a treat in your hand. Begin by letting the dog sniff around you, but when they start to veer away from your side, put on the shoes and say “heel.” Then hold the treat in front of them and tell them to stay in the “sit” position with their nose close to yours. If they do, mark it with a ‘yes!’ and immediately give them the treat. Get to Bulldogology to know more.
Then try removing the treat and just saying “heel.” Your dog will eventually catch up to you, walk by your side without pulling, and you’ll be able to say the words together to mark the correct behavior. Continue to work with the heel command in a variety of settings, and slowly increase the number of steps while praising the dog for remaining consistent in the “heel” position.