Amanda Teixeira
Good training is the be-all and end-all. However, if your dog doesn’t want to listen to you, it doesn’t always mean that he’s untrained. Often he does not understand what you want from him. Dog owners should therefore avoid these mistakes in dog training.
Do you shout your heart out, but your dog continues to play happily? You say “sit” and he lies down? Then you have probably made one or more mistakes in dog training. We’ll help you spot your mistakes. This is the only way you can avoid them in the future.
One command must suffice!
Your dog is not hard of hearing. If he knows the command, a single call is enough. Every additional word is superfluous and undermines your authority. If you keep saying “Here!” call, he is guaranteed not to come. You keep telling him where you are and that you are waiting for him (or even following him?). Stay consistent and above all determined! The dog will notice that too.
Your body language sets the tone
Human body language is extremely important in dog training. Finally, the dog interprets your facial expressions and the intonation of your words. If your posture and gestures don’t match, you’ve lost. Anyone who orders the command “Come here” trembling with anger can wait a long time for their dog.
Negligence is taboo when it comes to dog training
Consistency is the top priority in dog training! Once established, rules must be followed. As soon as you become careless, give your dog the go-ahead. He may as well forget what he has learned.
Praise takes good timing
Dog training is primarily about rewards. A dog wants to be recognized for what it has done. However, this should follow directly on the correct behavior of the four-legged friend. If it takes too long to pull a treat out of your pocket, the reward can have negative consequences. Because of all the hustle and bustle, you shove the treat down the four-legged friend’s throat at the moment when he is whining and begging for it: he then associates a negative behavior with a positive reward for him – and will probably try again and again. And even if you basically reward every good action with a treat, it can happen that the dog only follows “for payment”.
Socialization of the dog
A lack of socialization when dogs are young can lead to later conflicts with their peers. For a positive development, it is particularly important that dogs have contact with other dogs as puppies, for example in a dog school. There they can learn to assert themselves or to submit, which is extremely important for the learning phase. And the extensive contact between dog and human is also very important. If the dogs are alone too much and not given enough physical and mental support, this can have a negative impact on the dog’s health.
Not used to being alone
Sooner or later you’ll get to the point where you have to leave your dog alone for better or for worse. However, if he has not learned to stay alone as a puppy, he will also howl as an adult dog as soon as his master or mistress is not there. Get your dog used to it in good time and start with 10-minute intervals that you slowly increase. By the way: You should know this if you want to leave your dog alone.
All in all, one can say that good dog training requires clear rules and consistent action. You probably make most mistakes unconsciously. But as long as you stick to this discipline, you should quickly succeed in having a well-behaved four-legged friend at your side.