| :: Puppy Training Tips :: |
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:: Training Basics ::
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| A "RunAmok" puppy! |
PUPPY TRAINING 1
OWNER TRAINING!
First we must train the new owner to handle a leash, change some of their vocabulary and their
bad habits. One owner habit, which is the curse for all dogs, is called “laziness”.
We will start with what you will “say” to your puppy. When puppy jumps up on you, say “off” not
“down”! If you say “down” he will forever be confused when you try to teach him the “down”
command. You will notice how hard this is to do! One simple word to change and you’re having a
hard time remembering! (Now this should help you to be more patient toward your puppy that
you are trying to teach all sorts of new information.)
USE EVERDAY SITUATIONS FOR MORE THAN JUST COMMANDS!
I see you sitting in front of the TV & every once in awhile your pup comes over to bug you for
attention. Will you do the right thing & cram a little knowledge in his head? You might reach
down & pat his head “great dog”, pull up his lips & say “teeth”, or rub his ear & say “ear” as you
poke a finger in. By the way you can clean your dog’s ears with a little alcohol, being careful not to
get it in his eyes. Pick up his feet massaging his toes & foot & say “foot.” If you do this the puppy
will be cooperative on his visit to the Vet, or for any health procedure you wish to perform.
Handle your puppy all over, rubbing his tummy & entire body.
When your puppy eagerly approaches you trying to jump up, bend over, say “sit” & place him in a
sit position & then praise. At training class you will ask your pup to sit or stand while people come
up & handle his feet, ears, and muzzle & stroke him down the back. We hope you will take a few
minutes every day to brush your dog. This is a great time to teach him to stand. Find a
comfortable place. Saying “Fido sit”, (please don’t call your dog “Fido”) place puppy in sitting
position & brush neck, shoulders, and legs. Now say “stand stay” put hand under, lift to standing
position. It doesn’t matter how many times he tries to sit. Each time say “stand” & return him to
stand. You might have to keep a hand under him at first & brush with the other.
The point is whenever you give a command he must respond. Never get angry at a pup. Training
is just simple repetition. Just keep remembering how long it took you to say “off” instead of
“down.” Don’t tell me you’re still messing up!
PROTECT YOUR PUPPY
A serious word of caution: Do you want a brave upstanding dog? Protect him while he is a
puppy. If he is bitten by older dogs, harassed by rambunctious kids & hurt he can become fearful.
You may be happy to bring the new pup home, however if you have a older dog it might not be
happy with the prospect of the new puppy who gets a lot of attention, eats his food & if given a
chance interrupts his naps & tries to play & chew on him when he just wants to sleep or be left
alone. While it is true the old dog must growl & protect his rights & space you must monitor the
pup so he is not badly hurt.
Please, like any parent be fair & train as the occasion arises. Be sure & make a fuss over the
resident dog. I talk to my dogs. I tell the older dog how great he is. This is “his” puppy! “Take
care of the puppy.” Over & over. Approach the older dog first. After all he is the “top” dog.
GROOMING TABLE
I wish every dog owner would buy or build a “grooming table”. A table arm is inexpensive & easy
to attach. If you are an animal lover you will use it for years of grooming and shots - for dogs &
cats.
I put my cats in a harness to groom, as they will bale off the table when my back is turned! Some
dogs try this also; usually a dog will only do this once. Never leave a puppy or dog unattended on
the table. Every time you lift a puppy on the table (or say the tailgate of your truck) to groom
say “Table.”
Most dogs learn to love grooming if you make it fun. Don’t put the puppy on the table for the first
time & give him a shot or trim his nails & nick him - He will not think the table is so great. At first
just brush, scratch, praise, treats. Lots of fun! If I go outside with a brush to where my table is
located I have three huge German Shepherd dogs leaping on the table! If they hear a chain rattle,
its “push & shove” to be first in line! Once you have your puppy “table trained” you can go to the
Vet's & he won’t be a crouching mess of fear on the table.
CRATE TRAINING
Crates are great! They provide a safe haven for your dog to curl up & sleep in peace & quiet like a
den. Please purchase a crate large enough to accommodate your dog when grown. Train your
puppy to love his crate by giving him a treat with the command to “Crate”or “kennel.” Only
leave him in a few minutes at first, gradually increasing his time in the crate.
A crate teaches your puppy to control his bladder, to rest, to sleep through the night wherever
you wish him to be. Some folks make the mistake of keeping the dog or puppy with them all the
time. The animal becomes so dependent that whenever they go to town the pup tears up the
house etc. By crate training the pup learns to be calm & behave without you. When you are sick &
tired of his chewing put him in the crate with a bone. It’s a boon when traveling, in motels or
visiting friends.
Before leash or command training put him in his crate for 1 hour. He will be fresh to train & look
at the leash & you as a welcome change of pace. A word of warning; never abuse the crate by
leaving him in for hours during the day.
CHILDREN
If men are from Mars & woman from Venus to your unsocialized puppy, kids are from the
“Planet of the Apes”! If your puppy is not around children, his first encounter can be
detrimental. I suggest you borrow a kid or two. I pay my small neighbor to come down & play
with my puppies.
Your puppy is used to seeing adult behavior plus your large size. Kids are small. They wiggle &
jump around like apes & make fast funny little runs, plus weird noises! I have seen grown dogs
when raised with only adults have a fear attack when put in a room with small kids. They can be
dangerous. (The dog not the kid)
Take your puppy to the playground. Let kids handle him. Leave your pup with a family. Of
course you want well-behaved children who have been trained not to tease animals. In my years
of raising puppies I have encountered some very unruly children who should not even be allowed
around a dog. Almost 100% of the time when I hear of a dog biting a kid I can almost bet you the
dog was not properly socialized.
Did you know that the highest percentage of children bitten is boys? Do not leave your puppy
alone with rambunctious boys. Many times they hurt the puppy with wild play. Some children
have not been taught to treat animals with kindness & can be cruel to a dog. Your dog will not
forget. For that matter the same thing applies to adults. You cannot raise a large breed dog
isolated in the back yard & expect him to respond well to any strangers. Most large breed dogs
will protect you if the occasion arises, however they should gladly accept your friends & children if
you have done your homework.
YOU CAN TEACH AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS!
Whoever coined the phrase “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” just didn’t want to learn
much! All of this will work on any old dog, including us. I talk to older folks who won’t train
because they “can’t learn & their dog is too old.” Yeah, right.
LOUD NOISES - GUNS
At feeding time start by gently banging two pans together. Easy does it! You do not want to scare
the pup, just get him used to sharp noises. As he becomes accustomed to the sound do it louder.
Pretty soon you can make really loud noises & he will be okay.
When training bird dogs I would bring out my shotgun & lay it on the floor during retrieving
lessons in the house. They could see & smell it & associate it with retrieving a bumper. When he is
used to really loud sounds, you can drive out to the shooting range & let him hear the guns. We
used to even trailer our horses out to the range & let them listen. We started quite a ways off &
slowly parked closer. We didn’t want to hunt on a horse unaccustomed to guns. You can see a lot
of country fast that way!
RETRIEVAL OR "FETCH"
By the way, a hall is a great place to train a young dog to retrieve or fetch. They cannot run by
you & tease you with the ball. I would throw the bumper down the hall & say “fetch” when he
went out & picked it up I would encourage him to bring it. When he got close I reached out & gave
him the “sit “ command then held the object in his mouth for a couple seconds then said, “drop” &
took it out of his mouth. The trick is to make this a game. Lots of praise! This is supposed to be
fun! Make it fun for your puppy by clapping your hands encouraging him to come. Happy voice!
Don’t stand around like “Charlie Chaplin” in mourning. Only do it a few times & then put the ball
or bumper up. Always end well. This helps your dog’s confidence.
You never want to just throw a ball over & over again as this sometimes makes a dog crazy to
chase anything. Pups played with this way out in a yard can also run by you & tease you by
keeping the ball. By teaching a perfect retrieve it’s still fun but also good training. Of course, after
he has a good steady retrieve then you can have hours of fun outside. Never allow anyone to
throw sticks or rocks for your dog.
WHISTLE; "COME"
I also train my dogs to come to a whistle. It’s easy; just pick how many “toots” you want. Two
short one long or whatever. After saying come, whistle. If you lose your dog it helps in calling
him in. Again, it really helps to crate your dog for an hour before training & an hour after
training.
TRICKS
It’s great to teach your puppy tricks. Some can really be a lifesaver. For instance you can teach
your dog to speak. Only use another word or sound. My son taught his dog to bark when he
makes a low hissing sound. If someone is a threat you can encourage your dog to bark on
command. To most people a barking dog is a threat to be avoided.
Puppies will learn to do a lot of things for a treat they really love. Most dogs well get real excited
over liver. Some people boil or fry it cut in small pieces & let it dry out by placing it on paper on
the drainboard. Salt lightly. Or you can dry left over beef. Hotdogs cut up in small pieces or
“Pounce” cat treats are great for dogs. Reward good behavior. Carry treats around in your
pocket & hand out every time your puppy comes. If you want clean pockets place treats in a
baggie.
VOCABULARY
Figure out what you want to say to your dog in basic situations. When friends come to visit you
want him to be friendly.” Be nice”—“okay” ----“friend” Someone comes you don’t trust.”Watch”
----“on guard”------“alert!” When you want him to stop whatever he’s doing (trying to chase,
something, destructive behavior, or just being naughty)” Stop”---“no”----“leave it!” When you
take your dog out to relieve himself, as he does, say:” Go potty,” then lots of praise. This is really
handy when traveling. When you’re through training; “ Done”----. Be consistent in talking to
your dog. Pick words that are easy for you to remember. Use each word in a consistent manner.
Many folks like to learn all the commands in German. I have enough trouble with English &
limited time.
"COME!"
Most abused word used by new puppy owners! Sometimes I almost wish I could tape owners
mouths shut. Every time you say come, & the puppy runs the other way you are teaching him
something. What might that be? "Come" means to ignore you? "Come" means to tease you?
"Come" means that a fun game of chase will now begin?
Puppy doesn’t know what in heck you mean! I suggest you don’t use the “come” word unless you
can enforce the command. Don’t do “come” until the puppy is broke to lead & you can pull him in.
Or you can use “come” when the puppy is coming to you & you say the word, make a big fuss &
give him a treat. Or you might hold out the treat so he can smell it, say "come", back up a ways,
and give him the treat & praise.
I like to carry treats when I am outside working. Every once in a while I yell come or whistle &
my three German Shepherds come running & set in front of me waiting for their treat. Spend
some time thinking how you can train a perfect “come”. I like to put a dog on a long line (this can
be a nice 10 to 20 ft. lead or light line) let him wander around smelling & enjoying himself &
spring the “come” then pull him in. Lots of praise! The point is to give the command once & HELP
him to execute a PERFECT come every time.
TO TREAT OR NOT TO TREAT?
"Treats" are a controversial training method. Here is my idea. Would you like to work all the time
for nothing? Oh, you are? Poor baby. We all feel like that sometimes. You’re not spoiled when you
get served apple pie. Me neither. Puppies need a happy attitude & look forward to rewards.
Praise is great. My dogs work for both. I spring treats on them when I can & love & praise them
always. They work for me either way. They can’t wait to go on lead to train.
IS YOUR DOG "CHALLENGED", OR JUST OUTSMARTING YOU?
How smart is your dog? Is his hearing good? Have you ever been in a waiting room with a mom &
her kids who keeps repeating “stop that”, “come here”, and “don’t run” over & over until you
wish YOU could deploy a switch? As a matter of fact she is treating them like they are stupid or
deaf or both. Well the fact is they have outsmarted dear old mom & obtained more “goof” time.
After your puppy hears & understands "come", "sit", "heel" it is time to observe him as a
intelligent dog that heard you the first time! Say his name, the command ONCE & expect him to
comply. Sit in a chair & rehearse this over & over again. Name, command, and comply! Etc. You
don’t want anyone to think your dog is poorly trained. Some of your best learning time is spent in
a chair thinking about what you will do. Some dedicated folks go so far as to pull all the blinds,
attach their choke chain & lead to a pillow & drag the obedient pillow around the room issuing
orders in the proper way. Go ahead practice, I won’t tell.
PRIOR & PROPER PREPARATION
Some young dogs have super high energy levels & need to be exercised until they "come", “down”
& listen. I have seen some owners wrestle a big hyper dog during training sessions & not learn
much of anything. When starting out with an overactive dog it is better to run off some excess
energy to begin with. After he learns some basic commands, you can convince him he must work
any time, all the time you ask. Others are lazy, slow or dogs who have played too hard & need to
be crated to rest awhile before training. This is something the owner must recognize & prepare
for so the dog performs well.
Strive to keep a loose lead while training. It takes time to learn to “check” your dog until he
learns the heel position. Some trainers hold a treat in their left hand in a fist so the dog follows &
learns the position you want him in by your left side. This helps with puppies. Each method will
produce results if used consistently. One thing for sure, you can choose the method you are
comfortable with according to the age of your dog. It’s too bad we cannot watch different methods
before we sign up for a class.
I LOVE TO QUOTE PAT!
Pat Parelli says, “Prior And Proper Preparation Prevent a P Poor Performance!”
Please take your puppy to a “puppy training class” so he can learn and be socialized. Watch
videos and read books. Every dog has a unique personality and responds to different training
methods. Learn to think in a new dimension. I highly recommend “Kinship with All Life” by J.
Allen Boone.
PREPARE
We carry a “dog bag.” It contains brush, comb, and scissors. Chain lead, treats, toy ball, wet
washrag & baggies to pick up scats in public parks; must I explain how this is done? You simply
place your hand in the baggy, bend over & grasp the scat in your baggie covered hand, pull hand
with scat inside out, stand erect & carefully pull out your hand & secure the baggy. Good. You
have now entered the world of responsible dog owners! Bring along whatever you feel your dog
might need according to his age & length of the stay. Of course a dish for food and drinking water.
I include a gallon milk jug of frozen water.
LEASH
If you are in a park and need to tie your young dog to a tree for a bit always carry a “chain
leash”. A young dog will sometimes chew through a leather or web material to join you. This is a
very bad habit & can cost you a lot of money replacing leads. It’s a good idea to tie your pup up
and just set out of reach until he learns to stay there and behave. Be prepared as some puppies
will cry, roll around, get tangled up & try to convince you they are dying. You may have to
untangle him a few times before he learns to accept his limits. Do so in a calm manner, after all
this is his problem. I also carry a screw in metal ground stake.
PRAISE
I cannot stress enough the power of praise. Forget what people think! Talk to your dog & when
he does anything right, praise lavishly. Make a big fuss! Tell your dog how "great he is!"; how
"lucky you are to have him!" "He is the best dog in the country!" You will notice a big difference
in his attitude. He will always be happy to work for you.
Kathleen J. Larsen
The result of copying any or all of this well result in a better trained dog.
OWNER TRAINING!
First we must train the new owner to handle a leash, change some of their vocabulary and their
bad habits. One owner habit, which is the curse for all dogs, is called “laziness”.
We will start with what you will “say” to your puppy. When puppy jumps up on you, say “off” not
“down”! If you say “down” he will forever be confused when you try to teach him the “down”
command. You will notice how hard this is to do! One simple word to change and you’re having a
hard time remembering! (Now this should help you to be more patient toward your puppy that
you are trying to teach all sorts of new information.)
USE EVERDAY SITUATIONS FOR MORE THAN JUST COMMANDS!
I see you sitting in front of the TV & every once in awhile your pup comes over to bug you for
attention. Will you do the right thing & cram a little knowledge in his head? You might reach
down & pat his head “great dog”, pull up his lips & say “teeth”, or rub his ear & say “ear” as you
poke a finger in. By the way you can clean your dog’s ears with a little alcohol, being careful not to
get it in his eyes. Pick up his feet massaging his toes & foot & say “foot.” If you do this the puppy
will be cooperative on his visit to the Vet, or for any health procedure you wish to perform.
Handle your puppy all over, rubbing his tummy & entire body.
When your puppy eagerly approaches you trying to jump up, bend over, say “sit” & place him in a
sit position & then praise. At training class you will ask your pup to sit or stand while people come
up & handle his feet, ears, and muzzle & stroke him down the back. We hope you will take a few
minutes every day to brush your dog. This is a great time to teach him to stand. Find a
comfortable place. Saying “Fido sit”, (please don’t call your dog “Fido”) place puppy in sitting
position & brush neck, shoulders, and legs. Now say “stand stay” put hand under, lift to standing
position. It doesn’t matter how many times he tries to sit. Each time say “stand” & return him to
stand. You might have to keep a hand under him at first & brush with the other.
The point is whenever you give a command he must respond. Never get angry at a pup. Training
is just simple repetition. Just keep remembering how long it took you to say “off” instead of
“down.” Don’t tell me you’re still messing up!
PROTECT YOUR PUPPY
A serious word of caution: Do you want a brave upstanding dog? Protect him while he is a
puppy. If he is bitten by older dogs, harassed by rambunctious kids & hurt he can become fearful.
You may be happy to bring the new pup home, however if you have a older dog it might not be
happy with the prospect of the new puppy who gets a lot of attention, eats his food & if given a
chance interrupts his naps & tries to play & chew on him when he just wants to sleep or be left
alone. While it is true the old dog must growl & protect his rights & space you must monitor the
pup so he is not badly hurt.
Please, like any parent be fair & train as the occasion arises. Be sure & make a fuss over the
resident dog. I talk to my dogs. I tell the older dog how great he is. This is “his” puppy! “Take
care of the puppy.” Over & over. Approach the older dog first. After all he is the “top” dog.
GROOMING TABLE
I wish every dog owner would buy or build a “grooming table”. A table arm is inexpensive & easy
to attach. If you are an animal lover you will use it for years of grooming and shots - for dogs &
cats.
I put my cats in a harness to groom, as they will bale off the table when my back is turned! Some
dogs try this also; usually a dog will only do this once. Never leave a puppy or dog unattended on
the table. Every time you lift a puppy on the table (or say the tailgate of your truck) to groom
say “Table.”
Most dogs learn to love grooming if you make it fun. Don’t put the puppy on the table for the first
time & give him a shot or trim his nails & nick him - He will not think the table is so great. At first
just brush, scratch, praise, treats. Lots of fun! If I go outside with a brush to where my table is
located I have three huge German Shepherd dogs leaping on the table! If they hear a chain rattle,
its “push & shove” to be first in line! Once you have your puppy “table trained” you can go to the
Vet's & he won’t be a crouching mess of fear on the table.
CRATE TRAINING
Crates are great! They provide a safe haven for your dog to curl up & sleep in peace & quiet like a
den. Please purchase a crate large enough to accommodate your dog when grown. Train your
puppy to love his crate by giving him a treat with the command to “Crate”or “kennel.” Only
leave him in a few minutes at first, gradually increasing his time in the crate.
A crate teaches your puppy to control his bladder, to rest, to sleep through the night wherever
you wish him to be. Some folks make the mistake of keeping the dog or puppy with them all the
time. The animal becomes so dependent that whenever they go to town the pup tears up the
house etc. By crate training the pup learns to be calm & behave without you. When you are sick &
tired of his chewing put him in the crate with a bone. It’s a boon when traveling, in motels or
visiting friends.
Before leash or command training put him in his crate for 1 hour. He will be fresh to train & look
at the leash & you as a welcome change of pace. A word of warning; never abuse the crate by
leaving him in for hours during the day.
CHILDREN
If men are from Mars & woman from Venus to your unsocialized puppy, kids are from the
“Planet of the Apes”! If your puppy is not around children, his first encounter can be
detrimental. I suggest you borrow a kid or two. I pay my small neighbor to come down & play
with my puppies.
Your puppy is used to seeing adult behavior plus your large size. Kids are small. They wiggle &
jump around like apes & make fast funny little runs, plus weird noises! I have seen grown dogs
when raised with only adults have a fear attack when put in a room with small kids. They can be
dangerous. (The dog not the kid)
Take your puppy to the playground. Let kids handle him. Leave your pup with a family. Of
course you want well-behaved children who have been trained not to tease animals. In my years
of raising puppies I have encountered some very unruly children who should not even be allowed
around a dog. Almost 100% of the time when I hear of a dog biting a kid I can almost bet you the
dog was not properly socialized.
Did you know that the highest percentage of children bitten is boys? Do not leave your puppy
alone with rambunctious boys. Many times they hurt the puppy with wild play. Some children
have not been taught to treat animals with kindness & can be cruel to a dog. Your dog will not
forget. For that matter the same thing applies to adults. You cannot raise a large breed dog
isolated in the back yard & expect him to respond well to any strangers. Most large breed dogs
will protect you if the occasion arises, however they should gladly accept your friends & children if
you have done your homework.
YOU CAN TEACH AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS!
Whoever coined the phrase “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” just didn’t want to learn
much! All of this will work on any old dog, including us. I talk to older folks who won’t train
because they “can’t learn & their dog is too old.” Yeah, right.
LOUD NOISES - GUNS
At feeding time start by gently banging two pans together. Easy does it! You do not want to scare
the pup, just get him used to sharp noises. As he becomes accustomed to the sound do it louder.
Pretty soon you can make really loud noises & he will be okay.
When training bird dogs I would bring out my shotgun & lay it on the floor during retrieving
lessons in the house. They could see & smell it & associate it with retrieving a bumper. When he is
used to really loud sounds, you can drive out to the shooting range & let him hear the guns. We
used to even trailer our horses out to the range & let them listen. We started quite a ways off &
slowly parked closer. We didn’t want to hunt on a horse unaccustomed to guns. You can see a lot
of country fast that way!
RETRIEVAL OR "FETCH"
By the way, a hall is a great place to train a young dog to retrieve or fetch. They cannot run by
you & tease you with the ball. I would throw the bumper down the hall & say “fetch” when he
went out & picked it up I would encourage him to bring it. When he got close I reached out & gave
him the “sit “ command then held the object in his mouth for a couple seconds then said, “drop” &
took it out of his mouth. The trick is to make this a game. Lots of praise! This is supposed to be
fun! Make it fun for your puppy by clapping your hands encouraging him to come. Happy voice!
Don’t stand around like “Charlie Chaplin” in mourning. Only do it a few times & then put the ball
or bumper up. Always end well. This helps your dog’s confidence.
You never want to just throw a ball over & over again as this sometimes makes a dog crazy to
chase anything. Pups played with this way out in a yard can also run by you & tease you by
keeping the ball. By teaching a perfect retrieve it’s still fun but also good training. Of course, after
he has a good steady retrieve then you can have hours of fun outside. Never allow anyone to
throw sticks or rocks for your dog.
WHISTLE; "COME"
I also train my dogs to come to a whistle. It’s easy; just pick how many “toots” you want. Two
short one long or whatever. After saying come, whistle. If you lose your dog it helps in calling
him in. Again, it really helps to crate your dog for an hour before training & an hour after
training.
TRICKS
It’s great to teach your puppy tricks. Some can really be a lifesaver. For instance you can teach
your dog to speak. Only use another word or sound. My son taught his dog to bark when he
makes a low hissing sound. If someone is a threat you can encourage your dog to bark on
command. To most people a barking dog is a threat to be avoided.
Puppies will learn to do a lot of things for a treat they really love. Most dogs well get real excited
over liver. Some people boil or fry it cut in small pieces & let it dry out by placing it on paper on
the drainboard. Salt lightly. Or you can dry left over beef. Hotdogs cut up in small pieces or
“Pounce” cat treats are great for dogs. Reward good behavior. Carry treats around in your
pocket & hand out every time your puppy comes. If you want clean pockets place treats in a
baggie.
VOCABULARY
Figure out what you want to say to your dog in basic situations. When friends come to visit you
want him to be friendly.” Be nice”—“okay” ----“friend” Someone comes you don’t trust.”Watch”
----“on guard”------“alert!” When you want him to stop whatever he’s doing (trying to chase,
something, destructive behavior, or just being naughty)” Stop”---“no”----“leave it!” When you
take your dog out to relieve himself, as he does, say:” Go potty,” then lots of praise. This is really
handy when traveling. When you’re through training; “ Done”----. Be consistent in talking to
your dog. Pick words that are easy for you to remember. Use each word in a consistent manner.
Many folks like to learn all the commands in German. I have enough trouble with English &
limited time.
"COME!"
Most abused word used by new puppy owners! Sometimes I almost wish I could tape owners
mouths shut. Every time you say come, & the puppy runs the other way you are teaching him
something. What might that be? "Come" means to ignore you? "Come" means to tease you?
"Come" means that a fun game of chase will now begin?
Puppy doesn’t know what in heck you mean! I suggest you don’t use the “come” word unless you
can enforce the command. Don’t do “come” until the puppy is broke to lead & you can pull him in.
Or you can use “come” when the puppy is coming to you & you say the word, make a big fuss &
give him a treat. Or you might hold out the treat so he can smell it, say "come", back up a ways,
and give him the treat & praise.
I like to carry treats when I am outside working. Every once in a while I yell come or whistle &
my three German Shepherds come running & set in front of me waiting for their treat. Spend
some time thinking how you can train a perfect “come”. I like to put a dog on a long line (this can
be a nice 10 to 20 ft. lead or light line) let him wander around smelling & enjoying himself &
spring the “come” then pull him in. Lots of praise! The point is to give the command once & HELP
him to execute a PERFECT come every time.
TO TREAT OR NOT TO TREAT?
"Treats" are a controversial training method. Here is my idea. Would you like to work all the time
for nothing? Oh, you are? Poor baby. We all feel like that sometimes. You’re not spoiled when you
get served apple pie. Me neither. Puppies need a happy attitude & look forward to rewards.
Praise is great. My dogs work for both. I spring treats on them when I can & love & praise them
always. They work for me either way. They can’t wait to go on lead to train.
IS YOUR DOG "CHALLENGED", OR JUST OUTSMARTING YOU?
How smart is your dog? Is his hearing good? Have you ever been in a waiting room with a mom &
her kids who keeps repeating “stop that”, “come here”, and “don’t run” over & over until you
wish YOU could deploy a switch? As a matter of fact she is treating them like they are stupid or
deaf or both. Well the fact is they have outsmarted dear old mom & obtained more “goof” time.
After your puppy hears & understands "come", "sit", "heel" it is time to observe him as a
intelligent dog that heard you the first time! Say his name, the command ONCE & expect him to
comply. Sit in a chair & rehearse this over & over again. Name, command, and comply! Etc. You
don’t want anyone to think your dog is poorly trained. Some of your best learning time is spent in
a chair thinking about what you will do. Some dedicated folks go so far as to pull all the blinds,
attach their choke chain & lead to a pillow & drag the obedient pillow around the room issuing
orders in the proper way. Go ahead practice, I won’t tell.
PRIOR & PROPER PREPARATION
Some young dogs have super high energy levels & need to be exercised until they "come", “down”
& listen. I have seen some owners wrestle a big hyper dog during training sessions & not learn
much of anything. When starting out with an overactive dog it is better to run off some excess
energy to begin with. After he learns some basic commands, you can convince him he must work
any time, all the time you ask. Others are lazy, slow or dogs who have played too hard & need to
be crated to rest awhile before training. This is something the owner must recognize & prepare
for so the dog performs well.
Strive to keep a loose lead while training. It takes time to learn to “check” your dog until he
learns the heel position. Some trainers hold a treat in their left hand in a fist so the dog follows &
learns the position you want him in by your left side. This helps with puppies. Each method will
produce results if used consistently. One thing for sure, you can choose the method you are
comfortable with according to the age of your dog. It’s too bad we cannot watch different methods
before we sign up for a class.
I LOVE TO QUOTE PAT!
Pat Parelli says, “Prior And Proper Preparation Prevent a P Poor Performance!”
Please take your puppy to a “puppy training class” so he can learn and be socialized. Watch
videos and read books. Every dog has a unique personality and responds to different training
methods. Learn to think in a new dimension. I highly recommend “Kinship with All Life” by J.
Allen Boone.
PREPARE
We carry a “dog bag.” It contains brush, comb, and scissors. Chain lead, treats, toy ball, wet
washrag & baggies to pick up scats in public parks; must I explain how this is done? You simply
place your hand in the baggy, bend over & grasp the scat in your baggie covered hand, pull hand
with scat inside out, stand erect & carefully pull out your hand & secure the baggy. Good. You
have now entered the world of responsible dog owners! Bring along whatever you feel your dog
might need according to his age & length of the stay. Of course a dish for food and drinking water.
I include a gallon milk jug of frozen water.
LEASH
If you are in a park and need to tie your young dog to a tree for a bit always carry a “chain
leash”. A young dog will sometimes chew through a leather or web material to join you. This is a
very bad habit & can cost you a lot of money replacing leads. It’s a good idea to tie your pup up
and just set out of reach until he learns to stay there and behave. Be prepared as some puppies
will cry, roll around, get tangled up & try to convince you they are dying. You may have to
untangle him a few times before he learns to accept his limits. Do so in a calm manner, after all
this is his problem. I also carry a screw in metal ground stake.
PRAISE
I cannot stress enough the power of praise. Forget what people think! Talk to your dog & when
he does anything right, praise lavishly. Make a big fuss! Tell your dog how "great he is!"; how
"lucky you are to have him!" "He is the best dog in the country!" You will notice a big difference
in his attitude. He will always be happy to work for you.
Kathleen J. Larsen
The result of copying any or all of this well result in a better trained dog.
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