| By Fran Black
Play training remains important part of
dog obedience right through the training and trialling
stages. Puppies are easily distracted and test the patience
of even the most patient souls. Trainers must remember
the time you spend training your puppy now will pay off
when you have an adult dog. The aim of dog obedience is
to give your puppy, adolecent and elderly dogs a better,
more enjoyable dog life.
To begin a puppy should become accustom
to wearing a collar. A simple buckle collar is fine for
this purpose. If your puppy is rolling around or trying
to scratch the collar off, don't take it off him until
they accept the collar.
For young puppies all you need is a light
weight, thin leash. Larger dogs can require a 1 inch wide
leash and smaller dogs a half inch wide leash. You can
upgrade to a fancy leather leash when your puppy is properly
leash trained if you like.
When the puppy is comfortable with the leash,
pick it up and let the pup lead you around. The good thing
about training a puppy to walk on a leash is that you
can prevent any problems before they eventuate. If your
puppy pulls on the leash immediately stop. Don't yank
him back over to you with the leash, just call him over
and praise him when he comes. For young puppies all you
need is a light weight, thin leash. The jerking is meant
to get the dog's attention, not to inflict harsh punishment.
They may pull on the leash and try to lead you.
If when given the command "come" a puppy
responds with the correct action and is not praised, he
quickly loses enthusiasm and interest. If you keep repeating
the command, the puppy will learn that several repetitions
are acceptable before he needs to obey.
A treat helps keep you get your dogs attention
and is a great way to reward an obedient puppy. Allow
the puppy to sniff the treat in your hand.
As you walk forward talk to the pup and
encourage him to stay with you. Take slow steps, so that
the puppy can keep up your pace, but don't go so slow
that the pup becomes bored. Praise him and give him the
treat. Don't use treats every single time, however; otherwise
you will find yourself with a dog that only obeys when
you have a treat in hand. Training does not have to involve
a 30-minute block of time. Short training sessions that
reinforce what your puppy have learned are best.
Praise your dog or give a treat, when he
sits, even if you had to help him at first. Slowly raise
the hand with the treat up and back over the pup's head
saying the word "sit". Your puppy will quickly associate
the word sit, the treat, and the action of sitting. Have
your dog in the sitting position and give the command
"heel" and start walking forward.
Incrementally develop your dog's obedience
skills by increasing distance, duration, and distraction.
Introduce your puppy to different people, dogs, children
and environments. If you vary the places you train your
puppy he will be more likely to learn to obey wherever
you are.
About the Author
Francesca Black works in marketing for Dog Pound http://www.dog-pound.net
and Horse Stall http://www.horse-stall.net
leading portals for pet management.
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