7 Best Dog Training Techniques That You Must Know
You can explore numerous options for the best results regarding dog training techniques. However, most of them are not worth your time because they are too complicated to master. Therefore, it is essential to understand the basic commands you plan to teach your dog. This will enable you to prepare her with confidence.
Are you wondering what the best dog training techniques are? Do you know that trying to search for them can take countless days or even weeks? Never bother about such again because Topteny magazine in this post will help you out today. Its primary aim is to reveal some of the best methods you can adopt to train your dog. These are tried and tested techniques that can bring about guaranteed results.
1 The Positive Reinforcement Technique
When it comes to dog training, this is a powerful technique that you can use. By positive reinforcement, we mean rewarding your dog for behaving as expected. Studies have shown that most dog owners prefer punishing their dogs for bad behavior. However, they usually ignore their good behavior. The latter practice is much better since it helps your dog be well-behaved.
Anytime such dog positively responds to your commands, ensure she is rewarded. This technique offers one significant benefit to enabling you to build a powerful bond with your dog. It is also very effective in avoiding increased aggression and anxiety in dogs.
There are different ways your dog can be rewarded. It doesn’t necessarily mean you need to be giving it a treat all the time. For instance, rewards could be in the form of toys, praise, or whatever your dog always finds interesting.
2 Scientific Training
Seeing this one, you must wonder what science has to do with training a dog. This form of training technique depends on information to be effective. The goal is to understand the nature of your dog, the extent to which rewards and punishment can be effective, and how she can be conditioned. Scientific training is almost similar to the technique explained above. The significant difference is that it talks about strengthening behaviors considered “good” without using rewards.
Even when rewards are used for good behavior, such can be withdrawn once the dog misbehaves. In the above positive reinforcement method explained, negative behavior is ignored. This means your pup can still keep the reward even after putting up an unacceptable behavior. Again, it is different from scientific training.
3 Using Your Hand
You will often get frustrated that your dog can’t understand simple instructions. You don’t understand that dogs are great at learning commands in the perfect scenarios. You haven’t done it the right way. So if you want them to get your message, a little help might do the magic. So, if you want her to lie down, use a sweeping motion consistently while holding a treat on your other hand.
Sometimes, your dog can do what you ask without wasting time. At such a point, it is recommended to reward her. Also, ensure the command is repeated over and over. With this, she will master such training techniques. The bottom line is that you need to use your hand in demonstrating whatever command you are giving your pup. This is one of the most influential dogs training techniques.
4 Short Training Sessions
Many people believe in long training sessions. The truth is that this doesn’t have much impact, like having to train in short sessions. The second option is more effective because it teaches the basics. Longer training sessions can cause distractions.
Dogs aren’t humans; thus, they won’t generalize commands to various situations or locations. Instead, the training sessions have to be done repeatedly in multiple locations. This benefit is that your dog will respond as expected to the same command at different places and times. You have succeeded in making her master such order through repetition.
5 Electronic Training
This training technique may not be common amongst dog owners, but it can help do the job perfectly. It involves putting an electric collar on your pup. It tends to deliver a shock once the dog fails to perform a task. This should only be used once a leash isn’t available.
If you want your dog to always stay in a particular territory, shock collars can be used. The good part is that your dog isn’t going to get hurt. The only problem with this training technique is that it emphasizes punishing your dog whenever it misbehaves. It can also make your dog vulnerable to anxiety problems. Therefore, it shouldn’t be used too often.
6 The Screaming Technique
This is useful when you want your dog to stop mouthing. It is one of those dog training techniques that are simple to implement yet extremely powerful once used the right way. To do this, allow your dog to bite your hands while playing with him. Once such has been done, scream as if it hurts.
Ensure to scream in a way that your dog is startled. With this, it will stop mouthing you for some time. Many dogs you see today that don’t bite have been trained using this technique.
7 Relationship-Based Training
This is one of those training techniques that focuses on creating a strong bond between dogs and their owners. It is all about helping to develop a healthy relationship between both parties. This is a method that can benefit both the dog and its owner. To use this technique effectively, you need to understand what motivates your dog.
Before beginning every training session, you must meet their basic needs. This is to ensure that unwanted behaviors are controlled. For example, instead of punishing a dog for misbehaving, you need to find out why. It is a training technique that requires patience.
Final Thoughts
Having seen the above, it is evident that different dog training techniques improve your pup’s behavior. However, the methods explained here can help to ensure your dog is trained correctly.