Dog Obedience - the Difference Between Loving Your Dog or Wishing It Woud Run Away

Good question. There are so many different thoughts as to how to get your dog to obey. Some say give treats, some say don't. You can read lots of different books on dog training and you will find many different thoughts. What works?

Your dog is unique. Yes, their are traits that are common to the particular breed you own, but that doesn't mean you can read all the characteristics and know exactly how your dog will turn out in the long run.

As an example, many small dog traits show that smaller dogs have a "small do syndrome" and they tend to bark a lot and are on the aggressive side. Well, my neighbors have 2 Yorkies. One yaps all the time and the other is mild mannered and you seldom hear it barking. Kind of blows part of that theory.

The owner has a lot to do with how the dog turns out. If you train your puppy from day 1, you can raise him to be obedient and loyal. It's all in how you go about training him and how much patience you show.

As I mentioned, there is no one training method that fits all dogs. Before you get your puppy, read about how to train a dog. It will give you some insights and you will have a head start. Some dogs, probably most dogs, respond to rewards. My personal thoughts are I use rewards such as dog treats when teaching my dog new tricks, but when teaching him to obey, I use a different method. Mostly praise.

My thought is if I have to give a treat every time I tell him to stop barking, I will need a constant supply of treats with me. I want him to stop when I tell him to stop and I find that using praise works for me.

Dog obedience is important so be sure you have the patience to train your dog before you get one.

It is important to start training your dog to obey you immediately. Some of the things they do as a puppy might be cute then, but they will not be when they get older and, the longer the habit continues the harder it is to break it.

A puppy chewing your slippers is cute. Do not allow this! You need to let them know chewing anything other than their toys is unacceptable. Gently tell him no, remove the slipper or whatever, and immediately give him one of his dog toys.

A puppy jumping on your guests may be okay but it will not be okay later. This is one of the worst habits a dog develops and your guests will not appreciate it when your dog is bigger.

The idea is you need to catch bad dog behavior early and train your puppy beginning from the moment he becomes a part of your family.

A dog isn't born automatically loving it when you say "Good boy/girl." They have to be shown this is a good thing and it means you are happy with them. What form of praise does your dog like?

Well, some dogs like it when you say a praise and follow that with a pat on the head. Some dogs hate it when you pat them on the head. :-) Your dog will let you know. Many times rubbing it under the neck works best.

An important thing to remember is when you use a command and use praise as a reward, keep it consistent. For example, you want your dog to stop barking. I prefer not to use him name here. So tell him "Stop Barking." The moment he stops, use whatever praise you decide to go with. Immediately. "Stop Barking" followed by "Good boy" while rubbing his neck.

Are you getting the picture?

I am going to give you a lot of information on this as we go along, but here is something I can definitely recommend and I feel every dog owner should have a copy.

Find out how to house break your dog, potty train it, and more in one evening. A retired plumber and his wife learned the secret to training their out of control dog in a single evening and now they are passing that information on to you.