How to Keep Your Dog Motivated

>> 6/1/09

Keeping the attention of a dog during training is not always an easy task. Dogs are very easily distracted, and it is important to not allow the dog training sessions to be ruined by boredom. Making dog training fun for the dog and the human alike is essential to making a happy, well-balanced and well-trained dog.

You should provide random positive stimuli throughout the day in order to maintain the interest of your dog. Doing things the dog like, like walking in the park, riding in the car, and playing with other dogs, are good methods to keep the dog's attention, but you must give him rewards for his successes.

For instance, in order to reward the dog for coming to you when you call him, ask the dog to come to you, without giving any clues about a walk, a car ride, or other treats.

After the dog has come to you and obediently sat down, attach the lead and start the treat. This can be either the afore-mentioned walk in the park, ride in the car, or anything else the dog likes to do.

Providing some kind of reward, whether a treat, a special outing, or just a tickle behind the ears, every time the dog does something you want him to, is a great method to keep your dog's motivation while you are dog training.

If the dog knows something great is going to happen every time he follows your command, he will be motivated to please you every time.

Distraction training

When training a dog, it is vital to not let distractions spoil the training. The dog must be taught to ignore distractions, such as other people, other dogs, other animals and loud noises, and focus on what is being taught These types of distractions can even be used as rewards when training the dog to come when told.

For example, if your dog enjoys romping with other dogs, whether it be in the park or with the neighbour's dogs, let him play with those other dogs. Then go into the park or garden and call your dog.

When he comes to you, give him lots of praise, treats and other rewards, then immediately allow the dog to go back to playing with his friends. Repeat this several times and praise the dog each time he comes over to you.

The dog will soon realize that coming to your call results in good things (treats and praise) and not bad ones (being taken away from the park).

This so-called distraction training is one of the most difficult things for your dog to learn, because dogs are social animals by nature, and leaving the pack is one of the hardest things you can ask your dog to do. Most dogs will be understandably unwilling to leave their doggy companions, but it is important to persist in dog training.

Training the dog to come to you when you call may take some thought on your behalf at first. For instance, waving one of his favourite toys, or a lure, is a good way to get your dog's attention and put the focus back on you. If your dog has been clicker trained, a quick click can be a good motivator too in dog training.

Once the dog begins to get the hang of coming when called, you can start to reduce and eliminate the visual cues and focus on getting the dog to obey your voice alone. It is important that the dog obeys voice commands alone, since you will not always have the availability of a toy or other lure.

Does your dog need training? If you need more details on dog training, then visit our web site entitled Successful Dog Training You can get a unique content version of this article from the Uber Article Directory.

How to Keep Your Dog Motivated by Owen Jones

Technorati Tags:

0 comments:

Friends

Blog Syndication

Followers

  © Blogger templates Palm by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP