Bay State Dog Training
Dog Training Secret
Dear Friend,
Last Sunday I did a demo for Dachshund Day at Partners Village Store in Westport, MA. Partners is a great little
store that was only half a mile away from my old house. If you are
ever down that way, stop in and see for yourself.
Anyway, I had a lot of fun doing the demo for
Dachshund Day and shared with them a very important dog training secret.
This secret will help out with all of your obedience commands. If
your dog does not come when called, you are probably not applying this
secret.
If your dog does not stay when you ask, this secret is
probably not being followed. If your dog does not sit, down, or
stand when you ask, you need to make sure this secret is happening
before you give the command.
Okay, what is the secret?
Simple...
ATTENTION!!!
Learning does not happen without attention.
When I was in school I got awful grades. Really,
I barely, and I mean barely, made it out of high school. I was put
in all kinds of extra special classes and had all kinds of tests done to
determine what my problem was. I was given the "Learning
Disability" label. Today if I was in school, I would be labeled as
"ADHD."
When I think about my school days I don't think I had
any kind of learning disability. I do know that I was bored out of my
mind and I paid very little attention. In high school I loved
history class and excelled with very little effort. I never
studied and always got A's and B's.
I hated science class and the only time I did well was in 8th
grade. I paid attention because my teacher, Mr. Wooldrige, was a phenomenal
teacher. He took a boring subject and made it interesting and fun.
All right, how does this apply to your dog?
Anytime you're teaching your dog a command, you need
to make it interesting and fun for him. Find out what his all time favorite treat
is and use it when you're teaching him to come when called.
If your dog loves to play tug-o-war, use it to improve
his obedience commands. When you make obedience interesting
and fun, your dog's performance will improve.
Here's a little exercise for you to do.
Grab some treats and go to a quiet place with your
dog. Say his name and hold the treat up by your face.
Wait until he looks in your eyes and then quickly give him the
treat.
Once he begins to do that on a consistent basis, start
to do it with his favorite toy. Hold the toy up by your face and
wait for him to make eye contact. Once he does, quickly reward him
by playing with him.
My rule of thumb with dog training is to always make
sure I have attention before I ask for the command. If my dog is
not paying attention, I figure out what I can do to get it.
Let me know if this tip helps you out.
All the best,
Eric R. Letendre
Bay State Dog Training
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