Congratulations! You and your dog are beginning a wondrous, incredible journey. If you have come here, it's probably because you want your dog to become a better community member, a better-behaved family member. I want to help you on this journey.
Each lesson is designed to last for at least one week. Training sessions are at least 30 minutes in length. As we go along, your lesson times will get longer. Most people schedule training sessions with their dogs either first thing in the morning or in the evenings. Not only are these times usually the least busy, they are also the coolest temperature-wise if you are training during the summer months. Training should be daily. This is important. You cannot skip a couple of days, then try to 'make up' for it by having an hour-long session; it just doesn't work. Trust me on this.
If the weather is bad, you can work on most of the exercises within your home. However, a little rain or snow never hurt anyone. That's not saying that I want you to train in a lightning storm or a blizzard! What I am saying is this: You don't stay home from work or school when it is sprinkling; it shouldn't stop you from training, either.
One caveat: When you get angry or frustrated, stop training for the day. Whatever you feel transmits right down the leash to your dog. If you are happy and enthusiastic about training sessions, your dog will be, too. Anger and frustration often lead to abuse, and that is not what training is about. You need to keep your energy level up as you train. If you feel yourself starting to get frustrated, take a break. Go do something else for awhile. You can come back to it later, even the following day.
As you and your dog learn each exercise, find creative ways to incorporate it into your daily lives. For example: After you learn the sit stay, have your dog sit and stay outside the dining room during meals. Include your family, teaching them the commands so they can use them, too, and reinforce your dog's lessons.
That being said, let me add one more thing: One dog = one trainer. One person (you) is the main dog trainer. That one person works through the lessons with the dog. Too many trainers are confusing for your dog. Reinforcement is okay, actual training by multiple people is not.
Any questions? Please comment and I will try to answer them.
About Me
- Kerri
- I have been a dog obedience trainer since early childhood. I began training other dog trainers in 1979, primarily teaching youth. Although I received many accolades with the dogs I trained, I am even prouder of the many dog trainers I have taught, their accomplishments, and the way they have passed their learning on to even more dog obedience trainers, continuing the love and learning through working with dogs.
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