Whenever possible make time to study the principles of obedience training for dogs before you buy or at least before you get your new dog home.  It is always helpful to do this because then know what to expect and also what is expected of you so there are no surprises.  Also you can start to build a plan to get the best from your new friend.

Obedience training of your dog should be an enjoyable process and is always helpful if you can keep it simple.  It’s all about you building a relationship with your dog.

There are two aspects of this relationship building that you are aiming for…..

• First you need to let the dog know that you want to be their friend

• Second you need to let them know that they are your friend.

Keep in mind the fact that although your dog is a social animal, they are also a pack animal and in order to achieve your training goals you will need to put yourself in the position of the leader of the pack – this one aspect will ensure your training sessions are successful.

So where does it all begin?

First is important that you are aware that training your dog is not just a commitment for few weeks and then the whole job is done and sorted.  On the contrary effective dog training is a lifetime process and you need to be sure that you are prepared to make the necessary time available to get your dog trained properly.

Ongoing training throughout your dog’s life – not just as a puppy – may well be necessary in order to prevent some if your dog’s inherent traits – possibly undesirable traits – rising to the surface and undoing all you early work. So keep it up.

It is a well accepted fact that the training of your dog should be the responsibility of one person.  Certainly in the early years when the groundwork is being laid for the good behavior of your dog then the last thing you want to do is confuse them with different approaches and standards from different individuals.

Which brings us neatly on to the problem of confusion in the dog’s mind of what is right and wrong?  Often the biggest challenge to obedience training is ensuring that you don’t confuse your dog with regard to your commands and expectations. Your communication must be plain and consistent. Always use the same word or sound together with a command and your dog will ultimately respond to that sound.

It is slightly irrelevant the words or noises you use to achieve the result as your dog only relates to a sound linked to a command.  A good example is when you want your dog to walk beside you – the variations that you may come across are – here, heel, come by, by.  They will all have the same result you just decide on the words and sounds that you are comfortable with.

Remember that dogs have many characteristics in them – some which will endear them to you and some that will frustrate you. One minute they can destroy your house and the next they can snuggle up to you leg and show real understanding of how you are feeling.

Your role is to control the bad, unacceptable habits and work to control and develop the good and acceptable habits. The role is to modify your dog’s natural behaviors and make your dog into a socially accepted pet or a competent working dog.

Points to keep in mind when setting about training……..

You must be in the right frame of mind if not forget it.

If you have had a bad day at the office the last thing you want to do is take your dog out for a training session and then take your frustrations out on the dog because of what you see as its short comings.  When really the problem it is nothing to do with the dog.

If frustration creeps in then call an end to the session and make you way home – ensuring that you make friends with your dog before you arrive home.

Obviously you don’t want to reward your dog in the same way as you would if the session has gone well but at the same time you do not want to end on a totally sour note as that will mean that you are running a risk of difficulties next time out.

I fact if you can just relax yourself and get your dog to do something simple – that you know they are capable of – to end out the session that gives you the opportunity to make friends and genuinely make a fuss of them.

Just the same as it is with human beings it is always good to put you dog to bed each night on a high as they will then look forward to seeing you the next day and will only want to please.