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Articles Dog Training The Best Way To Train Your Dog To Do Tricks
Articles Dog Training The Best Way To Train Your Dog To Do Tricks | The Best Way To Train Your Dog To Do Tricks |
| Written by Ira Nelson | ||||||||
| Wednesday, 11 November 2009 | ||||||||
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Dogs are amazing creatures in that they conform to their owner's desires in almost all cases. You would be amazed at the things a dog will do to please their owner, especially when there is some sort of treat involved when all is said and done. There are things that they do as a matter of course, and those are the things that you're going to want to use while you train them to do tricks. If you combine these methods with treats, then you'll find that it's a lot easier to do the training.
Dogs are amazing creatures in that they conform to their owner's desires in almost all cases. You would be amazed at the things a dog will do to please their owner, especially when there is some sort of treat involved when all is said and done. There are things that they do as a matter of course, and those are the things that you're going to want to use while you train them to do tricks. If you combine these methods with treats, then you'll find that it's a lot easier to do the training. Watch what your dog does for his own entertainment. Does he spring into the air pursuing butterflies? Does he like to drag his feet while crawling on his belly? If some kind of instinctive behavior can be cultivated into a clever trick, that will quicken the training process. Be at the ready to use a fitting hand motion and voice command when this behavior is shown and then follow with an immediate reward. For most dogs there are dietary requirements that you'll need to pay mind to, and bearing that in mind you shouldn't actually give your dog an excessive amount of treats. Treats are a great way to get started, but later on the hand signals and some praise will suffice. When you get everything down pat, you can decrease the amount of treats or stop giving them period. For the most part dogs learn very fast and they'll understand that a treat waits for them so long as they perform the trick when you give the command. Sometimes you might have to improvise, so for example after you teach them "down" you might from that position teach them "play dead", and you'll have to get the dog to associate the new command with the additional trick. After a bit of training you can use other commands such as "stay", "come", and even "sit" and add on tricks from those starting points. You can try using a favorite toy in the training, and you can do this pretty easily. Hold their toy close to their nose, and then command the dog to jump. The dog will jump, and though it won't understand at first, it will soon come to realize that "jump" means jump. There will come a time when you don't even require the toy to get the dog to jump, you can just use the verbal command and/or hand signal. You should take advantage of the dog's ability to smell, as well as his ability to smell better when he is close, as well as at long range. These abilities are actually quite amazing, and it can be used for different types of games including hide and seek. Hiding a favorite chew toy under a box is a great way to practice as he or she will find that toy right away. You can begin by hiding the toy close by and you can gradually move it farther so that it will be more difficult but doable. What about giving you five? That's a great trick for a dog, and it's actually pretty easy. Most dogs have a tendency to give you their paw immediately, and you can show them your hand or "paw", and then say 'high five' as they give you theirs. After a while this will become second nature to them, but at first you will need to reinforce this behavior using a treat. Sometimes you may find that the dog doesn't lift its pay when you want it to, in which case you'll have to resort to other measures. You'll have to physically lift their paw, but make sure you praise them and give them a treat. After a while they'll do it immediately without you lifting the paw as long as they know there is a treat for them. Once a trick has been learned it's not difficult to augment it. "Give me five" can without difficulty be expanded into "sit up" by slowly raising the paw so that the other one will naturally lift up. By then haging on to both feet so that the dog is in a "sit up" position, verbalizing the command and reinforcing with praise or a treat, he will, with repetition, connect the dots. There are many different things you can do to train a dog. Whether you do it for behavior control, house breaking, or just tricks, you'll find that this greatly strengthen the bond between you and your dog. This is a great way to become closer to your dog. About the Author: Learn how to select the correct Dog Bedding for your dog. Don't allow Puppy Potty Training become a time consuming or frustrating affair. This and other unique content '' articles are available with free reprint rights. Views: 73
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