Set Up a Regular Schedule
Setting up a consistent daily routine and schedule is crucial for dogs. Dogs thrive on regularity and having a predictable schedule helps reduce stress by providing stability and a sense of control (AKC). Routines ensure dogs eat on a set schedule that supports healthy digestion and metabolism (Bond Vet). A predictable routine also aids in potty training puppies.
To create a schedule for your dog, make a calendar noting regular times for important activities like feeding, walking, training and playtime. Try to maintain consistency with the schedule daily, especially for feeding, exercising and potty breaks. Dogs do best when major events happen at the same time each day. Allow some flexibility if needed, but aim to keep a regular routine as much as possible.
Having a routine provides stability for dogs and helps reinforce training. Follow the schedule yourself to set a good example. With consistency and patience, your dog will get used to their new routine.
Use Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement is one of the most effective methods for dog training. The idea is to reward your dog when they exhibit the behavior you want to reinforce. This teaches the dog that the behavior will result in something pleasant happening. Some examples of positive reinforcements include:
– Giving your dog a treat when they follow a command like “sit” or “come.” The treat acts as a reward for performing the desired behavior. According to one study, using food as a reward is very effective for training dogs.
– Verbally praising your dog and giving them affection when they successfully respond to a cue. Saying “good dog!” and petting them reinforces the behavior.
– Playing with a toy after your dog completes a trick or skill you asked them to perform. The play time serves as the positive reinforcer.
In addition to rewarding good behavior, it’s also important to ignore unacceptable behavior as much as possible. Responding to bad behavior can inadvertently reinforce it. Redirect your dog’s attention instead. With positive reinforcement training, you get the results you want by focusing on and encouraging desired behaviors.
Keep Training Sessions Short
Puppies and young dogs have short attention spans, so it’s important to keep training sessions brief. According to the American Kennel Club, “Five minutes per session is more than enough. Anything longer, and you risk having your dog become bored or frustrated.” Delaware K9 Academy also recommends keeping sessions under 15 minutes, noting that “While training sessions are good times to get chores done and spend time together, they should be short enough that you keep your dog’s attention.”
With puppies especially, it’s better to have multiple short sessions throughout the day rather than one long session. Frequent, brief training times work better with their limited attention spans. Always end sessions on a positive note, with lots of praise and rewards for good behavior. Stopping before your pup gets tired or loses focus will help keep them engaged and enthusiastic about learning.
Practice Key Commands
There are five essential commands every dog should learn: sit, stay, come, down, and leave it. Focus on teaching each of these commands separately at first. Start with simpler versions of the commands and minimal distractions, then slowly increase the difficulty and proof the behaviors in different scenarios.
For “sit,” hold a treat above your dog’s nose and move it backwards behind their head so they sit down. Praise and reward. Gradually expect longer sits before treating. Practice with hand signals and different verbal cues like “bottom” or “park.” Work up to Sit-Stays.
For “stay,” start by asking your dog to sit, say “stay,” take a step away, then return and reward. Slowly increase distance and duration. Vary location. Test with longer stays when you walk away or briefly leave the room.
For “come,” call your dog’s name happily, encourage them to run over, praise and treat. Increase distance over time. Practice coming when called from other dogs or toys. Never call angrily.
For “down,” show the treat by your dog’s nose, slowly move to the floor and forward between their paws to prompt lying down. Reward the down. Ask for longer downs before treating. Add hand signal.
For “leave it,” toss a treat on the floor and block your dog from getting it with your hand. When they stop trying for it, praise and reward. Increase difficulty with higher value items. Practice with items already in your dog’s possession.
Be Consistent with Commands
Being consistent with the verbal commands you use is crucial when training a dog. Everyone in the family should use the exact same words for cues like “sit,” “stay,” “down,” etc. According to The American Kennel Club, “If one person says ‘sit’ and another says ‘siddown!’ it will take a long time, if it ever happens, for your dog to figure out what you want.” Only reward your dog when he fully performs the command. Being patient and persistent will pay off in the end.
Use a Clicker for Marking
Using a clicker is an effective way to mark and reinforce desired behaviors during training. As soon as your dog performs the behavior you want, click the clicker. This marks the exact moment of the desired behavior and signals to your dog that their action has earned a reward [1]. The click sound is more precise for marking behaviors than verbal praise alone.
The clicker bridges the time between the behavior and the reward, so your dog learns which actions lead to treats and praise. Always follow a click with a reward like food, toys or affection. This builds the association that click = reward. With repeated training, the click itself becomes reinforcing.
Clicker training allows you to precisely capture wanted behaviors as they occur, resulting in faster learning. The clicker’s clean, consistent sound aids communication between you and your dog during training.
Manage the Environment
When you’re first starting training, it’s important to remove as many distractions from the environment as possible so your dog can focus on the commands and tasks. As the AKC advises, “Start training your dog in a quiet room in your house with no distractions. Once your dog is responding reliably to cues in that environment, take him outside and do short training sessions with no distractions. Slowly increase distractions as your dog is successful at each level.”
It’s crucial not to overwhelm your dog. Keep your training sessions under the “threshold” where your dog can still listen and respond to you, even if there are some distractions around. Go slowly with adding difficulty and do not progress until your dog reliably responds to cues in the current environment. The key is small, gradual steps working up to more challenging situations. As the clicker training resource explains, “Stay within the limits of your dog’s capabilities. If your dog cannot succeed, you’ve gone too far too fast.”
By managing the training environment carefully, you can set your dog up for success in learning to follow commands despite distractions. Remove triggers at first, then slowly add them back in at a manageable level. With patience and practice, your dog will generalize the commands to more distracting real-world situations.
Practice Every Day
Training a dog is an ongoing process, and small goals should be set for each training session.
Frequent short sessions are the most effective for canine learning. A study from the American Kennel Club found dogs trained once a week learned new commands in 6.7 sessions on average, while dogs trained every day required more sessions to learn the same commands.
Train for just 5-15 minutes at a time, a few times throughout the day if possible. Repeating short sessions allows your dog to solidify behaviors over time. Training every day also helps reinforce the relationship between owner and dog through positive interactions.
Be patient as you gradually shape behaviors. Set small, achievable goals for each session while working towards the complete behavior. With daily practice, dogs can master even complex commands over time.
Be Patient
Training takes time, consistency and patience. Some dogs will learn faster than others when it comes to commands and desired behaviors. It’s important to manage expectations and not get frustrated if your dog is struggling with a concept. Celebrate the small successes along the way to keep things positive and avoid burnout for both you and your dog.
According to Rover, while a professional dog trainer may be able to teach basic commands within a couple weeks, it takes regular practice and reinforcement at home to truly solidify these behaviors. Have realistic expectations for the training timeline based on your dog’s age, breed traits, and unique personality.
The key is staying consistent with training and making it a daily habit, even if just for short 5-10 minute sessions. Don’t get discouraged by setbacks. With perseverance and positive reinforcement, you will see results over time. Celebrate when your dog masters a new trick or behavior – it keeps training rewarding and fun for both of you.
Make It Fun!
Training should be an enjoyable experience for both you and your dog. Incorporating play and variety into training sessions keeps things interesting and prevents boredom. Try using toys, treats, or games as rewards to motivate your dog during training. Varying the types of tricks and commands also helps keep your dog engaged. It’s important to end each session on a positive note, such as with verbal praise or a special treat. Remember that training is a bonding experience, so keep the mood upbeat, incorporate fun surprises, and your dog will look forward to these sessions.
As the American Kennel Club notes, “Owners enjoy teaching tricks to their dogs. Dogs enjoy learning tricks and earning reinforcers during training. These positive experiences build a stronger bond between handler and dog.”1 Keeping training fun makes dogs more eager to learn and strengthens your relationship.