Four Legged Scholars LLC, Dog Training – Kent and Surrounding Areas
Are you struggling with a dog that only listens to you when he wants? Do you feel like your dog is blowing you off sometimes? You are not alone and we can help you.
We have helped many dog owners with their dog training. Kent families will benefit from learning this huge training secret.
The above issue is not uncommon and many dogs have problems listening to their owners all of the time. However, it is important to have a dog that is reliable in responding to you so that you can feel peace of mind in your family. I am going to help you create that.
First, your dog will listen best in an undistracted area when he learning something new. This environment is usually inside your home at a super boring time of day.
Your dog can more easily focus on learning something new when he doesn’t have other things around him that are pulling his attention away from you.
Here is another part of the huge secret that will help you with your dog training. Kent owners will want to memorize this.
It is important to prompt your dog to perform the behavior you are wanting rather than just relying on your verbal cue. If the verbal cue was working then your dog would be listening to you more often.
A lure is a great way to prompt your dog. This means that you have food in your hand. Your dog will want to follow your hand like a magnet if he wants the food. You can then guide your dog in position for sit, down, come, etc.
Once your dog readily follows the lure say the verbal cue right before your dog perform the behavior. Practice this again in a boring location in your home. Do this over a period of days until your dog appears to associate the verbal cue with the behavior.
Think of learning a new language. You will learn the meaning of a new word best when it is associated with the meaning the word.
If the new word is constantly repeated and not associated with its meaning, then you will get confused. Your dog is no different.
As a result, say the verbal cue right before your dog performs this new behavior so the meaning of this word is clear.
Now the trick is understanding that your dog only knows how to respond to this verbal cue when he is NOT distracted. When he is distracted, you will need to go back to prompting your dog with the lure.
Use the lure when your dog is distracted. Once your dog readily follows the lure and performs the behavior you want to add the verbal cue right before your dog performs the behavior you want.
Repeat this multiple times while your dog is distracted until your dog appears to be able to perform the behavior with just your verbal cue.
It is best to start with easy distractions and do the same distraction over and over until your dog can respond to the verbal cue with that particular distraction.
Once this happens then you can change to another distraction that is also easy. You will probably find that it is best to use distractions in your home during dog training. Kent owners need to remember that it is very distracting in the outdoor environment and harder for their dogs to learn.
Once you have mastered multiple easy distractions move to harder distractions. Remember to avoid repeating the command and use the lure to get your dog to respond until he is ready to do the behavior without the lure and just the verbal cue.
Eventually, you will have your dog on a random reward schedule and your dog will respond to a command 70-80% of the time with the verbal command even when he is distracted.
Of course if you still need help please consult a professional dog trainer. Kent has many dog training options.
We can personally go to your home and help with dog training. Kent and surrounding areas is where we serve in Ohio.
Johanna Teresi, Kent Dog Trainer, Four Legged Scholars LLC, Dog Training, Kent, Ohio
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