From today's DT ..... these apply equally well to children or dogs!

1. Only give an instruction if you can make sure it's obeyed. Otherwise you are teaching your dog/child to ignore commands.

2. Bad behaviour usually occurs because you have put your dog/child in a position where they are bound to make a mistake.

3 Try to play more with your dog/child. It will make him more responsive and easier to train.

4. Don't reward attention-seeking behaviour with attention; save that for desirable behaviour.

5. Train dogs/children to learn that learning is fun. If they don't understand, show them what you mean.

6. Don't make rewards too predictable, vary them. Otherwise children/dogs can make informed decisions on whether a deal is worth it.

7. Teach the right behaviour before introducing a consequence for the wrong one. Make the consequence the minimum required to prompt the desired behaviour.

8. Don't repeat yourself. Saying "Sit .... sit ......sit .....sit ..... SIT" will teach the dog/child only to respond when you shout.

9. It's unfair to punish dogs/children for trying to do more than they are capable of and failing. The more you focus on a dog/child getting something wrong, the more that will happen.

10. When you say you are going to do something, do it. Bluffing tends to desensitise children/dogs

yep as my breeder said dont let your pup do what you wouldent let a baby do. treat them the same. thats the best advice ive had ,
ive now got one fun/loving well behaved 19 month old bitch shes got such a nice nature that everyone comments.and when they learn wats ok to do then you will have a much happpier confident dog.
when owners get mad with a dog they sence it and get nervouse. tell them once or twice a firm no and you will never have to say it again.you dont have to scream at them or smack them! will get you no where.
i know someone will not agree , but hey everyone has there own ways of training and as long as the dogs happy at the end of it thats all that matters:)

Great advice Jeangenie. There is nothing complicated training a dog, just common sense.

Best wishes, John

In a nutshell, JG well done. I remember being told the less you say the more your dog will obey.

Excellent stuff, do you know who wrote it for the DT Jeangenie? :)

Lindsay

The article was written by Cassandra Jardine, but I don't know who put together the tips.
:)

Not necessarily training tips but more of how to get the best from your training with your dog is from an article based on work by Linda Tellington Jones. She sees the interaction between human and animals as a dance and treating our animals (dogs) with respect and trust. It goes as follows:

Partner A has high hopes for you as a dancing partner. As the music begins you are not sure of what is expected of you. You make a few mistakes and begin to hesitate. Your partner complains and grabs at you roughly, telling you in an increasingly louder voice what you are supposed to do. Your arm hurts and you start to feel afraid. You start to loose confidence, so make more mistakes and your partner becomes really angry and frustrated. You desperately hope the music will stop and when it does your partner stalks off muttering about your stupidity. You are upset and, in your misery, are not sure you ever want to dance again.

Partner B has high hopes for you as a dancing partner. As the music begins you are not sure of what is expected of you. You make a few mistakes and begin to hesitate. Ignoring the music, your partner slows down and gently explains the basic steps again. He takes it slow until you get it right. He praises your success and shows you the next few steps. Each time you succeed your confidence soars. By the time the music stops you are eager to learn more and look forward to your next dance lesson. Your partner is pleased with your progress and tells you so.

Not many would chose partner A and would prefer partner B because:

* He recognises your hesitation as confusion NOT stupidity, stubbornness or defiance

* Being flexible as a trainer he changes the goals to suit your progress and thus helps you to achieve the overall objective

* He 'chunks' down the routine into small steps so that it is easy for you to learn and succeed at each step

* Encourages you by making it pleasant and fun to learn

As someone who dances I can certainly identify to it from the dog's point of view of training.

I like that one too, but i am useless at dancing :) :D

I think trust is an important part of training and teaching, whether children or animals.

I was at a trial on Friday and during the 10 minute out of sight Stay, a dog (Terv) was really worried. It did a Stand for about 5 minutes and then crept towards the owner who snarled at it and slapped it into a down. I was really upset as the dog was not being at all disobedient; it was afraid of being left in a strange place and the owner was punishing the dog for her own inadequacies in my view. The dog needed lots more training and positive association with the Stays and then she would have no problem. Sadly the dog lacked trust in her owner and it was pitiful to see :(

Lindsay