Dogs are, without a doubt, faithful companions, who cannot help but express their happiness and affection for their human friends. In addition, dogs have an amazing ability to learn all kinds of skills with the right guidelines, which is why they have been with us for so long and, today,, there are the most varied disciplines, such as tracking, guide or protection dogs.
As you will see in this article on our site, how to train a dog is a procedure that requires patience and perseverance, but it gives results most rewarding. Always without forgetting the importance that your animal feels comfortable and motivated during the learning sessions. An example of how to train a dog at home is with the Animal Philosophy dog training courses, a way to specialize in dog education with a team of international professionals through online classes.
What is dog training?
When we talk about dog training we refer to the act of teaching a dog to respond in a concrete way to a verbal command and/or gesture signal.
The truth is that there is a very fine line that separates training from education, since both concepts go hand in hand and can be used as synonyms in some cases erroneously.
Differences between training and educating a dog
Mainly, we can distinguish both terms by the purpose that each one has, since:
- Training a dog: has the objective of guiding the dog during his learning from a puppy, so that the dog learns to behave and adapt in different daily situations in a positive way, that is, making him feel safe and calm.
- Training a dog: is intended to teach him to perform a specific action to the command, like "give me your paw".
However, as we mentioned, we often confuse both concepts, because, for example, when teaching a dog to “sit” we are instructing it to obey a specific command. But in turn, that a dog understands this request, it can facilitate coexistence by promoting communication and guidance of your dog.
Now, how do I train my dog? Read on to find out the answer, just after understanding the use of positive and negative reinforcement in dogs.
The use of positive and negative reinforcement in dogs
For this learning process, the knowledge we have acquired about canine learning and cognition is used. Specifically, methods are used to establish an association between a stimulus and a response produced by the animal, through conditioning, while trying to identify the needs and skills of a dog to foster them.
In order to train an animal, the use of reinforcements is used. This concept refers to an element that you add and that motivates the animal to learn.
Among these reinforcements, we distinguish two types:
- Positive reinforcement: give the animal a stimulus that really motivates him, such as a reward in the form of food, play, words and caresses … When he performs the desired behavior. So, the dog will repeat this action to receive the treat again.
- Negative reinforcement: remove an annoying or aversive stimulus from the animal. For example, stretching him by the leash against the ground so that he stretches, since, as soon as he lies down, he stops feeling the pressure. The use of this reinforcement implies that the dog will repeat the behavior again, since it responds by avoiding or running away from the stimulus that is unpleasant.
Today, we know the benefits of positive trainingin establishing a bond between the dog and the human friend of the. That is, the use of rewards to motivate the dog to learn, instead of forcing it to adopt an appropriate behavior through negative reinforcement.
This second technique is not recommended, since despite giving quick results, it does not create a bond of trust with the animal and harms by forming an insecure character, in addition to developing unwanted or harmful behaviors in the long term.
Up to what age can a dog be trained?
Dogs learn throughout their lives, therefore, there is no age at which it is impossible to train them. Now, it is true that teaching new things to a puppy is not the same as teaching an older dog, because puppies are at a stage in which they constantly learn from everything around them. Ability that, over the years, decreases, and an adult dog has more and more established learning and knowledge of its immediate environment.
For this reason, an adult dog, as he gets older, will not be as receptive to new learning and will have a hard time plus. In addition, it will not be the same if it has never been trained, since it will not be familiar with the usual training guidelines or sessions, as would a dog that has been kept mentally active through this activity since it was young. Therefore, it will be important to attend to the dog's physical and cognitive abilities if you plan to teach him new things, be patient and maintain a positive and motivating attitude with your dog every time you spend time with him.
Of course, for training to work, it is advisable to read this other article about 15 mistakes when training a dog. Read on to find out how to train a puppy.
How to train a puppy?
At this point, you are probably wondering how to train a puppy. Training a puppy is a most rewarding task that will require patience and perseverance.
During this stage, it is very important that you teach your puppy to learn simple instructions, which will be key to being able to communicate correctly with him and, therefore, to attend to basic obedience when necessary. adult, for example:
- Go to your call
- Walking on a leash without pulling
- Teach him to drop objects
- Stay sitting and/or lying down
- Give the paw
In turn, you should also educate him to redirect behaviors that could be problematic in the future if he does not follow the proper guidance, such as inhibiting bite, learn to relieve himself outside the home or help him feel safe when he is left alone.
If you don't know what to teach your puppy, here is an article on Things to teach a dog in his first year.
The procedure you must follow to teach a new password will be as follows:
Establish a routine
First, you must plan a routine of sessions in which you will dedicate 100% of the time to teaching this slogan. Being a puppy, it is not recommended that you spend more than 10 or 20 minutes on him, because being small he will get bored and distracted easily, making him learn not to obey.
Spending a little time on a daily basis, but making sure that during the session your puppy is motivated and attentive, it will be much more fruitful than if spend a lot of time on it, because it will pass you by, it will get frustrated and it will associate obedience as a negative experience.
Offer him a very valuable prize
You will have to offer your puppy the prize that he likes the most, only during the training sessions, in this way it will be something really valuable and, therefore, will increase their motivation and attention. For this reason, when you want to teach your puppy something new, it is not recommended to reward him with elements that he has on a daily basis, such as caresses, play or his own food. The most advisable thing is that perceive the reward as something special that is only present during the obedience session.
To help you train your dog, you may also be interested in reading this other article on our site on How to teach a dog to obey?
Set simple goals according to his abilities
You cannot expect your puppy to be able to learn a command the first time, but you will have to go little by little indicating the behavior that he wants him to do through small goals, progressively increasing the difficulty. Otherwise, if you expect him to do it right the first time, he won't understand what you want and will get frustrated.
Reward and motivate him constantly
Finally, and related to the previous point, you should continually reward him with his favorite treat every time you see him making an effort and/or paying attention to youIf you wait too long to reward him, he could get tired, associating the session as a situation that generates confusion and stress. Therefore, keeping it constantly motivated will be key for your puppy to feel comfortable, form a strong bond with you and learn to obey you.
Here we show you what are the best treats for dogs?
Never scold him
Obedience sessions should be something positive for him to learn through encouragement. For this reason, the use of punishment will only generate stress and fear in your puppy, which will not benefit his well-being or his relationship with you. Therefore, to avoid conflicts, it is advisable that whenever you want to educate your puppy you have a positive attitude, that is, if you are not feeling very well emotionally, it is better to leave it for another day.
Make sure he's okay
That your puppy is he althy, that is, that his physical and psychological well-being is covered, will be essential before considering educating him. Because, for example, if your puppy doesn't get enough exercise, it's natural for him to be hyperactive during the obedience session, which doesn't benefit him from being attentiveIn the same way, we must make sure that you do not have any illness or pathology that prevent you from doing an exercise.
Now that you know how to train a puppy, let's see how to train an adult dog.
How to train an adult dog?
Training adult dogs differs to a lesser or greater extent from puppies in terms of capabilities. Since, as we have mentioned, as dogs get older their learning capacity decreases, although this does not mean that you cannot teach them new things. In fact, training brings benefits for your furry, mainly, keeping your dog mentally active and strengthening your bond
The objectives you want to determine with your dog will also be different depending on the purpose of the training, since generally the basic obedience necessary to live with your furry should have been acquired as a puppy. Now, each dog and circumstances vary in each home, it could be, for example, that you need to teach him a basic education if you have adopted your dog as an adult and do not is used to a family lifestyle.
If your dog attends to a basic obedience, you can consider teach him tricks or, you can also instruct him in the most varied disciplines, as in smell or Agility. However, when you want to set a goal, you should always keep in mind what are the real capabilities of your furry and, obviously, his he alth status, well, for example, you can't ask a dog with joint problems to stand up on its hind legs or to perform Agility, because it will end up hurting itself.
The guidelines to take into account will be similar to those of learning with puppies, that is, you must:
- Offer you a valuable prize.
- Set simple goals according to your abilities.
- Reward and motivate him constantly.
- Never use punishment.
- Make sure you have your wellness covered.
When it comes to session planning, adult dogs as a general rule do not have as much energy as puppies, nor they are just as easily distracted by their surroundings.
This fact implies that you can dedicate more time to the obedience sessions, approximately about 30 minutes, but always make sure that your dog stays motivated and not overwhelmed. Ideally, you should end the session shortly before your dog starts to get tired, so that he doesn't learn that he decides when to stop paying attention, but that you tell him when you finish.
