In this article, we are going to go over a couple crucial principles in dog training. Ready? Set? Go!
Connecting with Your Dog
You've possibly already checked out our posts revealing that bonding with your dog makes training your dog so much more smoother as well as enjoyable. Think about it from your own individual point of view, how would you feel if you were pushed to learn something from an individual you don't really know? First off, you most likely would not believe what that person is teaching you for the reason that well.....simply put, because they haven't established their trustworthiness to you. "Why should I listen to what he/she is telling me?" That's most likely what is going on in your head. Sure, in some circumstances, you have to be able to trust someone you've just came across, however if you happen to be discovering something new from someone, that person ought to be commendable so that you will listen and learn from him/her.
In a similar fashion, if you've not too long ago had or adopted your dog, you need to devote some time with your dog before you actually start training your dog. You could do this by spending at least an hour everyday with him on a six foot leash which is held by you. By doing this, it has been proven that dogs tend to be much more attached with their dog owners. This time spent together also allows your dog to notice and find out more about your practices and behaviors remember, German Shepherds, as one of the most intelligent breeds, regularly keeps their eyes out to learn about what can end up in positive consequences for them). Throughout this task, each time you sit, your German Shepherd will be set to learn that it is also time for him to settle. Also, whenever you're actively moving around, he's going to learn how to move with you. Aside from that, tethering offers for a good alternative to restricting your dog in the event that you want to keep him out of problems.
You must focus to do this exercise at the most two hours per day as German Shepherds, who are inherently productive, can get fidgety and anxious when there is little for him to do. As such, it is always a good thought to provide your German Shepherd with a toy or something to chew upon during this training.
Talking with Your Dog
Dogs cannot speak our language, but do not neglect the power of body language! Your pose, movements, facial signs, odor and touch in addition to the tone of your voice, serve as means to converse with your German Shepherd. Similar to how you can tell if your best friend is feeling happy or depressed just by noticing his/her facial expressions or mood, your dog can certainly do the same thing! Your German Shepherd will uncover the human "language" such as "come, go or no" by building links between your words and actions. Simply put, words by themselves will have no definition to your dog; it is only when you say and conduct at the same time for a consistent period of time will your dog learn to understand you.
Having a Positive Marker for Your Dog
Recall our posting on positive reinforcements? How or where do you begin? Well, you can certainly begin by incorporating numerous positive reinforcers such as toys or food with a distinguishable sound. You can think of this distinct noise as something that you will be able to utilize as means to communicate with your dog and could often be a spoken term like "Good!" or a click sound on a dog clicker which you can commonly buy at the majority pet shops. More on such clickers to come in an future blog post! Also, aside from acting as a means to communicate with your dog, a positive marker makes it possible for you, as the dog owner to help your dog differentiate between what is a desirable and what is an undesirable behavior. By saying "Good" and by giving your dog his preferred toy whenever he acts desirably, you are helping your dog make an affiliation between the word "Good," and his own good behavior. The same concept applies to any undesirable behavior.
Your Dog's Sitting Behavior
One of the things alot of dog owners (like the young me) don't know is in training your dog the "sitting behavior." One of the write-ups I've read not too long ago displayed an intriguing approach to this; that is you should only pet or touch your dog when your dog is either sitting or lying down. Believe it or not, you shouldn't have to ask your dog to sit. Instead you should only pay interest to your dog when he's sitting and when he does, be certain to make use of the positive marker word "sit." Dog owners should be aware not to state this in an excited way as your dog too might get excited and will leap right back up. Once that's completed, link the word "sit" with a soft pet on your dog.
All these essentials are excellent guidelines to train your German Shepherd; however, it is extremely crucial to keep in mind that almost all dogs learn by regular training and reinforcements, so be certain to try your best to stick to the plan even when other folks are with your dog!
Visit the German Shepherd Training Academy to find out more about how to train your dog. There you'll find many different dog training tips which will help you guide your dog one step closer to your dog training goals.
Friday, November 7, 2014
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Approaches to Effective Dog Training
In this post, we’ll break down the types of training into two very broad classifications – positive and negative reinforcement training. With this, you will be able to understand which type of training dog professionals highly recommend and the arguments supporting it.
To begin, it is essential to point out to ourselves that dogs are of a separate species than ourselves and therefore, our presumptions might not exactly meet the way they act. In the most basic terms, you can think of dogs learning through trial and error; that is they will behave in a wide range of distinctive tactics and based on the outcomes of those behaviors/actions, they will choose to increase or decrease the regularity of those actions. Know it or not, your dog is learning continuously by paying attention to its surrounding and the consequences of its actions and social interactions. Your dog (in select cases, similar to us), will avoid a behavior that results in bad consequences or whatever that makes the good consequences disappear.
Don't forget that your dog is one of the most intelligent creatures in the world and it’s a safe bet that you and your dog will have a more powerful relationship when your dog sees you as a facilitator to good consequences. Give it some thought, your dog’s happiness truly does hinge on you as the owner. From the freedom to interact with other dogs at parks, taking walks around the neighborhood, or even enjoying a yummy dinner, you hold the deciding key! Hence, if you do open these doors for your dog to generate positive experiences, your dog will more likely than not to cooperate with you.
This really is the philosophy behind the process of rewarding your dog for great attitude and is regarded as positive reinforcement training. The number of things you can do to encourage good behavior are countless and consist of anything from treats and new toys to enjoying more time in the dog parks or petting your dog. Positive reinforcement training typically gets results given that in order for your dog to experience activities that he appreciates/enjoys, he needs to have to earn them by cooperating with you. Positive reinforcement training focuses on the “dos” rather than the “don’ts.”
Right now, you’re probably thinking: Have you considered punishment or what is also known as negative reinforcement? Many dog trainers would attest that punishing your dog for one thing that he/she did is never going to help your dog take action in a more favorable or satisfactory way. What’s more, punishing your dog is ABUSIVE! Furthermore, it can also strain the relationship both of you share, which as we have mentioned in our previous posts, can make training your dog much more challenging than it’s supposed to be. An Additional unfavorable result of negative reinforcement is that your dog will start expressing behaviors of submission and fear in the event that you – the punisher – are present. And when you’re not around, your dog will return to behaving the very same way he/she was disciplined for. Recall a time when you were little and your parents advised you “no” to some things; what did you end up doing?
The youthful me, for one, wouldn't have given in easily. Instead, I probably would have kept pestering my parents for the things I sought. I bring this up because I feel like plenty of us can interrelate to such conditions and subsequently realize why negative reinforcement training doesn’t (really) work. From previous experiences, I have watched people punishing (let’s not go into detail how) their dogs for digging holes in their home backyard garden which just resulted in even more hole digging in the event that there is no one present at home. Let’s be straightforward, sometimes dog owners would feel so irritated with the actions of their dogs that they have the disposition to behave out of their instinct and punish their dogs. It must be reiterated that punishing your dog, as mentioned, does no good for you and your dog. In such situations, it is better to simply leave, calm down, and then set up a positive strategy to work with your dog’s behavior.
Right before we deduce that positive reinforcement training is the way to go, let’s take a step back and really think about when negative reinforcement training can be used in a non-abusive way as a way to teach your dog. To better demonstrate this, let’s think about something that you like or enjoy; as an example, maybe you really enjoy eating seafood. Now, this might sound tremendous, but let’s say that whenever you consume too much seafood at one go, your stomach won’t feel that great afterwards. Occasionally though, you can’t refrain from the craving to stuff yourself with seafood and as a consequence, you experience a diarrhea. Does this make you “bad”? I believe most people would consent that the reply is undeniably not.
Now, use a comparable event to your dog. Perhaps your dog really likes digging holes and even though he is well-trained, there could be times where he really wants to dig holes in your backyard. Likewise, this does not mean your dog is a “bad” dog. At instances such as these, times where your dog demonstrates a particular difficult action, one thing that can be done is making use of negative reinforcements so that you can divert your dog’s behavior to something that is appropriate to you. Returning to the same example, whenever you see your dog starting to dig holes in your garden, you could say something like “Eh, Jasper (your dog’s name), come here.” This helps keep your dog’s behavior in restraint and reminds your dog that the action that he is trying to attempt is a no go. Once again, the point here is not to threaten your dog, but rather, to guide your dog towards other things that he appreciates which can be earned through good behavior (positive reinforcement). Disturbing the behaviors of your dog will not only influence your dog to avoid such behaviors in the foreseeable future, but by doing so in a non-abusive way, you will not induce anxiety into your dog.
So in a few words, positive reinforcement training is definitely the way to go; despite the fact that at times, dog owners need to mix it up by including some kinds of non-abusive negative reinforcement training.
If you’re a dog owner, what about you? What is or has been working for you?
For more information on dog training, german shepherd training, and more useful tips for dog owners, head on over to www.germanshepherdtrainingacademy.com for more! Did I mention that they also have some great infographics that you can share? Check them out!
To begin, it is essential to point out to ourselves that dogs are of a separate species than ourselves and therefore, our presumptions might not exactly meet the way they act. In the most basic terms, you can think of dogs learning through trial and error; that is they will behave in a wide range of distinctive tactics and based on the outcomes of those behaviors/actions, they will choose to increase or decrease the regularity of those actions. Know it or not, your dog is learning continuously by paying attention to its surrounding and the consequences of its actions and social interactions. Your dog (in select cases, similar to us), will avoid a behavior that results in bad consequences or whatever that makes the good consequences disappear.
Don't forget that your dog is one of the most intelligent creatures in the world and it’s a safe bet that you and your dog will have a more powerful relationship when your dog sees you as a facilitator to good consequences. Give it some thought, your dog’s happiness truly does hinge on you as the owner. From the freedom to interact with other dogs at parks, taking walks around the neighborhood, or even enjoying a yummy dinner, you hold the deciding key! Hence, if you do open these doors for your dog to generate positive experiences, your dog will more likely than not to cooperate with you.
This really is the philosophy behind the process of rewarding your dog for great attitude and is regarded as positive reinforcement training. The number of things you can do to encourage good behavior are countless and consist of anything from treats and new toys to enjoying more time in the dog parks or petting your dog. Positive reinforcement training typically gets results given that in order for your dog to experience activities that he appreciates/enjoys, he needs to have to earn them by cooperating with you. Positive reinforcement training focuses on the “dos” rather than the “don’ts.”
Right now, you’re probably thinking: Have you considered punishment or what is also known as negative reinforcement? Many dog trainers would attest that punishing your dog for one thing that he/she did is never going to help your dog take action in a more favorable or satisfactory way. What’s more, punishing your dog is ABUSIVE! Furthermore, it can also strain the relationship both of you share, which as we have mentioned in our previous posts, can make training your dog much more challenging than it’s supposed to be. An Additional unfavorable result of negative reinforcement is that your dog will start expressing behaviors of submission and fear in the event that you – the punisher – are present. And when you’re not around, your dog will return to behaving the very same way he/she was disciplined for. Recall a time when you were little and your parents advised you “no” to some things; what did you end up doing?
The youthful me, for one, wouldn't have given in easily. Instead, I probably would have kept pestering my parents for the things I sought. I bring this up because I feel like plenty of us can interrelate to such conditions and subsequently realize why negative reinforcement training doesn’t (really) work. From previous experiences, I have watched people punishing (let’s not go into detail how) their dogs for digging holes in their home backyard garden which just resulted in even more hole digging in the event that there is no one present at home. Let’s be straightforward, sometimes dog owners would feel so irritated with the actions of their dogs that they have the disposition to behave out of their instinct and punish their dogs. It must be reiterated that punishing your dog, as mentioned, does no good for you and your dog. In such situations, it is better to simply leave, calm down, and then set up a positive strategy to work with your dog’s behavior.
Right before we deduce that positive reinforcement training is the way to go, let’s take a step back and really think about when negative reinforcement training can be used in a non-abusive way as a way to teach your dog. To better demonstrate this, let’s think about something that you like or enjoy; as an example, maybe you really enjoy eating seafood. Now, this might sound tremendous, but let’s say that whenever you consume too much seafood at one go, your stomach won’t feel that great afterwards. Occasionally though, you can’t refrain from the craving to stuff yourself with seafood and as a consequence, you experience a diarrhea. Does this make you “bad”? I believe most people would consent that the reply is undeniably not.
Now, use a comparable event to your dog. Perhaps your dog really likes digging holes and even though he is well-trained, there could be times where he really wants to dig holes in your backyard. Likewise, this does not mean your dog is a “bad” dog. At instances such as these, times where your dog demonstrates a particular difficult action, one thing that can be done is making use of negative reinforcements so that you can divert your dog’s behavior to something that is appropriate to you. Returning to the same example, whenever you see your dog starting to dig holes in your garden, you could say something like “Eh, Jasper (your dog’s name), come here.” This helps keep your dog’s behavior in restraint and reminds your dog that the action that he is trying to attempt is a no go. Once again, the point here is not to threaten your dog, but rather, to guide your dog towards other things that he appreciates which can be earned through good behavior (positive reinforcement). Disturbing the behaviors of your dog will not only influence your dog to avoid such behaviors in the foreseeable future, but by doing so in a non-abusive way, you will not induce anxiety into your dog.
So in a few words, positive reinforcement training is definitely the way to go; despite the fact that at times, dog owners need to mix it up by including some kinds of non-abusive negative reinforcement training.
If you’re a dog owner, what about you? What is or has been working for you?
For more information on dog training, german shepherd training, and more useful tips for dog owners, head on over to www.germanshepherdtrainingacademy.com for more! Did I mention that they also have some great infographics that you can share? Check them out!
Friday, August 15, 2014
Struggles Faced in Having and Training a German Shepherd
There are numerous dog owners who are individuals working 9-5 jobs, not to mention that lots of of them have a household to take care of – parents, husband or wife and kids. Every one of these, as you might already realize, dictate what your obligations and responsibilities are to your family. To illustrate, if you’re married with kids and work in a 9-5 job, you’ll most probably get home feeling tired at six in the evening. By the time you settle down, prepare and have dinner, have some family time, and watch some TV shows, it’s ten at night! Soon, you will need to start planning for tomorrow - packing your kids’ lunchboxes, making sure you have all the things you need accomplished for work tomorrow and so forth. Now, imagine if you were to add owning and training your dog to the list? Will it be even more responsibilities for you? What happens if your children genuinely want a dog as a family pet?
Undoubtedly having a dog as a pet demands additional responsibilities that can be “too much” for many individuals. But that’s simply focusing on the undesirable aspects of having a dog; what are the positive aspects? There are a great number of positive aspects, but for the purpose of this content, let’s look at three main ones. First, many different experiments have revealed that having a pet at home helps relieve and reduce stress. Second, it will be fun for your children as they learn how to interact with animals in general. Third, the process of training your dog can be very fulfilling and fun, in ways that it could immediately become a pastime for you. In order to fully enjoy and experience these positive aspects of owning and training your dog, you need to first overcome these three common challenges.
Providing Time for Your Dog
This is one of the most demanding hurdles potential dog owners have. As a dog owner, you need to make time for your dog not only to build bonds, but also to train your dog which means loads of determination. You can certainly manage this challenge by starting schedules and day-to-day plans to ensure that you’ll be used to having the daily routine of spending time with your dog.
Mastering Ways to Train Your Dog
One of the many struggles so many new dog owners face is that they consider that dog training demands a ton of experience. Despite the fact that this is in part accurate, there are dozens of dog training resources you could take advantage of to learn about the techniques you should have to train your dog. And don’t forget, absolutely everyone has to start from somewhere!
Financial Limitations
This is a big one, but in part, is also a function of the ways dog owners prevail over the first two obstacles listed previously. Plenty of newer dog owners, when faced with a complicated or stubborn habit from their dogs, gravitate towards the direction of looking for a dog trainer. Although this is from time to time a viable alternative, it can be highly-priced (hundreds to thousands of dollars) and remember, it can take several tries to look for a suitable, well-matched dog trainer, which will end up in even more dollars invested.
So, the in the event that you’re questioning yourself in training your own dog, or maybe if you should even own one, examine these three obstacles and attempt to create solutions for them.
Again, dog training isn't that difficult, all you need is some patience and perseverance. There are tons of resources that can help you with dog training. One which I've found to be really helpful is the German Shepherd Training Academy blog. They have a information that can help dog owners, especially new dog owners!
Till next time!
Paul Scott
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