TRAIN YOUR DOG AT HOME: TIPS TO REMEMBER
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So, below is the list of things to do to train your dog at home by Samuel. (Due to privacy issues we can’t mention Samuel’s last name.)
Here it goes…
I have been reading a lot about how to train dogs at home ever since I had rescued a Labrador 3 months ago. And guess what I didn’t have any pets before that. Why did I do it then?
Maybe, because I was inspired by the people around me, in my office, almost everybody had pets.
During house parties, when I used to observe my colleagues, obviously the hosts, playing with their pets happily, it used to delight me. The fact that they won’t be left alone in the apartment after the party is over was the one that almost convinced me to adopt one. Well, as a research and development executive, observing things and people and is something I do for my living, however, that quality comes naturally to me as well.
Slowly over the course of a few years after observing people, getting comfortable playing with pets, taking my neighbor’s dog on walks, and getting chased by my boss’s Lab at a party. I made my mind to adopt a pet, a dog for the start but I didn’t want to buy one because that didn’t seem right. And yeah my boss’s lab didn’t like me because I didn’t like his parent, my boss and somehow that dog got that vibe from me. Every time he used to see me he used to bark at me and the fact that, out of all the people in the office, the lab was mad at me, made my boss suspicious, he thought I was doing something wrong.
Though this thing irritated me I learned a very important lesson that dogs do protect and love their parents a lot.
Hence, I rescued Ned with the help of my friend Ilaya. Technically speaking, she rescued him and because she couldn’t afford to parent one more pup she put a message in the group.
I responded.
So, that was the WHY and HOW I adopted Ned when he was about a one-year-old dog.
Now here are some of the tips that I used to train Ned at home.
- Teach “Sit” for attention. Generally, dogs jump on the people to get attention but that can spoil clothes scratch the skin or can even knock a person down.
- Teach self-control. Barging through the doors as soon as they are let open is not a good habit. Also, “Sit” can also be taught as a command to tell them to wait temporarily without following you, so, that you can do other works quickly.
- Ned is a calm dog not at all aggressive or moody so he is easy to deal with but yeah he does get excited when I come back from home. I use positive reinforcement. I praise a lot for every good behavior he does and ignores the bad ones. As a result, he has learned that whenever he follows a certain type of behavior, he is rewarded.
- Ned had a bad habit of getting on the dining table and eating anything, this was dangerous as there are some food items that can be harmful to him. Positive reinforcement helped me in this case as well, every time he stayed down I awarded him and praised him and every time he climbed on the table I ignored him and didn’t talk to him. Remember don’t shout or scare him.
- I used to make training a fun activity. This way I ensured that my dog pays attention to me and never gets bored.
- I take Ned out for a walk and meet my friends during the walk and just in the process I introduce them to Ned. This makes Ned comfortable when they come to my house. Hence, socializing during walks is the key to ensure that your dog doesn’t bark when you’ve called your friends at your house for a small get together.
So, these were the things to take care of, that I think can help you to train your dog. I wanted people to know my story and I wanted to share the ways that have been helpful to me.
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David joined CanadaVetCare in 2013 as a product analyst and veterinary assistant. Being a passionate pet lover and keen animal health researcher, David had always found ways and solutions to help pet parents to improve their pets’ health. He is always happy to answer pet health-related queries and recommending pet parents for the right pet product for their furry companions.