Owning a dog while living in an apartment can be a challenge. Training your dog for this style of living is essential to your well-being, as well as, to the other tenants in the apartment. You will find important tips in this article to ensure that you and your dog are ready for living in an apartment, along with other great dog training tips.
Dogs often become destructive because they are bored and lonely. Consider a house dog that destroys the sofa while you are away from the house. Consider the larger outside dog that chews up the shrubbery. The answer to alleviating their destructive behavior might be as simple as spending more time with them or buying them a new toy.
Puppies tend to nip as a way of communicating, and this should be curbed. It is normally a signal that they want to play. If you observe a puppy with his litter mates, this is the way that they interact with each other. When your puppy nips you, say ‘no’ firmly, and immediately give him a toy to play with.
When trying to train your dog, always reinforce positive behaviors even when you’re not actively in a training session. It’s easy to remember to reward your dog during a training session, but it’s just as important to reward your dog for those trained behaviors the rest of the time, too. This builds a good connection for the dog between the behavior and the reward.
While dog training with a leash, make sure that you are keeping the collar snug, yet a little bit loose. When the collar is too tight, it can actually make the dog want to pull you. A little slack can go a long way when you are dog training with a leash.
Teach your dog no response is needed for the word ‘no’. Use positive reinforcement to encourage good behavior. When you say “no”, your dog does not understand how to react. Tailor dog training to suit the dog and the situation.
Dog training is an activity that needs to be done frequently. When trying to teach a dog a new behavior one needs to be repetitive. By frequently demonstrating the proper activity or saying the command word it will help the dog learn it. The repetition will facilitate learning of new behaviors for the dog.
When looking to hire a dog trainer, finding someone who uses positive training techniques can be very beneficial. Your dog will respond better to praises, treats, and encouragement than to physical or mental agitation. Negative training methods can be very ineffective and cause harm to the animal as well.
One tip to keep in mind when training your dog, is that your timing and the expected timing of your dog’s actions are essential. This is important because this is one learning aspect that is common to all dogs. While different dogs require different teaching methods, timing is a communication method that will help you find success no matter what you try.
Make training a part of your dog’s daily routine. Ten minutes of training every day gives much better results than an hour of training once a week. The dog has less time to forget the lessons learned and it is much easier to keep a dog’s attention for a few minutes at a time. Also, the dog will not end up eating so many treats in a single session that hunger is no longer a good motivator to learn new commands.
A good tip is to get a breed of dog that matches your lifestyle. If you have kids, you’ll want a breed that’s good with kids. Chihuahuas have become really popular over the years and many families have started buying them. They aren’t great with kids however, and a lot of them are being left in shelters.
When training your pooch, patience is a virtue. All dogs learn at their own pace, and getting frustrated with your pet often adds to the dog’s confusion. Avoid punishing your dog for misbehavior and offer rewards for good behavior instead. Dogs love treats, but you can also reinforce the desired behavior with love and affection.
Make sure not to accidentally reward a dog for bad behavior. For example, if you let your dog into the yard when he barks, you’re rewarding him by letting him outside for doing something you’d rather he didn’t. Instead make sure only to let the dog outside when he quietly waits by the door, reinforcing good behavior.
To get your dog to walk beside you instead of pulling you, reinforce the behavior with treats. Treats make it interesting for your dog to walk beside you. You should also use a harness instead of a collar. It is much easier to control a dog with a harness and he won’t feel like you are trying to choke him.
Repetition is one of the most important aspects of training your dog. Whether you are teaching obedience or a new trick, it is important to repeat the command to your dog on a regular basis. Eventually, your dog will catch on to what you mean when you say the term and begin to act accordingly, especially if you are able to provide an action to go along with your repeated term.
Don’t give treats to your dog for no reason, and never feed your dog at the table. Feed your dog his dog food in the same place, at the same time, every day. Give treats as rewards for good work done during training time. Otherwise, praise and petting are ample indications that you are friends with your dog. Too many treats at the wrong times will produce a spoiled, overweight dog.
In conclusion, you and your dog are going to have to adapt to apartment style living. This may prove to be difficult for you and your dog, but hopefully the tips provided in this article will assist you in training your dog properly, to ensure that everyone involved is happy.
