A dog’s obedience is very, very important. It’s important to put it into practice immediately when you get your dog. Sure, when the dog’s a little puppy, it’s easy to control when it doesn’t want to listen, it’s less invasive when eight pounds of it is pulling at the other end of a leash.
Or when its tiny paws are jumping up onto your thighs, wanting attention, but, consider when the dog’s full-grown, and it’s eighty pounds are still pulling at a leash, and it’s huge paws still jump up on you and everyone else for attention: that’s an invasive, out of control animal no one wants to be around.
But, luckily, puppies learn rules quickly—they may not always obey them—and consistency is developed through practiced repetition, a process that will continue throughout the dog’s life.
Commands
There are many commands a dog can learn. Behavioral scientists declaring that a dog can know and understand a few hundred words; so, let’s begin with the most common five words every dog should know: sit, heel, here, stay, and lay.
Of course, the most important are going to be here and sit, and the other commands are merely extensions of those two. Heel just means to keep walking with me, while stay and lay are simply extensions for how you want the dog to be while it’s at sit.
A dog is under control when he or she knows how to come when called and then also to sit when commanded. That is the foundation for the dog’s training, and should be put into practice at a young age (after he or she has learned their name).
Here and Sit
Here is the easiest of commands to teach, because your dog hopefully likes you, and will want to come to you. Start by walking away from your puppy, and, when his or her attentions are on something else, say his or her name and jog slightly away from them, calling “here” (“come” could also be a substitute for “here”—this is a preference for you not for the dog).
Sit is also a simple command to learn. Leash the puppy, and stand in front of him or her. Hold a treat above their head, just far enough back that the dog moves its weight backwards onto its haunches to try to intercept the treat. When the dog’s leaning back, say the command “sit,” while continuing to move the treat backwards. The dog should naturally sit, but, if it doesn’t, because the leash is in your opposite hand, use it to guide the dog back slightly to a position of sitting. Only give the treat to the dog if it has sat. With continuous repetition the dog will learn to sit when asked, because it wants the treat. As training progresses, remove the treat from each repetition, making the command routine.
There are many different things you and your dog can learn together, but these commands are the foundation for everything else.
Contact Groomingdales today and sign your dog up for our next training classes for your puppy or dog.
