What Are You Doing Wrong When Training Your Dog?
Training your dog isn’t an easy task, and your pet isn’t going to just learn new things overnight. That’s why you can’t lose your calm or desire to teach him. And, most importantly, you have to be open to self-criticism and know how to fix the mistakes you’re making.
It’s always the owner’s fault, never the pet’s
There are a lot of mistakes you can make while training your dog. So, it’s good to be able to recognize them before it’s too late. This will help you avoid confusing your pet, or worse, blaming him for not making any progress.
If you want to keep a good relationship between all the human and non-human members of the family, keep reading this article.
Remember, if you don’t reach the training goals you set for your pet, you can always talk to your vet or a specialist in animal behavior.
If you’re not making progress with your dog’s training, don’t blame him. Instead, learn to identify what you’re doing wrong and you’ll be able to meet the goals you’re setting.
Use positive reinforcement when training your dog
First, if you want to successfully train your dog, you have to be able to interpret his body language. Once you can understand his signals, it will be much easier to train him.
However, even if you can read his body language, you could still make mistakes when training your dog. For example, you might be punishing him if he doesn’t do what you ask or if he misbehaves.
Instead of getting frustrated, count to ten and keep persevering. It’s always best to use positive reinforcement when training your dog. This means ignoring his negative behavior and rewarding his positive ones with pets, words of affection or a sweet treat that he likes.
It’s definitely better for your dog to associate the things that he’s learning with a pleasant experience instead of with punishment. Don’t you agree? Also, keep in mind that animal cruelty is considered a crime.
More mistakes you can make when training your dog
Other common mistakes owners make when trying to give their dog behavioral guidelines are:
- Giving him orders that are too much for him, or hitting him to get him to stop something. Dogs, just like people, need time to process what they are being told.
- Trying to teach everything at once. Go step by step. Start with the simplest commands and work towards more complicated ones. As soon as he clearly understands a command, you can move onto the next one. Don’t overwhelm him.
- Giving him complicated directions. Try to give him simple, easy-to-understand commands, especially at first. Otherwise, you might confuse your furry friend and he won’t be able to do what you asked.
Also, try to get your dog to exercise sufficiently. Dogs that don’t properly expend their energy can become anxious, and even aggressive. This will make his training a lot more difficult.
Tips to have a well-trained and happy dog
Keep in mind that your pets can get stressed out and anxious if your orders are too aggressive. Or, he might even be afraid of you if you’re physically punishing him. These will both give you the opposite result of what you were hoping for.
Remember, as we’ve pointed out a few times, it’s not your pet’s fault, it’s the mistakes you’re making when training your dog.
So, once again, when it comes to training your dog:
- It’s very important that you stay patient and determined, persevering at all times
- Don’t get angry
- Remember, the one making the mistakes is you, not your dog
- His training should be full of love
By following these guidelines, sooner or later you’ll have a well-behaved and happy dog.