Dog Training

Question: I need help with my dog training technique?

(Posted by: on 2012-01-15 22:12:13)

My family and I; have adopted a dog. Bourbon is a 14 month old springer spaniel bitch. Shes had one previous owner and is house broken. She understands the sit command but right now(assumingly) she is super hyper....because of the change and is not following the command consistently..... any how....im determined to train my dog....i am not able to pay to have her trained professionally right now...so ive, been researching trainning techniques... I would like to know how long I should train per day....and should I be trainning her one command per day? and also ive been trying to train with dog food but shes not interested went out and bought special snacks hoping these migjt encourage to obey for this reward....any tips on what snack is used for trainning....? Thanks... Fyi: this is my first dog so be eady on me...

Posted by: Lizzie on 2012-01-15, 22:20:12

Train several times each day, for about 2 to 5 minutes at a time. Keep training sessions fun and short. Use lots of praise and petting as well as tiny bits of special treats. Teach one thing until she knows it very well before you move on to a new command. There are some excellent (free) training videos on YouTube by an internationally famous trainer, Emily Larlham, that uses kind and gentle techniques. She shows you what to do while teaching real dogs to do the commands in the videos. Just look for the Kikopup videos. It is okay to first teach her the command she already knows (sit) since this way she will be more easily able to succeed, and you will succeed in making her more reliable at sitting. It is usually far better to teach your own dog than to send the dog off somewhere for training. Some of those places use very cruel methods, and the training the dogs receive never lasts.

Posted by: Molly TG on 2012-01-15, 22:17:15

A hyper dog like her will have trouble concentrating for long periods of time during training. You training sessions can be for longer periods of time, and can be easier if you give her a decent amount of excercise shortly before. (ex.: throwing a toy, going for a long walk, etc) She will be calmer during your training sessions after. Also, your sessions will differ on length. Different dogs can concentrate for different amounts of time. If you are working and she begins to be restless or is finding an excuse for a break, it is probably time to stop. If you remember how long you worked in that session, you can work for the same amount of time the next day, and can continue to build so you can get more done.

Posted by: FuzzyBear616 on 2012-01-15, 22:40:27

Training - whenever she is active and awake would be a good time to try some training, keep it short, don't expect her to take in long lessons. Training with her regular food won't work because she gets that already, a cheap treat you can use is cat biscuits, my dog goes ga ga over cat food and it's completely safe to feed your dog. If treats don't get her attention try a squeaky toy, but make sure you keep the toy out of reach when your not training because then it's a proper treat to get it - also get a clicker, when you see the good behaviour, click, then treat. The dog learns very quickly what you want them to do and the click tells them when they have got it right.

Posted by: PAUL on 2012-01-15, 23:10:22

Seriously the dog I babysit everyday was a complete mess the first two days I watched her, shes a baby boxer. She would jump all over the place. After the fifth day her owner is amazed especially since she tried training her almost every chance she got. Like one answer stated that it will be hard to get her attention with so much energy rushing through her. That is why I always wait till they seek my attention. Always keep a small squeaky toy or treat in your pocket. Some dogs are food motivated and some dogs are not. For example the puppy was not and when she would run over to me with her ball and jump on me I would turn my back and ignore the behavior till she was calm and sat. Then I would turn around tell her good sit and throw her ball. Then I started to push the rail up by making her sit and stay and I would back away. If she stepped forward I would drop the ball and turn away. Some praise a lot of patience and youll have a well behaved dog. Good luck hope this helps