Games Not to Play

Chase: Many times when you would like your pup to come to you, he decides it's "play time." If you have developed the game of "chase," which all dogs love, he will pounce with his front paws, rear up, tail wagging, and say "Catch Me." Again, if you do not teach him to play "Chase," he will not play "Catch Me."

Slap Fighting: Slap Fighting - or taking your pup's head roughly and pushing it from side-to-side is a favorite game of many owners and their dogs. Unfortunately, it often leads to a "mouthing" problem. "Mouthing" is when the dog places his mouth on your hand or arm and exerts pressure. Pups can hurt you with their sharp teeth. With adult dogs, it is annoying and sometimes frightening to guests. If you do not teach this as a form of play, you will not have a difficult time teaching your pup that it is not acceptable behavior.

Things to Remember

1. Start training early: from 8 weeks on. Developing good habits is much easier than correcting poor ones. Highly demanding obedience work should start after 6 months of age. Then, with the proper techniques, you will be well on your way to having a trained puppy by the time he is one year old.
2. Learning takes time. Look to yourself to make sure you are using the proper methods and techniques for teaching. If your puppy is not learning, make sure it is not you or your approach that is preventing him from understanding what you want. Above all, have patience.
3. Enforce everything you tell him. Make sure he knows what you want. Do not assume your pup understands your commands after only 1 or 2 weeks of training.
4. Puppies have very short attention spans. Do not work more than 3 to 5 minutes per session, although you can have 3 to 6 sessions per day. As you progress, increase the amount of time per session. If you learn to read your pup, you will be able to tell when he is tiring.
5. Master one command then move to the next: SIT, SIT-STAY, DOWN, COME, and WALKING ON LEASH. Start training when there are no distractions. As you and your puppy become proficient with the commands, gradually introduce distractions.
6. Consistency is critical. All family members participating with the puppy's training should use the same command words. Linking commands with food reward and praise will further reinforce proper behavior.
7. Always finish. If you do not have the perseverance to carry out what you want, your puppy will not believe you mean what you say.
8. Intonation. Screaming at your puppy in anger will only work against you. If you cannot control your own reactions, how are you going to control your pup's? Your pup realizes this also.

   Types of intonation

   • Command-short words in normal tone.
   • "NO" - sharp, slightly elevated, terse "NO." Do not soft-soap "NO," which means "Stop what you're doing."

   Don't forget to praise your dog when he obeys and reward him with Milk-Bone Dog Biscuits, a dog's favorite treat.

9. Formalized obedience work. You may choose to seek professional guidance, private or group training to teach you how to handle and train your dog. When looking for a qualified trainer, ask for references, look at group classes in progress, and use your intuition about people to select the best trainer for you and your canine. Check with local Kennel Clubs and Humane Shelters.

   NOTE: There is no licensing of Professional Dog Trainers. Ask for references; find out what training techniques are used. Appearance, personality and professionalism should be a basis for selecting your trainer.

   Training is an investment; you and your dog will live together for 8-15 years.

10. Training is teaching. A good teacher does not use intimidation, anger or pain as a technique for learning. Anger, frustration and physical punishment will confuse and scare the puppy, interrupting the learning process. A puppy is a baby. When teaching your puppy, always keep this in mind.