Dog Behavior Training – Where to Start
How soon should you begin dog behavior training after you bring home your new pet? The answer is “right away.” The only exception to this is if your dog is younger than 8 weeks old when you bring him home, as dogs are dependent on their mothers until that age, so if he is younger than that, you will mainly be filling in the mother role by nurturing him. Once he is 8 weeks old, however, training should begin without delay. The sooner he learns how to behave in your home, the better the two of you will get along.
The first thing you need to remember is that dogs need to respect their leader. Since the leader is, theoretically, you, you need to get your dog to respect you as such. This means you must act like the leader of the pack. Be commanding, be firm, and accept no nonsense in certain areas, but be gentle and loving at the same time. Never, ever hit or yell at your dog, because then he won’t respect you, he will just fear you, and you don’t want that. You’ll never be close that way, and damage done early to your relationship might not be able to be reversed.
When you start dog behavior training, you’ll want to begin with house training, as this will be a big key to your ability to live happily together. Once you’ve accomplished that, you can move on to simple commands like “sit”, “stay”, “speak”, “shake hands”, “heel”, and “lay down.” These tricks are all fairly easy for most dogs to learn, and you can re-enforce the behavior with lots of praise and a treat whenever the dog does it correctly.
Finally, you’ll want to teach your dog to follow any rules that are specific to your house. For example, some people don’t want their dogs on the furniture, while others don’t care. Some people allow their dogs to sleep in the bed with them, while others insist the dog sleeps in a bed of his own. Dog behavior training for your pet must include specific things you want him to learn, and then the two of you can be happy together.
