Pawsome Tails
Encouraging good behaviour in your dogs
Dogs benefit greatly from positive reinforcement. Training your dog plays a pivotal role in how it will act later and integrate with you and your family. This week we are looking at some dog-training tips and the power of praise.
Let’s face it, it’s no fun to constantly be shouting at a naughty dog or dealing with a dog that does its business indoors instead of outdoors. Finding that your dog has gotten its teeth into a favourite pair of shoes can be horrifying. Similarly, if your dog destroys things around the house, such as an expensive couch, it can be just as disappointing.
All dogs go through a naughty puppy phase, and it’s up to us to invest the time and effort into training them. After all, dogs want to please us, they want to be rewarded for good behaviour, but without our direction, how do they succeed in doing this?
A simple thing called routine
Photo by Chevanon Photography from Pexels.
It’s very easy to get a new puppy house trained, and it’s all about a simple thing called routine. When Vinkel and Koljander were puppies, I made sure that I instilled a routine in them from the moment they arrived home. After every meal I would take them outside and give them an opportunity to do their business, and, similarly, every time they woke up first thing in the morning and after naps. And praise always went along with it and rewards in the form of treats. To this day they have a set routine that we go outside just before bedtime and they do their business, which is followed by a biscuit. They know it’s bedtime and I get a good night’s sleep and never wake up to a mess in the house. My dogs also know that if it’s an emergency and they really need to go out at night, they wake me up and I attend to them immediately. But because of my set routine with them, this rarely happens.
Golden retrievers are easy to train, just as many other breeds are, and dogs are more intelligent than we might think and love to please their owners.
Positive reinforcement
Positive reinforcement is pivotal in training your dog. It doesn’t require shouting at your dog or using a strong tone of voice. Positive reinforcement allows you to communicate clearly with your dog. You decide what you want your dog to do, or not do, and let it know through rewards when it has completed the desired action.
Positive reinforcement does not always mean that you are rewarding your dog with a treat – as this could easily lead to weight gain. The tone of your voice, cuddles, and snuggles are a sure way to communicate to your dog that it has done something that has made you proud.
Confusing your dog?
Instilling fear in your dog is not the way for your dog to learn. Punishing your dog for something it did some time after he did it when you have not caught it in the act, confuses the dog. The dog does not understand what the punishment is for and simply sees this as abuse. A good example of this kind of confusion is when you punish your dog for a house-breaking accident. People often revert to the old smacking the dog with a rolled -up newspaper, which serves to scare the dog. This, instead of communicating to your dog that it should not do its business indoors, serves to make your dog feel nervous around you. And so these types of accidents keep occurring. Again, it is pivotal to reiterate the importance of routine when house-breaking your puppy.
Aggressive dogs may become more aggressive when dealt with in an aggressive way; similarly, dogs that are fearful or a bit neurotic will only become more fearful when being yelled it.
Be patient and willing to invest
The key to positive reinforcement is consistency and patience. If you do not want your dog to beg food from the table, never give it food from the table and make sure that your family abides by all the same rules when it comes to training. When there is more than one person involved in training a dog and each person takes a different approach, the dog will become confused and the training will be futile. Also find a few simple words that your dog can understand, words such as “come”, “sit”, “stay” and “go home”, and make sure that everyone in your family is using the same words.
Training your dog is a stimulating experience and with positive reinforcement, they feel loved and proud in pleasing you. Remember, a bored dog can also easily become a naughty dog, so exercise and mental stimulation are key in training your dog.
It’s also important to keep toys for your dog around that is specifically theirs. Remember, a puppy needs to have things it can chew on during teething. Try and keep forms of temptation out of their way during these stages and rather let the things that are lying around be for them to chew on.
When Vinkel and Koljander were puppies, I often had to steer them away from temptations, but always showed them their own toys and then praised them when they chewed on these. At the end of the day, I barely ever had to shout at them, and they have turned out to be two incredibly obedient dogs that still receive praise on a daily basis for routines instilled long ago. This really does make for a happy family.
Make sure that you have the time and ability to put in the effort of training a new furry addition to your family. This is only fair to the dog and will make for a much happier family all around. It’s your responsibility to invest in your dog. Dogs are clever and quick at learning a routine. Once you have the good behaviours in place, all you have to do is keep up the praise.
That’s it for this week, from me, Vinkel and Koljander. Paw five! Woof!
Read more here: https://thehappypuppysite.com/the-evidence-for-positive-reinforcement-training-in-dogs/
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