Keeping the attention of your dog while training is not always an easy task. Dogs are very easily distracted, and it is important to not allow the dog training sessions to be sabotaged by boredom. Making dog training fun for the dog and the human alike is essential to creating a happy, well-adjusted and well-trained dog.
You should provide random positive stimuli during the day in order to maintain the interest of the dog. Doing things the dog like, like walking in the park, riding in the car, and playing with other dogs, are great ways to keep the dog’s attention, but you must give him rewards for his successes.
For instance, in order to reward the dog for coming to you when you call him, ask the dog to come to you, without giving any clues about a walk, a car ride, or other treats.
After your dog has come to you and obediently sat down, attach the lead and begin the treat. This can be either the afore-mentioned walk in the park, ride in the car, or anything else the dog likes to do.
Giving some sort of reward, whether a treat, a special outing, or just a tickle behind the ears, every time the dog does something you want him to, is a good method to maintain your dog’s motivation while you are dog training.
If the dog knows something good is going to occur every time he obeys your commands, he will be more motivated to do want you tell him every time.
Distraction training.
When training any dog, it is vital to not allow distractions disrupt the training. The dog must be taught to ignore distractions, such as other people, other dogs, other animals and loud noises, and focus on what is being taught These kinds of distractions can also be used as rewards when training your dog to come when told.
For example, if your dog like playing with other dogs, whether in a local park or with the neighbour’s dogs, let him play freely with those other dogs. Then go into the park or yard and call your dog.
When he comes to you, give him lots of praise, treats and other rewards, then immediately allow the dog to go back to playing with his friends. Repeat this several times and praise the dog each time he comes over to you.
Your dog will quickly learn that coming to you means good things (treats and praise) and not bad ones (being removed from the park).
So-called distraction training is one of the hardest things to teach, because dogs are naturally social animals, and breaking away from the pack is one of the most difficult things you can ask your dog to do. Most dogs will be understandably unwilling to leave their canine companions, but it is important to persist in dog training.
Training the dog to come to you when you call can require some creativity on your behalf at first. For example, waving one of his favourite toys, or a lure, is a good way to get your dog’s attention and put the focus back on you. If your dog has been clicker trained, a quick click can be a good motivator as well in dog training.
Once the dog starts to become used to coming when called, you can begin to reduce and then stop the visual cues and focus on making the dog obey just your voice. It is vital that your dog obeys voice commands alone, as you will not always have a toy or lure to hand.
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