Dog Puppy Behavior Training Help

Your Choice- Obnoxious Dog or Well Mannered Pet

Every day, I speak with clients about meeting their dogs’ basic needs. Most of us assume our dogs are getting plenty of exercise and stimulation when the dogs are alone (or with other dogs) in a large fenced area. The dog is in the great outdoors, so she must be getting enough exercise, right? Wrong. This is not usually the case, unless you have a turbo Jack Russell Terrier, like the one pictured...

Limitations of Rewards Based Dog Training

Animals that already own rewards will not perform behaviors to receive the same rewards they already own. Animals that receive rewards without any behavioral requirements will not examine and modify their own behaviors in order to receive the same rewards they already have. This means dog training success via positive reinforcement depends on your ability to Identify -  Manage –...

Mini Goldendoodle Puppy Training Plan

Living with an untrained dog can be exhausting, for years . . . and years. We often develop elaborate plans for ourselves and our families that include life stages, education, careers, finances, property, vacations, remodeling, and one-time events. The key to planning any event is to understand your goals and expectations. Raising a mini goldendoodle puppy (or any puppy) is a chore! People who have...

Want to Teach Your 10 Week Old Puppy to Sit? Forget About it. :) It’s Too late. . .

Did you want to teach your 10 week old puppy to sit? Forget about it. It’s too late. That turbo charged puppy already knows how to perform every basic obedience command! Your dog knows how to sit and lie down. He can stay.  Your pup knows how to walk towards you. Your puppy knows how to run to you. Your puppy dog can walk the same speed as you. That fellow knows how to dig, or “not dig”....

Dog Training is a Process, Not an Event

Raising a puppy and training a dog is a process, not an event. It’s not much different than raising a child (except in 3 years your puppy will be an adult dog). Suppose you hire me to come to your house and teach your child to be polite. I can tell the kid which words to use ,what they mean, and when to use them. That teaching session is an event. But later, I will not be with your child to...

AA-1 Steps to Success – Stubborn Dogs

Steps to Success - Dog Training Theory - Too often, a puppy is brought into the home and our methods of teaching consist of “screaming no” and “swatting with a newspaper”. I know that’s how I did it before I learned about animal learning and behavior! How primitive. Edward Thorndike’s Law of Effect “Of several responses made to the same situation, those which...

AA-2 What is Animal Training? Communication & Cooperation

Animal Training What is animal training? Animal training is the act of encouraging or discouraging an animal to perform specific behaviors more often or less often under particular circumstances. It’s really all about increasing and decreasing behaviors. Every time you increase one desirable behavior, you decrease multiple undesirable behaviors. For example, when you teach your dog to “sit”,...

AA-3 Markers, Reward System, Rewards Awareness Program (NILIF)

What are Markers? In order to communicate, it’s helpful to teach the animal a few phrases, actions or events that have specific meanings. I refer to these signals as markers. Markers can be words, phrases, noises, sounds, hand signals, flashes of light, stomps on the floor, touches, odors or other stimuli the animal can sense. Professional trainers teach and use multiple markers to give the animal...

AA-4 Dog & Puppy Training Plan-Obedience Commands

How’s Bentley Training Plan for All Dogs Before you can begin to teach your dog or puppy, it’s best to have a training plan. The plan begins with a list of coping skills and behaviors that your dog will need during his or her lifetime. Think about helpful, real-life skills and their applications. Prioritize each skill and write your definition of success. Identify all the components that...