You would definitely want your furry pet to be obedient from a very young age. Why wouldn’t you? Everyone loves a pet that obeys them in every possible manner. A dog that is well-mannered and respects its owner is everything the owner desires.

Do you have a furry pet and want to provide them good obedience training but you are confused how to? Don’t worry, we’ll help you with this. Here is a detailed information regarding skills of obedience training to teach to your dog.

Things necessary for obedience training

A suitable place: You’ll need an area sufficient for your puppy where you and your pooch is free from distractions. As you and your dog master commands, you can practice them in crowded places to check your dog’s ability to focus on your commands.

Treats or toy as rewards: For this, you’ll have to figure out what works with your dog. Some puppies are very food-driven whereas some prefer to play and toys as their rewards. If you proceed with a treat, consider the size of treats as large treats will fill your pet up very quickly and you wouldn’t want that. Would you? So, consider using small treats as rewards.

Sit command

First of all, make sure that you have your pooch’s attention a treat in your hand. Stand or sit in front of your puppy and hold your hand a little bit higher than your dog’s head. Then, use the treat to guide your pet into the position. For this, slowly move the treat straight back over your puppy’s head and towards the tail.

Teaching a dog to sit. Image Source: Instructables

As your puppy moves into the sitting position firmly, say ‘Sit” and make the hand signal of it. Then, after your dog moves into the desired position, reward your dog with a tasty treat and some praise such as “Good! Sit”. And if your pooch is facing problem understanding you, you can guide it by gently pushing. Place your two fingers on their hip and gently push their rear towards the ground saying ‘Sit’ in a firm voice.

Down command

To teach this command, your puppy should already know the ‘Sit’ command. Now, with your dog in the sit position, kneel in front of them. Then, hold a treat on your dog’s nose and guide them by lowering them onto the ground slowly. Simply say down throughout this process and make a hand gesture.

Your puppy may only slump as they move downwards and if this happens, take the treat towards away from your dog to guide them accordingly. As soon as your pooch lays down in the desired position, reward them with treats and praise instantly. You can also guide your puppy by lightly pressing them onto the ground if they are facing difficulty in understanding.

Stay command

For teaching the ‘Stay’ command, you’ll need to hold a treat in front of your dog’s nose. After that, use hand gestures to represent the command and also help your puppy by making their back-legs sit by a gentle push. After they get in the proper position, treat them with treats and praise immediately.

Teaching stay command to a dog. Image Source: Instructables

Come & go command

Before proceeding with the Come and Go commands, your pooch should know the Sit and Down commands. With your dog in the ‘sit’ or ‘down’ command, get a bit far from your dog and maintain a good distance. Then, firmly say ‘Come’ only once, and when your puppy approaches, reward them with praise and treat immediately.

Go command is used to send or order your puppy to go in their kennel. For this, you’ll have to make sure that your dog knows all the above commands. First, hold a treat on your hand and use it to lure your puppy onto the place you want. Simply, say ‘Go’ and then lure the dog by using the treat. As soon as they get in the desired position, rewards them with a treat.

Strategies for obedience training

To successfully obedience train your puppy, you’ll have the following strategies:

Go slow

You’ll have to go very slow while teaching the commands to your puppy. You cannot expect your pup to learn the command in a few minutes, it will take time but will definitely work. Be patient and teach commands, you’ll receive positive results for sure.

Make Short Training Sessions

Your puppy might get bored or stop obeying you if you train them for a long time. So, you should keep training sessions very short and make it a maximum of 15 minutes. This will help your puppy in getting interested about the training.

Be gentle

Most importantly, you’ll have to be very gentle with your puppy while training. If you treat them gently, they’ll learn and adapt very well with the training. So, always remember to be kind and loving to your pup while training.

Visit Doglime for more dog training information.