Dog Obedience Training

If he is breaking before you release him you may be expecting to much at his age.. you have to slowly work up to timing.. start with 30 seconds.. then after a few days try a minute.. etc.. 2 major things.. if you watch you can tell when hes about to break (as you said he gets anxious) release him at that point and say good boy... This does two things.. it shows you are in control and hes not getting away with anything and it ends that portion on a positive note. always end training on a positive note. Make training fun not something he'll dread.. How old is he? Keep training short sessions. Its better to do 10 short sessions that an hour long session.. and ideally its better to incorporate the training into daily routine though that may need to wait a while depending on age.

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"Let the beauty we love, be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground." Rumi

The dog owners that have the best luck with their dog is the one that go to a puppy or dog class to learn basis obedience. Your vet, local kennel club(call or look up AKC) , or where you get your dog food can help .Usually the class is in the evening about an hour and last about 8 or 9 weeks and they teach basis comands and how to teach your dog. In class they will teach you a basis comand and you will have the week to work on this and next week when class starts you preform the comand to the rest of class and this is good conmpitition to help you and your dog to stay on track and learn . Yes this is time out your busy schedule but you owe your dog to be a responible dog owner and not let the dog to become problem dog . A dog should be a joy and an enjoyment to have for you and the people around you . We all have different goals for our dogs but they all should respect you . Some time put into your dog now will make a more enjoyable dog later. The dog is usually not the problem the owner is the one that didn't take the time or reposiblity to make him a good dog and that includes spay and nutering them so nobody gets unwanted suprises you or your neighbor.
A book is good to help understand your dog but has a tough time teaching how to teach your dog . Don't forget the library has books on this subject
This is not intended to offend anyone but this is a sore spot because of all the legislation that has developed to say what I can and can't do . I have the right to enjoy my dog and the responibilty to have others enjoy his company. All the above post have a lot of useful information in them great job

Farm 36 ~ I completely understand your concerns, and this is why I am looking into this. This pup was dumped and we were trying to find a home for it, but it looks like it will be staying here. I have been able to get a little out of him, but since I do NOT claim to be a trainer, I am trying to find out how to work with him. "Sit" is all I've managed on my own.

I have checked with the local vet, and the animal shelter, and the only class I have found is too far away for us to get to the class without taking off work (which we are not always able to do) and traveling farther than the gas that I can afford at this time. This is why I am doing my best to find instruction online or video or book that can help us. It is not so much that my schedule is too busy, rather that I can't afford to travel that far right now, I can't afford to lose my job for this!

I am doing my best to NOT be one of those dog owners who neglects our responsibilities. For both the dog's safety and for those around him.

I appreciate all the posts, and suggestions, and will do the best I can for him. Thanks to everyone!

After reading a discussion on dogs killing chickens on here, we bought a shock collar for our Border Collie. What a difference!
She's now a loveable and obedient dog whereas before....she wasn't!

Since you said there aren't any classes in your area, this probably won't aply to you, but one thing I do NOT recomend is dropping dogs off at a trainer and picking them up after they are trained. The flat-out truth is the owners need the training more than the dogs. If you are willing to admit that and are willing to get yourself trained, via classes, books, the net, et cetera, you will have a lot better chance of having a good relationship with your dog.

I now lean to the positive-reward-only camp, such as clicker training, but pick something you think you can stick to and then just do it. And never let the dog get away with being bad. If you can't keep an eye on it, put it somewhere where it can't get into trouble.

homesteadpaul

Hi pcdreams,

We have used this method and nothing. We've put the treat right under her nose and nothing. We've used different treats and nothing.

But she'll do it when she doesn't have on her working collar.

For some reason this command is apparently her line in the sand when it comes to her "schoolwork". She'll sit, she'll stay, she'll come and she's pretty good at heel.

We've even been able to get her to stay up to 3 minutes so far. Which must be something akin to 9 days in chihuahualand.

Since we aren't going to be doing obedience trials or anything like that with Miss Mouth we can accept less than perfect response to that one command.

I just wanted her to stop charging other dogs and people while snarling like 8lbs of demon dog on steroids.

For that I'm OK with looking like the class dork when my dog won't lay down.

But we'll keep working on it. Thanks,

Pam

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I've done so much with so little for so long that I'm now qualified to do almost anything with practically nothing.

not a good idea

don't except less than perfect

Yes, they will make mistakes & yes, they will disobey, but they should know that mistakes & disobeying are WRONG
they should be taught that it is UNacceptable to disobey

when we taught our puppy, they told us......Tell him the command ONE TIME - if he doesn't do it, you make him do it.....don't keep repeating the command, or puppy learns he doesn't have to do it right away

IE......for "LIE DOWN" he either does it after the first command, or you walk over & make him do it (this can be done gently)

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We learned hand signals to go with our commands, which are exceptionally helpful when in the field hunting or from a distance when you don't want to shout.....just another thing to think about