Dog training is an ongoing process. It’s not about the ribbons. It’s not about the scores. It’s not about the applause. Those things are nice, but it’s not why we train our dogs. Every day – every single day – we’re doing something with our dogs. Even if it’s just feeding them and taking them outside to eliminate, we’re doing something with them. On a Saturday I may say, “I’m doing nothing today!” But I’m not being literal. I can’t do nothing. Because that face is looking up at me. I know that he’ll get into trouble if I don’t make him think for at least five minutes a day. And he won’t leave me alone until I do something with him. He’ll jump on me, looking at me with that face…
So we’ll practice “sit.” And “down.” And “come.” And so on. And then we’ll run around and be silly, because dog training is not serious. It’s important, but it’s not serious. Even fetching a ball teaches a dog useful skills. Like coming back to me while he’s holding something. And running around in a circle with me teaches him to chase my shoulder on an agility course. And then maybe I can do nothing on a Saturday.
