Fran on Friday
I have the rewarding task of teaching the Beginner class at our training club on Tuesday evenings. I say rewarding, because every week I see small improvements in my students.
We are firm believers in rewarding a dog’s good behavior and ignoring stuff we don’t like (unless it’s something dangerous). This is very different from the way many people trained their dogs years ago. Very different from the pop-and-yank aversion training we all had.
People want to see results quickly and don’t understand when I tell them not to expect to see a lot of difference in their dogs’ behavior until well into the course. Yes, giving leash corrections when teaching your dog to walk nicely at your side (we call this “heeling”) will get them cowering at your side while you walk around a ring. But, I prefer to see a dog trotting happily at the handler’s side when there are lots of distractions around.
I like to reward my dog when I see a behavior that I like. He likes cheese or chicken – I bring cheese or chicken to class. I’d prefer my dog to choose to work with me than to see him grovelling at my feet. And this takes time. Patience, people! You’ll get there! You’ll have your dog for, hopefully, many years. Give him a few months to learn what you expect from him!
