Obedience training your dog

[MeSheLL]

Introduction

"He steals food from the table."
"She won't come back when she's called."
"He destroyed the living room rug."
"She barked and barked until the neighbors complained."
"He's a wonderful dog, but I wish he wouldn't . . . "

Lots of dogs have no manners, and their owners are at a loss as to how to teach them manners. So these hapless folks frequently end up hollaring at poor Misty or smacking Buster on the butt with an open palm or a newspaper. Even worse, when Rambo doesn't shape up, he's banished to the basement or the backyard to live his days in solitude, or he's taken to the pound because "we just can't deal with him any more."

Obedience training would have prevented many of these problems and can help solve the bad behaviors that exist. Many people think that obedience training is something that is done to a dog to make it perform some artificial activity on command. But if we turn the words around, we'll be closer to a real definition: Obedience training is to train dogs to be obedient, to obey anything and everything they're told to do. It covers a wide range of lessons a dog can learn, including tricks, family manners, show ring exercises, and skills demonstrations. Sniffing dogs, service dogs for handicapped owners, search and rescue dogs, sled and carting dogs, hunting dogs -- all carry their obedience training to the highest degree. They have been trained to obey an unusual set of commands that increase their value as helpers to man.

Training would be a cinch if dogs spoke the same language that people speak. But, alas, 'tis not so. Dogs have their own attitudes,voice and body language, and mindset. They can be stubborn, dominant, submissive, or fearful, characteristics that can make them difficult to train.

The ultimate goal...

The goal of dog training is to build a bond between pet and family and to enjoy the process. A training class should be fun, informative, and helpful. If any of these ingredients are missing, if the instructor strikes the dog as correction, if the instructor does anything you consider questionable, ask why and if you're not satisfied with the answers, leave the class. Sticking it out because you already paid the fee could do great damage to your relationship with your pet.