Using positive dog training techniques can be a great way to get your dog to happily and willingly respond to your commands every time. Using rewards and praise to let your dog know when he's done well and using effective penalties to let him know when you're not so happy is the easiest and most effective way to train any dog.
During positive dog training, it's important to understand a little bit about how your dog thinks. Dogs are pack animals. When you bring them into your family, they assume your family are his pack. He will naturally spend some time trying to figure out what his role within the pack is going to be. It's important that you establish yourself as pack leader quickly or you'll find yourself with a dog who constantly tests your authority by chewing your shoes or clothes or one who jumps all over you whenever he can.
Once he begins to understand that you're the alpha dog, he'll work very hard to please you. It's your responsibility to use his willingness to please you as a part of your positive dog training techniques. This means establishing a reward system and a penalty system.
Once again, rewards and penalties need to be based on his psychology. He will view praise, affection, attention and food as being rewards.
However, the most effective way you can let your dog know that you're not pleased is to turn your back on your dog and ignore him. Never hit or smack a dog. This is not seen as punishment for doing something wrong. Dogs only view aggression as something to fear, so they may be tempted to retaliate out of fear. A big part of positive dog training is getting your dog to seek out ways to receive the positive rewards he's seeking, so this means he'll begin to behave if it means he'll receive attention and affection for doing well.
Another aspect of positive dog training is teaching your dog how to recognize various tones in your voice and specific signals. Dogs don't technically understand words. They read body language and the tone you use when you talk to them. When you want to praise your dog, tell him 'Good dog' in a high-pitched, happy voice. When your dog was a puppy, his mother would call her pups to her using a high pitched yip, while she will use a low, abrupt sound to reprimand her pups if they play too harshly. You need to learn to use similar tones to let your dog know when he's doing well and when you're unhappy.
A good example of positive dog training at work is to assume you have a dog that jumps up at you and at visitors to your home. When your dog jumps up on you, don't yell or push him away. Give out a low, abrupt growling noise, like 'Ah!', and fold your arms over your chest. Then turn your back on him. This is a severe penalty in dog-language.
When your dog stops jumping and sits down to try and figure out what you're doing, quickly reinforce the command to 'Sit' and then switch the tone of your voice to a high-pitched tone to say 'Good dog' and give him a pat. The happy tone along with your affection is a great reward for your dog. Using this form of positive dog training means you're communicating with your dog on a level he can understand.
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