Dogs thrive when their guardians provide good leadership, consistency, timing and routine. As we don’t speak dog and dogs don’t speak human, I strive to bridge the communication gap by providing you and your dog the skills to communicate in ways your dog will understand. This training philosophy is geared to enhance the relationship between you and your dog by deepening your understanding of canines and how they think. My approach is based on positive motivation, your dog will love it and want to work for you as we tap into his natural way of thinking.
Behavioural training is great for dogs of all breeds and life stages, especially puppies. Once the program has been completed, you may very well be satisfied and no further skills are required other than reinforcement. You may also choose more advanced behaviours and exercises which are fun for you and your animal companion. The training program forms the foundation upon which all advanced training is built. Below is the schedule over a four week program. We want our dogs to learn and perfect each group of behaviours in small, manageable steps, providing enough time to practise, thereby achieving reliable outcomes. I will teach you the techniques and demonstrate the behaviours, thereby empowering you with the tools to practise and perfect them.
Each of your practice training sessions is best kept short and focussed, no longer than 30 seconds to 3 minutes at first. They can and should be repeated often, a minimum of three sessions each day is fine, but if you have the energy and time your dog can be trained up to about five or six times daily. The more you practise the more hard wired behaviours will become, with results being achieved in a shorter space of time.
At first it is best to focus on teaching your dog one behaviour at a time, once it has been “offered” a few times, end your session with play and a jackpot of treats for a job well done.
Always end on a high note by having your dog perform the intended behaviour as much of their learning actually takes place between lessons. And have fun, your dog will be more inclined to work for you next time if you are both enjoying yourselves!
The Cost
What you'll Need
Week 1: Introduction, Attention paying and focus.
Week 2: Sit, Down, Down-Stay, Sit-Stay, Bite inhibition, drop it and leave it.
Week 3: Retrieve motivation (fetch), Heel-work, Recall (come when called), Return to Heel.
Week 4: The three D’s – Distraction, Duration, Distance.
Simple behaviours like sit may have already been learned, we will nonetheless reinforce them all to greater levels of reliability.
If at any time things aren’t working out, don’t be afraid to go back in your training to something easier for your dog to achieve with ease. Start over with attention-paying and focus, followed by a few sit-stays, and then move forward again. Should you and your dogs’ advancement be such that tasks are mastered within the timeframe provided, we will move faster. All dogs are different, it’s important to work at your dog’s pace and keep him motivated.
All exercises trained at home to a point of reliability need to be practised in as many different environments as possible so they become reliable regardless of the level of distractions. Dogs do not generalise well, what’s perfected at home can be a complete failure in a busy dog park. Begin training in a low distraction environment (a familiar space like your garden) and then try them out in different settings at a pace he can cope with. It is also important to note that treats will be faded out and replaced with more natural rewards as training progresses.
*Not all dogs can be motivated to a high level of retrieving skills. Boerboels, Mastiffs and Great Danes for example couldn’t be bothered.