As a dog owner, you have the duty to train your dog and teach him new things. A trained dog is always happy, because he knows how to make you trust him. Love alone isn’t enough for the health and well being of your pet. He needs to understand your commands and be part of a team. Your dog will be happier if you treat him as your partner. Dog training is about establishing a strong relationship between you and your pet, a relationship based on trust and not on competition.
To teach your dog how to integrate in your life and family, it’s necessary to train him. A trained dog has more freedom and more opportunities. You must start training your dog in his first months of life.
For an effective communication between two individuals it’s required the use of a language that can be understood by both of them. This process takes places easily between people, because they have different communication systems available. But when a man has to communicate with other species, the problem is complicated because there is no common language. Or maybe it exists, but not all people can see and understand it. By training your dog, you offer him the possibility to communicate with you. Thus, he learns a series of words that have a meaning for both of you. On the other hand, you must be able to understand his gestures and behavior.
Start by learning more about your dog’s gestures and behavior. When the dog holds his head high and his neck arched, it means that he wants to show his superiority. The leaning of a dog’s head to the right or to the left expresses curiosity and interest. When he is obedient, he holds his head down.
If the dog holds his tail between legs, it means that he is afraid of something. When he holds his tail high, he is alert. Fast wags of the tail are a sign of excitement and happiness. A simple tail wag expresses self- confidence, but also fear and anxiety.
The way in which your dog holds his ears expresses the dog’s level of attention. If your dog is very attentive and focused, he holds his ears erect facing forward. When he holds his ears laid back, he is scared. Some dogs can’t use their ears to transmit clear signals, because they have drop ears.
Socializing is an important factor in dog training. Regardless of age or breed, you dog mustn’t attack any other dog and must be sociable with people, especially with children. You must train him to be a good companion in every situation. The dog must interact with the environment from an early age. The lack of socialization leads to insecurity, fear or aggression towards people and animals. Some dogs have behavioral problems because they haven’t been encouraged to face new situations. Even if the pet is sociable, this doesn’t mean that he will have the same behavior in adulthood, because his behavior may change. If you don’t help him socialize, he might become aggressive, anxious and shy.
As you see, there are many factors that have a key role in dog training. What matters the most is to treat your dog as an equal, without underestimating his ability to understand you. It’s very important to reward him every time he does something good; if he refuses to obey, don’t give him any incentives.
About the author: Remco van Reenen is an expert on dogtraining and on his website you can find all sorts of tips. You can also get lots of accessories to make training your dog easy in the section