Why Some Dogs DON'T Get Trained

So yesterday I helped my sister-in-law move into a new home.

I got up at 5:30AM, drove two hours, rented a U-haul and spent the rest of the day helping her move.

If you were to ask me what my top five least favorite things to do are, moving would be right next to getting a root canal and meeting with my accountant.

It's the kind of project that you would procrastinate doing if you could.

Procrastination is a HUGE problem for a lot of people - me included.

I have to fight it all the time.

But I have found the cure for procrastination and I'm going to share it with you.
Here it is:

When you are focused on a task that needs to be completed, focus on the reward NOT
the process.

Simple yes. Profound, absolutely.

See, a lot of dogs don't get trained because we focus on the process and NOT the reward. There are times when we're tired, stressed, or pressed for time and it's just easier to put off the training.

Some people just don't enjoy the process of training, but, if you can focus on the reward and not the process, you can get your dog to behave and become the obedient dog that you always dreamed of.

Right now I'm training one of my dogs to retrieve an adult beverage from the fridge
when I give the command. I'm hoping to have her trained by the Superbowl.

Some days even me, The Amazing Dog Training Man, thinks of better things to do than training. When I start thinking that way, I focus on the reward. I think about how awesome it will be to have my dog run over to the fridge, open the door and bring my back a cold beverage.

I can picture the looks on my friends' faces when they see her do the command. I can picture all of them asking me if they can ask her to get them a brewski.

When you start thinking that way the process goes away and the training becomes fun.

Do you want your dog to walk on leash without pulling, to come back when you call, to stay when you ask? If you're ready to focus on the reward and not the process and start training your dog to listen to all of your commands, let me help you.

My on-line course can help you. Check it out at:

http://www.amazingdogtrainingman.com/homestudy1.htm

See for yourself how easy and fun training can be.

Your friend,

Eric

Why Dogs Pull On Leash

How can you pick out a lab owner standing in a group of dog owners?

Answer: The lab owner is the one with a sling on her arm, a black eye, and using crutches.

That's a bad joke that I used to tell when ever I was doing one of my leash walking seminars. I used to do weekend seminars just on leash walking and I always told that bad joke because of an incident that happened shortly after I opened my dog training business.

You see, one Saturday afternoon I was finishing up a day of teaching classes when a very nice lady walked into my office. She looked like she was in a Rocky movie. She had two huge black eyes, a piece of tape over her nose and her face was red and puffy.

I found out that her face was puffy from crying, she started to cry almost as soon as she walked in the door. She then told the story of her big 90lb. black lab that was the cause of her injuries and her crying.

She went on to explain that she was about to take her dog for walk, something she absolutely dreaded because he was such an awful puller. He would drag her around for about thirty minutes and taking him for a walk was terrible.

She added that the other day she was getting ready to take him for a walk. Just as she was about to exit the house her husband called to her. She stopped just as she was walking out the door. Her lab was outside the house and she was still inside the house.

As she was standing in the house holding her dog's leash as he was outside, her dog saw a cat. Her lab seeing the cat took off after it full speed. She had the loop of the leash around her wrist.

With the speed of a boat pulling a skier out of the water she went face first into the door, breaking her nose and injuring her wrist.

It was then that she started to cry - she said that she loved her dog. He was sweet, never chewed, never had any housetraining issues but she could not control him on the leash. He pulled her everywhere and it was becoming impossible to walk him anywhere.

I assured her that she was in the right place and that we would get her dog walking on leash in no time. A few days later she showed up with her happy, excitable, strong lab and we started our leash training. I explained to her that the best place to start training is to understand why dogs do certain behaviors.

When it comes to pulling there are three reasons why dogs pull. Once you understand what the reasons are you can take steps to fix the problem. Here they are:

Reason #1: Your dog has no clue that they are supposed to walk next to you.

Reason #2: Opposition reflex.

Reason #3: Your dog is constantly being rewarded for pulling.

So let's look at the first reason why dogs pull - Your dog has no clue that he is supposed to walk at your side. When you put your dog on leash your dog does not know that he is supposed to walk politely at your side. Your dog sees a big world in front of him and starts to pull.

The first step is to teach your dog to walk at your side. I start by using a food lure and having the dog follow the food lure.

IMPORTANT POINT: The is a exercise that you practice in a non-distracting area. The purpose of this exercise is to teach your dog where you want him to be. Taking your dog for a walk with a food lure won't work for long. There are too many distractions.



You want to spend about 10 minutes a day just having your dog follow the food lure at your side. This is laying the foundation for the future. Once your dog starts to understand that you want your dog to walk on your side you can add a slight correction that will teach your dog to stay at your side.

In my next post I'll explain opposition reflex and why that makes walking your dog difficult.

Good luck and I look forward to your comments.

Best,

Eric

P.S. You can teach your dog to walk on your left or right side. If you plan to do competitive obedience your dog has to be on your left side.

P.P.S. If you don't need to teach your dog to walk on leash but are interested in more about dog training visit: Amazing Dog Training Man Home Study