Training

Why should training be fun for the dog? Briefest possible answer? “It’s the law.” How animals learn is the most-studied phenomenon in the history of psychology and is up there with gravity in terms of its lawfulness. One of the big ticket principles is that anything one tries to teach a new learner (such as a beginner dog) will get stronger in direct proportion to how many times it is rewarded. And (of perhaps even greater interest) every time the new learner does the behavior and is not rewarded (as in, say, “drilling” the same behavior over and over again) the behavior gets weaker. (Not just “doesn’t get stronger” – gets weaker.) In other words, it’s better to do nothing at all than to drill without rewards.

People have many questions when it comes to dog training: Lure-reward training or clicker training? Group classes or private lessons? Basic obedience or beyond? What type of trainer is best for dealing with your dog's behavior challenges? Finding the right trainer is an important piece of the training puzzle. Dog training is an unregulated industry; anyone can hang up a sign and instantly become a dog trainer. If you mix some decent Web-authoring skills with a college-level book on public relations, even yesterday's Fed-Ex clerk can have the Web presence of a seasoned dog training professional.

There is absolutely no evidence, not one bit, suggesting that providing comfort and security to a distressed dog causes the dogs anxiety or fear to increase. Why then, does this myth persist among dog owners and even with some trainers? Why are owners still advised to ignore their dog when he is distressed or anxious or fearful, as if providing any attention to the dog will reinforce those emotions?

When I first started to learn about training, it was in the world of competitive dog obedience. In that specialized niche, dog training was...

Switching to positive training? At first, it might be frustrating for you – and your dog. The benefits, however, will last a lifetime. In positive training, the goal is to help the dog do the right thing and then reward him for it, rather than punishing him for doing the wrong thing. If he makes a mistake, the behavior is ignored, or excused with an “Oops, try again!” to encourage the dog to do something else.

You'll never hear me say that coercive dog training methods don't work; they can. Nor will you ever hear me say that positive dog training turns every dog into a model canine citizen. It doesn't. There is a big difference, however, between positive and coercive training. When methods that rely on the use of force and application of pain fail, it's often because of the dog's inability to tolerate coercion and intimidation. This can result in serious long-term behavioral damage and sometimes physical injury.

Woody

The modern dog owner spends a lot of time thinking about their dog’s social skills. We do what we can to ensure we make...

It's fairly common for dogs to be placed for adoption with a caveat that there should be no cats

Most people, unwittingly or intentionally, use a lot of physical force when raising and training their dogs. The purposeful ones have a whole variety of reasons. Some may have read about behavioral theories regarding dominance and “the importance of showing the dog who’s boss.” Fans of these theories may advocate imitations of canine behavior such as “scruff shakes” or “Alpha rolls” to convince the dog he’s at the bottom of the family hierarchy. Others may have been influenced by advocates of traditional, military-style training – think of yanking collar ‘corrections’ or using the leash leveraged under their foot to forcibly pull a dog into a Down.

Life with any dog has its moments of agony and ecstasy. The ecstasy happens when our dogs' behaviors are top notch, and all systems seem to run smoothly. The agony happens when our dogs have an oops" moment

What images do you see in your mind when you hear the word “monastery”? Most people envision rustic wooden buildings, with gentle, somber, bearded men in flowing brown robes and leather sandals quietly treading gravel pathways that wind through peaceful forests. This could be an accurate description of the New Skete Monastery in Cambridge, New York, with just one glaring omission. At New Skete, the monks are accompanied by dogs. For more than 30 years, the monks of New Skete have bred, trained and sold German Shepherds as part of their monastic life.