To teach your pup basic manners that
will make him/her welcome members of the human community.
Many of us grew up thinking that dogs
could not be trained until they were at least six months old. This
belief was based upon the traditional, command-based training
techniques that utilized choke chains and corrections. With the more
contemporary reward-based training techniques (lure/reward and
clicker training), training can start much, much earlier and thus
helps teach the pup the right behaviors from the start. The first six
months of a dog’s life are an opportune time to set the
foundation for lifelong skills and behaviors that will help cement a
solid relationship between pup and human family members.
Puppy training should begin as soon
as your bring your new puppy home! Many people are surprised to learn
that pups as young as seven and eight weeks of age can begin learning
"obedience" cues such as "Sit!" and "Down," and that this is the best
time to teach them other important behaviors such as no jumping, not
to pull on the leash, and to learn to inhibit their mouthing and
biting.
There are several basic behaviors to teach your
pup, regardless of his/her age. Note that the training technique used to teach
all these behaviors is based on "clicker training," a teaching technique that
uses a clicker or a verbal "marker" such
as "Yes!" that tells the pup "Yes!"; what you did right thereis the
behavior that is going to earn you a reward.
Clicker training waits to associate a
cue or name to the behavior until after the pup understands the
behavior itself. It
does not use any physical
modeling (pushing or pulling your pup).
Dolphin trainers have used
clicker training for over 30 years and by dog trainers for over to 10
years. (For extensive information about clicker training, go to
www.clickertraining.com,
a Web site created by one of the leading clicker trainers in the
country, Karen Pryor.)
Mouthing and
Biting
First, make sure your pup has a
variety of toys (rope toys, balls, squeakies, etc.) to play with
as a good alternative to chewing on you. When you see the pup
running at you, pick up a toy and toss it to the pup, and praise
him/her for chasing the toy instead. Never laugh and encourage
your pup to chew your shoelaces. This may be cute as a puppy, but
within a few days, you'll discover it's not so fun anymore!
Instead, stand still, and toss a toy.
Second, when your pup mouths and
bites you too hard, say "Ouch!" in a deep, firm voice, and get up
and walk away. Repeat, repeat, repeat, until the pup understands
that it is his/her biting that makes the playing end. If your pup
runs after you and continues to jump and mouth you, here’s a
great training solution: attach a length of cloth clothesline
(about 8’ long) to your pup’s collar, and tether the
other end to a piece of heavy furniture. Play with your pup in the
immediate area where he is tethered. as soon as he exerts too much
jaw pressure, say "Ouch!" and walk away in a huff. He won’t
be able to follow you and he won’t be able to just scamper
off to something more interesting. He’ll be forced to have a
brief timeout (two minutes) before you return to give him another
chance to play appropriately.
Be patient! all puppies mouth and
bite. That’s how they explore their world and how they would
be playing with their littermates, who would be teaching them all
about bite inhibition. If you find that your pup is not responding
to your "Ouch" and timeouts, it could be she/he is like an
overtired toddler. In that case, give your pup a break from all
the activity by placing him/her in a quiet place with a stuffed
Kong or tether him/her with the Kong, and try again
later.
Do not(these are
either ineffective, dangerous, and/or cruel):
- chuck or hit your pup under
the chin
- push your fingernails inside
the pup’s mouth
- try to hold your pup’s
mouth shut
- shake your pup by the
scruff
- roll the pup over in the old
"alpha roll"
Don’t punish. Teach instead.
You are the teacher. The pup is your student. Be patient. Be
kind.
Jumping
First, don’t
reinforce it! We often unwittingly reinforce jumping by letting
very young pups jump all over us. When your pup jumps up on you,
simply turn away. Then, turn back to your pup and lure him/her
into a sit with a little treat, and give the treat as the reward
for sitting instead of jumping. Never touch, talk to, or smile at
a puppy who is jumping on you; those are all reinforcements for
jumping!
Sit
Get some tasty treats.
Some dogs like Cheerios, some like cheese or hot dogs. Some will
work fine for regular kibble. Experiment to see what your dog
likes and use the "lowest-value" treat you can get away with,
reserving "high-value" treats for the tougher behaviors
you’ll be teaching later.
Hold the treat just above
your pup’s nose.
More than likely your pup will
look up to see the treat. Move the treat back as your pup’s
nose follows it. Kerplunk! Down goes his rear-end! Say "Yes!" to
mark the right behavior, and then give him the treat.
It’s a basic law of doggy physics that when the nose and head
goes up and back, the rear-end goes down It’s that easy! No
need to pull on your pup’s collar or push on his rear-end.
Create a thinking dog by letting him decide to do what it takes
to get that treat!
If your dog jumps up to grab at
the treat, simply start over, making sure you are not
raising the treat too far above his nose. This will make the pup
want to jump up to grab it instead of having his rear-end hit the
floor. Do this four or five times with the treat in your hand, and
then lure him/her without any treat in your hand. You may be
surprised to find that the pup will follow this new hand signal,
and sit. Move to different locations and repeat several times.
When you pup clearly has the idea (many just start following you
around and sitting without a hand signal), you are ready to add
the cue, "Sit!" You do this by saying the word in a fun, upbeat
voice, just as the pup starts to sit (or before, if you are good
at predicting what your pup’s going to do). It will now take
between 30 and 50 repetitions of the new cue for the pup to
associate it with the behavior he already knows. No, don’t do
30 sits in a row! Break it up and make it fun over several
separate training sessions.
Be sure to take this new behavior
"on the road" by asking him to sit in different parts of the
house, the yard, the park, etc.
Down
This works easiest from a
sit. With a treat, lure your pup’s nose straight down
between his front feet. When your pup reaches down to follow the
treat, his/her elbows will bend. Don’t wait for the whole
down. Say "Yes!" to mark the behavior you like, and give the
treat. Gradually build up to the point where the elbows are
touching the floor, say "Yes!" and treat.
If your pup’s
rear-end keeps popping up, simply start over, making sure
you are not raising the treat too far forward in front of his feet
instead of straight down. Just remove the treat and start over,
shaping this behavior gradually by marking and treating each time
his shoulders and elbows go lower and lower. He’ll get it
eventually!
Just like above, when you
have successfully lured him all the way down four or five times
with the treat in your hand, try luring him/her without any treat
in your hand. You may be surprised to find that the pup will
follow this new hand signal, and go down. Remember to move to
different locations and repeat the new behavior several times.
When your pup clearly has the idea, you are ready to add the cue,
"Down!" You do this by saying the word in a fun, upbeat voice,
just as the pup starts to go down (or before, if you are good at
predicting what your pup’s going to do). It will now take
between 30 and 50 repetitions of the new cue for the pup to
associate it with the behavior he already knows. No, don’t do
30 downs in a row! Break it up and make it fun over several
separate training sessions.
Come (also excellent
for teaching a new pup its name)
First, avoid using your
pup’s name except when you want him/her to pay attention to
you. Don’t use the pup’s name in casual conversation!
When you do use the pup’s name, you should be just a
couple of feet away at first. Excitedly say, "Fido!" and when your
pup looks at you, say "Yes!" and hand him/her a treat and praise
and pet profusely. Increase the distance slowly and only very
gradually add distractions.
Reward, Reward,
Reward
Never call the pup
to you to be reprimanded, give a bath, or other unpleasant times.
When you do call your pup, reward profusely by praising, petting,
and giving him/her a special treat.
Gotcha
This exercise teaches a pup to let people
grab his/her collar without mouthing, biting, or trying to run away. There
will be a time in the pup’s life that you will need to quickly
grab the collar. All dogs are "hard-wired" to spin around and grab anything
that is grabbing its neck. We need to desensitize the pup to this to avoid
children being bitten and to allow us to grab the dog in an emergency.
Get your treats handy. Sit in
front of the pup, and reach toward him/her (don’t grab yet),
and reward ("Yes!" and treat) when the pup doesn’t mouth or
jump at your hand. If s/he does, repeat, but this time don’t
reach as far toward the pup. Gradually build up to the point where
you are able to reach all the way to the side of your pup’s
head without any mouthing. This should be pretty easy once the pup
figures out all s/he has to do to earn the treat is to let you
reach toward him/her!
Next, build up to the point where
you can touch the pup’s neck and, eventually, the collar.
When you get to the point of being able to put your fingers under
the collar, start saying "Gotcha!" as you reach toward the pup.
Now, say "Gotcha!" each time, and build up to the point of
grabbing the collar and giving it a mild pull.
Congratulations, you have just
taught your pup a most valuable lesson! Practice it frequently and
from different angles (in front, from the side, and from
behind).
How to Teach an Old Dog New
Tricks by Dr. Ian Dunbar (by the veterinary behaviorist who
popularized early training and reward-based training; an excellent
book on using lure/reward training for dogs of all ages)
Toolbox for Remodeling Your
Problem Dog by Terry Ryan (Don’t be fooled by the title;
this is an excellent resource for avoiding problem behaviors by
teaching the right ones from the start.)
Sirius Puppy Training by Dr.
Ian Dunbar (by the veterinary behaviorist who popularized early
training and reward-based training)
