Teaching Your Dog Basic Commands
Dog Tips, Jul 2, 2020
By Pilar Garrido
Working as a trainer for many years and owning just as many dogs, I can’t stress enough the importance of having your pup behave in a calm, balanced and peaceful manner. When your dog understands important basic commands, the atmosphere in the house is positive and much more stress-free. A dog is also happier and more comfortable with a family when she knows the rules of the house.
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We often hear professional trainers telling us that our dogs are attentive in receiving orders but are missing a sense of balance, especially when she experiences fear or anxiety. This can be connected to a negative past trauma that she carries with her to the present day. In these cases, we need to pay special attention to maintaining our dog’s routine. This includes daily walks, respecting her space and boundaries, and only rewarding her when she is on her best behavior. Rewarding a dog when she is experiencing anxiety or stress can have a negative effect (association).
“We need to pay special attention to maintaining our dog’s routine. This includes daily walks, respecting her space and boundaries, and only rewarding her when she is on her best behavior. Rewarding a dog when she is experiencing anxiety or stress can have a negative effect (association).”
This article is intended to be an initial training reference point. It provides basic education on how you should work with your dog, especially if you’re a first-time owner or are dealing with a pup that has difficulty following orders.
What we need to know to teach our dog obedience
As much as we wish it were true, dogs can’t always understand what we are saying. Thus, we must educate them, from day one, on the implications of the words: good, very good and no. We must take the time to properly teach her so she’ll retain them for the long-term. If our dog does not obey our command the first time around, don’t repeat the order.
Wait at least 30-40 seconds before repeating the command. This will give her time to think about it, and even understand it. If we try to teach a command by repeating it several times in a row, our dog will learn that in order to obey, she must hear the command more than once. Many dog trainers and handlers teach gestures first and then add vocal commands to get the dog’s attention.
According to Animal Behavior College, “Anyone who lives with a dog should realize that dogs experience the world differently than we do. They focus on information obtained primarily through their sense of smell and hearing while communicating primarily via body language with some vocalization.
By contrast, humans obtain information through visual and auditory sources and communicate verbally with some body language. These communication and perception differences make it difficult for us to teach dogs what we want them to learn. It also means that we sometimes inadvertently teach dogs things we don’t want them to learn.” (2000-2020)
Using the commands with a dog training clicker (conditioned reinforcer)
Our dogs must have a strong and unconditional understanding of the command, “no.” This implies we disapprove of her actions. Any sign of displeasure must be noted at that time and place. When caught in the act and not disciplined, dogs can treat mistakes as unnecessary to correct. When we see our pup doing something wrong, we must be firm in saying, “no.”
Be stern, but never use punishment or hit a dog. She can become aggressive or turn against you. Dogs can sense our emotions; they can read our body language and know if we are happy, sad, frustrated or angry. We need to look at our own actions when educating our dogs. When we use a firm and controlled voice, she will stop immediately and look at us. So when we say “no,” we need to mean it and not use a relaxed or soft tone.
However, when we say, “good girl,” “good,” and “very good,” the dog should know she did something correctly. A dog can sense, just by our tone of voice, when we are in a good mood and are happy with her behavior. We should try to avoid confusing our emotions when we say “no” and when we say “good girl.” The “no” is firm” and the “good” is nice and friendly. If we confuse the two, this makes training less effective.
The use of a dog training clicker when giving commands is a helpful reinforcer. When giving compliments to your dog, you can immediately use your clicker before giving her treats or rewards (positive reinforcement). By doing this, your dog will understand the value of the word “good.” This can be a very handy tool to use when training.
When a dog learns that, by paying attention, she can be rewarded (enjoy having her food, toy or a nice petting session), we can move to the next level of training. This includes teaching her tricks such as staring into our eyes, sitting down, lying down, staying in place, coming to us and many others.
Applying the method
We need to set up a routine for at least five minutes a day when it comes to teaching our dogs simple commands. Each time she gets it right, we raise the level. We can start by teaching our dog to follow us using a technique called “luring.” This involves holding a piece of food or a treat in our hand. We show and let the dog follow us while saying ‘come’ (use a clicker if you have one).
If she follows, we immediately say “good” and follow up with a reward. If the dog does not do it, we say “no” and wait 30 seconds to see if she understands. If she obeys late, we say “fine” and then reward her with a small prize.
If she does not obey after 30 seconds, we turn our backs against her for 30 seconds and wait, without saying anything. If we wait up to a minute and the dog does not follow the command, we can repeat the exercise from the beginning.
Once the dog learns a basic command, we can move on to a more advanced one, such teaching her to sit on command. Always focus on looking in the dog’s eyes when giving orders.
Remember, your dog can sense your emotions and is looking to you for guidance. Be firm and in control. Make sure you teach her the basic commands from the beginning, for lasting positive outcomes!
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Nonprofit Highlight
In my articles, I like to highlight what volunteers are doing to support the animal world. Today, I want to highlight GALGOS DEL SOL. It translates to ‘Grayhounds of the Sun.’ Tina Solera, is the founder and president of the organization. She has been working tirelessly rehabilitating traumatized dogs and helping them find their forever home. Please take the time to read her story. She is looking for a new home, volunteers, sponsors and donations to keep the center alive. Thank you.