Dog Training Hand Signals - Secret Signs Your Dog Responds To

Dogs understand verbal cues and can naturally pick up human body language. If you've been together a while, your dog probably understands a few of your gestures already. So the next time "Rover" responds to a hand wave and potters over to you - give yourself a mental pat on the back.

While all pets don't need to know them, hand signals are important for working dogs. Dogs that guide disabled people, hunt, guard, watch livestock, do rescue or police work, are taught a combination of hand and verbal cues to work better.

Unlike verbal cues, hands signs can be interpreted from a distance. They are a useful tool to train deaf or hyperactive dogs as an excited dog may not hear you but it will see you.

Can My Dog Learn Hand Signs?

If you have a puppy under training, you can teach it verbal and hand cues simultaneously. Puppies learn fast till the age of four months. Sprucing the training sessions with treats will hasten the learning process.

By age six months, your pup can be trained to understand a range of cues - verbal and physical.

Teaching your older dog to respond to hand signs is simple too. If your dog sees you make a sign repeatedly with a command, it begins to associate the two together.

When you reward it for responding to both the hand and verbal sign, your dog connects the reward to the sign and happily obeys. In a week or two, replace verbal signs with hand signs and your dog will continue to understand.

Basic Signage

The trick is consistency; assign a single, unmistakable gesture to each verbal command your dog knows. Consider three commonly used commands.

NO/STOP

Gesture - Hold hand firmly out from body with the palm facing the dog and all fingers pointing upwards

SIT/HEEL

Gesture - Hold out your hand with the palm facing downwards, and slowly move up and down to suggest the motion of sitting.

COME/HERE

Gesture - Hold hand at right-angle to shoulder with palm facing outwards. Move hand above head, waving gently.

1. Show your dog you have a treat for it in your hand so it watches you closely.

2. Initially use the gesture slowly each time you say the words. If your dog responds to the sign - give it the treat and pet it. If it doesn't respond immediately, be patient - every individual has a different learning curve.

3. Once the dog responds to both cues, drop the verbal cue and only make the hand signal.

If your smart pooch enjoys treats and attention, it will learn fast.

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Border Collie Dog Training - Preventing Bad Behaviors

So how can border collie dog training affect the behavior of your border collie? Most owners definitely know the importance of training in their dog's life. In human world, dog training is just like sending the kids to school to learn what he is supposed to learn in order to become a better person.

Border collie dog training is important not only to make pets obey certain commands such as sit, stay, down and others. It is also a great tool in helping your dog prevent behavior problems such as aggression, barking, biting, chewing and digging.

Aggression

Aggression is one of the most common behavior problems affecting dogs. This may result not only to growling but also biting. Based on health authorities report, more than one million people are bitten each year half of it are children usually under ten years of age. Fortunately, this number of dog bite cases can be decreased provided owners are responsible enough to train their pets. Socialization should begin as early as possible - around three weeks of age would be enough. This period is the best time to introduce puppies to social investigation and playful fighting. They should be brought to their new homes at seven to eight weeks of age but must be handled gently by adults and children.

Barking

Dogs have natural instinct to bark. It is their way to warn their family of what they perceive as danger. However, if the barking is starting to annoy you and your neighbors, then it is not natural anymore. Determine what are the reasons for his excessive barking and find ways to deal with it. If he is alone outside and yet barks excessively even in the broad daylight, then perhaps he is scared and doesn't want to be alone. You may want to take him inside to stop him from barking too much. Train your dog not to bark on people who will be coming into your house regularly - mailman, delivery man and so on.

Chewing

Now this one is another story. While excessive barking can be disturbing to you and your neighbors, chewing is not just disturbing but most of all, destructive. Would you want to come home to a house with chewed rugs or furniture? Would you want to see your expensive shoes with missing heels? Worry not because chewing problem can be prevented. Anything with your scent on it should be kept out of your dog's reach - shoes, socks, clothes, etc. These things are the things you don't want destroyed, right? So better keep them safe - even the old ones. You may also want to make his chew toys as appealing as possible. Rub something tasty on the outside of his toys or leave chew toy in the laundry hamper for a day or so before giving it to him. There are various types of toys in the market and purchasing th right one can be a daunting task. Just remember that safety should come first before anything else.

These bad behaviors, when prevented, will definitely lead you to a problem-free border collie everybody loves to be around.

Richard Cussons writes dog articles including border collie training advice. For more tips on border collie training, feel free to visit bordercolliesavvy.com.

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Whistle - One of the Most Essential Dog Training Aids

Training is one important part of raising a healthy and smart pet. Because of this, dog training aids are developed to aid the dog owner and his dog for healthy companionship.

Human voice is not very effective to all types of dogs. Because of this, whites are used to train dogs. Whistle creates a least noise and blends to other sound to get the dog's attention. It does not cause any disturbance to others and can travel farther distance than human voice as well. Their ears are sensitive in high frequency sound such that of whistle, this makes whistle very effective tool among dog training aids.

Today, most trainers prefer using whistles to train their dogs to various disciplines, obedient and skills training. Many dog owners use whistles too to call their dog's attention or to give commands of their dogs from a distance.

Training With The Help Of A Whistle

Using whistles to your dog on the other hand is not just simply blowing the whistle. Skill and knowledge is required on your part. Your dog needs to understand every tone of the whistle for it to recognize and obey the command. You can ask professional trainers to help you with this, they have standard whistle commands you can use for your dog.

Because there are various tones and length of every sound you should produce from your whistle, it is important that your dog is acquainted to every whistle sound you may want to use. For instance, a short whistle blast and pointing to any direction is a command to get your dog's attention. Long whistle blast along with a raised hand open hand is a command to ask your dog to sit. These are just few standard whistle commands of professional trainers.

There are also various whistles used for different commands for dogs. Dogs by nature are highly adaptive and smart animals, they can be trained to respond to their trainers and owners. There are no hard and fast rules on using dog training however, as you can always improvise to deal with them effectively.

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Everything You Need to Know About Training Attack Dogs

Since their domestication, dogs have held a myriad of jobs given to them by their human leaders. From service dogs to herders, dogs have an almost limitless capacity for learning. Perhaps one of the more controversial jobs given to dogs is that of attack dog. Attack dogs are trained to bite on the command of their owner.

Although it may seem like it is a barbaric practice, training attack dogs does have its uses, mainly in law enforcement. Not to be confused with guard dogs, which are trained to be extremely protective of a specified area, attack dogs do not go on the offensive until its handler gives the orders. Most who are interested in having a dog trained as an attack dog go through a professional training program, since there are inherent risks in training a dog in such a manner. But for those who would like to attempt such training on their own, or would just like a little more information before proceeding any further, here is a good guide of general knowledge on the topic of attack dog training.

The first, and perhaps most important thing to keep in mind when entertaining the idea of training an attack dog is that once trained, the dog has become a weapon of sorts. By neglecting to train this weapon properly, the owner creates a situation where the dog could attack anyone, even the handler, for little or no reason. It is truly important to remember that the fate of the dog and its actions lies solely with the owner and their method of training. A handler needs to understand how a dog will react to certain stimuli, as well as what that reaction might be.

Now some may argue argue whether the training of attack dogs is humane, or even necessary. In some instances, such as law enforcement and hunting, an attack dog can serve as a valuable member of a team. But most will agree that it is not recommended for a dog to be both an animal companion and a trained attack dog.

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Dog Training Tips - What You Need to Know

Before you begin training your dog - spend some time familiarizing yourself with these tips so your training sessions are successful and fun for both you and your dog.

* Consistency - You must be consistent in both verbal cues and hand signals. This is important for all family members to abide by. i.e. 'Down' means to lie down - not to get down off the couch. Use the command 'Off' for that. Or when calling your dog to you - if you decide on 'Come' then don't use 'Here' sometimes expecting your dog to know what you want.

* Timing - Another key component to training is timing. Rewards must be immediate after the desired action is obtained. This is one reason why clicker training is gaining in popularity.

* Treats - Using treats as positive reinforcement is an excellent way to get your dog to perform the desired action.

* Praise - Use verbal praises after every successful attempt to perform a command. Remember, your dog wants nothing more than to please you.

* Repetition - Dogs learn through repetition so be sure you have at least 10 to 15 minutes to spend teaching your dog a command.

* Voice Tone - Your tone of voice should be firm and authoritative when giving commands.

* Distractions - Training should be done in places where there are the least of amount of distractions so your dog stays focused on what you are teaching him.

* Short Sessions - Dogs learn better if sessions are short and spread out during the day. Two or three 10 minute lessons a day is better than one 30 minute session.

* End on a Positive Note - Be sure to end each training session on a positive note. Make sure the last thing your puppy does - he does correctly and receives praise for doing so. Ending a training session with praise will have your dog eager to begin the next session.

The more you practice the skills of training, the better dog trainer you will become!

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3 Things You Should Know About Destructive Dog Behavior

No one wants to have to deal with destructive dog behavior. It is a fact though that for some owners, this is simply an unavoidable occurrence. When your dog starts getting into chewing and tearing sprees, you would want to find a way to curb it. Before you do though, it is important to understand some crucial facts about destructive behavior in dogs.

It is Normal Behavior

The truth of the matter is that it is normal for dogs to chew on things. It is simply their nature and your influence may not be stronger than dog nature. On second thought, you just don't want the behavior to go overboard simply because you don't want to end up with a house full of ripped objects. The key is to substitute chew toys for objects that shouldn't be chewed on.

Your Actions May be Encouraging It

Destructive dog behavior may be normal to a certain extent. You may not know though that your own actions may actually be encouraging your dog to increase its destructive tendencies. Not minding or correcting your dog immediately for example after it starts chewing on an object that isn't a toy may send it the wrong signal that what it is doing is ok.

Firmness is Not the Same as Physical Punishment

Destructive dog behavior has to be clearly corrected through firmness. It should be clear though that being firm is simply not synonymous to subjecting your dog to severe physical punishment. Hitting your dog when it destroys something might just make it anxious or nervous, thereby promoting more destructive tendencies as outlets.

How to Stop Destructive Dog Behavior - blog

It can be a headache to have to deal with destructive dog behavior. It is something that you would have to address though before your dog puts its destructive mark on every single object in your house. Here are three tips on how to fix destructive tendencies in dogs.

Give it Something to Chew On

It is normal for dogs to chew on things. This is simply an activity that is part of who they are. Common sense will therefore tell you that as a dog owner you should give your dog things to chew on. This will divert its attention away from valuable house objects. Do remember though that some chew toys are more appropriate for certain types and ages of dogs. Have your dog's personal circumstances in mind when shopping for a chew toy. Make sure that you have a variety of toys too because your dog could get bored with just one.

Provide More Activities

Your pet may engage on destructive dog behavior if it is bored. This is especially true for breeds that are extra energetic. One way to divert their attention from excessive chewing is to provide more playtime for them. Spend more time with your dog in the park for supervised play time.

Enforce Rules Firmly

One major rule to correcting destructive dog behavior is to correct it immediately. As soon as you see your dog chewing on a house object, make it known in a firm voice that you are not pleased or that it has been a bad dog. Take the object away from the dog's line of sight and replace it with a chew toy. Praise your dog when it starts chewing on its toy instead of a forbidden object.

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Obedience Training - How to Get Your Family Involved in Training Your Dog

Dogs bring happiness and joy to a family, kids certain love them. In fact they are often considered members of the family. Some people like to take their dog on their holidays as well. However dogs can misbehave. The family pet often bark loudly and disturb the neighbours, or chew on furniture and clothes, or jump up on the couch where they are not allowed. So it is important to provide obedience training to a new dog in your house immediately after the dog comes to your house. Both you and your dog will be benefited by the obedience training.

The best time to teach a dog is when they are young. They are much more accepting of commands. As soon as you introduce a dog to your house it's best to start training straight away. This way your dog can get used to the rules of your house. And more importantly you don't teach your dog any bad tricks. Often problems like jumping on a couch are actually taught to a dog. By allowing your dog to jump up on the couch and not correcting this behaviour you are teaching your dog that it is okay. This explains why it's so difficult to change this behaviour in your dog later on.

Dogs are considered as social animals but if they are not trained properly, they will bring out the innate wild behavior in them. Your dog can develop a good behavior through dog obedience training. Dog obedience training is good as it induces a good mental exercise to your dog with more freedom and happiness.

Obedience training will help you to learn how to communicate with your dog. It also help you to correct any bad behavior in your dog like jumping on your guest, aggressiveness, chewing the couch or clothes or shoes, running in your flower garden and so on. Dogs have several negative behaviors as it is wild in nature. So you have to provide obedience training to your dog to make it understand that certain behaviors are not acceptable in your house. Dog obedience training is also meant to teach the dog about certain bad behaviors which are not acceptable for human.

Most of the problems will get solved, once you have set a communication with your dog. With the help of obedience training you can get rid of the bad behaviors of the dog with out wasting time. Through a proper communication with your dog, you can make it to behave in your desired way. A dog with proper obedience training can recognize through the tone of your voice or reactions whether their actions are acceptable to you. You and your dog are taught by the dog obedience training that a bad behavior can be penalized by the high tone of the voice or leaving the dog alone. Through this training the dog can understand whether you are happy or praise or give a treat for a good deed or action done by it.

Obedience training for dogs is also helpful in establishing the fact that who is the boss in its house. With the help of obedience training the dog will understand that you are the owner or the master of the house and would not try to do things which his owner dislikes. Never become aggressive to the dog to show that you are the master of it. Show your superiority to the dog by asking him to shake hands with you or ask for a kiss from him that is liked by both master and the dog. Did you find this useful? If so, check out: http://www.dogobediencetraining.com.au - A leading website on dog training methods. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_Freeman