For many people, dog training is a single job that has a start and an end date. People want to sign up for a class, show up for 6 weeks, and then at the end go home with Rin Tin Tin - a dog that is completely trained forever.
As someone who has taught many dog training classes, I can assure you this will happen for very few of you. Class, board and trains, and other training services you are going to procure are part of your dog's formal training education - an important step in their development without a doubt.
As someone who has taught many dog training classes, I can assure you this will happen for very few of you. Class, board and trains, and other training services you are going to procure are part of your dog's formal training education - an important step in their development without a doubt.
When it comes to molding your perfect dog, he is forged during the non-stop process of informal training. This is less about your dog's ability to sit or recall in a field, but more in the subtle nuances of how you interact with your dog 24 hours a day. Meaning, if you want your dog to be a well-adjusted, productive member of your household, you don't just go to class, you become a dog person - something the world is woefully short on these days.
This doesn't mean neglect your formal training - formal training teaches dogs how to better understand humans and should teach you how to better understand dogs. Without it, the language barrier can be challenging to overcome. Formal training builds character in your dogs and challenges them mentally while giving them a strong sense of fulfillment. Not only that, but a lot of basic problems in houses can be solved with something as simple as a flawless sit.
So what is informal training? This is everything else you communicate with your dog when you're not in training class for 1 hour a week. This is how you carry yourself amongst dogs and how you miss or don't miss the cues they try to send you through their own body language. What are they doing while you are eating dinner? What are they doing while you are watching tv? What about when you are getting ready to leave for work? What things are you letting slide?
This is one reason that most home board and train dogs become so successful here at AWDT - it is often the first time that someone has thought about the dog's every move and challenged them regularly throughout every single day. Amazingly, dogs transform from immature, confused dogs to seemingly normal dogs navigating the world like they had done it flawlessly for years.
So start your training with this mantra in mind: a little bit at a time, all of the time.
This doesn't mean neglect your formal training - formal training teaches dogs how to better understand humans and should teach you how to better understand dogs. Without it, the language barrier can be challenging to overcome. Formal training builds character in your dogs and challenges them mentally while giving them a strong sense of fulfillment. Not only that, but a lot of basic problems in houses can be solved with something as simple as a flawless sit.
So what is informal training? This is everything else you communicate with your dog when you're not in training class for 1 hour a week. This is how you carry yourself amongst dogs and how you miss or don't miss the cues they try to send you through their own body language. What are they doing while you are eating dinner? What are they doing while you are watching tv? What about when you are getting ready to leave for work? What things are you letting slide?
This is one reason that most home board and train dogs become so successful here at AWDT - it is often the first time that someone has thought about the dog's every move and challenged them regularly throughout every single day. Amazingly, dogs transform from immature, confused dogs to seemingly normal dogs navigating the world like they had done it flawlessly for years.
So start your training with this mantra in mind: a little bit at a time, all of the time.
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