Beyond Know How

Dog training with an obedience instructor can vary in price and it usually takes place in a class. If you don’t have the time or money to get your pooch trained by a professional, then there are other ways to go about it.

If you do the dog training yourself, it is usually free and you can do it from your own home. If you do choose to do the training yourself, it is best to get educated on dog training. There are a number of great books and dvds on the market, but there are also some great online resources available today. Websites, such as DogTipsDaily.com offer tons of great tips and information on training your dog. There you will learn some of the training basics, like sit, stay and heel, but you can also get tips on more advanced training strategies.

There are many different schools of dog training ranging from the gentleness of clicker training all the way to the hard-core techniques of obedience training. All these schools don’t mention the the most important part of interacting with any animal.

What is this key ingredient? The most important part of training any animal is the relationship you establish with it. This isn’t usually mentioned because it isn’t actually a training issue. Training methodologies are a body of techniques you can use to achieve a specific end. The relationship with the dog lies below the level that training books usually go to.

When it comes right down to it, the question of what kind of relationship you have with your dog determines everything else and foreshadows what your level of success will be. Why should the dog care what you want it to do? Is your dog happy to work, or does he fear you. The answers to these questions will ultimately decide whether you will achieve what you want with your pet.

This truth is something that my little westie terrier taught me. Get the mind working, the tail wagging and the eyes bright. If you can achieve that, almost any techniques will work for you.

Raising and caring for champion show dogs, whether they are the tiny little miniature dachshund or big working standards such as German Shepherds or Labrador Retrievers, can be a really rewarding and fulfilling experience, but it is also a lot of work and should not be undertaken lightly. When I first started my Havanese dog training program I thought it would be easy teaching the little guys to sit, play nice, and roll over. I didn’t stop to think that there might sleepless nights – and sometimes sleepless weeks – dealing with hungry and crying puppies at all hours of the night. Raising puppies can actually be expensive as well and, beyond all the expected costs such as food and medical costs, there are also some hidden costs as well. These included paying for cleaning supplies, marketing ads and what not in an effort to sell the puppies, and kennel fees if you ever need to leave town unexpectedly. However, if you love animals – and dogs in general, than raising and caring for puppies will likely be worth the effort.