Your dog will need basic obedience training in order for you to live peaceably together! All dogs should undergo some basic obedience training in order for you as the owner to easily control him whether on or off the lead, at home or out and about in public.

As in their pack, dogs need a leader and that leader will be you. In your dog's eye, you and your family have become pack members but in order to keep a sense of control over your dog, it is vital that you become the pack leader, exert dominance and set the rules. They must obey and live by your rules; rules which set acceptable behavior in and around your home and in your neighborhood and community. However, setting the rules for your dogs behavior is one thing, getting your dog is understand and live by them is another and only comes about through the time and effort you put into training. This effort and training will be worth in the end if you follow through!

Some general points to remember; Dogs react best through reward, not punishment. When they do something well, treat and praise them, if they do something bad correct the behavior using a firm command such as ‘No’ and begin again. Continue praising the good and correcting the bad and eventually they’ll get it right all the time. Never hit or beat your dog. This shows a lack of control on your part and you’re dog will fear, not respect you.

Start as you mean to carry on. Never let them get into a habit of doing something bad, especially when he’s young. Once you start training them on a particular rule, stick to it – don’t enforce rules on some occasions and not others as it will only confuse them and lead to bad behavior.

Start with teaching basic good behaviors: sit, down, stay and come, and breaking bad behaviors: jumping, biting, chewing. Only move on to other more complex commands when these basics have been achieved and are consistently obeyed, give the dog a few days to learn each of these basic commands.

Dog training is all about repetition and praise and the more time and effort you put into your dog, the more likely you will get a good result.
If you don’t know where to start with training, or face a ‘problem-dog’, you can always get help and advice through your local kennel club. They run various training courses from early puppy socialization classes, through to advanced obedience and agility classes.

Keep in mind that you are not being “mean” when you train a dog, you are actually helping him reach his full potential. And this will make it possible to have a long and loving relationship with your pet.

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