Training

There are two types of training discussed here, House training and Obedience training.

1. House Training

   I am not any good at house training. I use to just keep my dogs in the garage and clean it up each week. If the weather was good they would spend most of the time outside and I could skip the clean up. Now I recently started with puppies that spend time in the house, so I will give some comments about the things I tried with my Dachshunds.

   First thing most people say is that when training a puppy they need to be watched for a "need to go " behavior. They say watch when the puppy wakes up, after they eat, and after they play. Which means all the time!!

   • Crate training ( see the crate training page) This type of training is a must for those who live in a condo or apartment.
   • Piddle Pads - Works ok, but all the dog did was piddle, and went some where else to do the rest. They have a scent to attract the dog. You must change the pads depending on use at least daily. Get a holder for the pads
   • Dog Liter - I think this is for large dogs, my pup had a hard time walking on it. It made too much noise.
   • House Breaking Aids - Drops, sprays that lure dogs to a spot in which to eliminate. These work pretty good with newspaper if the dog is close enough to smell it."Do not go" drops and sprays are out there to. Good for rugs and carpet. Remember to reapply often.
   • Paper Training - It is cheap maybe even free, and works in a piddle pad holder. There is a plentiful supply. Use this with some drops in an area were the pup wants to go. After they are trained to the paper you slowly move toward the door, and outside. Must be changed often, don't forget to use more drops.
   • A Playpen - This works because it confines the puppy to a certain area. Then you can place newspaper over the bottom, put drops in one corner. Now you can turn your back. Don't leave the puppy in there all day just when you can't watch. Still take the pup outside after eating, playing, or sleeping.
   • Exercise pens - These work like a playpen and confine the puppy to a certain area. However they have more room, are easier to carry and can be used as a temporary gate.

   I have tried all of these and these are the experiences that I had, your results may vary. However let me say a few thing more. Only respond if you see the puppy in the act. If you don't just clean it up, if the dog is watching you can look at them but do not say any thing. No punishment. If you catch the puppy in the act you can say something. Do not yell, do not hit, you should sound disappointed not mad.

   
2. Obedience Training

   If you do a search on the internet for Obedience training you will get a list including books, trainers that range fron $40 to $695 and up. Some will want you to leave your dog, some claim to come to your house. One thing that I figured out pretty quick was that you have to learn to train the dog. That's right! You. You have to be able to reinforce, you know what you want your dog to be trained to do. So lets get started.

   • Books - Do not buy one from the internet unless you are familiar with it. Go to the library, Humane society, PetCo, anywhere you can look at it. They will tell you the how to train your dog.
   • Training Classes - They will tell you the same as the books, and demonstrate the techniques. They will train you to train your dog. As far as cost, the more you pay the better the trainer? I used the Humane Society they could use the money, were low cost, and told me the secret.
   • The secret is treats, lots of treats. Treats are used to reward the proper behavior. When the dog is showing the right behavior even if for a second you reward. You need to consider the treats as part of the dogs daily amount of food. Next you need a range of treats. Treats can be regular kibble to canned chicken. There should be a very special treat for when they really please you. After you get the dog to perform the right behavior you can substitute other rewards for the treats. Rewards like "Good boy" , a pat on the head, rubbing the belly, etc.
   • Clicker training is a successful technique. You should visit the web site for all the information that you need. http://www.clickertraining.com/home/