Great training sessions with your dog don't just happen by accident. Proper preparation and deliberate planning can ensure your training sessions are successful and effective!
Preparation
Training on a regular schedule can help prepare your dog for each training session. However, we all have to start somewhere, so even if it is your first session of your regular training schedule, preparation can still help your session be successful.
Your First Session
Get Motivated
Motivation is one of the most important necessities for your dog to learn new skills. Our dogs don't work for free, especially not in the early stages of learning. Dogs can be motivated in a variety of ways, and different dogs may have different motivations.
Some dogs really love food while others go wild for toys. Some dogs are willing to work for pet and praise. Knowing what is the best way to motivate your dog. Choosing the right reward type can also be important based on your training methods and the goals of your training session.
In your early training sessions, it is most common to use food for training. Food allows you to reward your dog while they remain in behaviors, and it can be used to help create calm behaviors without encouraging over excitement.
If it is your first time doing a training session with your dog, they will likely not be familiar with the idea of working for their food. You can skip a meal or even two meals before their first training session to help encourage them to want to take food during that first session.
Using the Right Tools
One of the most divisive topics in dog training is the tools that we use to accompany our training methods. Choosing the right tools for you and your dog can be a very important part of a successful training program.
Choose tools that are recommended by your trainer, that are good quality tools, that are safe, human, and that you understand how to use them properly.
With all of the information available out there it can be really challenging to know which tool is the best options. And in most cases, each tool is designated to work with specific training methods. This is why it is important to discuss with your trainer which tools are best for your training program.
Training on leash is one of the most important tools you can use in any training program. Especially if your training goals are for off-leash reliability some day!
Prepare a Training Space
At the beginning of your dog's training journey, they are going to be infatuated with everything the world has to offer them! All of the sites and sounds and SMELLS are going to be extra interesting to your dog in the early days of training.
That is why it is important to choose to prepare a training space that limits how many distractions you will need to compete with to keep your dog's attention on you and the task at hand.
You'll want to have space to move around with your dog, so sometimes indoor space can be a bit cramped with furniture, but training indoors can have the benefit of having fewer distractions than you may have in your yard.
You may also want to make sure that the space is clean and doesn't have any residue from puppy potty accidents if you are training indoors. If you are training outdoors, ideally you'll want to potty your dog in a separate area then where you plan to train.
Prepare with a Routine
Most of us have our morning routine that we use to get ourselves ready for the day. Have you ever noticed that if you miss a step in your routine, or if you are in a rush and change your routine, it can actually effect the rest of your day?
The same thing happens to our dogs. So, we recommend that you create a routine that helps your dog mentally prepare for each training session.
Some routines can be used consistetnly, such as your kennel manners, and door manners every time your take your dog out of the kennel and go outside. You should also give your dog a potty opportunity prior to starting your training.
Encourage your dog to go potty in same area every time and then use a different space for training. This will help your dog understand that when we are working this is not a time to go potty.
Putting your dog's training equipment on should also become part of your prepartion routine that lets your dog know that it is time to work. As your dog begins to make the association between their training equipment and the fun associated with training, they will begin to get excited at the mere site of their training tools!
Planning your Training Session
Have a Goal
Ideally, you should go into every training session with a simple goal. Maybe you're planning to work on your sit stay. Or you're planning to introduce the place-bed. Whatever your goal is, it should be a single simple goal that you'd like to achieve in your session.
Make sure your goal is something attainable, and something that doesn't have other things that need to be taught before your dog can learn it.
Have a Plan
Know what methods you want to use to reach your session's training goal. If you identify your training methods prior to starting your session, you can make sure that you have everything you need, including tools, toys, food, or equipment that will be necessary for your dog's success.
Be Prepared to Abandon Your Plan
Like any other aspect of our lives, things don't always go as we plan. That is one of the most imporatnt aspects of learning how to train your dog. You must always be prepared to abandon your plan and adapt your training session when life throw's a wrench in the gears.
The more you learn about dog training and the more you practice with your dog, the easier it will be to adapt when your training doesn't necessarily go as you had planned. The important thing to remember is to not get frustrated if things do go perfectly, because honestly, they almost never do!
Don't forget to Have Fun!
Your dog will only enjoy the training as much as you do, so it is important that you be enthusiastic and energetic during your training session with your dog. Your dog will learn to have fun during training and will enjoy working with you.
Keep it Short!!!
Sometimes when the training session is going really well, or even when its not going well, we can lose track of time. Especially for young dogs, or dogs that are new to training, short sessions with have much greater impacts that longer sessions.
End your session after 5-7 minutes to make sure you end on a good note while your dog is still having a great time. You don't want to work your dog until they start to get tired or frustrated.
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