Teach Your Puppy to Walk On a Leash

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Walking on a leash is an important skill for puppies to learn, but it can be challenging to train puppies that are eager to explore the world around them. The key to setting up puppies for success is to use a high rate of reinforcement to keep the puppy’s attention and accelerate learning. Visual markers can be helpful reminders to the handler to offer the puppy a treat for being in the desired position.

Teach Your Dog to Wear a Coat

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As the weather gets colder, your dog may need protective clothing, like a sweater or coat. Many small dogs have difficulty retaining body heat, and senior dogs are prone to underlying medical conditions that may make them more sensitive to the cold, including arthritis. Many rescue dogs come from warmer climates and need help acclimating to colder weather. However, while dogs may benefit from wearing a coat, they may not enjoy wearing one!

Teach Behaviors that Lead to Faster Adoptions

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If you work at, volunteer for, or have visited a shelter, you’ve probably experienced rows of dogs barking and jumping at the kennel doors. Dogs that bark excessively as people pass by are sometimes overlooked by potential adopters. How do you teach these dogs to remain calm and quiet so that they can increase their chances of being adopted? With positive reinforcement training, of course!

Successful Dog Training Classes: Making Repetition Fun

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Repetition is a powerful key to learning. Children learn new skills by repeating a behavior or piece of a behavior again and again until the skill is committed to memory and becomes a habit (like practicing piano). The very same principle works for dog training classes. By repeating the same skill or exercise enough times, the handler becomes better at delivering cues and the dog understands more quickly what the desired behavior should be. However, if learning becomes too repetitive, it can become boring (once again, like practicing piano!). So how do you use repetition in dog training classes without boring your learners? By making it fun!