Rewards and Praise

Directly related to timing is praise. If when given the command “come”, a puppy responds with the correct action and is not praised, he quickly loses enthusiasm and interest. Conversely, when given plenty of praise and caresses immediately upon correct completion of a given command, he quickly learns that the exercises are fun and profitable. He also learns to duplicate the correct action quickly in order to reap his rewards faster. In this way, praise and treats strengthen the understanding and will help him learn faster.

Let him think first

Before you start correcting, give him a chance. He may act on his own. Guiding a pup is more confidence building than using force. When a puppy realizes that the trainer will do the work for him, he has no motivation to perform a given task on his own. Given the choice between being led on the end of a leash and getting a treat at the end and having to pay attention and work for a few minutes, then getting praised, a puppy almost always chooses the lazy way.

Let him work for the rewards and he accepts it as a job he must do.

Make it Short

This is pretty self-explanatory. Puppies have very short attention spans. Keeping sessions short (10 minutes) and doing them frequently ensures that the trainer will have the full attention of the pup, and that the dog will not grow bored. Again, working for short periods will be rewarding, too.

Repetition

This works hand in hand with working for short periods of time. Repeat a command or an exercise for as many times as it takes to get it right, or close to right. Once you get it right, stop. A puppy will learn that doing an exercise correctly and quickly will be a reward in and of itself, because it will not have to keep doing the exercise over.

Patience and Confidence

Training a pup requires patience and confidence. Puppies know when the trainer is sure of himself and what he is doing. Lack of confidence can be overcome by the trainer practicing and working on his own, but will deter the pup from learning if not dealt with. Patience is not as easily learned, but if not used consistently, impatience will cause fear and lack of confidence in the puppy.

Keep it Simple

Keep your commands simple. The sit-stay for example, is not taught all at once, but broken down into its component parts. First, a pup must learn to sit reliably, on its own, and then the trainer can add movement away from the pup. Once that part is learned, the trainer can make the distance between himself and the pup greater and greater. Then he can add time away from the pup as a factor. Eventually, the pup learns that no matter how far and how long the trainer is gone, he must stay in the position originally placed, until he is released.

A one-sided conversation

Keep chatting to the pup. This will insure that the puppy is paying attention. Praise words along with corrections can be given, and the pup will learn to watch the trainer and listen for changes of command given with tone of voice. In this way the pup also learns to watch the trainers face, a great beginning for attention training.

Back Off

Do not touch him while working. This does not apply to the first 12 weeks of life. At this time in his life a pup needs reassurance and cuddles, these are necessary to build trust and love.

Once a pup has started to learn commands, withholding some touching will help the training process. If the trainer corrects a puppy by using his hands to encircle the body, the pup will interpret touching as a positive sign. Instead, use the leash to replace the puppy into a sit with minimal use of the hands.

During training, use the hands only to praise and pat at the end of the exercise. In the same way when a dog comes to the trainer and nudges for pats and attention while relaxing, take this opportunity to train briefly. The trainer must ask the pup to “sit”, or “down” or any other command to reinforce his training, then be generous with hugs and pats once the desired exercise is completed. This serves to build the rapport between trainer and pup and further strengthen discipline.