Effective dog training methods will develop and seal your relationship with your dog as you earn your dog’s trust.

One popular technique of dog training is the leash or collar training, aside from the reward system or the positive reinforcement training.

Leash and reward training have proven their worth as successful dog training methods. However, dogs respond to training methods according to their behavior patterns and the training they are most comfortable doing. Since dog breeds vary, you should know that they have their respective unique qualities and particular preferences that come with their specific attitudes and attributes.

Collar training is a very effective way for a dog to train in different types of programs. As the dog owner, you should know the purpose behind training your dog in the first place. For dogs that are expected to perform difficult tasks, such as being a rescue dog, guard dog or a police dog, leash training definitely gets the job done.

When leash training your dog, you should know how to toggle the leash well to send your dog the right signal. But before you do all the jerking of the leash, you need to settle your dog comfortably with the leash first. Afterwards, you can use it to control your dog as a means for you to communicate. As you take command of the leash, you should also earn the trust of your dog for your pet to respond to your commands willingly. Do not use strong force on the leash. Instead, just use a moderate physical maneuvering through your dog’s leash.

The leash is just a tool to let you have a head start on your dog training. Since this is only a tool, you can train your dog through the use of other dog training tools available. You can use your voice, your body language, and your skills to be your training tools for your dog to start obeying. Establish a leader–follower connection between you and your dog. Once your dog recognizes this, you can train your dog with or without any leash and you even win his affection and trust.

Increase your puppy’s socialization by starting out early around 12 weeks old. The earlier the puppy gets to be familiar with the public, the better he can behave in the presence of people and animals. But do not stop here. Even if your puppy ages, continue to teach your dogs to socialize.

Dogs with good social behavior are not aggressive and are not easily scared off. Rather, they positively react to different stimuli in the environment. Dogs that are not exposed to socialization, on the other hand, are less friendly and they find it hard to fit into new situations. Owners can avoid this unfriendly behavior by roaming their pets around and doing visits around the neighborhood.

Here are the do’s and don’ts in teaching your puppy to socialize:

The Do’s

· Do make socializing a pleasant experience for your puppy. Avoid situations that can traumatize your pet, like injuries, since this will be imprinted in your pet’s mind, thereby developing a fear of certain things.

· Get your friends to meet your puppy. The more people your puppy sees, the more he will be acquainted with them regardless of age and gender.

· Have a puppy party. Invite friends over who also have puppies so your pet can interact with them. Just make sure that the puppies you are inviting over are properly vaccinated to avoid health problems for your pet.

· Roam your puppy around and take him to different places. The more you expose your pup to crowds, the more he begins to grow familiar with these.

· Play with your puppy with different items, like bags, hats, vacuum cleaners, or anything that pose fear in them. Encourage your puppy to explore new things.

· Introduce your puppy to the stairs, collar, and leash, as well as grooming.

The Don’ts

· Do not endanger your puppy by exposing him to risks of attacks by strange animals.

· Do not hurry socialization. This usually takes time, so be patient.

· Do not overdo training. Your puppy can only take as much, given the young age and short attention span. The more you push your dog to immediately learn, the more he is likely to behave untowardly.

· Do not wait until your puppy grows up before you start the socialization process.

Plus, they are quite quick to form habits. Tapping into that natural quality is actually the best way to house train your dog.

We know that how well a dog is house trained also determines how essential he can become to a family.

So, how do you go about house training them? You begin by setting up an area to train. This can either be a bathroom or portion of the garage or kitchen or put a bed or towel in it. Just make sure it is small enough for the dog to play, sleep, and eat. As the owner, you have to condition your dog that the area’s purpose is only for those three activities. Once they learn to associate these activities, they will be disinclined to eliminate it. Eventually, you will be able to move the bed around the house, but the dog will still know not to soil it.

Next is setting up the area for your dog to defecate and urinate. Make sure that you accompany him each time he needs to eliminate and that the toilet is in an area that is accessible. Do these until you notice your dog is getting into the habit and goes alone. Put into place a regular feeding time; as by doing so, the dog will most likely have regular intervals for his bowel movements. This makes your job a lot simpler and faster.

Once you notice that your dog is continuously using the toilet instead of the training area and can now control his bowel and bladder movements, you may now start training him in the other areas of the house. Under supervision, let your dog eat, play, and sleep in the new room, pretty much like what you did at the start for the initial training area, until he adjusts.

If you want to hasten the process of house training a bit, you may do so by rewarding the dog for each successful use of the designated toilet area. Do not punish the dog, as this may confuse them. You just might end up achieving the complete opposite of what you had set out to achieve in the first place.