Essence Of Training

Your dog is a pack animal, naturally inclined to respect and respond to the pack leader - that is, you.

As a pack animal it enjoys contact with the rest of its pack, both their proximity and their touch. It thinks that food is the essence of life and loves to chew or just possess its own treasures.

This gives you the basis for perfect rewards (food and toys) and natural discipline (isolation from you). A dog is acutely aware of body language and sounds, quickly learning to interpret your tone of voice and stance.

Be timely when using rewards and discipline. Have your reward at hand and let your dog know it is there. Give it, together with praise, the instant your dog responds. It will soon learn to respond to praise alone.

Similarly, use discipline at the instant of disobedience. When using separation from you to discipline your dog, it should last less than a minute; it is purely symbolic.