How to Prepare Your Dog for Obedience Training Classes

Bringing a dog into the family carries with it some responsibilities, but those responsibilities aren’t only on your shoulders! While there’s plenty we need to do as owners to keep our dogs happy, healthy, and safe, trainers help bridge the gap and get our dogs where they need to be, and our dogs themselves take on their own manageable burdens as well.

Dog training is key for teaching your pet appropriate behaviors, protecting them, and creating a more functional household. Before you start training, though, we have some best practices to review so you can ensure successful results.

Essential Equipment for Effective Dog Training

A well-prepared dog is more receptive to learning, developing good behavior, and working within set boundaries. To help you accomplish this, you will want to have some core equipment on hand, including:

• Dog collar or harness – Having a suitable collar or harness, with a non-retractable leash, is crucial to maintain control and safety, so you should invest in these items even before you start dog training classes
• Training treats – When it comes to positive reinforcement, high-quality treats are a key motivator, as they can help your dog associate desired behaviors with rewards
• Treat pouch – To go along with treats, it’s a good idea to have a specific storage area in your possession that can be enclosed, both to keep treats secure and to avoid your dog accessing them on their own
• Clickers – You might not use these initially, but depending on the dog obedience training that your pet undergoes, clickers can help to reinforce key methodologies outside of the “classroom”
• Long lines – For specific training methods, “long lines,” essentially just longer leashes of 10–15 feet, can be useful as they give your dog more freedom while still affording you the necessary control
• Dog crate – Crate training should be started alongside potty training, and you will want to use positive reinforcement to encourage your dog to enter their crate and stay within when the door is shut

Additionally, you’ll want to check with your dog obedience school to see what vaccinations may be required before your dog takes part in classes.

Laying the Foundation: Early Socialization and Habituation

Another way you can prep your pup and yourself for dog obedience classes is to begin socializing them with people and other dogs, or even other animals, at an early age.

The prime learning period for socialization is considered to be between 6 and 16 weeks, and during this time you will want to expose your dog to friends and neighbors, any other family pets, and various environments, sights, sounds, and textures.

The 6- to 16-week window is when dogs experience their best period of retention, and exposing them to diverse stimuli can reduce anxiety, improve focus, increase confidence, and pave the way to a more trainable pet.

Use Positive Reinforcement Training Methods

Rewarding your dog when they accomplish desired behaviors has been shown to be the most effective method of dog training, and you can assist your professional trainer’s efforts by engaging in it at home.

Though some people may attempt negative reinforcement or punishment-based training methods, these can not only be cruel but can result in fear, anxiety, and ongoing problems for your dog. Therefore, it’s best to avoid choke collars, shock collars, and prong collars, as well as dominance-based handling.

Instead, lean toward:

• Praise and affirmations
• Treats
• Toy rewards
• Reassuring physical touch

The 3–3–3 Rule: Setting Your Dog Up for Success in Their New Home

When you bring a new dog home, there can be a period of adjustment for both you and them, so it’s important to keep this in mind and have realistic expectations while they adjust to their new surroundings.

One thing to follow before training is the 3–3–3 rule, which is broken into the following components:

• Give your dog three days to adjust to the situation
• Dedicate the next three weeks to initial training and bonding
• Use the first three months for ongoing socialization efforts

Performing these steps will help your dog both at home and within their training courses, leading to a more successful result.

Structuring Successful Training Sessions Around Duration, Frequency, and Consistency

Your trainer no doubt will have their own methodologies and ways of working, but when you’re at home with your pup you can augment these sessions with your own work. When you do, it’s useful to engage in short, frequent, and consistent training sessions.

Here are some key things to keep in mind:

• Puppies have short attention spans, and so can easily distracted older dogs, so limiting initial training sessions to 5 minutes for them is a good idea
• As your dog develops, you can expand sessions to a duration of 5–15 minutes, which will give you more time to work on the basics while keeping sessions short
• Conduct your training sessions with a frequency of 2–3 times or 3–5 times per day
• Be consistent with your training methods, using the same verbal cues and hand signals to avoid any confusion

Tailoring Your Approach: Puppy vs. Adult Dog Training Considerations

Getting an adult dog ready for training differs in a number of ways from getting a puppy prepared. For instance, the adage “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” has some basis in reality, as puppies are generally more open to adopting new habits.

Adult dogs, however, have longer attention spans than puppies and usually have better socialization habits, which work in their favor. Since they can be set in their ways, though, you might need to engage in longer and more frequent training sessions.

The “Teenage” Problem

Where things get a little more complicated is during the “teenage years” for dogs, which is between 8 months and 2 years of age. This period can present additional complications and training challenges, as adolescent dogs may forget commands they had previously learned.

To combat this, you’ll want to be patient and consistent with your training, but also open to adjusting some of your methodologies to help reinforce good habits.

Common Questions About Starting Dog Training

At what age should I begin training my dog?

Basic obedience training should usually start as early as 6–7 weeks for puppies with reinforcement happening at home throughout your dog’s life. However, for longer training sessions, dogs of 12–14 weeks may be better attuned to the needs of trainers.

What are some basic commands I can expect my dog to master at training?

With effective training sessions, your dog should be able to accomplish the key commands of “sit,” “stay,” “come,” “lie down,” “heel,” and “leave it.” These will give your dog a solid baseline and can be put to use in everyday situations as well as times of emergency.

What are some of the goals of obedience training?

Along with the mastering of basic commands, some of the other goals of training include improving behavior, promoting socialization, and making grooming sessions more practical.

Need Effective Dog Training? Trust the Experts at Pet Palace!

If your puppy or adult dog could use some obedience training to make them a better adjusted member of the family, it’s time to bring them to Pet Palace! Our dedicated trainers work out of Columbus, Ohio, West Chester, Ohio, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Cary, North Carolina, and more locations are coming soon!

Help put your dog on the right path by letting them master the fundamentals. Contact our team today to get started!

Categories: All Posts, Dog Training, Dogs, Tips for Your Pets