hunting dog training, hunting dog training basics, dog training, dog obedience training

hunting dog training, hunting dog training basics, dog training

Getting the Dog's Attention.

The first thing you need to do before you can start any form of dog training is get your dog's attention. This might sound simple but it is the most difficult thing to achieve. You may think you are the world's most interesting person but the chances are that your pride and joy may be more interested in what he can sniff with his nose rather than your words of wisdom. So how do you start to get the dog's attention?

Loss of Concentration. Loss of concentration gradually develops after the dog has undergone training for a few weeks. Before he is trained he has nothing to concentrate on, so this cannot be assessed until he has some work to do. A dog with a poor concentration is one who looks aimlessly around as he walks along, sniffs at all sorts of things and gives you the impression that he is not really interested in anything, particularly training.

The Importance of the dog's Name. In the litter, the breeder will have made some noise to attract the pups attention to the food dish. After all the breeder can't call out several names at once. Have you noticed how all the pups in a healthy well reared litter dash to the breeder when she appears, food or no f~od. When you carry your pup home he will be a bit overawed at first but use a familiar key word follo~ied by his new name and he will soon start to respond. Now you have the start of his attention training. His name must be used only when you want his attention - for the rest of his life, never when you want to tell him off. Use his name when you call him for his dinner. You will soon have his complete attention. Don't make the mistake of calling him when he is busy sniffing some interesting smell he has found in the garden. Wait until he is looking for something to do then call him. Later on when you are training him to walk properly on the lead you can use his name to get his attention but keeping it is a different matter. Small puppies cannot pay attention to anything for very long so be prepared to accept just a few seconds at first. As he grows older he will be able to concentrate for longer and longer periods. But learn how he reacts and don't try to make him pay attention for a second longer than his limit. Err on the side of caution.

Tone of Voice. The human voice is a very underrated and underused tool in dog training. Learn to cultivate this. Try not to sound angry when you are delighted with him. A whisper is all that is really needed. The actual words you use are not important (its the sound of the word that is recognised and visualised) but the level and tone are all important.

Food and Toys. Food, carefully used, is a great motivator for many greedy pups. But make him earn his titbit's. Toys are good attention getters. Try the get him to focus on your face and eyes in particular - hold the attention getter near your face. Have a special toy that the pup likes and keep it only for training sessions. Produce the toy and ask him to watch. If he gives you his full attention for a second or two, break off and play. Try for another second the next time and gradually build up. Don't ever be so predictable that your pup knows exactly what you are going to do next. That will just teach him to keep only half of his mind on you. Watch his eyeballs. if his eyes are on you he is concentrating. if not you are wasting your time. Play with him as much as you can, let him learn that his time with you is the best thing that could happen to him and he will start to give you his complete attention. Only when you have his attention can any serious training begin.