"Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace."

by Vivian Bregman - Reprinted by Permission of IACP

 
1. Your dog is always learning, by observation, trial and error, 24 hours a day whether you are with him or not.

 2. In order for a behavior to be maintained, it has to be rewarded. This includes desired and undesired behaviors. Your task is to figure out what the rewards are - and either eliminate them or increase them (depending on whether you want the behavior to stop or continue).
 
3. If you want your dog to follow (obey commands), then you have to lead. The best type of leadership is by controlling access to resources (not by physical domination and confrontation, although they may be needed.)
 
4. The cause of most "unruliness" in dogs is the inability to accept physical restraint: by lead, line, crate, fence or human hands. You must teach this skill first!

 5. It is easier and ultimately more rewarding to focus on and teach "good" behavior, rather than punish "bad" behavior. If you must punish, always teach your dog an alternative "good" action that can be rewarded.

 6. You should be the best motivator your dog has - make your time and attention valuable by using a "work to earn" program and playing with your dog daily.

 7. When you call your dog to "come," whatever happens in the next two minutes will dictate whether he comes the next time. The key to a dependable recall is to get your dog to come reliably, quickly and automatically (without thinking) first, in your home and yard. Asking your dog to "make choices" too soon will result in inconsistent performance.

8. If your dog is not 100% controllable on-lead, don't take him off-lead.

9. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of training - if a behavior concerns you,do something about it now!

 Everything you need to know about
dog training in a few sentences:

If you want the dog to do it again, reward it.
If you don't want the dog to do it again,
unreward it. Reward is something the dog wants.
Unreward is something the dog doesn't want.

6 Week Classes:

Limit 4 Dogs

Cost: $225 per dog and handler
Returning Students $195

The class is open to both beginners and intermediate dogs will be geared to getting dogs and handlers ready for Nose Work competition.

The class is structured for pet dogs but is based on the same training techniques and methods used for police and military sniffer dogs.

For more information and sign-up click on this link: Nosework Class 

  

You can now access the Class schedule from your mobile device by going to www.dogsquad.biz and clicking on the calendar icon in the upper right side column.

  

  

I have recently started a Blog. I will be posting training articles and tips, dog information and other dog related stories.

  

Please visit my Blog at http://dogsquad.biz/blog/