Some Truths About Dog Training Part 2

One of the first things I tell my students and repeat again and again is that training has to be fun.  I channel my inner cheerleader and show just how exciting training your dog can be.  In reality, training is not always fun.  It can be time consuming and frustrating.  Training every day is ideal, but even a few minutes can be hard to find some days, or when the weather is bad.  Dogs often pick up some behaviors very quickly and others take much longer.  If your dog just does not seem to be getting it, sometimes you feel like giving up.  You may blame yourself or your dog.  Forget blame and don't feel bad if you are not always having fun.  It is important that your dog always think it is fun however.  Why would a dog want to learn something or behave in a way that is not fun or at least worth the effort in the end?  For example, "stay" is not necessarily fun for the dog, but there is a reward at the end for doing so.  If you never offered the reward, you are not likely to get a reliable stay. 

So if you have had a bad day, it might be better to just skip the training and have some nice play time.  If you are frustrated but want to keep going, here is my favorite tip: in your best happy, overly enthusiastic voice, tell your dog how you feel.  In my "good dog" voice, I have often told both my dogs that they being bad or bratty and that they are driving me crazy.  Because it is in the same tone that often accompanies treats, they wiggle and stay motivated and I feel better having let out a little frustration.