what's your training method? - Page 1

i would like to hear how other people curb problem behaviors, like jumping, chasing things, dog aggression, small animal aggression, any kind of aggression, really, on-leash pulling, chewing, etc. i am just curious about what other people do.....kind of a survey, may re-post on facebook if nobody minds.....

Every dog is different...........and responds to each training method differently.
I use whatever works for each dog.

I have a new theory these days;  that is to train (at puppyhood) BEFORE you start any problems;  kind of resolves issues prior to being an issue.  Yeah;  now I'll see if it works...  Nan

My Principles of Training
 
It’s a DOG, not your furry child. Like your child, it needs structure and rules in order to feel secure.
 
If the owner does not show leadership, the dog WILL take over. That’s what pack structure is all about. Someone has to be alpha. And don't try telling me there's no such thing as 'dominance' or 'pack structure'!  I've been studying animal behaviour for far too many years!

There is NO such thing as 'purely positive'!  Withholding a treat is a correction. And if you think dogs don't correct each other, you've never raised a litter of pups!
 
Small dogs need structure and rules just as much as large ones.
 
However, when it comes to training, not all methods work for all dogs. A trainer needs to be flexible in his/her approach, and be willing to learn from other trainers, and take suggestions. A soft, shy dog needs gentle methods, while a really hard, dominant dog with a high pain threshold needs much firmer methods.
 
The best trainers can get the maximum results from a dog with the minimum of force or compulsion.  Make every effort to keep it positive and happy. Treats and praise work equally well for most dogs.
 
One good, hard correction is worth a hundred gentle, nagging corrections. If the dog tries the behaviour again, the correction wasn’t hard enough.
 

The last two seem to contradict each other, don't they?    Well, not everything in life is black or white, and the degree of correction depends on the type of offence.  If a dog is getting ready to bite another dog, I will give it a correction it isn't soon going to forget.  OTOH, if a dog is forging while heeling, it gets a simple verbal correction, not a yank on the collar.

It usually means, when undesirable behavior presents... that the owner/ handler needs to put a leash on the dog and do some obedience. IMHO  Baby steps. If you got that one covered and did it right, the problems are just not there.

I agree with Nans GSD
You train at the Puppy stage the basic things that you want from the Pup. First Recall, the Pup must come on the first call not the second time of asking? then the sit and the down easy to teach all three. As a Pup gets bolder it will at times try and mouth your hand. do not allow it to do it and you will not stop it by speaking loudly or getting excited because that adds fuel to the fire. you hold the Pup in a postition that is not comfortable to it with very little pressure so not to frighten it, and say no bite in a calm voice. As soon as the Pup relaxes in your hand you release and praise it by patting it and give it a treat always praise it every time it does right even if it is a hundred times a day. They soon get the message? , Walking on Leash , You train the Pup to walk on leash the same time as you start the basics and you use its food as you do the same above with to get it walking by your side two yards to start get its focus on your hand with the food in and it will bury its nose in then move slowly and the pup will stay with you. I train a small Pup on three long tables about 5 yards in length this way you do not have to bend the Pup will follow your hand. These are things done from 8 to 10 weeks old and by 12 weeks old you will be suprised at what the Pup has learned. You do not wait until a child is in its teens before you teach it certain things that is done as a baby or when it can go to play school so you do not leave a Pups learning until it gets in its teen stage do this and you will never have trouble with any dog,
Steve1

Great Tips from all!
Enjoyed reading them.

marker training to mold behaviors and once a dog has proven it knows a bit of compulsion is added.

for example.......
puppy is lured to sit position with food, when it sits the marker and then food is given.
after a while the name is associated with the behavior
after a while food is given less and less frequently
after a while food is replaced with a toy for reward
after a while the toy is used only to get dog into the required drive to perform the task with gusto and if the dog doesn't do what it is commanded a tug on its collar given, once the dog does the command praise and toy is given.

this has worked for every dog so far, but most likely the next dog i have will have a completely new owners manual...........
 

thank you everybody. i totally forgot i posted here until just now. i enjoyed reading everything you all had to say. :-)

My method is start early.