Every owner of the dog who decided to bring her to the dog handler is already cool. After all, training in the "dog school" is a difficult way with blurry terms of progress. It cannot be said for sure that in five classes there will be a clear result. This gives up many and makes you quit what has begun. But the stubborn owners will not allow to Down: once spent nerves and money fully justify the further life with the dog!
The fact is that a trained dog gives more freedom – to himself and his person.
We learned from the dog handler Maria Tsellenko, why train the dog, what to rely on when choosing a dog-by-dog school and which format of learning is better – consultations or course. We also talked with three dog owners, they told how their doggrack lessons ended.
Why train a dog at all
Indeed, what is all these wisdom training? You can accept your dog with all its "cockroaches. "To say: “Yes, my bobik is like that, and I'm not going to do anything about it. The maximum – I’ll put a muzzle on him and let him fool around how he wants it. ”But there is a couple of "but":
- You also need to accustom to the muzzle,
- Such reasoning is the path to an unfortunate life full of growing anger in both. A person will be angry, because the dog races and it is impossible to walk calmly with him, the dog – because the owner constantly yells at her. In addition, animals perfectly read the irritation of the owner. This will also play a minus.
“The dog’s training is needed to make your life comfortable with the dog and to provide the dog with safety in the city. A trained dog gives more freedom. For example, if the dog is accustomed to a muzzle, he knows how to behave calmly in society, does not pull the leash, you can easily move in transport with him, go to shops and Pets-Friendly cafes, walk in parks. ”
Maria Tsellenko is a dog handler
The story of Yegor Kudryashov and the American hunting spaniel Leon
“The first time Leon led to the dog handler when he was three years old. This is my first dog, so I naively thought that I could raise it myself, but the plan broke. My dog turned out to be smart and very temperamental. At some point, the gaps in education began to affect the attitude towards the dog-when he began to bark for a walk, I did not feel anything except hatred. At this moment, I realized that we needed help.
There were four tasks:
Teach Leon not to pull the leash,
Do not bark in the elevator,
Do not bark when the intercom calls.
We had experience with two specialists. Two classes were engaged with one. He practiced a whip and a gingerbread, this did not suit us. The second girl was an adherent of only the gingerbread. With her we studied for almost six months. Her technique worked better.
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Classes were similar to family therapy. She looked at my actions, then said that I was doing wrong. She explained why my dog does not listen Come / Come here. After led to very simple revelations.
Then I realized that problems in the behavior of a dog are the result of the wrong actions of a person. As soon as you start to disassemble your actions, everything immediately falls into place.
As a result, Leon and I began to better understand each other. Sometimes he forgets some rules, you have to remind. For example, if we go for a walk, we do 1-2 minutes the exercise so that Leon does not pull the leash.
It is more difficult and slower with an adult dog. When I turned to the dog handler, I thought that we would not fix many things anymore. It turned out that almost everything can be adjusted. Even in adulthood. "
How the age of the dog affects training
In the context of dog training can be divided into two groups: up to six months and after. Now we will explain in more detail.
Puppies up to six months. This time is called a period of socialization
“The word“ socialization ”is often used incorrectly – it is applied to dogs of any age. But this is not so, the period of socialization lasts up to 6 months. The brain of puppies at this age adapts faster and sets new information.
If the puppy was taken at the age of 3-5 months, it is necessary to take into account the conditions that his brain has already managed to accept for grantedppose a puppy from the shelter – there he was used to the fact that he was surrounded by the same saved, sees one or two curators, is not spoiled by attention. He perceives all this as a norm.
Such a puppy will experience stress if a new owner takes him for a long walk in a day where there are a lot of people and dogs of different breeds – a load to which she is not used to will fall on the children's nervous system. An overexcited puppy may run around with other dogs and reach out to different passers-by out of curiosity. Some owners think that this behavior is a sign of successful socialization. This is mistake.
A pleasant experience from meeting new objects is important. But the puppy will become socialized when he learns to walk past other dogs and will not reach out to everyone in a row.
A socialized dog is one that can relate to the world around it calmly.
At the same time, it is worth starting to introduce the basics of teaching commands. So that the puppy is not overloaded, training should not be long – 3-5 minutes is enough. The owner can either start teaching the puppy himself, or take a consultation from a cynologist if he is worried that he will make mistakes. The dog handler will help you understand when the puppy’s brain is ready for new information and guide you step by step. ”
Maria Tsellenko is a dog handler
The story of Nikita Shcherbakov and Knopa
“I have a Pomeranian. I did not set goals to make a circus dog. I wanted more to learn how to interact and set boundaries – so that it would be clear and comfortable to live together. The first lesson was held at 2 months of age. The cynologist talked a lot about the psychology of the animal, methods of interaction with it. She showed simple commands and gave exercises to develop logic, motor skills, toilet training and getting used to the name.
Then he called the cynologist for the first walk – Knop was 3-4 months old. We learned not to lose sight of the owner, not to be afraid of new sounds and large spaces. Then, honestly, I gave up on training, and by the age of one, behavioral problems surfaced – Knopa is very smart and cunning, she learned to catch a passive tone and play dirty tricks.
Therefore, he invited a cynologist a year. This time there were more repressive methods – she walked around on a leash all day at home. This is necessary for the animal to get used to physical control. The exercise really helped regain control – Knopa began to behave more obediently.
Now sometimes we consult with a cynologist, but mostly we do it ourselves. Knopa likes lessons, because classes are an opportunity to get tasty food + time with the owner. ”
Dogs older than six months
“Dogs older than 6 months have already acquired persistent habits. Their brain requires more time to establish new connections. In this case, adaptation, not socialization, correctly speakch a process takes more time and progress is not immediately noticeable. In addition, each has its own temperament and features of thinking. Some grasp everything faster, others a little longer. But there are no trained dogs, so those who have begun to train adult dogs need to be patient.
A good dog handler does not repair the dog, but teaches the owner to interact with her.
For example, native dogs – those who have historically lived next to a person – are not so oriented towards the owner than those who were selected according to official qualities. For example, Husky, Akita Inu, Siba-Inu will show their independence in every possible way and try to “ampliting”. If you put pressure on them, they will completely lose interest in learning. This can bring the owner to despair during independent training. But there is an approach to such dogs – through games and exercises that a dog handler can choose. ”
Maria Tsellenko is a dog handler
If we are talking about an adult animal from the shelter, the work is complicated by traumatic experience: such a dog was betrayed and offended. Perhaps more than once. Over the years in the aviary, she saw a plus or minus similar to herself-she is not aware that there are French bulldogs, Chihuahua or greyhounds in the world. Therefore, any contact with strangers will be stress. With such a dog you need to work carefully: without screams, sudden movements and all that will increase fear and make you close.
Aishe Devletova and Rick
“Rick was 2-3 months when I took him from the shelter. She began to consult with a dog handler immediately, at the same time read books on the upbringing of dogs. The dog handler spoke about the features of the psyche and psychology of dogs. For example, that they are imprisoned for a person and obedience. If the dog is not taught, this will cause suffering to herself and others.
The dog must mentally strain to feel good.
Our dog handler worked on a positive reinforcement system when poor behavior is ignored, and good is encouraged. Rick immediately took training and now likes to study, but can behave in every way when he is sad, fun or tired-he is not a robot.
It’s more important for me not even how Rick behaves, but is there contact between him and me at these moments. He is. "
Is it possible to give the dog a dog handler and pick up already educated
In short – you can’t. But we also have a detailed answer: it is impossible to do for three reasons:
Dogs are bad with generalization. The dog does not correlate that behavior is an unchanging rule that works everywhere, and not only in one place. Therefore, if she learns that you can’t bark at people and dogs at school, this does not mean that she will not do this at the entrance or in the park. For the same reason, problems arise when the dog performs the command at home well, and forgets about everything on the street. So that this is not the case, the dog needs to train in the conditions familiar to it and create different situations for it. The dog handler will help the owner explain to the dog that you need to obey, will show what to do in order to quickly attract her attention, tells how to give commands correctly.
The dog will have their own relationship with a dog handler. Another nuance: dogs, like people, choose behavior under the one with whom they are in contact. Therefore, the pet can decide that only a dog handler will obey, and there is no owner and other family members. To not happen, all family members should learn to give commands to the dog. The animal should not focus on only one owner. He should have a feeling that there is a certain near circle of people who need to be listened to.
The dog does not live in a vacuum. You can’t give the dog to a dog-by-dog school and think that at home she will behave the same way as with a dog handler. At home, the dog will focus on the reaction and emotions of the owner, on the street – on the actions of other people. And if the owner will provoke the wrong behavior of the dog or does not know how to distract the attention of the pet, progress will gradually come to naught. For example, the popular mistake of inexperienced owners is to iron the dog when she jumps on them. With their joy, they unconsciously reinforce a bad habit. So that this is not the case, the work of the dog handler is aimed not only at the dog, but also to its owner. The specialist teaches a person to follow his reactions and act clearly when the dog does not obey. A good dog handler does not “repair” the dog, but teaches the owner to interact with her.
How to choose a dog-by
The choice of a dog handler is somewhat reminiscent of the choice of a psychologist-this takes time. Even a specialist found on a word of mouth (which many are delighted) may not suit you personally. It is also normal to get away from the dog handler, next to which the dog owner is discomfort, even if the pet is good to train.
According to the dog handler, Maria Tsellenko, the search should be stopped when everyone will be comfortable – a trusting relationship should be lined up between a dog handler, a dog and its owner. This is the main criterion.
The second milestone is progress. If the dog's behavior does not change for the better either after the fifth or tenth lesson, this is an occasion to either talk to the cynologist or change him.
What dog handlers should you run from?
- If at school they say that a person should dominate a dog. In a good school, relationships are not built on the principle of “man – leader”.
- The specialist uses aversive ammunition aimed at pain. It includes: strict and electric collars, as well as any types of choker collars (jerk chain, training cable, controller).
Which is better – consultations or a course of classes
You can challenge your pet with exercises and learn something new with him individually or in a group with other couples. Each option is good in its own way.
Group classes have a specific program and visiting days. In individual lessons, the training program is selected depending on the wishes of the owner, and the plan of each lesson depends on the nature of the dog. You can limit yourself to one lesson or raids once a month, or you can focus on the course of classes. Rare lessons are suitable if you need to correct behavior, that is, if there is already some kind of base, but something went wrong.
When it comes to teaching basic knowledge or learning complex exercises, infrequent meetings will not work.
“Many commands are given not immediately to the final version, but in parts – so that the dog's skills appear gradually. At the same time, the dog handler tells the owner what is going on and why. Therefore, after the first lesson, some people think that they can independently lead the animal to the desired result. But it happens that they get stuck at some stage, because they don’t understand where they make a mistake. Also infrequent meetings, such as once a month, can give the impression of a lack of progress. This can be demotivating for dog owners. ”
Maria Tsellenko is a dog handler
The best option is to train a dog with a dog handler once a week. Meet, study the exercise and repeat it until the next session. After fixing with a specialist and proceed to the next stage.
Training is not a way to rein in a dog because friends are not bullied, suppressed, or abandoned when they make mistakes. They are called to a dialogue to find out what's wrong. It often turns out that there were mistakes on both sides.
