Dog Training - How Much and How Often

First it's important to realize that dog training can happen at any time. Structured training is most effective, but take advantage of every opportunity to train your dog, because he will take advantage of every opportunity to learn. That is both good and bad.

For example, if your dog starts whining if he can't be where you are and you immediately go get him, you have just trained him that whining will get his desired result. And that's not the kind of training you want. Be on the lookout for positive training opportunities.

That said, your pet is usually ready for dog training whenver you are. But keep in mind his attention span is short. Training in short intervals of 5-7 minutes is great. If he seems to lose interest before then, stop. Any dog training after that point will be virtually useless. A total of 30 minutes a day in these short intervals is usually enough.

Remember that every time you interact with your pet can be seen as a chance to train him. Try incorporating dog training into his daily routine. He'll learn that responding to your cues triggers a reward. It's not just something that happens when he's on a leash.

You can practice the "wait" command whenever you dog goes outside or comes back in. Practice the "stay" command during walks. Work on the "no jumping" command (or whatever term you choose to use) when you come home. Just by doing those alone you will have 4 or 5 sessions a day.

In structured dog training sessions, pick only one or two commands to focus on. Start with something he is good at already. That will get him focused on you. Success and rewards will get him excited about the sessions.

Then move on to something more challenging. Do enough repetitions so that he has a chance to figure out what you are asking him to do.

If he doesn't seem to be getting it, break the behavior down into smaller pieces (something we discussed previously on the blog), and reward him for partial actions. An an example, if he won't lie down, you may need to reward him at first for just looking at the floor as you move your lure lower.

Keep this up and keep rewarding as he goes lower until he is all the way down. If he gets bored or quits, it's time to stop, and pick up later at the point he was doing well. Go slower next time and continue giving rewards for smaller pieces of the goal behavior. Again, if he's getting frustrated, quit the dog training for now. The same applies if you start to get frustrated. And end the dog training session on a positive note by playing with him or giving him a treat.

When he gets the hang of it, practice sessions for that behavior should become shorter to keep him from gettng bored. Really, the amount of time spent dog training depends alot on his personality. Some dog will get bored and quit after 3 or 4 reps. Others will go longer.

Once you get to know your pet, your training will go better. If he gets bored after 5 repetitions, stop at three to keep him enthusiastic. If you can keep the training interesting he'll gradually build up his attention span. Some pets will repeat a behavior many times because they are looking forward to earning the reward that goes with it.

If you can encourage this, performing the behavior itself will become his reward, because it has been consistently associated with play and other good things. And once your pet understands and obeys your commands on cue reliably and in different environments, then you won't have to practice that command very often.

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