There are five dog commands that are really considered fundamental that most puppy training classes will cover in the first few sessions.

Why take the time to learn these basics? Doing so will not only give you good control over your dogs, but you will have the peace of mind knowing that you can keep them and others safe.

If you don’t take the time now to teach your puppy these valuable lessons, then you will pay for it down the road with a destroyed home and an insolent pup.

Here are the important instructions to master.

Sit. This is a good one to do first, because it’s fairly easy to teach puppies. Bring a treat in front of your dog’s nose to get his attention. As you tell him to sit, slowly bring it up over his nose and as he follows it up, his head will rise and he should assume a sitting position. If he’s having trouble getting to the sitting position, a gentle touch to the back of his hind legs should help. Give him a reward and then release him.

Down. After sit comes down. You should teach your dog how to do this both from a sit as well as from standing. With him in a sit, bring a treat in front of his nose and tell him down. Bring the treat directly down in a straight line and as he brings his head down bring the treat out in front of him. He should drop down with his paws in front of him. Help him out if necessary, but don’t reward and release until he’s done it. Also, don’t give the command over and over without him doing it right. You want him to learn to do the behavior the first time he’s asked.

Come. This is important both for control as well as for safety. You’ll need a long lead to make this work. While his attention is elsewhere, give him the come command, then entice him to come to you with a treat. If necessary, reel him in gently with your lead. Reward, then release. Gradually call him to you from greater and greater distances.

Leave it. With something in the grass or on the floor nearby to attract him, walk past with him on a short lead. As he goes to investigate, tell him to leave it and move in the other direction quickly. Reward him for moving away with you.

Stay. Teaching your dog to stay is another essential instruction. Get that long lead out again. Put your dog in a sit or down and tell him to stay. Take a few steps away, then come back, give him a treat, then release him. Don’t give him his treat if he gets up or you’ll be rewarding him for breaking the stay. If he gets up, put him back into position and do it again. Slowly increase the distance and time you go away from him. Stay can take a while to sink in, but once it does, it is a very valuable skill to know.

These are just some of the basic dog commands that your pup should know. Other advanced commands can be taught during puppy training classes for more specialized purposes.

Michael is an enthusiast who understands the importance of housebreaking a puppy and how this leads to both a happy pet and owner. Visit his blog for more information on dog obedience classes and learn how to get in control and stay there.

How would you like to reduce the amount of time it takes to train your dog and be the idol of your peers in puppy training classes? Let me introduce you to the dog clicker: a effective and surprisingly simple device that can make a huge difference in the speed with which your puppy learns. Making use of clickers has been shown to drop training time by about 33 percent.

A clicker is an inexpensive device usually made of plastic that makes a distinct clicking sound. You may use a clicker intended specifically for dog training, or another device that can make a predictable, reproducible sound when needed, such as a retractable pen or a juice cap.

Clickers work by associating the sound with approval immediately after your puppy does what is asked of him. By getting this feedback in a timely and consistent fashion, he will come to know very quickly when he does what is asked, and training behaviors will get much easier. Verbal praise has the problem of being inconsistent, and sometimes delayed by several seconds, which is long enough to potentially confuse your dog.

Yet another issue associated with using verbal praise is that your tone can change every time, as can the actual words that you are using. Clickers, however, give a reliable and consistent signal that your dog will respond to quicker.

To begin with, you want to let your dog see that the clicker represents positive feedback. The way you do this is by associating it with what he already sees as positive, namely verbal praise, petting, and treats. Provide some attention and a treat to your dog and make a click. Wait a few moments, then repeat. Pretty soon he will associate the clicker with your approval.

At this point, use the clicker with treats or praise during training to tell your dog that he has done exactly what you are looking for.

Some people get concerned about giving their dog too many treats when using a clicker. It’s true that overeating can lead to obesity, and this is something you want to avoid. The best way to do this is to keep the treats the size of a small button.

Use the clicker until the desired behavior is learned. Once the skill has been acquired, you don’t need to use the clicker for that particular command any longer.

So, to really get the most out of your puppy training classes, start using a clicker, and watch your dog learn faster than you thought would be possible.

Discover more about the best puppy training tips out there. Before you give up on having a well-trained and obedient dog, visit Michael’s blog for articles on crate training puppies and other helpful information.

Once you’ve chosen puppy training classes to enroll in, the next step is to gather the equipment you’ll need to help teach your dog new commands and good behavior. One of the most important pieces of equipment that you’ll need is the right dog collar, which will both aid in the training process and keep everyone safe.

Below are some dog collars and their descriptions.

One of the most prevalent collars is the plain, flat collar that usually comes in nylon or leather. They are often colorful and are a convenient place to keep your dogs identification and vaccination tags. While these collars may look good, they don’t work well in the course of training. When a lead is pulled, this type of collar will put pressure on the dog’s windpipe and will cause discomfort.

Body harnesses are a better way to restrain your dog while in class. Instead of the neck, the harness comes about the dog’s midsection and when the owner is holding the lead, the dog cannot move forward. This type of restraint has the benefit of not putting any pressure on the throat.

Another choice is the head collar. This restraint takes its name from the positioning of the device. Rather than being wrapped around a dog’s neck, this collar straps around the head so that when the lead is pulled, the dog’s muzzle is what gets the pressure. Not only is this type of collar effective for training, it is much gentler than other collars.

Choker collars are metal collars that go around the neck that cinch when the lead is pulled. These collars are dangerous and frowned upon by trainers.

A pinch collar is another type of metal collar that goes around the neck. It has metal prongs which will press against the dog’s neck when the lead is pulled to get him to stop. This is typically for tough dogs who can pull their owners around with other collars.

As you can see, harnesses and head collars are the most beneficial choices of dog collars to use in puppy training classes due to their control and their gentle treatment of your pet.

Looking to find the best information on puppy training classes, then visit www.mypuppytrainingclasses.com to find the best advice on puppy training tips for you.

If you’re interested in making the most of your puppy training classes, consider learning how to use a dog clicker. A clicker is an inexpensive device that makes a clicking sound and is used as positive reinforcement during training. By using one, you can dramatically improve the speed and efficiency of your training.

What exactly is a clicker? It’s usually a small piece of plastic that makes a consistent and predictable click when pressed. There are specific dog clickers, or you can make use of something else you have lying around that makes a consistent and predictable sound as needed, like a cap that pops, or a retractable pen.

Clickers work by associating the sound with approval immediately after your puppy does what is asked of him. By getting this feedback in a timely and consistent fashion, he will come to know very quickly when he does what is asked, and training behaviors will get much easier. Verbal praise has the problem of being inconsistent, and sometimes delayed by several seconds, which is long enough to potentially confuse your dog.

The other problem with using your voice is that your intonation can vary from day to day, as could the specific words you use. Clickers provide consistency and reliability.

To begin with, you want to let your dog see that the clicker represents positive feedback. The way you do this is by associating it with what he already sees as positive, namely verbal praise, petting, and treats. Provide some attention and a treat to your dog and make a click. Wait a few moments, then repeat. Pretty soon he will associate the clicker with your approval.

At this point, use the clicker with treats or praise during training to tell your dog that he has done exactly what you are looking for.

Too many treats during training can lead to your dog becoming overweight. In order to prevent this very real problem, keep the size of your treats very small. A good rule of thumb is to keep your treats to about half the size of your thumbnail.

Once your dog learns the behavior you are trying to teach, you do not have to continue using the clicker for that command anymore.

Using a clicker for puppy training classes will help you get the most out of your sessions, and will quickly transform your dog into an obedient, well-behaved companion.

Find out more about the best puppy obedience training out there. Before you give up on having a well-trained and obedient dog, visit Michael’s blog for articles on crate training puppies and other helpful information.

Once you’ve chosen puppy training classes to enroll in, the next step is to gather the equipment you’ll need to help teach your dog new commands and good behavior. One of the most important pieces of equipment that you’ll need is the right dog collar, which will both aid in the training process and keep everyone safe.

Below are some dog collars and their descriptions.

Leather or nylon collars which lie flat around a dog’s neck are what most dog owners reach for before leaving the house. These collars are fun and colorful, but unfortunately don’t do a very good job as a training collar. The reason is because when the dog leaps forward and the lead becomes taut, the collar will pull around the front of the neck causing discomfort and potentially damage to the windpipe.

Body harnesses are a better way to restrain your dog while in class. Instead of the neck, the harness comes about the dog’s midsection and when the owner is holding the lead, the dog cannot move forward. This type of restraint has the benefit of not putting any pressure on the throat.

Next is the head collar. These types of collars look like a muzzle in that they wrap around the dog’s head. They don’t cover the mouth, however, so your puppy can still bark, eat, and drink. The head collar works differently from other collars in that a pull on the lead redirects the dog’s head by applying pressure to the top of the muzzle. It is considered to be a humane and effective means of controlling your dog.

Choker collars are metal collars that go around the neck that cinch when the lead is pulled. These collars are dangerous and frowned upon by trainers.

A similar type of collar is a pinch collar, which also fits around the neck. The blunt metal protrusions put pressure around the neck in order to stop powerful and willful dogs. These collars are just used temporarily until your dog is adequately trained.

As you can see, there are several different choices of collars. Your best bet for puppy training classes is to use a harness or a head collar as they are effective and not harmful to your dog.

Want to find out more about puppy training classes, then visit Michael Ford’s site on how to choose the best puppy training tips for your needs.

How would you like to reduce the amount of time it takes to train your dog and be the idol of your peers in puppy training classes? Let me introduce you to the dog clicker: a effective and surprisingly simple device that can make a huge difference in the speed with which your puppy learns. Making use of clickers has been shown to drop training time by about 33 percent.

Clickers are small, handheld tools typically made of plastic. When pressed, they make click, thus the name. There are plenty of dog training specific clickers that are inexpensive and easy to find. You can also use items from around your house, like juice caps or retractable pens, which make consistent sounds when pressed.

Clickers work by associating the sound with approval immediately after your puppy does what is asked of him. By getting this feedback in a timely and consistent fashion, he will come to know very quickly when he does what is asked, and training behaviors will get much easier. Verbal praise has the problem of being inconsistent, and sometimes delayed by several seconds, which is long enough to potentially confuse your dog.

The other problem with using your voice is that your intonation can vary from day to day, as could the specific words you use. Clickers provide consistency and reliability.

Start by doing what trainers call “initializing the clicker”. This is done by giving your dog praise or a treat, and accompany that with a click. Very quickly your dog will learn that when he hears the clicker, good things happen.

Next, you’ll want to incorporate the clicker into your training. When you give your puppy a command and he performs it, give a click right away, accompanied by praise or a treat so he knows he did well.

Some people get concerned about giving their dog too many treats when using a clicker. It’s true that overeating can lead to obesity, and this is something you want to avoid. The best way to do this is to keep the treats the size of a small button.

You only have to use the clicker during the training process until your puppy has learned the behavior you are trying to teach. Once a particular command is mastered, using the clicker for it is not necessary.

When you use a dog clicker, especially during puppy training classes, you will see significant improvement in how quickly your dog learns, and you will soon be the envy of dog owners everywhere.

Learn more about the best puppy training classes out there. Before you give up on having a well-trained and obedient dog, visit Michael’s blog for articles on dog commands and other helpful information.

If you’re interested in making the most of your puppy training classes, consider learning how to use a dog clicker. A clicker is an inexpensive device that makes a clicking sound and is used as positive reinforcement during training. By using one, you can dramatically improve the speed and efficiency of your training.

Clickers are small, handheld tools typically made of plastic. When pressed, they make click, thus the name. There are plenty of dog training specific clickers that are inexpensive and easy to find. You can also use items from around your house, like juice caps or retractable pens, which make consistent sounds when pressed.

The theory behind clicker training is to give accurate and timely positive feedback when your puppy does what you want him to. A clicker has the benefit of being fast, and therefore more likely to be associated with the behavior, as opposed to seconds later, when verbal approval might come. If the timing of the praise is not right after the event, the target behavior might not be learned as quickly.

Yet another issue associated with using verbal praise is that your tone can change every time, as can the actual words that you are using. Clickers, however, give a reliable and consistent signal that your dog will respond to quicker.

The first thing you want to do is show your dog that a click means they did a good job. Give your dog verbal praise or a treat and press the clicker at the same time. After doing this several times, your dog will associate that click with the reward, and will see this as positive.

At this point, use the clicker with treats or praise during training to tell your dog that he has done exactly what you are looking for.

There is some worry by people that using treats with the clicker can lead to obesity. This concern is understandable, and weight problems can be avoided by using very small amounts of a nutritious dog treat at a time. The size of a fingernail is about right.

Use the clicker until the desired behavior is learned. Once the skill has been acquired, you don’t need to use the clicker for that particular command any longer.

Using a clicker for puppy training classes will help you get the most out of your sessions, and will quickly transform your dog into an obedient, well-behaved companion.

Discover more about the best puppy training tips out there. Before you give up on having a well-trained and obedient dog, visit Michael’s blog for articles on crate training puppies and other helpful information.

Puppy training classes are a great environment for teaching your dog commands and encouraging good behavior. Having the right collar for training will allow for easier correction of unwanted behaviors and will ensure that your puppy, and those around you, are safe.

Here are several collar choices for you to consider.

One of the most prevalent collars is the plain, flat collar that usually comes in nylon or leather. They are often colorful and are a convenient place to keep your dogs identification and vaccination tags. While these collars may look good, they don’t work well in the course of training. When a lead is pulled, this type of collar will put pressure on the dog’s windpipe and will cause discomfort.

Another type of restraint is a harness. The harness fits over the body of the dog and is a much better way to restrain your dog than a flat collar. When the lead is attached, the puppy can’t move forward, and the best part is that there’s no harm to the neck and throat.

Next is the head collar. These types of collars look like a muzzle in that they wrap around the dog’s head. They don’t cover the mouth, however, so your puppy can still bark, eat, and drink. The head collar works differently from other collars in that a pull on the lead redirects the dog’s head by applying pressure to the top of the muzzle. It is considered to be a humane and effective means of controlling your dog.

Choker collars are metal collars that go around the neck that cinch when the lead is pulled. These collars are dangerous and frowned upon by trainers.

Pinch collars have dull prongs which exert pressure around the neck when the leash is pulled. These collars are used mainly for strong, stubborn dogs, and usually just temporarily.

As you can see, harnesses and head collars are the most beneficial choices of dog collars to use in puppy training classes due to their control and their gentle treatment of your pet.

Looking to find the best information on puppy training classes, then visit www.mypuppytrainingclasses.com to find the best advice on puppy training tips for you.

Crates can be great tools for housebreaking black labradors, especially when used properly.

Watch out for these issues, however, to ensure success with this process.

Make sure that you don’t send the dog to the crate when he does something wrong. Using the crate as punishment will reinforce to him that the crate is a bad place, and he will start to resist going in. Ideally, the crate should be a happy place for him, where he can feel safe and secure. If not, you will find it quite difficult to housetrain your puppy.

Second, make sure that you have the right size crate selected for your labrador. Crates should be big enough for him to get into and turn around, but not much bigger than that. If you put your puppy in an adult sized kennel, there will be too much room to move around, and he will very likely have an accident inside. As he gets bigger, you will need to increase the size of the kennel to accommodate him.

Lastly, don’t keep your puppy in the crate for extended periods of time right from the outset. Puppies need to be taken out frequently, and failure to do so will result in a mess and a step backward in housebreaking. Once your dog has been introduced to the crate, take your time and slowly over time leave him in there for longer and longer spans of time. Regardless, he will need to be checked on regularly. Try to recruit someone to help bring your dog outside if you are not able to do it yourself.

Crates provide a great highly effective means to help with housebreaking during labrador training, and looking out for these problems will seriously increase your chances of having happy, house-trained black labradors.

Michael enjoys sharing his love and knowledge on black lab dogs with dog lovers around the world. Check out more of his articles on labrador training and other topics on his website.

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Most puppy training classes will cover important equipment that can aid with training your dog. Clickers are simple and effective tools which can really speed up the learning process. Some research indicates that training time can be reduced by a third with a clicker.

A clicker is an inexpensive device usually made of plastic that makes a distinct clicking sound. You may use a clicker intended specifically for dog training, or another device that can make a predictable, reproducible sound when needed, such as a retractable pen or a juice cap.

The theory behind clicker training is to give accurate and timely positive feedback when your puppy does what you want him to. A clicker has the benefit of being fast, and therefore more likely to be associated with the behavior, as opposed to seconds later, when verbal approval might come. If the timing of the praise is not right after the event, the target behavior might not be learned as quickly.

The other problem with using your voice is that your intonation can vary from day to day, as could the specific words you use. Clickers provide consistency and reliability.

Start by doing what trainers call “initializing the clicker”. This is done by giving your dog praise or a treat, and accompany that with a click. Very quickly your dog will learn that when he hears the clicker, good things happen.

Next, you’ll want to incorporate the clicker into your training. When you give your puppy a command and he performs it, give a click right away, accompanied by praise or a treat so he knows he did well.

There is some worry by people that using treats with the clicker can lead to obesity. This concern is understandable, and weight problems can be avoided by using very small amounts of a nutritious dog treat at a time. The size of a fingernail is about right.

You only have to use the clicker during the training process until your puppy has learned the behavior you are trying to teach. Once a particular command is mastered, using the clicker for it is not necessary.

Using a clicker for puppy training classes will help you get the most out of your sessions, and will quickly transform your dog into an obedient, well-behaved companion.

Learn more about the best puppy training tips out there. Before you give up on having a well-trained and obedient dog, visit Michael’s blog for articles on crate training puppies and other helpful information.