By Erin Shackelford
It’s time to begin thinking about heading back to school, but getting a well-rounded education isn’t just for kids. Your dog can benefit from training and life-long learning, too!
You might be wondering if investing the time, energy and money into dog training is worth it. It is a big commitment and patience is certainly required; however, training can make an immensely positive impact on you and your dog’s relationship, creating harmony between pets and people.
It’s also critical to remember that the training is not just for your dog, it’s for you as well. Learning how to identify and read your dog’s triggers and behaviors, how to appropriately respond to them in a timely fashion and how to work together to find positive solutions to help your dog thrive is critical to successful training.
Here are five reasons to send your pup – and yourself – “back to school:”
- It can build your dog’s confidence, which can be especially beneficial for timid or anxious dogs. When using a positive reinforcement approach, dogs learn to engage with their environment by making decisions that earn them treats and praise.
- It can strengthen the bond between you and your dog. What do most dogs want besides snacks? To be with their people, of course. Training is a fantastic way to learn more about each other, share positive experiences and build mutual trust and respect with your dog.
- It also increases safety. When your dog knows to listen for and respond to cues, it can avoid potential conflicts with other animals and hazard-ous situations.
- Training not only teaches your dog new skills – which can greatly reduce unwanted or unpleasant behaviors – but it also provides your dog with physical and mental stimulation. A tired, well-exercised dog is a happy dog.
- It can help with many other aspects of you and your dog’s life, including your dog’s sociability with other animals and people and make it easier for pet professionals, like veterinarians and groomers, to work with your dog.
What is positive reinforcement?
At its most basic, positive reinforcement is rewarding your dog for doing the “right” or desired thing. For example, your dog sits, you give them a tasty treat and they are more likely to sit again on command. On the other hand, training methods that use punishment can cause “bad” behaviors to get worse and lead to aggression or fear. As a pet parent, you never want to be the source of worry, fear, discomfort or anxiety for your animal. Positive reinforcement techniques will ensure your relationship with your dog is one of compassion, trust and respect.
The Animal Welfare League of Alexandria only uses positive reinforcement training techniques to work with animals in our care. It is also the method we teach through our community Alexandria Animal Academy dog behavior courses.
Helpful resources
The AWLA is fortunate to have two team members dedicated to animal behavior and training not only for our in-shelter animals, but also community members’ animals. Our most fielded questions include furniture scratching, marking, not using the litter box and aggressive behavior for cats; and excessive barking, separation anxiety, house training, hyperactivity and aggressive behavior for dogs.
The AWLA has a plethora of free online training resources for dogs, cats and other animals. We also maintain a list of recommended private positive-reinforcement trainers for dogs who need one-on-one help.
If you’re searching for more hands-on behavior and training assistance for your dog, a new cohort of our Alexandria Animal Academy will begin this fall. These low-cost but high-value training courses can help with things like confidence building, leash reactivity and more.
Check our website for enrollment information coming soon.
The writer is the marketing and communications specialist with the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria.
