Dog training is all about building relationships. Good dog training is all about building positive relationships where the dog has respect for it’s owner and also where the dog realizes that the owner is the master and leader of the pack.
If the owner assumes the position of the leader of the pack and the dog knows and respects that position then it will feel more secure and be a happier pet. Under no circumstances should the dog be fearful of it’s master and that is why most current methods of dog training focus on the positive aspects of the dogs actions and reward it for the good actions that it takes rather than punishing it for anything that it does wrong.
A well trained dog that respects it’s master will always want to please, and that leads to a better-behaved dog both at home and when socializing with other dogs and people. These positive training techniques are also great at retraining dogs that have consistently done something wrong, as they will quickly learn that the rewards for good actions are far greater than the attention they are seeking from their negative actions.
Even older dogs can be trained quite well by using these methods so a dog is certainly never too old to learn new tricks.
Please note: This article is part of a collection of dog-related content that we purchased the rights to. Opinions expressed may or may not agree with those espoused by Master Dog Trainer Adam G. Katz. When in doubt, please refer to the advice given in Adam’s dog training book. This article is provided for your enjoyment, only. It’s relevance to real world working dog training may be limited.