If your dog can’t sit still when you’re enjoying a meal out, relaxing in the park or by the coast, a trainer’s hack for teaching them good behaviour could make your life much easier and calmer.
are said to be man’s best friend thanks to their loyalty and the companionship they provide. They are great additions to the and most adore them. They can also help to improve our by increasing activity as we provide them with exercise on walks.
Playing with our pets and showering them with affection can lead to an increase in pleasure hormones oxytocin and dopamine, which in turn helps reduce stress and anxiety and therefore improves mental health. Assistant dogs are irreplaceable to owners with disabilities and long-term illnesses.
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However nearly all pups require training if they aren’t to become problematic and unruly. Something as simple as sitting still needs to be taught so chaos doesn’t reign when at home or in a public place.
One dog lover who was brought up with the animals from a young age is now a trainer and offers help to others who are struggling with their pets’ behaviour. He specialises in training Dachshunds, who he says despite being small, are renowned for their "big attitude". He runs an academy and also shares his methods on his TikTok page Dovecotedogs.
In he shows how he has taught his sidekick Ralph to remain calm and in one place when they are out of the home environment. Kneeling on the lawn in a garden opposite his dog who is obediently sitting on a blanket, calmly looking up at his owner, Jack reveals a "really quick way" to teach the first stages of place or bed.
"So for Ralph we’re using a blanket and the reason we’re using a blanket is because we like to take it to restaurants or to the beach and we can implement the same thing there using this blanket," he says. "So what we’re gonna do, is [using] some of his daily food allowance, we’re going to reward him on the bed, nice and easy."
He demonstrates the technique by throwing food onto the rug near Ralph who quickly eats it up. "This is free food going in," he explains. "Lots of value being added to this bed, loads of it. Notice that I’m feeding the bed and I’m not feeding the actual dog and then every now and then we’re just gonna break, one comes off and the food stops."
Jack throws a piece of food off of the blanket with Ralph jumping off to eat it. He then stops giving anymore until he gets back on. "You’ll notice with Ralph here we go straight back to the bed. That’s because he’s learnt that that’s where the value is," he says. "So on the bed, loads of value, we’re hand feeding loads of food. And then every now and then, break... one off and nothing else."
Once again Ralph jumps off to retrieve his food but thanks to his training immediately bounds back onto his blanket where the food is once again given as reward. "Yes, good boy," he praises as he urges his followers and fellow dog owners to try it with their pets and let him know how they get on.
One joked: "I think he’s faulty? I’ve never seen a sausage do things on command. He’s beautiful." Another commented: "My dog has got this down pretty well except he does a lot of crying as we build up how long he stays on the bed. He whines a lot in general though." Jack replied and suggested: "Stagger the food so you only reward when he is calm and quiet, even if that is only a second."
A third fan queried: "I’ll try this, but would you have to constantly feed with treats once they’re used to it." Jack answered: "Once the behaviour is strong enough we can fade the treats out." Another who had tried the tip raved: "Yes this is the best option! My dog loves her place."
What is your best tip for training a dog? Let us know in the comments below.