March 13th, 2012
By Eric Letendre
It is easy to make mistakes when it comes to dog training and I’ve made a bunch which reminds me of…
…one of my first jobs out of high school was changing oil in one of the those quick lube joints that are in many towns.
Funny I took the job because I am terrible with tools.
Anyway, second week on the job I got under the car and emptied the transmission fluid and then pumped in four more quarts of oil.
The owner of the car knew there was a problem when he could not shift the car into gear.
HUGE MISTAKE on my part and I did not last long on that job.
Anyhow…
Making a mistake with a car is one thing but with your dog it can lasting effects. To many dog training mistakes can lead to all types of problems – aggression, separation problems, housetraining issues, etc.
So let’s look at some of the glaring dog training mistakes that you want to avoid.
1. Starting too late. Start dog training as early as eight weeks old. Your dog can learn the basics at that age. DO NOT wait until your dog is six months old. Worst advice ever!
2. Using to many negatives. Teaching is all about being positive. Train your dog using rewards and the results will be much more impressive.
3. Training when you are stressed, angry or rushed. I always do my training sessions in the morning. I am a morning person and have a lot of energy and patience at that time of the day.
Dog training around six at night is not a good time for me. Figure out the time of day that is best for you.
Onward…
4. A person that I used to work with would call me on a regular basis and basically yell at me during every conversation. I couldn’t stand talking to this guy.
It got to the point that I ignored his calls. Good point to remember when calling your dog to you. NEVER punish your dog for coming when called. Always reward.
5. My eighth grade gym teacher scared the heck out of me. Made me uncomfortable to be in the same room with him. This can happen when the owner shoves the dog’s nose in his mess to correct “mistakes.” The dog will become uncomfortable and confused to be around the owner and prolong the housetraining process.
6. Novelist Horace Smith stated: “Inconsistency is the only thing in which men are consistent.” Which is why people have dog training problems. In order for a dog to learn the trainers have to be consistent meaning the whole family.
Usually when I go into the house to work with a dog the family is not on the same page. One person allows the dog to jump, the others push the dog down. One person will allow the dog on the couch and the others punish for getting on the furniture.
It all adds up to one confused dog and very poor training results.
7. Un-Intentional reinforcement – Dogs do certain behaviors and get rewarded by the owners without them realizing that they are making the behaviors stronger. For instance, the dog barks and the owners yells, “Quiet,” “Shut up.”
This is giving attention to the behavior. If the dog jumps and the owner pushes the dog and says “Get off” this is giving attention to the behavior. The more attention a behavior gets the more you’ll see the behavior.
Avoid these mistakes and you’re on your way to great dog training results.
February 8th, 2012
By Eric Letendre
I won’t lie to you.
I was pretty bummed out about the way
the Super Bowl went.
Losing twice to that little punk Eli
Manning is just too much to bear.
Just kidding…Eli is a great quarterback
and and deserves his MVP.
Thinking about the Super Bowl got me thinking
about My Big Stupid Dog Training Failure that
I have talked about before.
You see, I used to teach all of my students
that they should do an “Alpha Rollover” any
time their dog misbehaves.
You put yourself in a dangerous situation
any time you decide to use an alpha rollover.
I am still amazed that so many trainers still
teach the alpha rollover.
Let me clear this up for you, amigo.
Dogs Do Not Do Alpha Rollovers!
The alpha dog in a pack does not roll over
dogs that are more submissive. A dog will
show submission by rolling over on his/her
back VOLUNTARILY.
Yes – dogs do show submission by rolling over
on their backs when avoiding a confrontation
with a more dominant dog, but the dog is NOT
forced into it.
Forcing even a submissive dog can quickly
confuse the heck out him and cause an aggressive
situation because of fear.
Make sense?
Thanks for reading and for not sending me
emails taunting me about the Patriots losing
on Sunday.
I am eternally grateful!
All the best,
Eric
P.S. If you’d like to learn more about alpha
rollovers and the right way to deal with
unwanted behaviors, check out
Dog Training Inner Circle
December 16th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Okay, some days I am a complete bonehead.
This week it happened twice.
BONEHEAD MISTAKE #1: Earlier this week I told you about the big, mean Rotti I had pinned to the ground using training techniques I learned in my younger years.
I never finished the story.
BONEHEAD MISTAKE #2: I forgot to add the link to yesterday’s post for the great resource I mentioned at the end of my email (thanks Kay)! Keep Reading…
December 12th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Last night I picked up a book that I read about ten years ago. The author is one of my favorites, he’s the kind of rare writer that will have you laughing your head off on one page and on the next have a tough guy like me almost in tears.
The author’s name: James Herriot. His real name was James Alfred Wright, and he wrote about his experiences as a country vet in England. Keep Reading…
November 4th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Cold weather is not to far off. Now is the time to teach your dog to “Get busy” on command. This video will help:
P.S. Most surveys rank housetraining as one of the top ten dog behavior problems. If you’re having housetraining problems with your dog check out the Housetraining Handbook.
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Eric Letendre is a professional dog trainer from the United States. For more than 20 years, he has been developing dog training "hacks" that have worked for dog owners all over the world. Eric operates from a home office or a laptop while traveling and draws on his experience and passion for dog training to show others how to develop a dog that is truly “Man’s Best Friend”.
Eric is the author of numerous reports, the E-Book “101 Ways to Hack Your Dog’s Behavior,” “The Amazing Dog Training Man Book,” and produced and stars in his DVD “Secrets of a Professional Dog Trainer.”
