September 29th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Some of the scariest times I’ve had with dogs still play in my head like a high definition DVD with surround sound.
I can vividly play each scary scene in my head with laser like accuracy.
One time I was doing K-9 Security for a hospital in Hartford, CT. The only place we were allowed to exercise the dogs was on the roof of the parking garage.
One of the guys threw a tennis ball a little too hard and it went over the four foot wall that enclosed the roof.
The dog we were exercising was ball crazy and raced for the edge. Once he got to the fence we knew he would jump over it to go after the ball.
Or the other time my sheltie started racing toward a kid she saw on a skateboard on the other side of the street with a truck coming in the other direction.
I also get the same sick feeling in my stomach just thinking about these two incidents.
Luckily, disaster was avoided both times because…
…both dogs had an EXCELLENT recall command.
Both dogs were saved from injury or death because they came back when they heard the command “COME.”
In my next blog post, I am going to share 4 tips on how to teach your dog a really reliable recall command, so stay tuned…
All the best,
Eric
P.S. The recall command is something we take very seriously on the Dog Training Inner Circle. We provide articles and video seminars on how to teach this very important command. You can also take advantage of the forum and ask me questions that I answer personally. Get all the details here:
September 6th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
One of the great things about running my website AmazingDogTrainingMan.com is that I get emails from people all over the world.
People write to say how much they love the site, to ask questions about training and behavior and to add input.
This week I received an email from Jacob who asked about what words a dog should understand.
That was a great question and got me thinking. I sat down and came up with a list of 17 words every dog should understand.
Here they are:
1. Name/attention/watch
2. Sit
3. Down
4. Stand
5. Stay
6. Come
7. Heel
8. Lets go
9. Wait
10. Drop it
11. Leave it
12. Off
13. Jump/Hup
14. Speak
15. Quiet
16. Back up
17. Break/okay – release word
In this week’s video newsletter I discuss these 17 words and demonstrate with one of my dogs.
If you own the Amazing Dog Training Man on-line Course all 17 words with explanations and video clips on how to teach each one are now up and on the website.
To watch this week’s video newsletter:
All the best,
Eric
July 19th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Learn the three drives that every dog has and how it effects training your dog.
July 7th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Someone asked me yesterday how long have I been training dogs. Without thinking I said, “I’ve been training dogs since 1988.”
She smiled and said, “Wow, longer than I’ve been alive.”
I added that it has been a very interesting 23 years and I’ve seen a lot of changes since I first starting working with dogs.
It got me thinking about all the expert “advice” I got as a young trainer just starting. So much of the advice that was given 20 years ago is still floating around today, doing more harm than good.
Here are a few such myths:
1. Push your dog’s nose in his mess to teach housetraining.
2. Never play tug o war with your dog.
3. Always use a choke chain to obedience train.
4. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.
5. Never allow your dog on the furniture or bed.
6. Never give your dog “people food.”
And the all-time worst myth:
7. Wait until your pup is six months old before training.
This advice has done more harm to dogs than anything IMHO (little texting lingo for an old guy, I think it means “In my huble opinion.”).
Puppies are like sponges and waiting until six months old is like a child waiting until he is 15 years old before starting school. Any child who starts at that age would be at a HUGE disadvantage compared to a child who started when they were five or six years old.
But the myth lives on…
…and the list goes on and on…
Anyway, these myths (especially #7) can harm your dog’s training and your relationship with your dog.
And if you believe them, you are not going to get maximum training results.
Take it from a guy that has been training dogs longer than some people have been alive.
All the best,
Eric Letendre
P.S. If you’d like to learn more about dog training myths and how to avoid them, check out my book, “The Amazing Dog Training Man,” where I cover this topic and a whole lot more to help you train your dog:
The Amazing Dog Training Man Book
June 15th, 2011
By Eric Letendre
Did you know there is a simple “cure” for ANY of your dog training problems?
There is and it is simple to use. In fact, you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to use this to train your dog.
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.”
