When you look at a dog, what do you see? For most people, it’s Man’s Best Friend, and that’s the way it should be!
For others, though, it can be an array of things. A guard watching for intruders, a helping hand with the herd, a set of eyes for the blind… Or, worse things. Some people see a dog and are still suffering the psychological damage from a dog bite attack, imagining being chased, or both, while others simply see an irritating neighbor in waiting. Training your dog properly is not only important for obedience and bark control, but for the safety of everyone who encounters your dog.
Keep reading to see a few common reasons why it is imperative you ensure your dog is properly and thoroughly trained.
- Behavior.
A broad category, but easily the most important one. A poorly behaved dog may be as simple as one that begs excessively, barks at all hours of the night, or pees on the floor, but the worst-case scenario is a dog that harms another animal or person.
While most owners would agree that the common bad behaviors are irritating, dog attacks leave long lasting damage to those who survive them. Be on the lookout for aggressive tendencies and behaviors in your dog so that you can nip it in the bud, and if your dog is too unruly for you to handle, consider taking them to a professional trainer. You won’t be sorry in the long run!
- Skills for a Working Dog.
If your dog is going to help with a particular job, he or she needs to know how to do it well and respond to commands. Whether your dog is herding animals or catching bad guys, they won’t be able to do it without proper training.
A dog that attacks your herd or scatters them all over the place playfully is certainly no help at all! A dog that knows what it’s doing but can’t respond to commands can be equally frustrating, especially if their daily tasks have any variance in how they are to be performed.
Again, unless you have a lot of time to invest in training your working dog properly (and cash for books and/or videos on how to do it!), you may want to look into a good trainer in your area.
- Potty Training.
Simple on the surface, potty training can be one of the most trying times in a new dog owner’s life. It’s probably safe to say that no one wants their dog to be pooping and peeing in the house, as the odor and damages would be astronomical, but some breeds and individual dogs have a hard time learning the rules of potty time.
If you have a breed known to have accidents, keep that in mind and consider providing a secondary choice in case of emergency. Piddle pads or those faux grass patches work great for this, but now you have to teach them two separate rules about potty time, so read up on the best methods and ready your spot cleaner.
- Gun Shyness for Retrievers.
So, your dog knows how to retrieve a bird, and knows the commands you want him or her to know when doing it… But they’re terrified of the blast of your gun. Huh.
Gun shyness is an often-overlooked caveat in training retrievers and police dogs, but it’s imperative to their ability to perform the job, so it can’t be understated how important familiarizing your dog with firearms will be if you intend to take them hunting. Try researching methods for doing this in ways that are as comfortable for your dog as possible, or once again leave it to a professional. Gun shyness can be a hard nut to crack.
Similarly, for the average companion dog, you will want to train them to be ok with sudden loud noises. Lots of dogs can be friendly and fun, but when a loud noise from a falling object, backfiring car, or shouting individual, they can startle and may take off or become fearful. In their fear, they may get away from you or may lash out at what they feel is the source of the sudden noise. Help them be ok by practicing loud sudden noises at home and teaching them it is ok.
- Socialization.
Probably under the umbrella of “behavior”, but close to the top of the list on important sub-categories. Socializing your dog early in their life and as often as possible helps maintain their friendliness with everyone! You don’t want your dog to be aggressive towards unfamiliar people or other pets you have. This can be an especially large problem with territorial breeds and guard dogs, but investing the time (or money) to have this issue taken care of as early in your dog’s life as possible prevents a litany of the most dangerous problems later in their life. Take stock of your dog’s behaviors often, especially if you have small children or soon intend to.
