Small dog training tips and tricks

by Abhinav G. Movie Enthusiast

Why is dog training important?

Small dogs that are not provided with a proper training are often said to suffer from small dog syndrome. Small dog syndrome is not a disease but this term is given to those dogs that shows certain set of behaviors like being yappy, tend to snap and nip, possessiveness, nervous etc. In contrast to popular belief, these behaviors are not inbred; they develop as a result of improper training or poor dog management of humans that own the animal.

Dog training tricks for hard-to-train dogs

Just like humans, all dogs are different in their attitudes- some are born leaders while others are born followers. Consequently, all dogs respond to training in different manner- some easily do their tasks and exercises without giving their owner hard time while others will test their owner’s patients to its limits.

Qualities that often get in the way of training sessions are independence, dominance, intelligence and determination.

Independence: Independence is the most common trait found in hard-to-train dogs. If your dog is independent, it will exhibit a marked indifference for other animals and pets. They may not like petting and will resent grooming. They prefer being alone. Independent dogs are hard to train but it is not impossible to train them. You just have to know what works for your dog and what doesn’t to get the best out of the training. It will be a big mistake to apply force in correcting the habit of your independent dog. Physical actions like hitting or yanking will only result in making the training session more difficult. So the best way to train your dog is to use “cookie power” that is try to find out what food excite your dog and take advantage of that.
Dominance: A dominant dog shows that it can’t be bossed around and it will show its discontent in being ordered. They are natural leaders. A dominant dog when not allowed to do what it wants, it growls or snaps. Dominant dogs are trainable despite their irritable and fearsome nature. All you need to do is to establish authority through decent actions. Once this issue is established clearly, your dog session will get smoothened.
Intelligence: Most of the hard to train dogs are born hunters naturally. They have to rely on their brain power to survive. These dogs can easily know our moods and take advantage of it. They can manipulate things and even their owners to have what they want. Training these dogs is difficult but not impossible. These dogs have the ability to understand words quickly so you should use commands such as “no”, “sit”, “good boy”, “bad boy” etc. These dogs easily get bored so you need to include lots of variations in your training sessions.
Determination: Determined dogs are very difficult to train if they have set their mind and heart on something. These dogs will better understand if there are more repetitions and few variations.

Here are few tips that apply to all types of small dogs in general:

Be patient but firm: Small dogs tend to have mischievous personality and love to clown around so it is very important to firm while being patient.
Your dog should be calm and relaxed: Small dogs sometimes become over aggressive to compensate for their smaller size. Before starting the training session make sure your dog is relaxed.