How to train your pet well
I. Preparation before training
(I) Understand the habits and characteristics of your pet
Pets of different breeds have different natures and behavioral characteristics. For example, Border Collies are naturally smart and energetic, have strong herding instincts, and are suitable for various intellectual and physical training; Pomeranians are lively and active, but may be relatively difficult to concentrate for a long time, so they need to be more patient and adopt a more flexible approach when training. Understanding the breed characteristics of your pet will help us develop a more appropriate training plan.
At the same time, it is also very important to observe the individual personality differences of pets. Each pet has its own unique personality. Some may be bold and curious, while others may be timid and cautious. For timid pets, avoid overstimulation and coercion during training to avoid causing fear and resistance.
(II) Establish a trusting relationship with your pet
Spend time interacting and playing with your pet, such as playing with toys, combing its hair, and petting it. In this process, let the pet gradually become familiar with your smell, voice, and movements, feel your care and safety, and thus build trust in you.
Avoid overly harsh training or punishment when your pet is unfamiliar with you, as this may undermine the trust you have just established. When your pet trusts you, it will be more willing to follow your instructions and training will be smoother.
(III) Prepare appropriate training tools and rewards
Training tools can be selected according to different training projects. For example, when training a dog to walk with you, you need to use a suitable leash; when training a cat to use a litter box, you need to prepare a clean and comfortable litter box and litter.
Rewards are a very important part of pet training. Common rewards include snacks that pets like, such as dried chicken and dried fish, as well as gentle caressing, praise and opportunities to play. Prepare these rewards so that you can give timely encouragement to your pet when it does the right thing and enhance its motivation to learn.
II. Basic principles of pet training
(I) Respect the principle of pet nature
Pets have their own instincts and nature, and training cannot violate these. For example, cats like to climb and hunt. During training, you can appropriately use this nature to design related activities, such as using cat teasers to simulate the movement of prey to train their reaction ability. However, if you try to make a cat completely give up climbing, it will not only be difficult to succeed, but may also make the cat feel depressed. The same is true for dogs. For example, the tracking instinct of hounds can be guided rather than suppressed during training.
(II) Positive motivation principle
Rewards are the main method, and punishment is the auxiliary method. When a pet performs the correct behavior, give rewards immediately, including snacks, praise, play, etc. This positive feedback will make the pet associate the correct behavior with a good experience, and thus be more willing to repeat the behavior. Punishment should be mild and moderate. Excessive punishment may cause fear and anxiety in the pet, affecting the training effect and the pet’s mental health.
(III) Gradual principle
The content and difficulty of training should be gradually increased. You cannot ask the pet to complete complex instructions or actions at the beginning. For example, to train a dog to “shake hands”, you should first let it get familiar with the simple action of “raising hands”, and gradually guide it to raise its hands and keep them after hearing the command, and finally form a complete “handshake” action. The same is true for the training environment. Start with a quiet and simple environment, and then slowly transition to a complex and disturbing environment.
(IV) Principle of Personalization
Each pet is a unique individual, and the training method should be adjusted according to the pet’s personality, age, health status and other factors. For example, old pets may learn slowly and need a gentler and more patient training method; young pets may have difficulty concentrating for a long time, so the training time should be shorter and more frequent. For pets with lively personalities and introverted pets, the training rhythm and motivation methods also need to be different.
III. Basic training projects
(I) Name recognition training
Give your pet a simple and easy-to-remember name, and then call its name frequently when interacting with it. For example, every time you feed it, play with it or stroke it, call its name softly so that it gradually becomes familiar with its name.
When the pet hears its name and looks at you or responds, give it a reward immediately, such as giving it a snack or gently stroking its head, so that it understands that responding to its name is the right behavior.
(II) Fixed-point defecation training (taking dogs as an example)
First, choose a suitable defecation location, such as setting up a special dog toilet in the corner of the bathroom or balcony, and lay newspapers or pet-specific urine pads. Then, place the dog’s feces or tissues stained with urine on the dog toilet to make the dog familiar with the smell of this place.
Observe the dog’s behavior. When it shows signs of wanting to defecate, such as sniffing around and turning in circles, immediately take it to the dog toilet and let it defecate there. If the dog successfully defecates in the dog toilet, give rewards and praise in time; if the dog defecates elsewhere, clean it up in time and spray some deodorant on the spot to prevent the dog from defecating there again.
(III) Basic command training
“Sit” training
Hold the pet’s favorite snack in your hand, stand in front of the pet, put the snack above its nose, slowly move it up, and guide its head to lift up with the snack. When its butt sits down naturally, immediately give the “sit” command and give snack rewards and praise. Repeat this process until the pet can sit down quickly after hearing the “sit” command.
“Lie down” training
After the pet learns the “sit” command, it can be trained to “lie down”. First let the pet sit down, then put the snack in your hand in front of it, slowly move to the ground, and guide its body to lie down with the snack. When it lies down, issue the “lie down” command and give a reward. Similarly, it takes many repeated trainings for the pet to master the “lie down” action.
“Come” training
In a relatively quiet and undisturbed environment, keep a certain distance from the pet, then call its name and issue the “come” command, while holding its favorite snacks or toys in your hand to attract it to run to you. When the pet runs over, give rewards and praise in time to let it understand that it is the right behavior to run to the owner after hearing the “come” command. Gradually increase the distance between you and the difficulty of training so that it can obey the “come” command in different environments.
IV. Training precautions
(I) Be patient and consistent
Pets may learn slowly, and sometimes they need to repeat training many times before they can master an action or command. In this process, we must be patient and not be impatient or angry, otherwise the pet will feel nervous and scared, which will affect the training effect.
The instructions, gestures and rewards used during training should be consistent and should not be changed at will. For example, if you have been using the word “sit down” to train your pet to sit down, do not suddenly change to other words; the timing and method of giving rewards should also be stable so that the pet can clearly know whether its behavior is correct.
(II) Control the training time and intensity
Pets have a limited attention span, and too long training will make them feel tired and bored. Generally speaking, it is more appropriate to control the time of each training to about 15-20 minutes, and 2-3 training sessions can be conducted every day.
The intensity of training should also be gradually increased, and do not put too much pressure on the pet at the beginning. For example, when training a dog to accompany you, you can start with short-distance training indoors or in a quiet yard, and then gradually increase the distance and difficulty of training after the dog adapts.
(III) Correct wrong behaviors in time
When a pet behaves in a wrong way, correct it in time, but do not punish it excessively. For example, if a dog bites something it should not bite, immediately say “no” in a stern tone and divert its attention to a suitable toy. If a dog does not obey instructions during training, do not beat or scold it. You can pause the training, let it calm down, and then start again.
The timing of correcting wrong behaviors is very important. Correct the pet when it is making a mistake so that it can understand that its behavior is wrong. If you correct it after the fact, the pet may not understand why you are angry, nor can it associate the wrong behavior with the correction.
(IV) Create a good training environment
The training environment should be quiet, clean, and free of interference. Avoid training when the pet is hungry, tired, or too excited, as this will affect their attention and learning effect.
If training outdoors, pay attention to choosing a safe venue to prevent the pet from being disturbed and harmed by other animals, vehicles, etc. At the same time, choose a reasonable training environment based on the characteristics of the pet and the needs of the training project. For example, training the dog’s sense of smell can be done in places with rich smells such as grass or gardens.
To do a good job of pet training, we need to understand the characteristics of pets, master the correct training methods and techniques, maintain patience and consistency, correct wrong behaviors in time, and create a good training environment. Only in this way can we train obedient, well-behaved and lovely pets.
