DOG TRAINING CLASSES HISTORY

While no one is quite certain when wolves first began to evolve into the friendly dog companions enjoyed by millions of people today, it is known that as long as domesticated dogs have existed, they have been trained. Dog training classes have gone through several different phases over the centuries and has successfully trained any number of dog breeds to perform specific jobs, tasks or actions requested of them. Herding dogs have been used worldwide for centuries to assist cattle farmers in moving their flocks. Hunting dogs have been used equally as long to chase or search out prey for their masters.

Modern dog training as is familiar today originated in the early 1900′s for use in police and military functions. Dogs were trained similarly to the way all new recruits were trained – human and canine alike. More research in the mid twentieth century, however, lead to the belief that positive reinforcement as well as ope-rant conditioning produced far greater results with less effort required on the part of the trainer. Click training became popular as well as food rewards for performing a specific task or a repeated action.

The type of training required often depends on what the animal is expected to do. House training usually requires little training, regardless of the breed. It is also relatively easy to train almost any dog to sit, come when they’re called or to lie down. The key to training a dog today is the same as it has been for centuries – dogs do not think, act or reason like humans do, and training classes can illuminate this easily to dogs and owners alike. While many dog breeds are highly intelligent and can provide a useful, protective service to their human companions, they are not motivated by the same things that people are. Many new dog owners quickly become frustrated with their new pet when simple commands prove more difficult than expected. Training a dog requires patience, repetition and the understanding that while dogs are sensitive, caring and attentive creatures – they simply are not human beings.

Today, dog training classes rely mainly on positive reinforcement in order to teach and sustain new, desirable behaviors. The focus has shifted away from a punishment based learning system which has, over time, proven to be unreliable at best and only frustrates the dog and its owner. Positive reinforcement, on the other hand, is more enjoyable for both parties and relies on a reward system that teaches dogs to repeat certain actions on command. A vital part to successfully training almost any breed is consistency. Don’t switch between several different verbal commands that mean the same thing. Stick to one. Don’t alternate between the verbal cues “come” and “here”, for example. Pick one that seems to work best for the dog and the owner, and make sure that is consistently used by all members of the family.

Click training has also proven to be largely successful, especially with more intelligent breeds like German Shepherds. Learning to apply this method correctly can be done in a variety of means, and it is gaining popularity with dog training classes worldwide. By clicking a hand-held device to mark a successfully completed behavior, usually combined with a food reward in the beginning, dogs learn to associate the sound with reward. They will eventually find the click as reward in itself, and are able to learn desired behaviors quickly compared to other types of training. Because click training does not involve physically correcting a dog, it is rapidly growing in popularity.

From the cow fields to hunting parties to the home, dog training classes have made significant changes in recent years and continue to evolve. As science learns more and more about behavioral therapy in animals and humans alike, and we continue to see into the minds of our canine companions, new strides are most likely already underway.