How to Train an Adult Dog

Use a reward-based training approach. Several training methods favor radical pet dominance. While you still have to take the lead, you should encourage them instead of harshly regulating them. Considering the dog as a small member of the family, it is necessary to follow the rules in the house to ensure the benefit of everyone.

• Rewarded training applies the principle of rewarding good behavior so that the dog repeats this action to get a reward, while the bad behavior will not be rewarded, so they will stop doing this action. ^[3]

Learn how to train a switch, as this is a highly effective dog training method. Training content is described in detail in the article How to Train a Dog with a Switch. The principle of that training is to teach the dog to associate the click with the reward or the food. You can then give the cue word and use the switch to mark the exact moment when the desired behavior should occur, and then reward the dog.

• The benefit of using that switch is reward-based, so you can precisely flag the desired behavior that other measures can’t. ^[4]

Never use a chain ring. This is a cruel act that not only makes the dog dislike you, but this type of collar also causes permanent damage to the dog’s neck. In fact, the dog died from wearing a leash.

• Chains, pitchforks, or power loops are only used during lazy or unqualified training. These types of rings work on the fear of pain to subdue dogs and frighten them, rather than encouraging the right behavior to be performed on demand. ^[5]

Learn the dog training process. Borrow or buy books about dog training from your local library and bookstore. Read books and articles on dog training, behavior, and psychology to help you understand what your pet thinks and use a more effective training method.

Do not scold or hit the pet. Be aware that scolding your dog is not effective during training. Dogs are real creatures and if you scold them, they will form a bad bond with the owner, and become more cautious, instead of learning the lesson, which affects the relationship of both of you. . During times when you are present and want to correct the behavior, such as the dog on the sofa, you should use facial expressions and disapproving voices to show your pet that you are unhappy, but punishing Yelling or physical violence only damages the relationship between you and the dog.

• Aggression often frightens dogs, but does not produce the correct training response. If you hit your dog too much or too hard, they will feel the tension when you bring your hand close. So when a child comes near to stroke him, the dog will think that this is the hand that beat him. They will feel scared and think, “Will this person hit me today?” Therefore, the dog will bite to relieve this fear.

Start training your dog to “sit down.” Giving a firm “sit down” command puts you in complete control of the situation. For example, if your dog hears the doorbell and barks, you can discourage this behavior by asking him to sit down, then reward him with a treat, and then take him to another room to stop barking.

• To teach your dog to sit down, you should show him the reward in hand. Hold the treat up to the dog’s nose, then up to the nose. Say “sit down.” The dog’s head will point towards the reward, causing them to raise their head and lower their body. As soon as the pup sits down, flip the switch and reward them. ^[6]
• Once your dog starts to perform regular actions, you should stop rewarding them. This makes it unpredictable to pets whether they will be rewarded or not and will no longer take it lightly. Then the dog will work harder. After a while, you should only reward them for doing the fourth or fifth command.
• Once your dog begins to sit down regularly on command, you can ask him to perform this behavior when walking outside, before putting down food, and at the curb before walking across the street.

Teach your dog to stay put on command. You can train this command to be similar to “sit down”. Ask the dog to sit down, then step back. Say “stay there,” and when they don’t move, flip the switch and reward the dog, with praise. Gradually increase the distance, until you can leave the room with the pet still in the same spot. ^[7]

Run back training. To teach this command, start in a small area so that the distance between you and the dog is not too far. When they turn around and walk towards you, give the cue word “here”. As the dog continues to walk in the direction of the click, and approaches, you can praise and reward him. Repeat this step until the dog understands what you want. Call your pet to come near every feeding or under any circumstances.

• Help your dog associate being close to his owner with something good. You should be excited, and reward them with food often. Start with a small ‘get up’ distance and release them to return to the ongoing activity.
• Calling back is a common cause of confusion in dogs and humans. The problem here is that we often reprimand our pets when they come back after 30 minutes. This makes the dog think that their approach is annoying, so they won’t come back. The act of scolding only deflects the pet’s actions. Instead, no matter how long it takes, you should be happy to see your pet return and give them lots of praise. ^[8]
• Once your dog has mastered the commands in the small room, you can start applying them in the yard area. Unless you are absolutely certain that the dog will run away, you should not let go of the leash while they are in the park. Put your pet on a leash so you can control them if they don’t obey.

Train your dog to defecate outside. If the dog hasn’t been trained properly, you should go back to basics and re-train like a puppy. Give your dog a lot of activity, and then put him in a small room or kennel (teach your pet to acclimate to a kennel. Take your dog outside every hour, and when they go to the bathroom, you can use cues. “Go to the bathroom.” Once the dog has resolved its sadness, you can reward them with lots of food.Also, you should do this training in the morning after waking up and at night before After a while, the dog will understand that just going to the toilet in a fixed place will be rewarded.

• If your dog poops in the house, you should not scold them. Instead, you should use an enzyme cleaner to remove the odor so that they don’t go to the bathroom again. Household bleach, especially those containing bleach, should not be used, as it contains urine-like ammonia, which makes the odor stronger.

Train your dog not to destroy furniture. To teach your dog to kick this habit, you can choose an item that he likes but is not a toy. Allow the dog to nibble on the item, then offer an attractive reward. The dog has to drop the object to get the reward, so it will “drop”. Press the switch as soon as they drop the item and reward the food. Repeat as many times as the other commands.

• After training, if you come across something that you don’t want your dog to gnaw on and might be quite attractive, you can ask your dog not to touch the item. Praise when the dog turns his attention to his owner.
• When training your dog, you should keep all items that seem attractive to the dog. However, if your dog gnaws on something that could hurt if swallowed, you should press both sides near the inside of the jawbone and praise him for releasing the object. As noted above, do not force your dog to open its mouth to release an object unless it is a dangerous item, such as medicine or a sharp object.

Train your dog to stay away from furniture. If your dog climbs or jumps on furniture without your permission, ask him to come down sternly and praise him when he does. If necessary, you can push the dog down. If they continue to jump up without consent, you should give a sound signal of disapproval and bring your knees forward to push the dog down. You can bring your dog on a leash when inside the house to avoid pushing them down but getting slapped when the dog jumps out of the furniture. Minimize verbal interactions until the dog is lying down.

Train dogs to stay away from people, even if they’re excited to meet someone. To teach your dog to lie down, you can use rewards and commands, such as “lay down”. If this doesn’t work, you can place a canister of compressed air with a moving latch in front of the item so that your dog can receive a remote punishment for jumping.

Remember that you are training an adult dog that is already experienced in life. Training is a long process and should always take place no matter what age the dog is. However, if you are rescuing an adult dog, or realize that the dog has bad habits, you need to know the most effective method of adult dog training.

• For example, if you need to teach your dog to walk on a leash, teach it somewhere quiet like your backyard. In other places there are so many distractions that the dog can’t concentrate on how to walk when on a leash.

Note your physical condition. You should take your dog to the vet. This helps you to be aware of their limitations, as well as to find the health problems that cause disobedience.

• For example, in the case of dogs refusing to sit down, they may be suffering from hip pain, which makes sitting down very difficult. The solution is to give the dog pain medication and change to another command such as “get up.”
• In addition, if an adult dog is intentionally disobedient, it is likely that they are deaf, so they will not be able to hear your commands. Once you’ve identified this problem, you can switch to hand signals, rather than verbal commands, so your dog can respond. ^[10]