Upbringing
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The education of the dog has several aspects.
First of all, a positive bond must be created between owner and dog.
Secondly, the dog must be prevented from becoming dominant over the owner. Naturally, it is pleasant and practical in daily contact with the dog if he knows a number of exercises. Exercises such as sitting down on command (e.g. "sit") are recommended to be taught first. Learning exercises is best done in an environment with little stimulation for the dog, only later can it be practiced with increasing distractions. Also, you should not try to teach the dog anything in situations where it is anxious, as the dog will then not be able to fully concentrate on your commands. Learning exercises must be done by using rewards, punishment is not an effective way to teach exercises. After all, the aim is to ensure that the exercise, carried out on command, will increase in frequency. Rewarding the desired behavior ensures that the behavior will be performed more often, while punishing or ignoring the unwanted behavior decreases. There are several options regarding the reward:
Feed: For many dogs this works best as a reward. In the learning phase, the dog will master an action most quickly if the associated positive experience is as strong as possible. The advantage compared to rewarding with a toy is that when rewarding with the toy, the object is delivered and when rewarding with food, attention can be drawn back to the handler immediately afterwards by bringing out a new kibble. It is recommended that the type of food (kibbles, sausages, biscuits, etc.) used is only given to your dog when you are really working. In addition to the training, give him what you want, but keep the special cookies for the "real" work. Once the dog has mastered the exercise, giving or not giving the treat can be alternated so that it remains exciting for the dog, so that he will remember the exercise better and therefore continue to perform it better.
Quote: A hug or a stroke is also a powerful problem for many dogs. The disadvantage is: pay attention when you pet your dog, whether or not he has shown a desired behavior? This can sometimes seem unclear to your dog.
Through classical conditioning, we can teach the command "good" (or the clicker) with the help of food or a stroke. You will be amazed at the enthusiasm your dog shows when working with the clicker. Once the dog knows this command (sound), it can also be used as a reward. Vocal use may be necessary for some exercises, however, must be taken into account. If the dog is in the "off" position, it is not useful to use the voice exuberantly: the dog will then quickly have the tendency to jump up again and come to you. This type of exercise should therefore be rewarded in a calm manner.
Toy: For dogs that are not very "kibble sensitive" but are very fond of a particular toy, this toy can be given as a reward instead of the kibble. Same here as with the food, always keep this toy in a place where your dog cannot reach it, so that it remains attractive when you want to use it.
Sometimes incorrect (undesirable) behaviors are also learned unconsciously, for example by comforting or reassuring the dog when it shows fearful behavior.
Like rewards, punishments are often administered incorrectly. Just as with giving a reward, the punishment must also immediately follow the behavior. So there is no point in punishing a dog that has remodeled the room during our absence for this behavior. After all, the dog has no idea that it has done something before the owner returns home that the dog's owner does not experience as pleasant. He merely links certain environmental factors together for punishment, in this case the presence of, for example, a destroyed chair and the entrance of the owner. However, the animal has no idea that it was responsible for destroying the chair. The same applies to unwanted urination in the house, this can only be punished (by the way, never push a dog with its nose in its own feces) when you see it happening, that is at the moment itself. The best way to do this is to immediately take the dog to the place where it should learn to do its business according to your wishes.
In addition, punishment can also have negative effects. Punishing too harshly can lead to fearful behavior and, as one goes further, sometimes aggressive behavior. In addition, punishment can be addictive for some people; they forget to reward the desired behavior, which makes the dog anxious and insecure, and the chance that it will react aggressively increases (fear-aggression).
Once the dog has submitted, punishment should not be continued. Using punishment and/or correction is therefore hardly acceptable or effective for most problems.
The best way to unlearn a dog from a certain behavior is to give the dog an alternative, which can then be rewarded. Problem behavior often arises because mistakes were made when rewarding or punishing. It is important to offer the dog alternatives before proceeding with correction.
As mentioned earlier, in addition to the strength of the punishment and the reward, the timing of both is also very important. If it concerns matters that we cannot control (such as destroying the furniture during the owner's absence), it is better to prevent the dog from exhibiting undesirable behavior. In that case, a bench can be a solution. This prevents unwanted behavior and if the dog has learned the crate as a pleasant experience, he will have no problem with it.
The same goes for punishing the dog when he finally comes after endlessly calling. If the dog is punished when it comes to the owner, it is not the dog's lingering, but the dog's coming back that is punished. As a result, the dog will "think twice" next time before coming back to you because after all, a punishment awaits him... As far as rewarding is concerned, it is often observed that the dog must first sit down after returning and only then is rewarded. Once again we have not learned to come back, but to sit down. Sitting in front of the owner is a separate exercise that can only be linked to coming here at a later stage.