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5 Simple Steps to Teach a Dog to Pick Up Items Off the Floor

5 Simple Steps to Teach a Dog to Pick Up Items Off the Floor
By Michael Gabriel L. Sumastre

For a proud owner, any trick that a dog masters is a source of delight and pride. Training and teaching your dog to "roll over" and "play dead" are simple enough, but one of the things a dog could help you with is the mess around the house. Whether the dog is responsible for it or you are.

Here is how you teach your dog to pick up items off the floor:

Step 1. Prepare a lot of treats and praises. Any dog training should come with a lot of dog treats. These treats, aside from serving as a reward for your dog, also serves as reinforcement for it and strengthens its behavior. As soon as your dog does something that you want him to do, shower him with treats and praises!

Step 2. Choose a good training tool. A rule of thumb is to get something that is unfamiliar to the dog, so that means its toys are out of the picture. Use something that has no value to you, so it could get damaged or broken in the process of training and you would not care. You could use a plastic glass, or an old wallet. Knock it down to the floor, do not throw it. This trick is not a variation of fetch. Instead, you are telling your dog that something fell to the floor and it should pick it up.

Step 3. Call the dog's attention to the old wallet on the ground. Make sure it sees the wallet on the floor and then pick it up and put it into your dog's mouth. Then say the dog's name and follow it up with the command, "pick it up." Repeat this several times as you pick up the wallet and put it into the dog's mouth. Your dog will understand that you want the wallet in its mouth.

Step 4. Make sure to praise and give your dog some treats at this point. Your dog will realize that it has done something right and will continue to do it again for you.

Step 5. Move on to other items and repeat the same procedures. You should also move further away each time. Always call your dog's name and follow it up with the "pick it up" command. Expect to have a lot of repetitions of these steps with a lot of other items before your dog learns this trick. In time your dog will get the idea that whatever item falls to the floor, it should be picked up.

Michael Gabriel L. Sumastre is a true animal lover He loves to play with his dog and is thinking of getting a new cat. He is the freelance writer of AnimalStars.com a luxury online pet store that specializes in dog and cat collars, pet ID tags, pet birthstones, pet bells, latest pet accessories, cool pet clothes, colorful pet jewelries, and pet health.

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Teach a Dog to Heel

Teach a Dog to Heel
By Dan Ballington

Teaching your dog to heel, now that is easier said than done. There are some of you out there who may think that the 'heel' position basically means that your dog is supposed to curl up at your feet. That is not the case; the 'heel' command means that you want your dog to stay right by your side and follow you step for step, as though there is an invisible leash attaching your dog to your leg (right or left, your preference). So if you are looking for an easy (and quick) guide on how to teach your dog to heel, here's an article that you've been looking for. I have listed the steps that are used by professional dog trainers to help you along. Review them and you should be set to 'go'.

Walk the talk - Teaching a pup or, for that matter, a full grown dog the 'heel' command is not going to be easy. You will need to be patient and remember that using brute force to drag your dog with the leash is not what the 'heel' command is all about. You will need to train your dog to literally 'dog' you step for step, be it a walk or a gentle run. Remember those dog shows, with each dog galloping beside its master? That is what this command is all about. So start the lesson by standing close to your dog, with a few doggy treats in your hand.

Make eye contact - Call out your dog's name and get his attention. Once you have done that, move a few steps ahead. If your dog stays close to you and does not get distracted, reward him with a treat.

Practice the short walks - repeat step 2 again and again. Make sure that you reward your dog only if he continues to stay by your side all the time. In time, your dog will understand what you want him to do and will 'heel' all the way by your side.

Verbalize the command - Once you have got your pup to 'dog' your steps, you will need to verbalize the command. Just say out his name along with the command 'heel'. If he continues to listen to you, well, then you are almost done.

Do the rumba: Extend the steps, take your dog for extended walks inside your home in the 'heel' position. Once you are sure that your dog is able to follow the command perfectly, take him for 'heel' walks and runs outside in the garden. Just remember, that a garden will contain more distractions than your drawing room, so chances are that he will get distracted the first few times. But once he realizes that you are withholding the doggy treats when he does not perform correctly, he will 'heel' perfectly. So do the rumba with your dog, take him for runs and in time, you should even be able to run out full blast with your dog by your side, all the way to 'heel' and back!

The 'heel' command will bring you and your dog a lot closer and in time, you will be able to develop a very healthy relationship with your dog. The neat thing is that this particular command will allow you both to get a healthy dose of 'physical' exercise. So, just follow these simple steps, same as the professional dog trainers do, and you will teach your dog to heel in no-time.

Written by Dan Ballington, not a professional dog trainer, but a dog owner who has managed to teach his dog all kinds of commands all on his own. If you want to do the same, you can find all the information that you will need inside the book called DIY Dog Training. This is a really great do-it-yourself guide for anybody who's interested in dog training. For an even more in-dept approach, I would recommend another book that was written by one of the best dog trainers around, Adam G. Katz, and is called Secrets of a Professional Dog Trainer.

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Dog Training For Tricks - Have the Top Dog Around

Dog Training For Tricks - Have the Top Dog Around
By James Ericson

How do you go about teaching dog training for tricks? This is something that a lot of owners want to do, but not many are able to accomplish.

Requirements

Prior to starting this, which is quite an advanced topic, your pet has to be proficient with the essential commands; assuming that is the case, then you can start dog training trick teaching.

Before you start teaching a particular skill, you need to first consider whether or not your dog is physically able to do what you want them to. This might not necessarily mean the dog is handicapped; you might just be asking too much of them.

For example, some people have attempted to do dog training for tricks by having their pet try and jump over extremely high items that they aren't able to. This is an obvious example, but the point is, make sure they are physically able to do whatever you are teaching them.

How to choose a trick

How do you choose the right trick? Think about the traits your dog naturally possesses, and then attempt to utilize them. For instance, they might be able to naturally something like rolling over when they are playing; all you have to do is get them to do it on command.

Just watching them closely for this will give you some ideas. As soon as you've done this, now just get them to do this on command, whether that is you motioning in some way to it or saying something out loud.

The RIGHT way to train

Give them a treat when they've successfully obeyed. Soon, you won't have to give as many rewards, as they will just do the trick on command. Another thing you might want to look into is clicker training, which ensures they won't need a reward to do it.

Many people have the experience of always using treats to bribe their dog to do something; when they finally take it away, the dog likewise stops obeying. This is a problem that the clicker overcomes.

Taking them to the next level

Also, once you've taught them a particular trick, now you can actually get more in depth with it. For instance, if you've taught them to roll over one way, then get them to roll back over the other way.

This is a ridiculously simple example, but expanding on what they already know is one of the best ways to increase their arsenal. Just use your imagination, and you'd be amazed at what you think up.

The main recipe for success in dog training for tricks is consistency, and make sure to correct them promptly if they don't do what they were supposed to. Most importantly, give them a tremendous amount of positive reinforcement when they do it right.

Traditional dog training tips are HOLDING you back. Discover how to have a well trained dog in just 6 days by checking out http://www.dogtrainingtips.info

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