Hello and welcome to Five Freckle K9’s dog training journal, Underbite!
Five Freckle K9 is a dog training service that strives to help you and your dog build an awesome relationship! Underbite is a place where we hope to further that goal by exploring and celebrating “all things dog!” We intend to cover a wide range of topics, including (but not limited to!) the different areas and types of dog training, making sure a dog is a good fit for your lifestyle, and adoptable dog spotlights! Plus a lot more!
We want to kick things off by discussing why training your dog in the general sense is beneficial for your dog and their relationship with you!
Obedience vs. Relationship
When most people think of dog training, their first thought is “I need my dog to obey my commands.” There are often issues or problematic behaviors already in play by the time a person contacts a dog trainer. They’re dog is chewing their furniture or shoes, stealing food off the counter, or playing “keep away” at the park when it’s time to go home. While these are absolutely issues that need to be addressed, and while obeying commands is very important, Five Freckle believes that your number one goal in dog training is to build a better relationship with your dog.
By building this strong relationship, you not only create a bond with a creature that loves with everything they have, you also create a dog that WANTS to listen to you, to please you, to work for you. Obedience naturally follows!
Getting a Dog
The sooner you start this process, the better! If you’re considering getting a dog, do your research on different breeds and temperament testing. If you’re looking for a specific breed, you need to not only make sure they fit your lifestyle, but you also need to shop around for a breeder that you trust. Call breeders up and talk to them, ask them as many questions as you can think of. Call up your local trainer and develop a relationship with them before you even bring the puppy home. Most breeders and trainers will be happy to talk with you if they feel you are already trying to set your future dog up for success!
If you’re looking to rescue or adopt, even if it’s a mixed breed, it wouldn’t hurt to be familiar with different breed personalities. This Puppy Aptitude Test is a great place to start to judge if a potential adoptee might be a good fit for you:
Talk to the adoption coordinators and volunteers. And many rescues have pure bred dogs if that’s what you’re interested in. The important thing is to arm yourself with knowledge so that you can make an informed decision and set yourself and your new pup on the track from the beginning!
It’s Never Too Late!
Even if you’ve had a dog for years, it’s never too late to start building a better relationship. You will be working against established bad habits, but that doesn’t mean you have to live with them forever. Working on your relationship as your primary goal, and creating a dog that WANTS to work with you, will make fixing those problems so much more enjoyable! And the bond you create will be so rewarding in itself!
3 Responses
Nice info and yes Dolly is always ready to please. Love the pictures.
As you may recall, the last time I had trained a dog, before taking Kristy to your classes, was when the training focused on rigid obeying of commands. I am so glad I took your class and learned to build a relationship first and foremost with Kristy. That has made all the difference to us. You probably remember what a wild girl she was and how it was difficult to keep her focused. Today, at soon-to-be-three, Kristy is doing so well. She does know the basic commands, as well as quite a few tricks, but she does them willingly and happily because we have built that important relationship. Thank you for helping us!
I’m always amazed when people make the statement, “it’s just a dog”! To know that they have never experienced the wonderful blessing of an in-depth relationship with a canine companion is sad. I’m grateful for the many pups that have enriched my life