Dog training is the process of teaching a dog to perform certain behaviors under various circumstances and in certain roles. It is a general term not describing by itself either what or how the dog is taught.

There are as many areas to train a dog in as there are methods. Most often certain methods, or combinations of methods are applied to any area of training. Obedience, herding, agility, tracking, retrieving, hunting, guard, and schutzhund are common areas of dog training.

* Teaching a dog basic obedience commands (part of obedience training)
* Teaching a dog to perform tricks casually or for circus acts
* Teaching a guide dog to lead the blind
* Teaching a rescue dog to find victims of a disaster
* Helping a hunting dog learn to perform its instinctive behaviors at appropriate times

The specific behaviors taught in each case are different, but the underlying principles are similar.

As pack animals, wild canines have natural instincts that favor cooperation with their compatriots. These instincts have been refined and exaggerated through years of selective breeding by humans, and are manifested in the domestic dog’s adeptness at correctly interpreting and responding to signals given by a human handler. The handler is simply whoever is working with a dog at the time.

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Most dogs, no matter their eventual advanced training or intended purpose, live with people and therefore must behave in a way that makes them pleasant to be around, keeps them safe, and provides for the safety of other people and pets. Dogs do not figure out basic obedience on their own; they must be trained.

The hardest part of training is communicating with the dog in a humane way that he understands. However, the underlying principle of all communication is simple: reward positive behavior while ignoring or correcting negative behavior.

Basic pet obedience training usually consists of 5 behaviors:

* Sit
* Down
* Stay
* Recall ("come" or "here")
* Close (or loose-leash walking)

The recall command is arguably the most important of all training commands. It is critical to never punish a dog if they respond to a recall. Punishing a dog upon recall quickly teaches the dog that if he returns he will be punished. If the dog requires a correction, the handler should go to the dog - the dog should not be asked to come and then punished. The dog will attribute the punishment to whatever behavior he was doing directly before receiving it, and if that behavior was responding (correctly) to a recall, then the handler has just inadvertently taught the dog to run away from the recall command.

"Corrections" should never include harmful physical force or violence. Using force while training is controversial and should not be taken lightly, because even if it ends the behavior, it will also teach the dog to fear the handler to a certain degree. It is up to the handler to decide what amount of force (if any) is appropriate. However, the standard used by most trainers is the minimum amount necessary to inhibit the unwanted behavior. A common technique is to quickly jerk an attached collar and "lead" (fancy term for a leash, usually short, 4' is good) as a consequence for ignoring a command. (i.e., Sparky is jumping up on a guest, say "off" if he's already jumped up, or if you see he's thinking about it say, "down" and if the command is ignored then "correct" Sparky by "snapping" the lead to make his collar rattle.) A common alternative to physical corrections is a time-out from a preferred location or activity. (i.e., Sparky jumps up on a guest and is immediately given a 5-minute time-out in a separate room - away from the guests he wants to interract with.)

The prenatal period is a recent addition to the developmental periods of puppies. It is thought that “long-term effects on behavioral development may also be produced in some mammals by events occurring in utero.” (Serpell, 1995, p. 80) Previous studies tended to overlook the existence of this period, since the puppy’s behavior could not be observed. With the development of the ultrasound machine, a puppy could be observed within the mother as early as the fourth week of gestation.

It was found that puppies would react to touch and/or pressure from the outside of the mother’s abdomen. In addition, it is theorized that since puppies have such a well-developed sense of touch at birth, the sense of touch would also be well-developed before birth. Puppies may be sensitive to touch received by the mother while still unborn. Studies have found that “when a pregnant animal is petted her litter is more docile (Denenberg and Whimbey 1963, in Fox 1978).” According to Fox (1975, in Fox 1978) this facilitates relaxation, emotional attachment, and socialization as well. Other studies have indicated that puppies that receive outside contact (petting of the mother) while in utero have a higher tolerance for touching than puppies who receive no contact at all. One could deduce that gentle petting of the mother’s abdomen could help to facilitate positive, beneficial puppy socialization with people.

During the first two weeks of a puppy's life, also known as the neonate period, puppies can learn simple associations. (Serpell, 1995) However, early experience events are unlikely to carry over into later periods. Studies indicate that puppies in the neonate period do not seem to learn by experience. (Scott and Fuller, 1965) It is theorized that this is due to the fact that the puppy’s brain, sense, and motor organs are still undeveloped. Based on its limited capacity to sense and learn it would be difficult to affect the puppy psychologically, either in a positive or negative sense. (Scott and Fuller, 1965)

The next period of development is known as the socialization period. This is arguably the most important developmental period, beginning around 3 weeks (21 days) old, and ending around 12 weeks old. (Beaver, 1999) The biggest aspect of this period is social play. Social investigation (curiosity), playful fighting and playful sexual behavior (body contact) is very important to developing social relationships during its life. (Scott and Fuller, 1965) New behavior patterns are directly influenced by the puppy’s interaction with its mother and other puppies in the litter.

This is a time for developing social relationships, both among other puppies as well as with people. These behaviors are relatively easy for any individual who stays with the puppies during this period. However, there is a point where the puppies can develop a fear of strangers. At 3-5 weeks of age, puppies will actively approach strangers. Shortly thereafter stranger avoidance begins and slowly escalates until it peaks around 12-14 weeks of age. (Beaver, 1999) While this natural fear of strangers could serve as a way to keep a curious puppy away from predators, it can also hinder normal relationships with people.

During this period, startle reactions to sudden movement and sounds is now present. This serves to help the puppy learn to differentiate between which events are dangerous, and which events are safe or insignificant. (Scott and Fuller, 1965) During the socialization period, the development of attachment to certain locations occurs. This is displayed by an extreme disturbance in the puppy whenever a change in location occurs. This is known as “localization”. (Serpell, 1995) “Localization” often peaks in puppies between 6-7 weeks old (Scott and Fuller, 1965), and then tapers off after that time to the point where a change in location is no longer distressing to the puppy.

Dogs that are handled and petted by humans regularly during the first eight weeks of life are generally much more amenable to being trained and living in human households. Ideally, puppies should be placed in their permanent homes between about 8 and 10 weeks of age. In some places it is against the law to take puppies away from their mothers before the age of 8 weeks. Before this age, puppies are still learning tremendous amounts of socialization skills from their mother. Puppies are innately more fearful of new things during the period from 10 to 12 weeks, which makes it harder for them to adapt to a new home.

Puppies can begin learning tricks and commands as early as 8 weeks of age; the only limitations are the pup's stamina, concentration, and physical coordination. It is much easier to live with young dogs that have already learned basic commands such as sit. Waiting until the puppy is older and has already learned undesirable habits makes the training much more challenging. (Beaver, 1999; Lindsay, 2000; Scott and Fuller 1965; Serpell 1995)