by Sheryl Wall

Deciding to Train

Many people in our society own dogs but how many take the time to train them? It’s hard work so it’s easy to just give up but dogs are made to work and, without training, chaos happens. They will pull on their leash, go potty in the house and bark all the time. Basically, they’ll rule your home. This is no way to live and often results in dogs being abandoned or sent to the pound. An untrained dog is more likely to get injured or killed without the aid of commands such as “come” and “leave it.” There have been a couple of times when one of my Westies, Cosette, has tried to eat something dangerous and I was able to tell her to “drop it” which probably saved her life.

Cosette going over a single jump and flipping around for the next

Training Takes Time

I have had many dogs over the years and, with each one, I have learned the value of training. I spend at least 10 minutes a day training them and it has really paid off. Over the years, I have also realized that training at home isn’t enough for me and that my dogs greatly benefit from obedience classes. We have been to puppy classes and continued attending classes all the way through to more advanced training, such as Agility. It is fun for them and I learn a lot too.

Run, Cosette, Run

Benefits of Training

Another aspect of training is that, through doing it, a dog begins to learn to think. They start trying to please you more and learn that their actions bring a positive or negative response from you. Your life together is more rewarding when your dogs are thinking right along with you. Training opens up so many more opportunities for dogs as well as their humans.

Toward the end of the run

Watch for a new Pet Tips column monthly! June’s is Dog Training: What’s Next? ➡

Sheryl Wall is an ongoing contributor to our
Pet Perspective section, providing pet care advice from years of personal experience.