Creative Dog Training

The myth of practicing obedience

A client recently asked me how long each day obedience should ideally be practiced. I realized that this client had bought in to the Myth of Practicing Obedience. A human who accepts this myth believes that obedience training consists of regularly practicing a set of routines with his dog. So, once or twice a day, he puts the training collar and leash on his dog, and they practice obedience. The dog usually performs the routines brilliantly. The human is happy, and the dog is rewarded.

Once practice is over, both dog and human return to "life." The dog leaps on the couch, grabs the remote control, and engages the human in a merry game of "catch me if you can!" The irritated human chases the dog, eventually retrieves the slightly chewed remote control, and complains that the dog does not listen. The same dog later explodes with excitement when the doorbell rings: he bolts to the door, jumps repeatedly on the visitor, and barks continuously. The human shouts at the dog and tugs at its collar. What happened to exemplary behavior the dog exhibited earlier during the obedience routines? The human forgot to USE obedience. In the heat of the moment, he responded with anger, not the practiced commands of off, leave it, wait, and settle down.

Practicing obedience routines during daily sessions teaches your dog what commands mean. Using obedience commands in moment-to-moment life teaches your dog to listen to you. Each time your dog exhibits a "problem behavior," you have the opportunity to use obedience. My advice to my client was to stop practicing obedience and start using it!

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