If a Dog Trainer Could Only Tell You ONE Thing, It Would Be….

Training mode is a hoax! Want to know why?

Think about this for a moment — training mode would be the time you strap on your bait pouch, get out your clicker and set out to train your dog. Okay, so we know that practise makes perfect, which means it is important to set out to train skills that you might not encounter in day-to-day life, but that can’t be the only time you teach your dog. What about the rest of the time?

Dogs are Always Learning

Dogs are constantly learning! From the time they are born, they start learning from their environment. They figure where the comfortable spots are, where the heat is and they figure out a good source of food. As they grow and their senses become heightened, they learn from their littermates, from their mother and from their human caregivers. Their brains are fully developed by 7 weeks of age and have an nearly limitless capacity for knowledge. They learn about body language as they grow with their littermates and they learn about rules from their mothers.

Once they’re old enough, they head off to their individual homes where they continue to learn. They learn what brings them value and they learn to avoid unpleasant things. Now here is the tricky part, because this is the point that we come in and upset the…