| Many people are under the mistaken assumption | | | | and make the dog wait for the release |
| that commands need to be one | | | | command, the normal "Free" or "Take a break," |
| syllable."Sit.""Down.""Up" (in the | | | | becomes "Chow time!" (The release command in |
| car)."Kennel up."This is not an accurate | | | | this context is situational).Anyway--the |
| understanding (or observation) of how dogs | | | | point is: Have fun with your training. Your |
| learn.In my experience, dogs recognize sound | | | | dog |
| patterns, rhythms and tonality. Have you | | | | |
| ever noticed how your dog's ears perk up when | | | | doesn't inherently understand one word from |
| | | | another--he only gets |
| you ask, "Do you want a cookie?" just as | | | | |
| much as they do if you | | | | the associations you create with each word. |
| | | | This is why you can |
| just say, "Cookie"?Now, when you're out in | | | | |
| the field, sometimes it's best to have | | | | train your dog in a variety of different |
| | | | languages, and your |
| commands that are only one syllable. | | | | |
| However, for non-essential | | | | friends will think your dog is |
| | | | multi-lingual.I once had a dog that spoke |
| commands, I like to incorporate a bit of | | | | three languages. (Or understood three |
| humor into my training.For example, "Shake," | | | | languages at least!)And I'm not above |
| becomes, "Slap me some skin, brotha," or | | | | lowering myself and my dog training for cheap |
| | | | |
| "What's shakin', Mama?"And, "Hup" (short for | | | | laughs amongst my friends.Meanwhile, they |
| "Get in the truck,") become, "Get your tookis | | | | all think that the dog must be a genius. And |
| in the truck.""Kennel up," humorously | | | | trust me--your dog will have a big smile on |
| becomes, "Get in the mansion.""Bark" | | | | her face as she soaks up all the attention, |
| transforms into, "Who's your daddy?"The | | | | too.That's all for now, folks! |
| command I use for "attack," becomes, "Easy." | | | | |
| Short for "Take | | | | Adam |
| | | | |
| it easy." (This tends to fool the bag guy | | | | Dogproblems.comAdam G. Katz is the author of |
| into thinking you've got an uncontrollably | | | | the book, "Secrets of a Professional Dog |
| vicious animal. And tactically, it's not | | | | Trainer: An Insider's Guide To The Most |
| always beneficial to let a potential | | | | Jealously Guarded Dog Training Secrets In |
| assailant know you're giving your dog the | | | | History. |
| attack command).When I put the food bowl down | | | | |