The importance of training your dog...
There are so many reasons that training your dog is a good idea. Even if you have had dogs all of your life, and think you know how to train your dog, things have changed and there are better, kinder and more effective ways to train your dog than the old school, dominance training, or correction training. In the past decade or so, studies on dog cognition has grown by leaps and bounds. We have learned so much more about how dogs think and why they do what they do. They are actually putting dogs in MRI machines to figure out what is going on in their brains when they are hear different voices and see different facial expressions in humans. It's fascinating stuff! We have such a better understanding of what drives behavior in dogs than we ever did. We know what is reinforcing and what isn't.
There are a multitude of benefits to taking your dog or puppy to a training class. Not only for your dog, but for you and your family. Being able to teach your dog the behaviors that they need to live in your world and learn your rules helps create a wonderful well-adjusted dog. Participating in dog training classes builds confidence, and creates a stronger relationship with you, their human. When you attend weekly classes, you are obligated to do the work with your dog. You are paying for it, right? You don't want to waste your money and not do what you need to do. So, it helps you follow through with the training. If you are doing it yourself, well...you get busy and it often falls off.
Whether your dog is 1 or 11, dog training classes are beneficial. Even if your dog knows all of the basics, you can take fun classes like rally or trick classes. It's also a great way to spend time. Classes help with socialization for both you and your dog. Who doesn't want to spend time doing fun things with their dogs with a group of other people doing fun things with their dogs? It's a super way to spend a Tuesday night!