Manners and Skills Training Program
This effective 6 week program will provide your dog with the foundation skills needed to harmoniously thrive in your home and to navigate our busy urban environment in a confident and safe manner.
Your canine companion will learn to walk politely on leash and reliably come to you when called. Your dog will gain patience and impulse control which will also prevent toy and food guarding.
We also will teach your puppy to calmly accept handling. This will help them to stay calm while you’re putting on a harness, leash, coat or boots, during teeth cleaning and coat brushing, or when visiting a grooming salon or veterinarian.
Inappropriate behaviour concerns like jumping, mouthing, counter surfing, resource guarding and leash reactivity will also be addressed.
I encourage family members who interact with your puppy to participate to provide consistency and clear communication to your fur baby.
Once a week, we’ll meet for 60-90 minutes of training. The location for each lesson will be determined as appropriate.
After each lesson, you will receive emailed notes from me to help you with your homework. I recommend 10-15 minutes of practice per day.
You’ll also receive information about canine learning theory, calming signals, body language, nutrition and handling.
All lessons will require a 6 foot leash and preferably a front clip harness. I will assist you in making the right choice for the dog’s harness, and I will provide a 24 foot long line for training the recall.
At the sixth lesson, you’ll receive a framed graduation certificate with your dog’s picture to proudly display in your home. The graduate will also receive a new toy for completing the program.
The Following Lists the Training Goals for Each Lesson
Lesson 1
In this lesson, we will:
- Teach your dog to associate the word “Yes” with a food reward, so they know they got the behaviour right.
- Encourage your canine companion to look at you with or without saying their name.
- Lure your dog with treats in front of their nose to move them into position.
- Use hand signals to ask your dog to sit, lay down, stand and not to jump up when delivering a treat.
- Motivate your puppy to drop an inappropriate item to avoid resource guarding and accidental bites.
In addition, I will give you information about ”alone training” to prevent separation anxiety. I also provide ideas for “enrichment activities” such as a busy box or the muffin tin game.
Lesson 2
In this lesson, we will:
- Train your dog to sit at doors until told to proceed through with you.
- Get your puppy used to being handled.
- Teach your dog skills to politely greet visitors to your home.
- Expand hand signals with simple voice cues.
Lesson 3
In this lesson, we’ll use verbal cues to teach your dog to:
- Stay for 5-20 seconds in a sit or down position.
- Go to their place on cue, which could be a dog bed, mat or blanket.
- Leave an item on cue to prevent them from picking up and eating toxic things from the ground—level 1 & 2.
- Navigate long line walks for enrichment.
Lesson 4
In this lesson, we will use verbal cues to train your dog to:
- Leave an item on cue—level 3.
- Practise the “leash off, leash on” game to prevent your canine companion from running away once the leash is unclipped.
- Walk politely on a 6 foot leash.
- Encourage “auto-watch” to look at distraction and back at you.
- Introduce the “recall cue” specific to your dog.
Lesson 5
In this lesson, we start to generalize your dog’s skills in different venues. We’ll motivate your puppy to:
- Sit or lay down and stay for up to 20 seconds without getting up.
- Leave an item on cue—level 4 & 5.
- Practise their recall with some outdoor distractions.
I also will show you how to recognize appropriate “dog play” and know when and how to safely intervene.
Lesson 6
In this lesson, we review the program skills and teach your dog some fun tricks. We will:
- Practise position cues with hand signal and verbal cues.
- Demonstrate “leave it”—level 1-5.
- Proof “stay” by adding distance and owner distractions.
- Use hand signals to teach your puppy to “spin and twist.”
- Shake a paw and wave.
- Celebrate your hard work by graduating your smart canine companion.
Scientific research into dog training has proven that positive methods such as praise and treats and providing toys in exchange for cooperation are humane and effective methods to improve a dog’s behaviour in a positive and consistent manner.
This type of training strengthens the owner’s bond with their pet and provides a fun learning environment.
Let me help you to make training your dog a pleasant experience.