How to Prepare Yourself for Your Doberman Training Sessions

Doberman training, when done properly, should go relatively smoothly in most instances. The Doberman is an extremely intelligent dog. It is a quick learner, and it has a strong tendency to retain what it has learned. Nevertheless, there is a right way and a wrong way to train one of these dogs. The Doberman is a very athletic and a very strong dog. It has powerful jaws and large teeth. It is imperative then that it be trained the right way, and trained with authority. The Doberman needs to learn as a puppy that the command "Sit" means to sit, with no ifs ands, or buts.

Learn From Your Dog While Teaching It

One mistake many pet owners make in trying to do the training themselves is to consider the training to be a one way exercise. Animals can and do learn through repetition, but you want more out of a dog than one that simply sits, stays, or comes on command. There is a lot of give and take in Doberman training, and in the training of any other dog for that matter. It's the same way with training horses. Cats of course are another story. The key thing here is to realize that because of the Doberman's high intelligence, there are things you can learn during the training as well as what the dog will learn. What the Doberman can teach you will only make your efforts to teach it all the more effective. In other words, as you are training your dog, watch and learn from it.

How can your training improve by learning from your dog? One example has to do with attention. Doberman pinschers are highly social animals. They crave attention. They do not like to be ignored or neglected. Consequently, they will go out of their way to please you. Training often revolves around a system of reward and punishment. In this case, reward the Doberman with lavish attention when it does something right, and punish it by withholding attention when it does something that isn't right. If you give your dog a great deal of attention when it's not being obedient, you may well be rewarding it for behaving in that manner.

Socializing is a Good First Step

One of the best ways to initiate training with young puppies of any breed is to socialize them. Get the puppy used to other people, and especially other dogs. It is much easier to socialize a puppy than to attempt to do so with an overly protective and not so obedient adult. A dog that has learned to socialize will be happier for it, and will usually take to training much easier. Also, when training a puppy, a normal collar will usually provide all the control you need. For an adult Doberman, at least for an adult male, a head collar may be needed, as it gives you, the trainer, greater control. Do not rely on such things as choke chains or shock collars when obedience training a dog. You want it learn out of respect for you and not out of fear. There is nothing a Doberman respects more than a very firm "no".

Puppies can be hard to train sometimes, but it is usually out of no fault of their own. Because they are so cute, it can be difficult being firm with them. They would often rather play. And when a puppy wants to play it can become contagious, and disrupt training in the process. All of a sudden, the dog is training you, which is not the way things are supposed to be.

The Importance of Consistency and Patience

There are a great many tips and techniques for training a Doberman, whether it is a fully grown male or a small puppy, and it may be worth your while to do some research to see what methods are going to work for you, and for your dog as well. Regardless of the method or strategy you pursue, your efforts may come to naught if you neglect one important thing, and that is consistency. If you expect your Doberman to respond well to training, there has to be a commitment on your part. That means establishing a technique, establishing a schedule, and sticking to both. Off again, on again training seldom takes hold, and it's all to easy to get out of the habit can convince yourself that your dog will somehow get by on its own. A semi-obedient dust mop of a dog can be real nuisance, but a semi-obedient Doberman pinscher can turn out to be a real problem.

There is yet one more thing to bear in mind. If you are going to train a dog, and want to do a good job of it, you are going to have to have patience. Professional dog trainers know how to set limits and how to get results quickly, but they are usually very patient people. It takes a dog, even a very intelligent one like the Doberman, some time to figure out just what you are expecting of it. If you have a good supply of patience, you'll be in a better position to maintain the upper hand.