Jack Haskins: The fastest ways to train your dog

DEAR OLD TRAINER: I followed your advice on training Ace, my 3-year-old Jack Russell terrier, and Sadie, my 2-year-old Shar Pei mix. They had never obeyed an order in their lives and now they will sit, stay, and come. Problem is, it took me months to train them. Is there a way to teach them without spending so much time on it?

A: Yes, and it is one of the most useful secrets of dog training. Teaching Ace and Sadie to sit was direct training. That takes hard work and effort. Here are two methods of training that require little of either.

▪  Indirect Training is taking an act your dogs perform as part of the daily routine and applying a command to it. It is so easy it will amaze you.

For example, at some point in your daily walk, give the command “turn around” and start walking the other way. Don’t make any effort to train your dogs, just give the command and turn around. Whether on-leash or not they will hear your voice, observe you going the other way and turn and follow you. Pet and praise them when they do. Within a week they will know the command.

When you come to a fork in the path say “right” and turn right. Again, don’t make any effort at training, just give the command and turn right. Before long they will know to turn right when they hear the command. Then do the same thing with a left turn. Love on them every time they do it right.

Apply a command to everything they do on a regular basis. If you take them in or out of the house say “door” before you walk them to the door. If you take them for a ride say “car” when you stand up to leave. When you reach the car, make them sit, open the door and say “load up” before you let them jump in. Just before you get up to prepare their meal say, “dinner.”

Do it with any activity they perform on a regular basis. One of my dogs takes a nap with me and when I’m ready I just say “nap” and he heads for the bedroom.

▪  Another method is Reverse Training, in which you observe an act your dog has taught himself to do and apply a command to the act. It’s as easy as it sounds.

Dogs teach themselves to do things all the time. A dog will bring a ball or a stick to you when they want to play, bring their leash to remind you it’s time to walk, bring their dish to let you know it’s time for dinner. Anyone who runs with their dog knows the dog gets excited the instant you pick up your running shoes. All you have to do is give the trick a name and, with no effort, your dog knows another command.

Each time a dog learns a command it gives you more control and increases the dog’s interest in learning the next one.

As always, the most important aspect of training is the praise and love you give them when they do it right.

This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 11:51 AM with the headline "Jack Haskins: The fastest ways to train your dog."