How to Boundary Train Your Dog
14 Sep 2009
Something terrible that happened in my neighborhood last week spurred me on to write this article. A neighbor of mine had a wonderful chocolate Lab named Clyde, who has chased his last car. Clyde was a popular dog, and the whole neighborhood was sorry to see this happen to him. It is too bad his owner didn’t take the time to boundary train Clyde-it was obvious he had a problem with chasing cars.
You can use the following tips to train your dog to stay within his boundaries. Boundary training your dog is a great idea because you’ll be able to relax much more when he is outside, knowing he is not likely to run off and maybe get in some mischief or even get hurt. A dog that runs out into the street is not only at risk of getting injured or killed by a passing car, but he could also get into a fight with an aggressive dog or bother some people.
With a few tips you can learn to boundary train your dog or puppy to eliminate the dangers from a dog that runs off. If your dog is still a puppy or perhaps doesn’t already have history of running off, boundary train him now before there is a problem- he will be much easier to train because there is no problem to correct yet.If your yard doesn’t have an enclosure, the boundary training is even more imperative.
Your dog can learn to be boundary trained, if you use the following tips.
- Start the boundary training by marking the perimeter of the desired area with a marker of string or rope-something visible. Put your dog on the leash, and take a walk around the area. You can walk close to the marker, but not so close that the dog can cross it. If he tries to leave the yard, stop your dog from crossing the line with the “no” command, and a light tug on his leash to get his attention. It reinforces the training of course to give him lots of praise and a treat when he refrains form crossing the line and stays within the boundaries. If he does try to cross the line, remember not to punish him for trying to go past the boundary-just concentrate on rewarding him for not doing so. Walk several times around the yard within the boundary for about 15 minutes or so often each day of the training. After several days of this your smart dog will recognize the boundary you have set up for what it is supposed to be.
- For the next step, get a lead 20 feet or so long, so your pet feels less control from you. As you walk him around the yard and he nears the line, get ready to tug and say no before he actually can cross the line. Train him several times a day every day, until you are seeing good results, always praising and rewarding him for staying in the yard.
- Now that he seems to have started learning the basics of boundary training, you can move on to the next step- a further test to see if you have really boundary trained your dog or not. It is time to put something tempting on the other side of that boundary line. Ask a friend or family member, or even another dog, to wait on the other side of the boundary. As you take your walk and approach the temptation, be ready to say no and tug on the leash (use the regular leash for this) if necessary to prevent him from crossing the line. He may try to cross over the boundary, but don’t worry-he just needs more training. You just need to go back to the previous lessons and keep at it till he really has it down. If he passes the test, try tossing his favorite toy across the boundary. If he can resist that very strong temptation, he is doing great and is ready for the last step of his boundary training.
- Now it is time to test him off leash. Take off his leash, and walk with him at the heel position, staying inside the boundary-be sure to keep praising and rewarding him for staying with you. Keep practicing the boundary training with short 15 minute sessions several times a day. In fact, every time you bring your dog into that area it is a good idea to refresh his memory with some boundary training exercises. Your dog may take advantage of his freedom from the leash to cross the line-this just means you need to work more on the previous steps.~
Make sure to make the effort to properly boundary train your dog especially if your dog likes to run off, and your yard has no fence. You don’t want to take the chance of your pet getting lost, hurt or killed, or causing some sort of trouble in the neighborhood.
For more tips and advice on helping your pet be the best he can be please click here- www.BehaveDoggy.com.
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