How do you keep a puppies attention long enough to train it?

Answer 1

Yummy treats, semi moist and easy to swallow in one gulp. Cut up hot dogs work beautifully. Hold the treat up to your puppy's nose long enough for the puppy to inhale and "notice" the cookie. Then bring your hand (holding the treat) up to your eyes. When the puppy makes eye contact, say "YES!" and give the puppy the treat. When the puppy regularly follows the cookie to your eyes, add the cue word "Watch". As your puppy gets good at this, have the puppy hold eye contact for longer and longer periods of time.

Also, when your puppy is looking away, say his name in a high pitched very excited and happy voice. When he turns to look at you, say "YES!" and give him a treat. Repeat over and over and over and over.

BTW, as long as dogs and puppies know who is supplying the food, the human is ALWAYS alpha without any of this macho hands on manhandling crud.

Answer 2

With a puppy, getting its attention is the first step to training it. Until you have your puppies attention, don't bother with trying to teach Sit or Down or anything else. However if you work it right, you will make training so much fun that your dog can do both at the same time.

Make sure to keep training sessions short and FUN. You can train amazing amounts with just a couple of five minute sessions a day. Use treats and toys liberally. Make sure treats are tiny, like the size of a pea, and if your pup is very small, try to use his dinner instead of other kinds of treats, or at least be careful not to keep sessions short so you don't overfeed his little belly.

At puppy age, teaching attention is the number one more important training activity (not counting household manners like housetraining, not chewing or biting, not jumping up on people). As he gets older, you're going to be able to slow down on the treats and toys, but you'll have already established fantastic attention. Make good use of this time, because there will never be an easier time to establish this.

An example of how you might use play and training together is: play gentle tug with a plushie toy, ask for a sit (luring him to sit by holding the toy over his head at first if necessary), toss the toy a short distance for him to chase, play again for a few minutes, ask for the sit again, when he sits make a big fuss and start playing again. Gradually as he gets older, you'll start to have more asking for behaviors and less playing, and you'll start to ask for the behavior (Sit, Down, etc) without the toy or treat in your hand. The toy won't come out until *after* he does the command.

As a last note, make sure to start this exercise, and every new exercise, in a quiet area with few distractions. After he has gotten really good at what you're asking, slowly start adding distractions and start to practice in new locations (but just not at the same time).

Answer 3

First you have to establish that you are the alpha. Then, don't train for too long at a time- sometimes 10" is all you'll get-but the key is repetition. Teach only 1 thing at a time. I found positive reinforcement works the best. When he did what was expected of him, he got a treat. When he did not, no treat. Also, see if the dog training academies in your area have a puppy class. They learn how to socialize with other dogs (VERY important) and start to learn basic commands at a slower pace. From there we went to Beginner's 1. Puppy classes are usually for dogs up to 6 mos of age. Remember, repetition, repetition! Good luck

Answer 4

Number one...how old is the puppy? Three to six months is a good place to start. In a quiet area, attempt only one "trick" at a time. State the puppy's name and the command. Use lots of praise. Don't attempt training during potty time or feed time.

Answer 5

I used the "Clicker" training. I kept treats in my pocket and I had this little clicker. I started out by just clicking it and then giving her a treat. So then she equated click=treat. So then I started giving her commands and clicking right after it. When she did it right, I gave her a treat, so on and so forth. Call around or see online if they have the clicker training instructions. It really worked. I taught my puppy to sit, lay down, shake, and roll over in less than a week.

Answer 6

Treats

Most trainers & dog behaviourists recommend training young pups in 5 minute intervals to prevent boredom and distraction. Do several 5 minute long sessions per day and be patient. Good luck!

Answer 7

it is best to train a puppy for 10 minutes a day, at the same time, same place and same person (training) everyday. =)

Answer 8

you should use a 'clicker' it gets there attention do not use a silent whistle it can make that puppy mad,sad, and agresive
but the clicker gets the pup's attention which comes in handy making the puppy focus

Answer 9

Most local vets offices can recommend a good obedience class for puppies. I took mine for six weeks for one hour each Saturday. It was great and well worth the effort.

Answer 10

You should only try training a pup for 10 mins at a time.... they need a break every now and then... imagine trying to teach a toddler to do something.... but don't give up... they will learn!