It is an immense pleasure to go to a dog show, and watch the obedience competition.  Whenever I watch this part of the show, it amazes me how much training, effort, communication and love is expressed between the dog and the handler.  Of course, not everyone wants to compete, but it is a pleasure, and a certain amount of satisfaction, owning a well trained, obedient dog.  When a dog is well trained, the dog knows what is expected of him, he knows how to please the people he loves and the training he has received keeps him safe from cars, other dogs who may be aggressive, and from being lost. No one likes dogs that bark incessantly, or that roam at will, knocking over garbage cans, defecating in yards and any number of other annoying antics that a dog can do. Training your dog can demonstrate your willingness to be a good neighbor, and a responsible member of the community in which you live.
In this series of articles I will be exploring some ideas for training your canine friend.  There are many attitudes and practices that are used, from Blanche Saunder’s book on Obedience Training Courses to the rather controversial Koehler Methods.

        First, I hope it is understood by every owner that dogs do not understand English, or any other language spoken by man, until taught by the trainer, or owner.  Beating a dog into submission is not the same as training.  It is simply cruelty for the sake of the human taking pleasure in beating a fellow creature.

        Second, to be a successful trainer requires a great deal of patience, and understanding of the way a dog thinks.  The dog still traces its ancestry back to the wolf.  Wolves travel in packs, where there is a hierarchy ranging from the alpha male and alpha female leaders down to the beta members of the pack.  There are the pups, whom every member of the pack takes care of.
Within this society, they had rather strict rules on how they socialized, ground rules for acceptable behavior, so that they could live and hunt together.
Our canine friends no longer have the wolf pack.  They now have their human pack.  It is imperative that the family dog understands its place in the pack, and who the alpha leader is.

        At the beginning of the century, dogs were normally left outside, chained, penned or free to roam.  Today, more owners are enrolling in obedience classes with their dogs, mostly because the dog now is sharing our living spaces.  They are brought inside to share our living rooms, bedrooms, in some cases, our very beds.  If there are any behavior faults in the dog, these faults are noted immediately, and steps can be taken to correct that behavior.  It is the purpose of these articles to take the novice through the steps of training.  It is recommended that the reader not only read these articles but others as well.  Obedience classes to participate in with your dog is highly recommended also, to better socialize your puppy or dog.