A dog isn’t just a pet, they’re an irreplaceable part of the family.
We know that training is just the first step in the journey of a long happy life with your furry family member. However, we want to keep training positive, fun and realistic. The training has to fit into your lifestyle, so it can be easily incorporated and maintained for the best results!
At Ruff Rhode, we want to make sure you're not only getting the results you need, but also develop a deeper understanding of your dog, and their behavior, that will help you for a lifetime.
Training not only can get you a better-behaved dog, but it also builds confidence and trust in your dog and reduces anxiety, allowing them to live their best and most comfortable life!
Using classic conditioning and positive reinforcement, we can help you communicate what you want to your dog, and make sure your dog understands what’s expected of them.
We like the phrase “firm but fair”, which means slowly building up to the goals you want to achieve step-by-step, in a way that realistic for you and your dog.
Training is just as much about you as it is about your dog!
FAQs
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Classical conditioning—also sometimes referred to as Pavlovian conditioning— involves forming an association between two stimuli, resulting in a learned response.
One of the best-known examples of classical conditioning is Pavlov's classic experiments with dogs. In these experiments, the neutral signal was the sound of a tone and the naturally occurring reflex was salivating in response to food. By associating the neutral stimulus (sound) with the unconditioned stimulus (food), the sound of the tone alone could produce a salivation response.
Classic conditioning falls under the psychologist school of thought known as Behaviorism. Behaviorism assumes that all learning occurs through interactions with the environment and that environment shapes behavior.
This kind of learning is used very heavily in dog training
Click this link to learn more: https://www.verywellmind.com/classical-conditioning-2794859
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Despite popular belief, you can teach an old dog new tricks! The younger the dog is, the easier teaching them new behaviors will be. The older the dog is, it simply will take longer to re-write old behaviors and replace them with new ones.
Thats why they say starting early when you get a dog is important, but if you didn’t get the chance to, there’s no expiration date on giving your dog a better life!
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Training doesn’t have to break the bank! All you really need is…
A Leash
Some treats or toys
A positive attitude
You and your dog!
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If your dog isn’t interested in food, it simply changes how we reward your dog during training. All dogs are motivated by something but some dogs like toys or even pets and praise more than any food you could offer.
While food is the most common motivator for dogs, it’s not the only one!
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This is a very common concern; however, we work with you to ensure a successful transition away from needing treats.
When we begin the training process lots of treats are typically used to build a dog’s fundamental behaviors.
Once our dog understands what we’re asking of them, and the behavior we are rewarding becomes habit, then we can slowly change from using treats to other types of rewards.
There’s no cheating in dog training! Using treats isn’t a bad thing, it’s simply a way to help us communicate to our dogs that we like what they are doing and we want them to continue repeating that behavior for us!
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The way dogs live with us has changed drastically over the years, and so has what we need of our dogs to live with us happily.
Training a dog isn’t just about getting a dog to listen, but also to make sure your dog is equipped to handle situations that they will encounter as they live their life with you!