Most trainers want their dogs to obey out of love rather than because they were beaten or bribed. But since most dogs love tasty treats, food has long been used as a training aid. There are basically three ways to use food: (1) as a lure to get the dog to perform a task, (2) as a reward for completing an already learned task, or (3) as reinforcement for behaviors offered by the dog (click and treat training).

Most people use treats and body language as a lure because it is the fastest way to entice the dog to perform a task. But beware: there is a huge gap between following a lure and obeying a command. To bridge that gap, learn how to enforce your commands with your hands, leash, and praise. This will also prove invaluable if your dog isn't interested in the treat because she's full or distracted. If you are reluctant to build your training foundation using a food-based approach or prefer not to use treats, don't. You, too, are likely to find it simplifies and improves your communication with your canine.

Clicker and Treat Training

Clickers were once used almost exclusively for training service and trick dogs to learn more complicated requests than those required of the average pet or even obedience-trained dog. However, today clicker training is much more mainstream, and trainers are applying it to everything from introductory dog training to advanced horse training.

How does it work? Simply put, when the dog does something desirable, he is given a signal (the click made by a plastic clicker) that the behavior is right, offered a food reward, and, eventually, taught to do it on command, possibly without the food. For instance, if the objective is to teach a dog to sneeze, the trainer would wait for him to do that, click the clicker and offer a treat or other reward. Because of the power of association, soon the dog reacts to the sound of the clicker with as much delight as to the treat. Therefore, if the dog is working far away or retrieving and can't be given a treat, the clicker communicates that he is doing a great job. Of course, many people do the same thing with the word “Good” instead of the clicker. With animals who are unresponsive to verbal praise — such as rodents and farm animals — the clicker is an invaluable training tool, but a variety of methods are equally successful when teaching basic dog obedience. If you are interested in clicker training, investigate the resources offered by Gary Wilkes at www.clickandtreat.com.

Training with Patience

Dog training is an adventure of sorts: never predictable, sometimes elating, and sometimes tedious. Be optimistic about your dog's potential, but expect his progress occasionally to be slow or nonexistent. Don't, however, abandon your original goals and settle for meager results. Shoddy, half-learned obedience can cause annoying problems or allow them to fester. Many owners give up on training but later decide to give it another try — this time approaching it with far greater determination and achieving far better results. Don't let your frustration or impatience get the better of you!

Finally, learning anything new — including how to train your dog — is challenging, so show yourself compassion. You will probably make mistakes when training. Follow the philosophy that if you attempt to train, you may make a mistake — but if you never try, you'll never have the dog you really want. Your goal: Decide what kind of behavior you want and pursue it with patience and kindness.