The Best Training Methods for Untrainable Dogs
Though physical and mental exercise are vital to your dog’s well-being and can help reduce unruliness, they cannot replace training. Only training can teach your dog appropriate behaviors.
Many people who label their dogs as untrainable feel this way because they have tried to train their dogs but haven’t seen the results they were hoping for. Talking about training may seem like beating around the bush to those who feel like they’ve already tried everything.
However, there are some mistakes people can make with training that cause it to fail. We’re going to talk about which training methods are most effective for unruly dogs as well as the types of mistakes that can set you back in your training.
Some people will try to teach their dogs what not to do by punishing them or saying “no!” when the dog does something wrong. There are a few problems with this approach. The first is that the dog does not know what to do instead. Even if the dog stops the undesirable behavior, they may simply replace it with a different unwanted behavior.
It’s much easier to teach a dog what to do than what not to do. This is where positive reinforcement comes in. If you want your dog to stop jumping, telling them no and admonishing them may not get you far.
In fact, it may make things worse because what your dog often wants from you is attention. Whether that attention is positive or negative doesn’t always matter to your dog; any attention can be rewarding.
Instead, you can use positive reinforcement to teach your dog to sit when you come into the house. You can use treats as a reward or your attention. Ignore your dog’s attempts to jump on you by turning your back and not acknowledging your dog at all until they stop (this is where patience comes in). You can then ask your dog to sit and reward them with your attention or treats (or both).
We mentioned that punishment can be rewarding to some dogs because it is a form of attention, but that isn’t the only reason that it’s a bad idea. Punishment, especially when physical, can ruin your bond with your dog.
Your dog can become afraid of you or even become aggressive as a defense mechanism. Punishment may also lead to more severe behavioral issues such as anxiety or submissive urination. Though some people can have success in getting their dogs to obey out of fear, it is ultimately damaging to the relationship and not a worthwhile method of dog training.
Positive reinforcement motivates your dog to obey by offering them a reward, which also helps them associate obeying you with a positive outcome. Thus, they are more likely to continue obeying you due to the possibility of a positive consequence.
Clicker training is a great option for training challenging dogs. This is because some people make the mistake of rewarding their dogs too late, so the dog may not associate the reward with the right behavior.
Clicker training uses a device that makes a unique clicking sound. The first step of this training is to teach your dog that the clicking sound means they get a reward. Then, it is used to mark desirable behaviors.
When working on a skill, your dog will know exactly when they have performed the action that earns the reward. Of course, this does mean that you have to have good timing with your clicks; it is still possible to be late.
However, clicker training is fairly easy to pick up for both humans and dogs, and it is more exact with marking behaviors than simply responding with a “good boy” and a treat. This accuracy is great for helping problem dogs grasp exactly which behaviors get rewarded and which do not.
If you have a dog that seems to be constantly misbehaving, then you should be constantly supervising that dog. Remember, your dog is just a dog; they were not born knowing how to be the perfect, well-mannered companion for a human.
It is your responsibility to teach your dog appropriate behavior and it is also your responsibility to keep an eye on your dog. If your dog tears up a couch cushion because you weren’t paying attention to them, this is your fault for not properly supervising your dog. Until you accept responsibility, you will not be able to remedy this issue.
So, if your dog is the type to do naughty things while you aren’t looking, the key is to always be looking. It can be helpful to tether your dog to you with a leash. This makes it easier to go about your day while also being able to prevent or interrupt unwanted behaviors.
Until an unruly dog shows progress with behavior, they should not be given too much freedom. You need to be around to redirect unwanted behaviors into acceptable ones. For times when you’re unable to provide constant supervision, you should look into crate training your dog.
We cannot stress enough how important consistency is. If your dog isn’t allowed to jump on you when you’re wearing nice clothes then your dog also shouldn’t be allowed to do so when you’re in tattered work clothes. If your dog is allowed to do something some of the time but not all of the time, then you’re sending mixed messages that will confuse your dog.
Similarly, your family has to all be on the same page. If one family member lets the dog pull while walking but the other does not, it will take the dog far longer to understand what proper leash manners are. Inconsistent training and feedback will slow down your dog’s ability to learn desirable behavior.
If your dog is so off the walls you can hardly get them to focus on you (even after exercise), there are some training tools that may be able to help you. We’ve chosen training tools that are both effective and humane.
You might be tempted to turn to something like a shock collar or choke collar, but these can have the same issues we explained earlier with punishment. Not only that, but your dog can often tell when they aren’t wearing these collars and will continue to commit offenses when not wearing them.
Head collars, also called head halters, are a great option that give you control over your dog without relying on pain or excessive force. Instead, the collar applies pressure behind the neck and around the dog’s muzzle. This pressure is not painful, but because dogs have a natural propensity to pull against pressure, it can be used to your advantage.
For instance, pulling forward and upward on the leash will cause a dog wearing a head halter to sit. You can pull more firmly to close the dog’s mouth, which can prevent barking and biting. Head collars can also be used to train skills like down and focus.
Not only that, but this device is great for teaching leash manners because it is effective at reducing pulling. You will not find yourself stumbling forward, holding onto the leash for dear life. Instead, your dog’s head will be turned back toward you once they reach the end of the leash.
Just like other types of collars, many dogs will be able to tell the difference between when they are wearing these and when they are not. However, the point of head collars is to help you teach your dog what to do. They are more effective than shock collars and choke chains which focus on teaching your dog what not to do.
Because the point of the head collar is to help you teach your dog skills, it needs to be paired with positive reinforcement. Once your dog is made to sit or stop pulling or whatever it may be, you need to reward them.
Eventually, your dog will understand what each command means and do them without you providing guidance with the halter. At this point, you can begin to wean your dog off of the halter.
Did you know that you can startle a dog out of a behavior? Doggy daycare workers commonly use this technique to prevent dog fights when they see one dog staring at another for too long.
They’ll do something like drop a metal dog food bowl or bang two bowls together. The clanging sound is unexpected and startles the dog enough to interrupt a behavior but not cause any lasting fear.
At home, you can use something like a soda can filled with pennies. Shake it to interrupt a behavior like barking, and then reward the dog for being quiet. You can also use air horns or an ultrasonic device; anything that can disrupt your dog without causing fear.
Whatever cacophonous device you choose to interrupt unwanted behaviors, you must follow up with redirection and positive reinforcement. Otherwise, your dog is not going to learn anything and may go right back to doing the behavior you just interrupted.
Often when a behavior continues, it is because the owner is inadvertently rewarding it. In the jumping example, if you respond by pushing your dog or yelling at him, that is still attention. If all your dog wants is attention, hes getting exactly what he wants. Change your behavior — in this case by ignoring all jumping — and then reward behavior you want, like polite sitting.
Many dogs dont learn because their owners arent consistent in what they are trying to teach them. Dogs dont understand English, so the only way to explain what you want them to do is to respond to each behavior the same way each time. For example, if your dog jumps up on you, turn your back every time. Dont yell sometimes, turn your back sometimes and pet her sometimes. If your dog understands she will never get attention when she jumps, she will stop.
If your dog isnt listening, put him in time out until he calms down. Use a leash to prevent him from getting into trouble, even in the house. Tie the leash to your belt if you have to. These are simple tools that can restrict your dogs freedom and thus your ability to control him until he listens better.
Every dog owner knows the feeling that his dog just might not be able to learn the command hes trying to teach. But no dog is untrainable. If you are struggling to train your dog, look for reasons why he might be struggling. Is he scared? Is he distracted? Does he actually know how to perform the command you are requesting? Once you determine what is hampering your dog, training progression will be much easier.
Many dogs cant focus because they have too much excess energy. Make sure your dog is getting plenty of exercise. For a young dog, two 45-minute exercise sessions that involve at least some full-speed running may be required each day. In addition, play short games with your dog throughout the day to burn off extra energy.
I have tried training my dog without success. What went wrong?
Many owners may have tried traditional obedience training without success. Your dog may still jump on people, bark incessantly and defy commands.
In many cases, the issue is that the dog has not learned what you want him to do instead (see Greeting Behavior – Jumping Up, Enrichment, Predictability, and Scheduling, and Training Basics).
Attempting to reprimand all the misbehavior will be ineffective. When you remove a behavior from the animals repertoire, it will be replaced with something else. In addition, punishment is intended to teach the dog what not to do, and may make the pet fearful which could lead to avoidance (flight), freezing, or aggression (fight). Instead your goal should be to train and reinforce the behavior that you want your dog to exhibit, or to prevent the undesirable behavior if you are unable to supervise and train. Therefore, the key to changing excitable and disobedient dogs into calmer, better-behaved pets is to reinforce calm, settled behavior rather than punishing what you dont want.
First, avoid confinement when you are home because this does not allow you to intervene and show your dog the appropriate behavior. Confinement may be necessary when you are not available to supervise your dog, but he or she must first be provided with sufficient exercise, an opportunity to eliminate, appropriate play and affection, and food or treats for desirable behavior (i.e., training) and never for undesirable behavior (barking, attention seeking). In short, quiet, calm, and non-demanding behaviors should be rewarded with play, affection and attention, while demanding, jumping up, or excitable behaviors should be met with inattention.
Another common training error involves actually reinforcing the behaviors that you do not want. Instead of patting, giving attention, or perhaps even a treat to try and stop the behavior, it is essential that these behaviors be met with inattention.
Reprimands and punishment are also often unsuccessful. Some pets will actually consider punishment itself as a form of attention. On the other hand, punishment may lead to anxiety, fear of the owner and problems such as aggression or submissive urination. Disruption devices such as a shake can (small stones or coins in a tin can), an air horn, or an ultrasonic device may interrupt the undesirable behavior without causing fear of the owner. However, if praise for ceasing the behavior and redirection toward a new and acceptable behavior does not occur, the dog is unlikely to change all that much.