Dog Behavior Training New Haven CT
Training Your Dog for Good Behavior
Hundreds of perfectly groomed, beautifully cared for dogs come to Madison Square Garden for the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, the second-oldest continuous sporting event in the nation. For two days, the dogs are judged on how well they exemplified their particular breed. Judges looked at the dogs' physiques, fur, eyes, color and grooming. Only one dog out of 2,500 dogs has a chance to be selected Best in Show. Westminster, you see, is the canine equivalent of the Miss America Pageant without the baton twirling.
Before you decide conformation showing is all fluff, ask yourself this question: Can a stranger walk up to your dog and look at its teeth? Can your dog even stand still while someone takes a good long look at him? All dogs at Westminster can, while most pet dogs cannot.
If you wonder why these behaviors are important, change the scene from Madison Square Garden to the exam room at your veterinary clinic or grooming parlor. Here the behaviors taught to show dogs have a valuable purpose.
If you wish to give your pet the ability to be groomed calmly or allow a veterinarian to examine an injury, you have to know how to shape behaviors. The best tool is positive reinforcement. Loosely defined, that is anything nice that strengthens behaviors.
It is important to be able to connect a positive reinforcer to the right behavior. For a pet dog that wants to behave like a show dog, it is crucial to know exactly which behavior caused the reward. Traditionally, people h...
Author: Gary Wilkes
Copyright 2009 BowTie Inc.
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