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Keeping the attention of a dog while training is not always an easy task. Dogs can be very easily distracted, and it is important to not allow the dog training sessions to be ruined by boredom. Making dog training fun for the dog and the human alike is essential to creating a happy, well-adjusted and well-trained dog.

Providing random positive stimuli throughout the day is a great way to keep the interest of your dog. Doing things the dog enjoys, like walking in the park, riding in the car, and playing with other dogs, are good ways to keep the dog’s attention, but you must reward him for small successes.

For instance, in order to reward the dog for coming to you when you call him, ask the dog to come to you, without giving any clues about going for a walk, a car ride, or other treats.

After the dog has come over to you and obediently sat down, attach the leash and start the reward. This can be either the afore-mentioned walk in the park, ride in the car, or anything else the dog likes to do.

Giving some kind of reward, whether a treat, a special outing, or just a scratch behind the ears, every time the dog does something you want, is a good method to keep your dog motivated while you are dog training.

If your dog knows something good is going to happen every time he follows your commands, he will be more motivated to do want you tell him every time.

Distraction training.

When training a dog, it is important to not let distractions disrupt the training. The dog must be taught to ignore distractions, such as other people, other dogs, other animals and loud noises, and focus on what is being taught These types of distractions can even be used as rewards when training the dog to come when told.

For instance, if your dog enjoys romping with other dogs, whether it be in a park or with the neighbour’s dogs, let him play with those other dogs. Then go into the park or yard and call your dog.

When he comes to you, give him lots of praise, treats and other rewards, then immediately allow the dog to go back to playing with his friends. Repeat this several times and praise the dog each time he comes over to you.

The dog will soon learn that coming to you means good things (treats and praise) and not bad ones (being taken away from the park).

This so-called distraction training is one of the hardest things for your dog to learn, because dogs are naturally social animals, and leaving the pack is one of the most difficult things you can ask your dog to do. Most dogs will be understandably reluctant to leave their canine companions, but it is vital to persist in dog training.

Training the dog to come to you when you call can take some thought on your part at first. For example, waving a favourite toy, or a lure, is a good way to get your dog’s attention and put the focus back on you. If your dog has been clicker trained, a quick click can be a good motivator too, when training your dog.

Once your dog begins to get used to coming when called, you can begin to reduce and then stop the visual cues and focus on making the dog respond to just your voice. It is important that the dog obeys voice commands alone, as you will not always have a toy or lure to hand.

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