Top 5 Skills to Teach Your Dog - Teaching Youngsters and Oldsters Alike

 It's Spring and now that the snow has melted (for most of us), many would-be dog owners are turning their attention to rescue lists, shelters and breeders. As I look at my own dog, a 10 year old Labrador Retriever named Lincoln curled up on the couch next to me, I cannot help but think about the time when she will no longer be around. Who will come after her? I find myself vacillating back and forth between pup or older dog, pure bred or mixed breed. Though I may be unclear about which direction I would go in choosing a dog, I know for certain which skills that I would like to teach my new dog-any dog for that matter, be she young or old.

Before I go into what I would consider my top five skills for dogs, I think it's important to understand some of the things that may influence how you teach a particular skill. Factors such as age, confidence, physical limitations, and motivation will each play a part in how you train. Let's address each one of these factors individually.

• Age: Puppies are blank slates and have had less time to rehearse and commit to unwanted behaviors. You can have real influence on a puppy by insuring that he or she has the continued opportunity to interact with other puppies and dogs after they leave their litter and by purposefully introducing them to as many sights, sounds and smells as you can (in a non threatening way) to help to create a confident, social animal. By managing their environment, you can keep unwanted behaviors from happening in the first place. But a puppy can be tough. They have limited concentration, they chew and eliminate indiscriminately and they require lots and lots of attention.
  
  If you choose to adopt an older dog, you may have to spend some time resolving and managing problem behaviors first. Your ability to socialize a dog beyond its "critical period" (to 12 weeks) is limited, so while you may be able to influence somewhat your dog's confidence, pretty much what you see is what you get. But unlike puppies an older dog may already have progressed through their super destructive chew period and with proper supervision should have the capacity to be easily housetrained. Website visit: fridlyckans