One question you should be asking yourself, if you are looking at getting a new dog, or a new puppy, is "will dog training work with my new dog?". You may also be asking yourself, "how do I tell if a puppy is trainable?". While nothing is foolproof in this world, there are a couple of tricks you can use to tell if the dog or puppy you are considering will be submissive and if dog training will work. You can do both these tests in less than a couple of minutes, and they are usually good indicators of your dog's future temperament.
As some of you may already know, some dogs are born as alphas, or the leaders of the pack, and some dogs are born as betas, or further down in the pack order. Usually, a dog that is a beta is much easier to train, as they are submissive. While alphas can be trained, it is usually a little more of a challenge, and in some cases it can be a huge challenge
Here are two "tricks of the trade" that will help tell if dog training will be easy with your new dog:
1. Will the dog roll over and show you it's belly? This is the submissive position for your dog, and is an important indicator of whether a dog considers itself lower in the social order than you. You will have to put the dog on it's back yourself and look for the following:
A. Does the dog "fight you" and try to squirm out?
B. Does the dog put it's teeth on you, or actually bite?
If the dog does either of these two, you probably are looking at a dog that is dominant, and she will be a challenge to train.
2. Another good trick to determine whether the dog is submissive or dominant is to stare it down. Lock your eyes on the dogs eyes, and see if the dog looks away or stares back. If you are looking for a submissive dog, you want to choose one that will look away. A dominant dog will, for the most part, stare back at you.
As I wrote at the start of this article, no test is a sure fire indicator of whether a dog is submissive or dominant, but these are usually pretty good indicators. Also, please remember that a dominant dog is not always hard to train, but they can be. The reverse is also true, a submissive dog is not always easier to train, but usually they are. Intelligence is a key factor in dog trainability, and neither of these tests will tell you the intelligence level of a dog. Another important thing to remember is that these tests will not tell you if the dog you are looking at has a bad temper or is unsociable.
Just use these tests as they are intended, to get a pretty good idea of whether or not your dog will be easy to train.
For further information on typical dog behavior, including resources for training how-to's and loads of detailed information on preventing and dealing with problem behaviors,visit Dog Training Dog Obedience Training
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