Although a dog in general has been bred to work with human beings and its human pack leader, no breed has developed the ability to speak the language of their owner. Not even French Poodles or German Shepherds and no studies exist that I am aware of that indicate either of these breeds have a stronger affinity to understanding these languages respectively.
Of course, there will always be nay sayers and some loving dog owners that are convinced that their friendly canine understands every word that they are trying to convey. However, I am sorry to say that the reality is that your dog doesn’t understand a word that you are saying.
This doesn’t mean that your beloved pet doesn’t have the ability to place meaning behind the sounds that are coming out of your mouth. This is especially true when these sounds are clear, concise, and used consistently.
Dogs as a species have demonstrated the ability to learn exactly what their owners are asking of them. This is most notable when their owners understand their limitations of learning and speak clearly, concisely, and are consistent in their delivery of the command.
For anyone who has attempted to learn a second language, especially if done later in life, this can be a very challenging endeavor. Well at a minimum it is for me. The attempt to learn other languages quickly increases in its challenge when language is used quickly and or out of context. Again clear, concise, consistent and dare I say slow communication with accentuated pronunciation is very important in helping an individual in this endeavor.
I realize in writing this article there is a lot of redundancy. However, this is intentional and on purpose. The reason is to communicate effectively we really have to rely on consistency and that requires repetition on our part.
I understand in the military when a new candidate arrives at K-9 school the first thing they do is to work with an ammo can with the word “DOG” written on it. They drag this can around for a week practicing the delivery and proper use of commands. The military doesn’t want to have their dogs screwed up while one of their rookies is trying to learn how to work with dogs. Our pet dogs get no such luck we spend weeks, months, or even years screwing up our dogs while we are trying to learn. Luckily in the pet world with a friendly low key dog who learns to pick up patterns, behaviors and body language they can almost anticipate what is expected of them before it is even asked. A good example of this is when a dog starts to offer behaviors prior to being given a command when a treat comes out. This can be problematic when training with food or toys, but that is a topic for another article.
So the question is how do I ensure my delivery meets this criteria when working with my dog? Well my personal philosophy is that the technique and commands used don’t really matter. What matters is whatever commands that you use or language used is clear, concise, and consistent.
The examples I will use here are in English and very typical training commands that can be found very commonly throughout the English speaking world. I do admit however when I train my next dog I will use a different language for my commands so that there is no confusion in regards to what is a command for the dog and what words come up in regular day to day conversation.
The use of the words ‘yes’ and ‘ok’ get me in trouble all the time. Both of these commands are a form of release for my dog and at a minimum create confusion at the worst they could be dangerous jeopardizing my dogs safety if accidentally used at the wrong time. It is always amazing, for example, if I have my dog in a down how tuned in he is to every word that I say waiting to be released from his position.
The use of commands vary from trainer to trainer, but whatever they use, if they are good, they use them consistently. This again emphasizes the fact that it is not the command itself that matters but the consistency that is important.
I use the basic sequence of a command. Once I have the dogs attention by either whistling or calling his name I will follow with a command such as ‘heel’ if the heel is immediately executed I will praise the dog by saying good heel. My goal is to leave all other forms of communication out of my verbal cues. No good boys, atta boys, good dog etc… I want my communication to be very clear and to reinforce that the heel was executed well.
By contrast if I were to give the command and my dog does not immediately work in the direction of executing the command I will say “NO” very clearly as soon as I see the lack of obedience, after the “NO” I will repeat the “Heel” and reinforce the execution of the command with a “Good Heel” again when the command is completed. I want the reinforcement to be very prompt to ensure my dog makes the correct connection between the command and the praise.
Another aspect to avoid is repeating the command, It should always be interrupted with the appropriate cue of “NO” or “Good” depending on if the response was appropriate or not. Then repeated to reiterate or to praise. Such as ‘Sit’, “NO”, ‘Sit’, “Good Sit”. I don’t want to repeat the command as in “Sit” no response from the dog “Sit”, “Sit”. You will see this often as new owners attempt to train their dog. All the dog is potentially learning that the command is “Sit, Sit, Sit” instead of “Sit” stated just once, This is how we make the command concise, state it and expect a response immediately. If not interrupt with the “NO” firmly.
Finally the terminology and the communication of the commands you use must be consistent. If you consistently ask for what you want and consistently reinforce your expectations your dog will continue to deliver your expectations better and better overtime and dare I say more consistently. Of course this is easier said than done, but it is an attainable goal and well worth the improvements that it will make in the relationship that you will have with your dog.
I could continue to write about this topic for a long time and to give an infinite list of examples, but in the spirit of remaining clear and concise I will leave this topic here. The last key point is find what works for you and then use it clearly but make sure you really think about what you are doing or saying to ensure that it will work well for your dog. Ultimately the goal is for you and your dog to have the best experience possible together.