This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Life is Short - Play with Your Dog!

Play with Your Dog for Great Training Results!

We've talked a bit about using food rewards for training your dog. But what about other types of rewards for a job well done?  I was working with my dog this morning and my incredibly experienced trainer reminded the class to "PLAY WITH YOUR DOG!"

We sometimes forget that play, praise and petting are powerful motivators for our pets.  It's easy to toss a cookie to a dog after a sit or a well-executed down, but next time consider giving the dog a lively rub on the head or toss a toy and tell them what a wonderful dog they are.  Make it FUN, FUN, FUN!

Respect and fun are a huge part of a great relationship with your dog. So next time Fido or Fifi impresses you with their amazing skills, give them praise and petting and tell them how smart they are.  The tail wagging that results will make your training day.

Find out what's happening in Mentorwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Happy Training from PetWorks and The Digging Dogs Training Center.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Mentor