You often have to wonder if your dog understands what you or those around you are saying. Often he may cock his head to one side as if trying to figure out what it is you’re asking (or singing), but he may understand a lot more than he is letting on.
What Commands Do Dogs Know?
If you were to sum up everything a dog could do, it’s simply amazing. But have you counted or kept a journal of all the commands your dog knows, or you’d like to teach them?
Naming your dog was the simple part, but getting them to respond may have been something else entirely. Training a dog is often easy when it comes to everyday terms with hard sounds to them and simple in nature. Take for example the word “Treat” – the hard sounding “T” is much better than “Snack” which is soft.
The rule of thumb for training is often as simple as catching them in the act of doing something you want them to do and following with praise. Now then, every dog learns at their own pace and you’ll be better off getting to know your dog’s limitations.
When training your dog, be sure to keep it simple and always begin by calling the dogs name. His attention when called will help him understand you want him to do something. Your dog will also learn better when being taught single phrase commands.
Example: “Outside” is a simple command to teach rather than ” Do you want to go outside to play?” – While the dog may pick up on the word they know, stringing together the rest of it may be troublesome. As well, you may feel frustrated when they don’t do as asked. So, keep it simple!
With enough great praise, your dog will begin to understand more commands as training increases.
