People often comment on how cool it
sounds that we train our dogs in German. They think it’s great that a German
Shepherd Dog is trained in its own native country’s language. People tend to
view it as a novelty, a cute thing to do, and something just for show. It is
true that the use of German commands is in many ways tradition. Most of the
first police and Schutzhund dogs in this country were imported from
Tradition aside, the fact is that
using German or some other unusual commands can be a valuable training tool
that will create a more stable attitude in a dog, be it a working dog or a pet.
All of the dogs in our pet Obedience Classes are taught in German, for a
variety of reasons. First, by the time most dogs come to class, their owner’s
have tried some obedience at home. It didn’t work, and that’s why they’re
there. When people are training their dog at home, they’re going to stick with
the traditional "Sit, Down, Heel" commands, and usually the dogs are
either confused as to what the command means, or have just learned to ignore it
because the owner did not know the proper way to train with motivation, reward
and correction. In this case, it is much easier to teach a dog a new word, than
try to give new meaning to an old word. A great example of this is the
"Down" command. By the time they get to class, "Down" means
"get off the couch", "get out of the car", "don’t jump
on the person", "lie down", etc…. No wonder the dog gets
confused and doesn’t obey.
Another way that German commands
help with students, particularly novices, is by making them think about what
they are telling their dog to do. Often students using the traditional commands
that they are so familiar with will say them in an offhand, causal, and even
tentative manner. Consequently, because the word sounded more like a request
than a command, the dog does not respond. And many times the students aren’t
paying enough attention to the dog to correct it for not obeying, thus teaching
the dog that he can sometimes ignore what he is told to do and get away with
it. In our experience, if the student has to take a moment to remember the
right word, he is more likely to say it like he means it, and enforce the
command if necessary. This is much easier for students to do when working with
unfamiliar words.
The use of uncommon words, and by
uncommon I mean not often used in everyday speech, is a great tool to keep both
owner and dog paying attention to what they are doing when training, and making
it clear to the dog when the owner is speaking to the dog specifically in
everyday life. The verbal correction, or "NO", is the single most
important word that a dog learns. It can save his life, but only if he respects
it and responds instantly. This is why it is important to make it clear to the
dog what his verbal correction is. Using "phooey" or "nein"
or something similar with the dog can be especially helpful in a house full of
kids, where the word "no" is already getting used around the house a
lot. If "no" is used for the dog as well, but he’s constantly hearing
it yelled in the house, often to different family members, one of two things is
going to happen. He is either going to become paranoid because he thinks he’s
constantly in trouble even if he’s doing nothing wrong, or to preserve his own
sanity he’s just going to learn to tune the word "no" out. Either
case is a disaster waiting to happen. The owner will end up with a neurotic dog,
a dog that has lost all respect for the owner as a good leader because in the
dog’s mind the owner is not fair in his reprimands and is constantly changing
the rules, or a dog that is going to just ignore the verbal correction
altogether, rendering it useless.
While German commands are
certainly the most common with working dogs, any words will do provided they
are not overused in everyday life when not commanding the dog. The true goal of
dog training is for the owner to communicate to the dog what he wants the dog
to do, and to have the dog respond accordingly. Common sense says that this is
a much easier goal to accomplish when both owner and dog are paying attention
to each other, the commands are clear and easy to understand, and there is no
confusion on the dog’s part as to what is being asked and whether or not he
really has to do it.
© copyright 2001 by Chris Wild of Wildhaus Kennels All Rights Reserved.
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