Posts Tagged ‘dog behavior’
Career Dog Training
Things to Know Before Considering a Career in Dog Training
Some people choose a career in dog training simply because it is a popular choice, however, there are those who are really passionate about canines in a way that their life’s direction has led them towards loving dogs even more.
Do you fall in the category of people who pursue their career in dog training just because someone said it is a good thing to do, or, because you have fallen so in love with dogs and want to fall even deeper?
Back to Basic Principles
Before choosing a career in dog training you should know it not only requires a love for dogs, you also need knowledge about their basic behaviors, and you will need the skills on how to handle and discipline them properly. Dog trainers usually have a long history of experience with dogs and interaction with many dog owners, handlers and their pets.
What is your “Dog Division”?
There are two types of careers in the dog world: the pet service training and the dog training. Both have relatively high demands in the market but there are a lot more opportunities in pet dog training than in service training.
Pet dog training involves teaching the dog how to live as a companion with his master and learning the basics such as obedience, being potty trained and learning acceptable behaviors which may include eliminating bad behaviors such as biting and barking.
Dog Service Training is geared towards helping people with certain disabilities or working with people undergoing therapy. Some service dog trainers teach dogs to be search and rescue dogs such as the ever important police dogs or even hunting dogs.
Each of these take a large amount of dedication and patience on the trainers part as they are very intense fields of specialize divisions.
Canine Psychology – What is It?
A good dog trainer will need to understand a dogs behavior, the way they think and why they react to certain things. Trainers will need to constantly work with a dog to teach them to react in a desired way to any given command. You should also know well the fundamentals of associative conditioning.
What about Dog Training Education?
Careers in dog training require you have the skills to train and handle dogs. There are no degrees in dog training yet, for there are no colleges and universities offering such. The good news is that there are dog ’academies’ or ’schools’ that provide the basic training you will need. Often, the best dog trainers are often self taught and have natural inclination to dog handling.
Some have apprenticed with excellent dog trainers while others simply have a natural talent for training dogs. You can also find a number of dog training organizations or books with great techniques on training dogs.
People and dogs both have attitudes and a good dog trainer will need to work with both.
Usually dog training involves training the handlers of the dog as well. Therefore if you are pursuing a career in this field, it is very important that you have good people skills and that you can tolerate all types of people.
Some owners are impatient and want their dogs to learn everything fast, so they may disregard advice from the trainer, however, there are others that are more patient and open to the suggestions given by the trainer. During your career in dog training you will be working with both types of dog handlers and many other personality types too. So as you can see, a good dog trainer will not only be working with dogs but with their owners and handlers too.
Dog training is not limited to “training” alone; there are also certain aspects that you should be knowledgeable of, like the maintenance of proper dog hygiene, nutrition and grooming.
You should also have good knowledge on dog competitions, accessories and training aids. You will also need the ability to distinguish different types of dog breeds and know what the fundamental differences are.
You don’t have to be a master in dog training to be an excellent trainer; you only have to develop certain skills necessary in working with dogs and their handlers, by using sufficient knowledge on theories, then have the capacity to use them in a practical way.