When we were little girls and took piano lessons, it always amazed us when our teacher knew when we hadn’t practiced. We were tone-deaf to our week-to-week improvement or lack thereof. But our teacher knew. Just like we can tell which participants in our classes play training games with their dogs. Practice always shows.
Unlike must-do homework and work projects, both piano lessons and dog training are things you do for fun and enrichment. There’s no accountability for neglecting practice. Except that you’ll never play Carnegie Hall. Or your dog will never walk politely on leash.
Just like we couldn’t tell whether we were getting better at playing the piano, you probably don’t see much difference in your dog’s behavior with a couple weeks of training games under your belt. But if you had a recording of your first time playing any training game, you’d be astonished by the difference.
Minimal investment, maximum return
The one game that most people do practice is “Puppy Push-ups.” We’re not sure if it’s because we start every class with the game, or if people (and dogs) just like it. But by the third week of class, every dog in every class we’ve ever taught is reliably understanding all three commands: Sit!, Stand!, and Down!
And yet, it seems that most people don’t even bother teaching their dogs this elementary training game. If they did, we’re pretty sure our TikTok video of it would be ignored, rather than having over a million and a quarter views.
Training games are easy to fit into your day. Focus on just one or two at a time. Figure out where you’ll probably play (near the couch, in front of the screen), stash a container of treats nearby. When a commercial starts streaming, call your dog over to play. Or just open the treat container. That should get Fido’s attention!
Pick your battles
Trainers have a saying that “Every dog is trained to their owner’s level of comfort.” It’s up to you to decide the aspects of dog behavior that are important, interesting, and fun for you and your dog. You may not care if your dog knows how to “Spin!,” so don’t bother with it. But you do want your dog to sit politely to greet guests in your home. That game moves up to the top of the list.
At the start of classes we’ll ask our students “What’s your dog’s best training game?” The answer is always the one that’s most important to that person. That’s the one they chose to play. And it’s the one their dog is best at. The practice and the proficiency go hand in hand.
Don’t complain. Train.
Dogs’ naughtiest behaviors often become the stories and anecdotes that build family legends. Like our first dog sneakily swiping a steak from the kitchen table while we were all standing there watching him. Or the auntie who darted into the bathroom as soon as you emerged to take anything/everything out of the wastebasket before her dog nabbed it.
But you don’t really want the funny stories. You want a dog who understands the rules of your household and is a full participant in family life. Pick a game. Any game. Start with one. Before you know it, you and your dog will have a concert-worthy repertoire.