There’s no doubt that when you’re out on walks that your dog becomes distracted more often and refuses to pay attention to you. It’s not their fault, they phase out, just like we do when we’re distracted. So, is there a way to help your dog pay attention to you without getting distracted?
In order to ensure that your dog pays attention to you and to increase her focus, you need to create a strong foundation of communication. Your dog needs to understand that some behaviors will be rewarded and others will be ignored. For example, reward your dog is she greets guests by not jumping on them. You can give them treats, favorite toys, pets, praise, and playtime as rewards and use these rewards to encourage positive behavior.
So what should you do if your dog doesn’t do as asked? Immediately ignore your dog and wait until they naturally show acceptable behavior. Then when they show acceptable behavior, reward them immediately. This is how dogs will learn that some behaviors will be ignored, while acceptable behaviors will be rewarded.
Before you take your dogs out for a walk, make sure you channel their extra energy so that they’re less distracted when they leave the house. Games like fetch and tug-of-war can help drain your dog’s excess energy. When your dog has no problem paying attention to you, slowly add distractions and ask your dog for certain behavior. If your dog is able to pay attention to you with some distraction, you can gradually take them out for a walk in your neighborhood with average amounts of distractions.
Ultimately, it’s all about rewarding acceptable behavior and ignoring unacceptable behavior before you take them out to areas that have a huge amount of distractions.
What do you do to make your dog pay attention to you? Let us know in the comments below!
Feature Image Source: Pixabay