Praise Dog Training Method

Recently, there have been a plethora of books, web sites and trainers that use praise exclusively. They advocate positive reinforcement only. There is never any punishment. This new age dog training method might work. Praise certainly does have benefits and can change a dog's behavior.

Praise and lavish praise methods are based on the myth that dogs live to please their master. I have news for you. Dogs live to please themselves.

There is nothing wrong with praising a dog when his behavior is good. In fact, you should do that. Training a dog with praise only is much more difficult. Most dogs learn the command NO! very quickly. Is NO! positive reinforcement?

Another fundamental assumption by virtually all trainers is that you should assume the Alpha dog status. This models the pack behavior of wolves. This is a very good thing to do. Now, I will ask you, do you think mama wolf praises her pups? Does she pat them on the head and say 'Good Doggie' for being quiet? What does mama wolf do when puppy wolf is being too rambunctious? She snaps at puppy wolf. That tells puppy wolf to knock it off, I want some sleep. Wolves use negative reinforcement. They do not hurt their puppy, but they do effectively tell them 'NO! Do not do that.'

Praise only appeals to dog owners now because it is so politically correct.

Feel free to try it. When it does not work for your problem dog/puppy or when you cannot stop a dog from digging, try something else.