Terrier Training – Understanding The Terrier Mind





Terrier Training

Terrier Training

As you begin Terrier Training it is important to take into consideration their breeding origins. A good general Dog Training book or ecourse will provide 99% of what you need to know in order to train terriers effectively – you’ll just need to tweak it a little to apply it to terrier training. They were selectively bred to hunt down vermin and small animals so they won’t be motivated in exactly the same ways as sporting or herding dogs.

Terrier Training – They Are Not “Untrainable”

Terriers have in the past gotten a reputation as stubborn and even “untrainable”, which is quite unfair really as they simply don’t interact with people the same ways as other breeds.  It just means that you’ll have to find ways to motivate them in ways that appeal to a terrier’s tastes!

When a terrier chases a pest animal on the farm it is not planning to eat it. The big motivator is for the chase. So in Terrier Training, treats may not be particularly exciting, but the pursuit of the treats may be considered a great game and that will keep them excited by treat motivators.

Terrier Training Requires Persistence And Patience

Terrier Training often requires more repetitions than other breeds before the commands are obeyed consistently. Don’t think that’s because terriers are less intelligent than other dogs – that is far from the truth. They are highly intelligent; it’s just that they have minds of their own and often think they know better. But when they do “decide” to obey, their owners often consider them to be more reliable in performing the trained task.

Terriers need lots of exercise for their strong muscles and minds. Playing “Fetch” is a great game to play with any dog, and when terriers learn it they really love it. They also love to play “tug of war” games but be more careful with terriers playing this one, keep it short and playful and stop if your terrier starts to take the contest too seriously as they quite often can.

Sometimes Terriers can get obsessive behaviors like chasing lights and shadows so teach them a wide variety of games so they don’t get dangerously focused on any particular activity. Also lots of different games will keep them stimulated and happy as they love to play so always try to keep terrier training fun.

 

Related Reading:

Terrier Traits

Terrier Breeds

 

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