Therefore, you’ll find several popular pet teaching methods available, so it can be frustrating to discover which can be which and what method will probably be best for both your pet and you as a puppy parent.

If you learn it overwhelming and confusing, you’re not alone. There is a lot of disagreement within the professional dog training community about which methods are effective and ethical. Several methods overlap or are found in tandem to discover the best results.

Here are the most used types of dog training today and who might benefit most from using them.

Positive Reinforcement

This training method begins with rewarding an ideal behavior immediately, within a few minutes after it happens. Like that, your dog comes to associate the behavior with the reward.

Some trainers combine this process with clicker training (see number 3 below). Thus giving your dog a definite sign of the actual moment the behavior was completed. Commands also have to be small and to the point. Sit. Stay. Come.

Positive reinforcement requires consistency. Thus, everyone in your household needs to use the same instructions and reward system.

Begin with continuous rewards each time your pet does the proper thing. Then, gradually move to intermittent rewards since the behavior becomes consistent. Sometimes beginner trainers accidentally reward bad behavior. For example, they may let your dog outside once they start barking at a squirrel or another dog.

Only wanted behaviors get rewards that may include treats, toys, praise, and pets. It may also be simple to overfeed as soon as your dog is learning, so use small treats if you are rewarded with food.

Clicker Training

Clicker training can also be predicated on operant conditioning and relies heavily on a fancy passing principle as positive reinforcement. Clicker training might be grouped as a positive reinforcement technique rather than as a unique kind of training.

It relies on utilizing a tool to make a quick, sharp noise, such as a whistle or, since the name suggests, a clicker to signal to your dog each time a wanted behavior is accomplished.

The advantage of using clicker training is, so it signals the actual moment the desired behavior is finished and exactly what is being rewarded. Trainers will then use the clicker to shape new behaviors and add verbal commands.

Electronic Training

Electronic training relies on utilizing an electric collar that delivers a surprise or even a spray of citronella each time a dog is not performing an ideal task. It’s mostly employed for training at a distance each time a leash can’t be used. 

As an example, shock collars can train your pet to remain within the limits of an unfenced yard. Remote collars may show pets to perform in fields or do hunting work. People who use these items declare less danger of your dog getting hurt than with choke collars and other mechanical devices.

Model-Rival Or Mirror Training

The model-rival approach to training relies on the fact pets understand by observation. By providing a type of good behavior or possibly a competitor to compete for resources.

So a coach might have another human activity since the model, praising them for completing tasks on command or scolding them for unwanted behavior. The dog, being an observer, learns what to do correctly from the model.