How I trained my dog in two weeks (part one)

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This is part one of a two-part series on how I trained my mutt during the first two weeks he came to live with me. Click here for part two of the series.

Ace came to me kennel trained (supposedly) and housebroken. I was very happy to adopt a mutt that wouldn’t have any accidents and wouldn’t mind going in his kennel. I knew he didn’t know any commands and hadn’t walked on a leash before. These were minor issues because I knew I would be able to train him on my own.

This is what Ace learned in two weeks: His new name (he was previously named Junior), sit, down, stay, wait, come and heel (continuously working on this one). But more important than these commands, he learned to practice patience, that he is expected to follow rules and limitations, to contain his excitement, to think (at least a little) before acting, that furniture is off limits and that it’s OK to accept a human as a leader. He literally went from a hyperactive pup to a mature teenager in about two weeks.

Of course it is not possible to entirely train a dog overnight, in a matter of weeks or even a year. Training is a lifetime commitment to our dogs. What I am saying is my mutt made incredible changes in a very short amount of time because I didn’t give him any slack. I am highly influenced by Jon Katz and Cesar Millan. Before adopting my mutt, I did my research and found the dog that was right for me, but I also read some new books by Katz and Millan about dog behavior and training. I started training Ace the moment his leash was handed over to me.

Here’s what I did:

1. Rules and limitations were established immediately and enforced.
2. I made sure to always play the roll of a leader (with my mutt the follower).
3. I committed to exercising my mutt every day.
4. I gave him short training sessions every day.

I had to drive an hour out of town to pick up Ace when I adopted him. Ideally, I should’ve taken him for a run before I even put him in the car. Instead I drove him to my town and immediately walked him in one of our parks. Ace of course was terrible on his walk, pulling and basically strangling himself out of excitement and anxiousness. At exactly a year old, this was the third walk he’d been on in his whole life. Still, he needed to let out some pent up energy (a year’s worth).

I immediately began teaching Ace commands, but before he had those down, he was already learning the rules of my apartment. The first time I brought him inside, he had to sit and wait while I entered first. This was before he understood the sit command, so I put him in that position and did not let him in until he was calm. Then he had to lie down on a rug and observe the room from there. He was kept on a leash, and I had to sit with him for a few minutes so he would stay. He was not allowed to run around smelling the place or to chase my cat, Scout. Scout was not restrained at all and was free to come check Ace out at his own comfort level. Ace did not have the same privilege to approach Scout.

Ace was used to no discipline and doing whatever he wanted. When I went to meet him in his first home, he was jumping on and off the couch as I sat on it, trying to climb into my lap, putting paws on counters, grabbing towels off shelves, etc. He was a dog that had never been given exercise, training or discipline. He was allowed to do whatever he wanted and that had made him and his humans miserable.

Once he came to live with me, things were different. Ace always went in his kennel when I left. He did not get to come out until he was quiet. All furniture was off limits. He wore his leash in the apartment for at least two days so I could control him. At night he either slept in his kennel or on a blanket on the floor. He did not get to eat or go outside until he was sitting calmly. Once we were outside, we didn’t go anywhere if he pulled. If Ace pulled, I stopped until he was sitting at my side. The first time I brought him outside, we literally stopped at least 20 times. Neighbors were watching me and it was embarrassing. It took several tries to get out the door and several tries to get down the stairs because all of his life Ace was used to barging through doors and knocking people over. By the second time I brought him outside, he already knew to sit and wait calmly.

It was simple exercises like these that helped Ace learn how to behave. It wasn’t obedience commands, although we went to work right away on those too. It was consistently enforcing rules without yelling or getting upset. Tomorrow I plan to share how I began training and exercising Ace from day one (Click here for part two).

The photo is of Ace the day I brought him home. It was hard to get him to hold still for a picture back then.