Dogs are trained assist people with physical disabilities such as, blindness, the deaf as well as those with mental disabilities. Training is one of the most important parts of having a dog, whether it is a part of the family or a specialty trained dog. Other then food and water, training is the biggest necessity because even house breaking requires training.
Certain dog breeds can be trained easier then others. Your willingness to properly train your dog should always keep up with your dogs willingness to learn. Just like children, your dog will bring into your home more then just mud and wet smelly fur. If you don't teach your dog proper manners, then your dog might learn unacceptable habits from other dogs. These bad habits can be aggression, biting, digging and even excessive howling or barking. The consequences of not training your dog can become a great embarrassment to you. And, depending upon where you live, you might even find yourself in court facing a disgruntled neighbor.
My own dog, a Papillon, has amazed people with different tricks and antics he has learned. The funniest and cutest of all my dogs many antics is the way he says, “please.” He stands up on his back legs and waves with his front paws.
I think the best example of how smart my Papillon is are the times when he lets us know he needs to go outside. Being a very busy person I decided to train my dog to ring a desk bell when he needed to go outside. I sat the bell on the floor next to the door. I then took his paw in my hand and tapped the bell. When the bell sounded I praised him and immediately opened the door saying, “Oh! Let's go outside!” It took my Papillon only three days until he mastered this bit of training. Surprisingly, he was not wanting to go outside to relieve himself. Rather, he wanted to get to the bread that I had just spread outside for the birds. As of this writing (four years later) my dog has “trained me” to learn all the sounds he makes bell or no bell.
Different species of dogs can show their intelligence in many different ways. Some dogs are more athletic then others. My Papillon is a French dog and has a natural herding ability. My dog will use his herding skills on beach balls when playing and even on my indoor cat that sometimes likes to sneak outside. If my cat gets out I will tell my Papillon to get the cat back inside. My 12 pound Papillon will literally herd that big 22 pound cat back into the house!
You should always give your dog(s) plenty of attention and praise when training him/her. Never ever forget to love your dog unconditionally. Always remember proper training is the key to happiness for you and your dog for many wonderful years to come!
