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Now that you have a pet containment system, you will need to start training. You will need a slip or flat collar and a six foot leash or 15 foot retractable leash. Generally, a flat collar is needed for a mild-mannered dog, and a slip leash for a dog that is harder to handle. Training your dog will take about four weeks. The actual training will not take too long; most of the time is spent keeping a close eye on your dog. You should make time for two 10-15 minute sessions a day. Fun, short lessons will make training more effective. Although you should use a calendar to track your training progress, your dog's behavior will let you know when it's time to go to a new training level. Dogs don't all learn at the same rate, so don't be worried if your dog doesn't immediately catch on.
There are five training levels. They are:
1. six sessions to teach the retreat pattern
2. one session about correction
3. how to deal with distractions
4. take off the leash with some supervision
5. being off leash unsupervised
Finally, when the dog is trained to use the electric dog fence and can be trusted to stay within the boundaries, the boundary flags can be removed.
To make sure the dog is learning on schedule, you should go over the previous day's activities every day. Boundary training should only be performed in your yard. Take your dog around the yard and point out where the boundaries are; don't let the dog go outside the boundaries.
After each training session, play with or praise the dog. Remove the electronic collar and put your dog indoors. If you are training more than one dog, train each dog separately.
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Lesson One
You must first introduce your dog to the boundaries of the electric dog fence. At this stage, you have to teach your dog that when it hears the tone it must move away from the boundaries.
Put your dog on a leash and walk to the boundary. When your dog gets to the signal field, turn around and quickly walk back into the yard; the dog will follow you. When the dog follows you, you should praise it. If your dog doesn't hear the tone, repeat the procedure. Repeat this lesson on days two and three. Your dog should be expecting the tone and will step back from the boundary without your asking it to.
If your dog retreats without any prompting from you and won't approach the boundary, this part of training has been successful. After each successful attempt, be sure to praise your dog. If your dog still runs toward the boundary, keep teaching lesson one.
Lesson Two
You will need a helper for lesson two. You, your leashed dog, and your helper should walk toward the boundary. The helper should walk through the boundary without looking back or stopping. If the dog follows the person through the boundary, it will receive an electronic correction from the collar. Take the dog to a safe part of the yard and give it praise. Lesson two should be performed at different areas of the boundaries.
Lesson Three
Once your dog has learned to stay away from the boundary, even when your helper is crossing it, it's time to add bigger distractions. You will have to train your dog with each distraction because dogs won't connect one distraction to another. You will have to train the dog on each distraction; don't cross the boundary for bikes, balls, neighbors, etc. Once your dog is completely trained on one distraction, train it about another one.
Lesson Four
Lesson four is the first time that your dog will be off leash; you must supervise your dog at all times during lesson four. You must be sure that you and the dog stay within the boundaries. Put the electronic collar on your dog and make sure it's turned on.
For the first month, you should spend a lot of time with your dog in the yard. The more time it spends in the yard, the less likely it is to run through the boundaries. Supervise your dog off leash for at least a week.
Lesson Five
Now your dog can be unsupervised while off-leash. Your dog is ready for lesson five when it avoids all distractions both on and off leash. Your dog can now be left in the yard for brief periods of time. As days go by, gradually increase the amount of unsupervised time your dog has in the yard. You will want to keep an eye on the dog, but you can do this from the house.
Positive reinforcement such as play and praise should be continued so your dog thinks of the yard as a fun and safe place. After two weeks, you can start to take down the barrier flags. Take down every other flag every other day until the flags are all gone. Eventually, the electronic collar is the only training aid the dog will need. If the unsupervised dog doesn't immediately retreat from the boundary of the electric dog fence, go through the training steps again.
With an electric dog fence, you will have a well-exercised and happy pet, and you don't have to worry about it running away.
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