Much like many other online things in life right now, online dog training is becoming more and more popular. Maybe you need help with your dog, and you are wanting to social distance, but you are not sure if online learning works. I am here to tell you it does, and you can do so much with it! There are many people who have been successful through online courses and I am here to give you some tips on how to make online learning work for you!
What Is It?
First, if you have never heard of online dog training, you might be wondering how that makes any sense. Online dog training courses are usually set up with prerecorded videos to watch and weekly or monthly live meetings held over Zoom or Skype. Other courses are one or the other, all live taught or all prerecorded videos. With the live meetings, the instructor guides you through the process of learning to use the tools of the trade, and then walks you through the behaviors in each lesson. They often demonstrate with their own pets or stuffed animals and take time to give you tips on how to work with your dog. With prerecorded videos, you watch the videos and follow the instructions in each video (or follow the written instructions if provided).
How to Make It Work
Many times, virtual lessons can be frustrating for people. The most common issue that people have with this is the fact that there is no in-person interaction. If that is the case for you, then I would recommend finding a course that has some live video instruction. If you find a course with live instruction, first work through the videos and instructions that are not live (if there are any), then write down a list of questions you have for your instructor during live videos. Limit yourself to five questions maximum, and don’t be surprised if your instructor can only get to two or three of them in the meeting, so make sure to organize them from most important to least important. If you cannot find a course with live instruction, then plan out your day. Build an easily referenced schedule and pin it up where you can see it during the day to help you stay accountable. Then, find a positive reinforcement training group on Facebook and ask questions in that group as you think of them. Also, make sure to check if the online course itself offers a group of its own to join and join that group instead, as they will know exactly what you are working on.
Another thing you can do to help make your online course work for you, is watching and/or working through all the videos once without your dog. Then, go back and work on them one at a time with your dog. This way, you will know what is coming and can focus more on your dog than trying to find out what is in the video. Before doing this, make sure that you can access the videos again after you have watched them. If you cannot do this, then simply prepare your dog and yourself to follow along and pause or rewind the video when you need to do so.
Closing Thoughts
Online learning can be a really helpful tool, especially with the virus going around. Even if it is hard, you will at least have the material and/or support of a trainer. For those who are getting puppies, I am working on building an online course for new puppy owners! To get more information on when that course will be available, look for the “Subscribe” button in the green header of the H.A.T.S. website to subscribe to the H.A.T.S. mailing list so you can receive the H.A.T.S. Family Newsletter!
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