Controlling a High Drive Dog – Rio Part One

When you really get down to it, we all could really learn a lot from looking at the VERY basics in dog training.

Each week we focus on so many challenging exercises, tricks and obedience drills – some are easy and some are quite tough, but when it gets down to the nitty gritty – its getting a dog to the place where we can do those exercises that can prove the most challenging.

This week I want to introduce you to two super cool members, Cheri and Harold,  that booked a session with me to better understand their dog Rio.  Rio is an Alano Español.  If you don’t know the breed, check google.  It is a very serious dog, but a very trainable one.  Rio is playful, full of drive, somewhat dominant and can be sometimes challenging in his behavior.

• I want to be clear, this is a long lesson, but the actual lesson we did was even longer so I’m breaking it into two parts.  This is part one and it will get you started in understanding the MOST important aspects of dealing with a dog that’s not really looking to train and is distracted.  I’ll post part 2 next week to show you some more advanced things that will help you in training.

We set aside this lesson to better understand what Harold and Cheri are doing right and what they’re doing wrong and how best to get Rio into solid communication and make their lives a little less stressful.

In this lesson you will see the full 30 minute session with hardly any edits.  We cover everything from proper engagement, fair corrections, clear communication, building focus, distractions, how to use the long line properly, dealing with prey drive and basic obedience.  I think this is one of the BEST lessons in dealing with a dog from DAY ONE!  This lesson should be mandatory viewing for ANY one who owns a dominant dog and is dealing with a the challenges of building a relationship and basic training.

The basics to training a dog is building engagement and making that rewarding!