Although Boxers are unique among dog breeds for many
reasons, basic obedience commands are still the best place to
begin their training.
The goal of obedience training is to teach your
Boxer to respond to the following commands: Sit, Down, Stay, Heel,
and Here. Begin obedience training in a puppy or beginner’s training
class, but practice and reinforce it at home.
Start training at approximately 8 weeks old if you have a new
puppy. Begin with the simplest commands and work up to the more
challenging ones. Once sit and down are mastered, add stay, then
heel, and lastly, here. Training sessions should be short, but
frequent. Train every day and make sure that everyone in the home
is using the same commands.
Boxers are easily bored and distracted, and you want to make training
fun. Have training sessions when your Boxer is somewhat tired
and a little hungry, like between meals and after play or exercise.
Boxers that are wound up or have a full belly are much less likely
to pay attention.
No matter what command you are training, the basic steps are the
same. Get your Boxer to focus on you, say its name, and then speak
the command. Next, entice or gently guide it into the position
of whatever command you are training. Reward the position with
praise and treats immediately, and repeat the process. Look for
opportunities throughout the day for your Boxer to practice and
show off the learned behavior, and reward it every time.
When speaking your Boxer’s name and commands, be sure to use a
friendly, calm tone of voice, and be very gentle when you are
guiding your Boxer into position. If you become impatient, or
your Boxer begins to struggle with you, end the training session.
Never use obedience commands in conjunction with or as a means
of punishment, even if you are using them to stop undesirable
behavior.
Boxers love to jump on everything, and a Boxer wouldn’t be a Boxer
if it wasn’t somewhat mischievous! Be wary of focusing too much
attention on what your dog does wrong. Boxers are independent
thinkers, and they tend to block out reprimands given too often,
or do what they want regardless of them. Reprimanding is a form
of positive reinforcement, just as giving praise is. Your Boxer
will learn that it gets what it craves – your attention - for
the wrong behavior. A much better approach is to end the undesirable
behavior by replacing it with a desirable one, and rewarding the
replacement behavior.
Once they are mastered, be sure to practice obedience commands
with your Boxer in a variety of places, with increasing levels
of distraction. Use them to help socialize your Boxer, and as
a tool that allows it to enjoy more freedom.
Important points:
Boxers are extremely playful, strong willed, independent thinkers,
and unchecked dominance allowed during inappropriate play can
make control and socialization difficult.
Teaching your Boxer to fetch, playing hide and seek with toys,
and practicing tricks are all examples of constructive, appropriate
play.
Avoid teasing your Boxer, as it will likely become frustrated
very quickly and turn its attention away from you.
Avoid games that resemble “tug-of-war.” Never encourage or allow
your Boxer to play with hands, feet, or clothing, no matter how
young your puppy might be or how harmless this may seem.
Boxers are comedians, and with their owners’ encouragement, they
learn to discover and invent games themselves. Rules established
during appropriate play training encourage your Boxer to use its
intelligence and natural curiosity to invent fun, safe, stimulating
games you both can enjoy.
When you walk your Boxer remember to…
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