14 Feb What Breed of Dog is the EASIEST to Train?

Is your dog easy or hard to train?  Did you know that there have been studies to determine which breeds are the easiest to train and which are the hardest?  Please remember there is an exception to every rule!  Wondering where your dog fits in?  Here is what some studies have shown.

The ten most trainable dog breeds found in America today based on the highest degree of obedience, understanding of new commands (less than 5 repetitions) and obey the first command 95% of the time or better are:

1. Border Collie
2. Poodle
3. German Shepherd
4. Golden Retriever
5. Doberman Pinscher
6. Shetland Sheepdog
7. Labrador Retriever
8. Papillion
9. Rottweiler
10. Australian Cattle Dog

Many toy dogs, scent and sight hounds, terriers, and sled dogs are very independent minded and often harder to train.  It takes much more motivation to have these dogs want to work for you.  They have so many traits that come naturally and instinctively, it is often harder to train these dogs to stop doing behaviors that are in bred, instead of working with you.  It is highly recommended to give these dogs some sort of a job or teach them a dog sport that will keep their natural desires in check.

The ten hardest to train dog breeds found in America today based on the lowest degree of obedience,  lowest understanding of new commands 80-100 repetitions or more and the likelihood of these breeds obeying you at the first command is 25% of the time or worse.

1. Shih Tzu
2. Basset Hound
3. Beagle
4. Pekingese
5. Bloodhound and other scent hounds
6. Borzoi
7. Chow Chow /Shar-pei
8. Bulldog
9. Basenji
10. Afghan Hound, Salukis, and other sight hounds

Don’t worry if you find your breed in the group of hard to train dogs.  There is no such thing as a bad dog or dog that can not be trained.  It is all the matter of how you work with the dog to motivate them.  Some dogs are so food driven that it makes training easier.  Some dogs could careless about food and be toy driven.  I have a dog in my group class that doesn’t care much about food, but if you give it to her off of her favorite toy, a frisbee, she loves it.  Try all sorts of things to get through to your dog.  Sometimes we even will have to withhold a little of their breakfast or dinner so that they can become more food motivated to learn what we need them to.

There are three basic ingredients in which I think it makes a dog easy to train.

1.  Intelligence (the dog’s awareness of and curiosity about his surroundings)

2.  Willingness (the dog’s desire to interact socially with other beings)

3.  Confidence (physically, emotionally and intellectually)

With the tougher breeds I think it needs to be based on relationship centered training.  The dog needs to feel you are more important than the natural instinctive reward they are receiving.  Often owners are not sure how to accomplish this, and therefore resort to calling their dogs stubborn or stupid.

Remember there is no bad dog, or dog the can not be trained.  If you would like help with training your dog please contact kim@trainingcanines.com or call Kim Paciotti today at 704-877-7821.  Visit our site at www.trainingcanines.com