The Long Journey to Today's Dog

Were you aware that no one really knows - for certain - just how long humans have been living with dogs? Nor how long people having been learning and practicing dog training.

Domesticated dogs existed for certain as long ago as 7000BC, and while some evidence suggests domestication was going on at 12000BC, new evidence derived from DNA testing seems to show that dogs separated from wolves as long ago as 100,000 years ago.

Earlier speculations about the origins of dogs had suggested that other canine species such as coyotes or jackals may have been a part of the dog's lineage. However, DNA testing has pretty much eliminated any canine ancestor except wolves.

Some postulate that wolves linked up with early human hunter-gatherers well before 100,000 years ago and that the human obsession with dogs is far older than recorded history.

Dogs, of course, were not pets. They worked for and with humans in exchange for their food - and probably eventually for the companionship. In an odd way, people and dogs have evolved a unique relationship over an immense span of time.

Nearly every major breed of dog was bred to serve a purpose and the explosion of dog breeds most likely began with the agricultural revolution as people moved away from hunter-gathering. New needs lead to new breeds of dog working in a partnership with humans.

What does this have to do with dog training? The truth is that there are no deep secrets, no hidden techniques. While every tip may be different and there may be a large number of ways to train a dog, everything has pretty much been done before in one form or another.

And if that's the case, why do people look for training tips and techniques, maybe buy multiple books on training dogs or video courses or take their dogs to multiple professional trainers?

Usually we are looking for convenience - we'd like a number of techniques in one place, and consistency - not all training styles are the same. Every person also needs to find a dog training method that works well for them. Sometimes this is difficult.

The real basics of training any dog involve learning how to use your voice correctly, how to make it clear to your dog that something it did was unacceptable - without screaming or getting physical. And how to reward the dog for appropriate behavior. Dogs respond to the tone of voice and can be trained to respond to certain sounds - but they do not understand language. They are, normally, incredibly sensitive to smell and part of the way they understand and relate to the world is based on smell. They are sensitive to the emotional meanings carried by tone of voice and smell.

Just like people, dogs do vary, so some dog training techniques may work better with one dog than with another. However, nearly every dog can be trained, it's a matter of finding and matching your style and training techniques with your dog.

And since people vary, you'll find that some dog training techniques seem to work great for you while others just fail miserably.

Once you find a good match for you and your dog, consistency is critical. A systematic, consistent approach avoids the problems that arise when the dog becomes confused because of contradictory, inconsistent or unclear behavior by the trainer.

People's connections with dogs are deep and profound. And the joy of a well-behaved and happy dog is well worth the effort involved in finding the dog training tips and methods that will work best for you.