Beyond the Basics
My dog knows the sit, down, stay, and come cues. What now? Most, if not all dogs, love to spend time interacting with “their human”. Training is a great way to build a positive bond with your dog as long as you keep the training positive and fun for both human and canine. A training goal you might want to set for yourself and your canine friend is to pass the Canine Good Citizen test and receive the CGC title. This title demonstrates that your dog can appropriately engage with other dogs as well as people. Being able to perform the elements required to pass the test provides you with the peace of mind you can safely take your dog out to public places. In addition, it provides a good foundation for canine sports such as agility as well as a solid base for therapy dog teams.
There are 10 elements to the test:
- Accepting a friendly stranger
- Sitting politely for petting
- Appearance & grooming
- Walking on a loose leash
- Walking through a crowd
- Sit & down on cue and staying in place
- Coming when called
- Reaction to another dog
- Reacting (or not reacting) to a distraction
- Supervised separation
More specific information about each of the test elements can be found on the AKC website. Make sure to keep your training positive and fun. Working with a local trainer 😃 can help you achieve the goal of the CGC title. Some local trainers 😀 are also certified CGC evaluators who can administer the test. (Trainers who help train the dog should not be the ones to administer the test).
Working towards The CGC title is just one of many ways to interact and strengthen the bond between you and your furry friend but it also provides the assurance your dog can behave appropriately in a public setting enabling you to share more experiences together.
😀 Golden Opportunities Dog Training, LLC