Many times small dogs and toy breeds are more difficult to train than larger dogs. There are several reasons for this including the environment in which they are raised and the way humans tend to interact with them because they are so small.
Small and toy breeds can learn and are intelligent, however, their training is going to require you to think about how you interact with them and require patience, kindness and tenacity.
For the most part, training a small dog is just like training any other dog.
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House Training
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House training is more difficult for small dogs because their guardians tend to pick them up and carry them outside every few hours--never giving themselves nor their dogs the opportunity to learn to communicate when it's time for a break.
When taking your small dog out, it should walk on a leash just as a big dog does. You should have a word that means going outside for a bathroom break that it learns. You should take it out the same door and to the same spot each time it goes out. It won't take long for the dog to know the routine and begin communicating to you when it needs to go.
Crate Training
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You can quickly establish the crate as a safe place that belongs to your small dog. The crate should be large enough for the dog to sit, stand and lie down. There should be enough room for its food and water bowls, a few toys and a bed, but not much larger than that. Introduce the crate to your dog for a few minutes at a time in the beginning. Encourage it to spend time in it and praise the dog when it goes inside. Crate training will give it a safe place to go and will aid in house training.
Obedience Training
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While it may seem more important that a 100-pound Labrador learn to sit and stay than a 4-pound Chihuahua, it's really just as important for small dogs to learn basic obedience as it is for big dogs. Obedience training builds the bond between the guardian and the dog and establishes trust between the human and the animal--regardless of size. Teaching basic obedience skills to a small dog involves the same techniques as teaching a large dog. Each skill is broken down in small steps and desired behavior is rewarded with a treat.
Clicker Training
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Clicker training works well for any size dog, but is especially effective for small dogs. To small dogs, everything is so much bigger than they are and clicker training is a gentle approach to training. It begins by teaching the dog to respond to the click as a positive sound. This is done through a series of training involving click and treat, click and treat, click and treat. After that, each desired skill is broken down into small steps. When the dog takes a small step toward the desired behavior, click and treat. Steps are added until the dog has learned the skill.
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