Oscar's Training Corner, by Oscar, who has watched many humans try very hard.

At the park last week I watched a man say "sit" nine times, each one louder than the last. The dog just looked at him like he was speaking whale.

It was not the dog's fault. Dogs do not learn volume. They learn clarity, and they learn timing. The man was working harder and getting worse results. I see this all the time.

Here is the honest truth: every dog learns differently, but three mistakes show up again and again — and they are all fixable in a week.

Three Fixes

1. Say the cue once. Repeating "sit, sit, sit" teaches your dog the command is optional until you get loud. Teach once, clearly, then wait.
2. Reward within one second. A dog connects a treat to whatever happened just before it. Wait ten seconds and the lesson is gone — you are just handing out snacks.
3. Train when nothing is wrong. Five minutes a day of easy wins beats an hour of panic mode when the doorbell rings.

My human learned this the slow way, mostly because I am patient with her. Now she does five minutes in the garden every morning, and I pretend the basics are still hard so she feels accomplished.

The humans who walk me use the same rules. If you are ever away from your dog, a walker who understands timing and reward makes all the difference — that is what my card is for.

Keep the treat pouch full,
Oscar 🐾

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