Not only are Cattle Dogs easy to train, but they also thrive on it. Being a working dog breed by nature, Blue Heelers are obedient, respond well to command words, and are eager to please. To satisfy their hard work drive, Blue Heelers need to learn new tasks and exert all of their energy in completing jobs.
For this reason, Australian Heelers are easy to train – even for beginners! However, it still takes dedication to raise a friendly, sociable, and well-behaved Cattle Dog. In this how-to guide, we’ll tell you how best to carry out Australian Cattle Dog training.
You should train your Australian Cattle Dog! Who would want a disobedient, destructive, and stubborn dog? Whether you live alone or are looking to add a Cattle Dog to your family, training from an early age is essential to bring out their best qualities and curb their negative ones.
An untrained Cattle Dog sees no boundaries; they see their owner as merely a food and shelter provider, not something they must respect. They’ll treat your whole house as if it were their crate, relieve themselves anywhere, and ignore your reprimands.
This breed has a strong independent streak in them. Being herding dogs by nature, they’ll head out and herd whatever they come across, whether it be other dogs or cars. For this reason, they need to have set boundaries.
Australian Heelers are easy to train if you know what you’re in for. Despite being highly obedient and dedicated to pleasing their owners, they can be stubborn, destructive, and demanding. When faced with such characteristics, it’s more important than ever for a dog trainer to persevere.
These negative traits may be off-putting for first-time dog owners, but it’s important to remember that training is a long-term commitment, and you must remain dedicated to the cause.
In terms of what kinds of training a Blue Heeler needs specifically, they need obedience training, toilet training, crate training, and exercise training. Dog sports are a good way to establish commands with your Heeler. This breed particularly enjoys agility tasks and flyball.
Socialisation should also be integrated into their training sessions from a young age. Early exposure to various sights, sounds, and other animals will help your Blue Heeler grow into an affable adult dog that’s less standoffish with strangers.
Toilet training is one of the most crucial aspects of raising a Cattle Dog from puppyhood, particularly for your sanity! Below is how to go about it.
You should start toilet training your Australian Cattle puppy when it reaches 12 weeks. Don’t attempt it before this stage; it’ll only frustrate you. Newborn Cattle puppies don’t have any form of bladder control and don’t establish one until around 3 months old.
During the early months, when they can’t hold it, you’ll need to take your puppy outside as soon as they wake up or finish a meal. Although you’ll most likely still have to clean up after them occasionally, this will at least reduce the number of accidents they have in the house!
Once they’ve reached the age of 3 months, follow these steps:
Find a patch of your garden that you wouldn’t mind your Cattle Dog littering in whenever they need to go. This should be an area that they can reach comfortably. You could make this area more appealing to your Heeler by using a potty training spray.
During the early stages of your potty training, you should carry your dog to the spot once every hour or so. Alternatively, you should lift them to this spot whenever they wail, start circling, or show any other sign that they need the toilet.
Whenever your dog uses their toilet spot, repeat a cue word such as ‘go toilet’ so that they can start to associate this cue word with doing the toilet. Always praise your Heeler after they successfully relieve themselves in their spot.
If you need your puppy to use the toilet, for example, before going on a long car ride, try out the cue word and see if they run to their designated spot.
Another important aspect of house training your Heeler is getting them comfortable with their crate.
Crate training for your Cattle Dog is by no means cruel. It helps to control their anxiety, as a crate is reminiscent of a burrow their ancestors would have retreated to. When successfully crate trained, this area can provide a sense of security for your Heeler.
You can start crate training your Blue Heeler when you bring them home!
To successfully crate train your Cattle Dog, purchase a crate appropriate to the size that your Heeler will grow to, so a medium-sized crate. Put down an old pillow or a dog bed that provides more than enough room for them to sleep comfortably in. You could also put a few of their toys in the crate to make it appear more homely.
The main thing is not to force the crate on your dog. Always leave the door open and never force them inside. When you notice your Cattle Dog getting sleepy, encourage your tired Heeler to enter their crate. You could also feed them in their crate. Eventually, they should naturally establish the crate as their personal space.
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Australian Heelers can perform most canine standards, such as playing dead, spinning, kissing, shaking hands, etc. They can also be trained to perform extreme agility stunts, hunt down specific scents, complete puzzle games, and even tidy up.
When training your Cattle pup to do tricks, follow these rules:
Be firm with the rules and consistent with keywords, as a Cattle Dog will remember whenever you give in to their disobedience.
As with other dogs, a Cattle Dog needs its training to be based on positive reinforcement, above all else. On top of making the dog anxious, negative reinforcement will bring out their bad character traits, such as disobedience and destructiveness.
Use treats only once or twice daily when training your Cattle Dog – don’t rely on them to successfully train your pup!
Heelers respond well to command words, but you could use clicker training if you’d prefer!
Training this working dog is easy if you are committed to the cause. Being people-pleasers, teaching them is easy – it’s remaining consistent that some people find difficult! Starting with toilet and crate training will establish the groundwork necessary to raise an obedient and well-behaved Blue Heeler.
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