Our Training Methods:

Knowledge, Patience and Respect is the corner stone of our training methods. Our training methods utilize primarily positive motivation, with a minimal amount of negative reinforcement. We do throw in the least amount of negative reinforcement that is needed for the dog to understand the consequences of not listening to the command which is always followed-up with a positive reinforcement. We are experts in reading dog body language and will never over work the dog or make their training sessions stressful. Dogs trained at Duonola Dog Training will always retain their playful spirit, have a wagging tail and get excited to see the trainer. While training the owners, we also have them practice on us so that they learn the process first and don’t ever over correct their furry little buddy.

There are three phases to our training:

Phase One: This is where we teach the dog everything. What the words mean, our predictable chain reaction, etc. This phase is primarily positive motivation with no real distractions introduced yet. If you are not having any major issues and do not want to use any corrections on your dog, this may be as far as you have to go. However, if you are looking for off leash control outside of your home or anything like that, you will have to move on to the other phases.

Phase Two: This is where we start to introduce light corrections and light distractions. Here your dog will learn to respond to their name and then command. We also introduce a warning, which gives them a second chance to avoid the correction. We always still throw in the positive reinforcement, and make sure the dog is continuing their enjoyment of the training sessions.

Phase Three: This is where the heavy distractions start and off leash training begins. We still continue to keep positive reinforcement here, along with the lightest amount of negative reinforcement needed to get a response out of your little buddy. With this phase, we are able to build upon it. Once this phase is completed, you can start coming to our weekly support group classes and personal protection classes. Also, this is where we can start to rehabilitate a dog’s aggression towards people or other animals.

The Benefit of our training methods vs. other methods

Only Positive Motivation:

The Benefits are that your dog receives a lot of treats and remains happy throughout the training.

The Downfalls to only using treat reinforcement:

  • -What happens if your dog is not Treat Motivated?
  • -What happens if your dog is not hungry?
  • -What happens if your dog finds something better than what you have to offer?
  • -What happens if your dog would rather go play with another dog or run into the street instead of coming for the treat you are offering?

Only Negative Motivation:

The Benefits are that your dog knows there is a consequence and listens to you, even when they do not want to and you can have complete control over your dog.

The downfalls are:

-Your dog will get stressed and lose their playful spirit           

 -It can be disrespectful to the dog

-What happens if you do not have the ability to correct them, the dog will not listen to you.

With our type of training:

We combine both Positive and negative motivation to get the best of both worlds. We even throw in distractions and use this to our advantage, this way we always have complete control over your dog without breaking their spirit. Dogs trained by us, will be happy and reliable.

Dogs that are turned down by other trainers and labeled as un-trainable come to us instead of being euthanized. We rehabilitate them and save their lives, because euthanasia is NOT an option at Duonola Dog Training!! You are better off starting here than going to another trainer first, only to have to come to a “Foundation Style” trainer afterwards.

Research You Trainer:

Unfortunately there are no real standards for dog trainer’s out there. So make sure you know what you are getting you and your best friend into beforehand. Talk to the trainer first; ask what their methodology is, or where they learned to train dogs. Some people may read a binder and call themselves a trainer; others may have minimal experience, etc.

With a certified “Foundation Style” dog trainer you can be guaranteed that the trainer is experienced. The trainer understands dog’s body language and their culture. You can be guaranteed they will always have respect for you and your dog. They have put in so many hours of working with dogs, teaching classes, and understanding all different types of training methods out there not just their own. A “Foundation Style” trainer has to uphold a certain level of ethics, respect, and honest behavior or the certification can be pulled at any point. This certification is not just something you work to get and that is it. It something you have to continue working for your entire life. Please always feel free to ask questions, we will never be untruthful about any of our methods or philosophies.