Lab guy soon to be EB guy with training ?

[Dawg Pound]

I've always have had Labs. After putting Rudder down at the age of 12 last year we decided to give it some time before getting another pup. Labs as most know have a great deal of energy (something my wife didn't want to deal with while raising our 2 daughters and working a stressful job). I can relate to my wife as I work a lot of hours sometimes and do not have the time to put into all the training I once did. My labs have always been very loving and obedient. Friends and neighbors would always compliment my pups for their obedience and would ask if I could train their dogs. To make a long story short, we decided on a EB for our next family member. His name is Dozer and we pick him up in a few weeks. The wife and I wanted to name him Tater but my daughters didn't like the name. They are 7 and 8 and Tater reminds them of the saying "you got taters in your ears".

My question about training EB's stems from a lot of the research I've done on this site. EB's tend to be bullheaded which seems to be the consensus in a lot of the posts. Labs tend to pick up training quickly and have a drive to learn. Do you all find EB's to be easy to train or do they want to do what they want to do most of the time? I realize that patience is important in training. Will I need to say the serenity prayer a lot? Can someone point me in the direction of some literature on specifically training a EB?

Thank you
Tim

 

[Jennifer Clark]

Well Tim I don't so much think it's stubbornness as it is them trying to figure out how it benefits them my bully isn't so much food driven as he is praise driven he LOVES hearing he is a good boy but a great deal of bullies ARE food motivated find that much covered treat and use that as a training tool. First and foremost you have to make sure your bully knows where it stands in the pack order a bully that knows his place is a comfy bully. Bullies are very social and love being with family so as a discipline you can put them in another room for a short period as a" time out". Generally though yes patience and perseverance are key in training a bully.

Bulldogs rule...cats drool..."the Shelly Bean"

 

[Dawg Pound]

Thank you. I'm sure it will be a learning experience for the whole family. I've never had a pup that was food motivated before and look forward to finding out what Dozer will choose.

 

[Marine91]

My Harlea was easy to train for most basic commands such as sit, stay, down, high five and walking on a leash. However, come is another story. As [MENTION=8610]Jennifer Clark[/MENTION] stated bullies will think and contemplate what you have asked them to do and how they can benefit from it. Most bullies are very food motivated so identifying his his value treat will help tremendously with training and as you work with him slowly reduce the treats until you eventually aren't giving them at all. Also, keep in mind that some bullies have the attention span of a gnat so frequent short training sessions a day work much better than one long one.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

 

[4WHLN]

I had/have the same experience as Todd stated above. Dooley was easy to train for the most part. He loves green beans so he knows if he does what I say he gets one. This helped keep him motivated.

 

[Davidh]

You have some great advise above already. Bullies do work for food, and also somethings have to be their idea or on their time. Just keep if fun for them and don't punish too much, because if you loose their respect, they won't do anything for you. Plus remember to monitor them outside, as they can not handle the heat. Plus welcome to the site and looking forward in seeing more pics of your baby.

 

[Julzz9170]

I have 2 boys and they learned all of their basic commands quickly but have no interest in any type of tricks..even a handshake is a stretch if they don't feel like doing it..however if I get treats out I don't even need to give a command they will automatically go to their spot and lie down and wait..my younger boy Romeo was tough to house train mostly I think because he was almost 5 months and was on a farm where I don't think he even was in the house but when he finally got it he was great..

 

[Peter Lynn Westre]

clicker training

Read the book "When pigs fly"

personally I found my lab to be much more food motivated.

Consistency and frequent short training sessions.

The difference between labs and bullies are you have to explain why it is a good idea to carry though on requests. I think you will find positive training works best.

 

[Peter Lynn Westre]

I think persistent is a better adjective for bully behavior rather than bullheaded.

 

[2BullyMama]

Bullheaded is really them deciding if they want to do what you ask, for what you are offering them

 

[jimmyjj]

Bullheaded is really them deciding if they want to do want you ask for what you are offering them

Lol 2 true


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[bullmama]

Yep! They are thinkers, so they really do make decisions and don't just listen to your every command. I love this about them. They remind me of my skin kids!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[dolphin]

Can someone point me in the direction of some literature on specifically training a EB?

I agree with the persistence advice, it's really the only thing we have, this thread has a really good list on literature to help you out http://www.englishbulldognews.com/f...ecommended-Reading-Training-and-Behavior-Help Good luck!

 

[MyStellaBully]

We had a lab for 13 years before getting our first bulldog. It is definitely a change in lifestyle. Gone are the days of swimming and training and competing in agility! But the couch time has been a welcomed relaxation! Stella will be one next week. We started her in puppy classes at 3 mos of age. Bullies are very motivated by treats. Her trainer was very impressed with her focus during class, but I just attributed it to the treats I kept throwing at her!! Best of luck to you and your new baby!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk