Bluetick coonhounds are one of the most pretty and admirable dogs that can be adopted by dog lovers of any place. This dog is fun to play with and will give you relaxing company for a long time. The owners mostly get anxious about the training part of the pet dogs and here we will clarify the confusions that one may have about this issue.
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Are bluetick coonhounds easy to train?
These sweet-looking and soft-natured dogs are not much easy to be trained. But this should never be an allegation for this breed as the interested owners can try to adopt this dog even after knowing this fact. Managing the bluetick coonhound to train well is just a matter of skill and the right process.
What is the problem with the training of bluetick coonhound?
Bluetick coonhounds are infamous for being stubborn and at times, obstinate. Their nature is independent but they do not act very smartly. It is a popular belief among dog lovers that this breed acts so stupidly sometimes that they do just the opposite of what is expected or taught to them.
They follow their instinct and do not wish to follow the directions of humans easily. Their training session should be designed in such a way that they abide by the directions that their owner gives them.
When should you start training your bluetick coonhound?
At the age of 12 weeks, the bluetick coonhound puppy can start getting trained. From this age, you can start giving it simple directions and let them understand that first. They can take a little longer than other puppies of different dog breeds but you must not lose patience.
Your process should be a continuous one as if you give break between it or leave some days the dog without the training then the chances are it may forget the things that it has learned already.
What can you train a bluetick coonhound to do?
There are lots of things that a bluetick coonhound can learn. Not only the simple sit and fetch words but the coonhounds can learn directions like to be obedient, to take it out for a long walk, recognizing the scent of a raccoon or some other small creatures, finding the hunted creature, and so on.
Bluetick coonhounds are scenthounds, which means they trust their smelling ability a lot. The owners should learn the process and make use of it. This is how training like hunting and searching for prey will become easier for the bluetick coonhound.
How can you train the bluetick coonhounds?
Bluetick coonhounds are driven by their smelling power. When it comes to prey for a hunt they show immense energy and skill. They are unable to follow the directions or pay attention to the commands of their owners when they are matured as they get diverted by various kinds of smells within a very short period.
So training them from the early stage is necessary as at that young age they do not get that much diverted with the smells around them. But the training should be a regular thing and without any break, it should continue for weeks and months to make things happen.
Make sure to mention the commands once in a while even after the training time is gone. This way it will reinforce in the minds of your coonhound dog what it has learned. You can also repeat the command words when you are simply playing with the dog or enjoying a relaxation period.
Can you train your bluetick coonhound by putting it on a leash?
When you are teaching the bluetick coonhound to obey your direction the first and foremost one is to come around when you are calling for it. To ensure that using a leash is the best idea. As and when you can manage their movements it will be a smooth way of letting the dog come to its owner.
The leash also makes sure that the dog is near you and is not driven by any random smell that it can get from the surroundings. Make sure to use a single word to make it understand that you want it to come near you. Do not change the word often as the dog does not understand the language but understands the sound and the tone of its master.
When you are making it wear the leash the dog may show some kind of resistance at first. After you finally make it wear the leash and it works well, you must give it some treat to reward it. The small praises go a long way and help the dog to trust its owner for giving positive vibes.
Why you should not scream at your bluetick coonhound while training?
Screaming or shouting never works for the bluetick coonhounds as that ensures that the dog will get puzzled and will be anxious. It does not understand the problem or the cause of the tension but only understands that the owner is showing agitation. That is not helpful for its mental health.
Bluetick coonhounds have a sensitive mind and they get hurt easily. They may act fiercely when it comes to hunting for prey but that does not mean that they do not have any feelings. Their nature is much like the babies and they feel affected when the owner shouts at them. This will not rectify their mistakes so you should try some other way.
Can you use treats to train the bluetick coonhounds?
Yes, treats can do wonders in the process of bluetick coonhound training. This breed of dog is much motivated by food and that is not only when they are hungry. Food also gives them pleasure and keeps them happy. So when you offer them some treat after repeating some action or following some command successfully then it will be happy to follow the next command.
How can you make your commands more approachable to the bluetick coonhound?
Use of the right tone while commanding any dog, at the time of training is important. Remember that the dogs do not understand your words but only follow the particular sound you are uttering. Also, it is paying attention to the voice and tone of the master when directing or commanding.
So the owner or the trainer must use a commanding and heavy voice to make the dog follow his directions. The voice should be different than that of the voice you use to call the dog’s name at the time of playing. The words that you utter should be clear and similar every time. The voice modulation helps the bluetick coonhound to understand what is going on and what is expected from them.
When to stop the training session of your bluetick coonhound?
There are certain times when the dog stops listening to commands and directions within the training sessions. Unlike human kids, training the bluetick coonhounds has its own limitations. The attention span of the coonhounds is not very wide.
After a few minutes or even after half an hour, the dog may feel mentally tired or just stop to bother about listening to the directions. If you continue to train it in such conditions then it will make the dog totally ignore your presence. This is not acceptable as the dog should never get this indication of ignoring the master.
To avoid such situations, understand when you need to stop directing this. Whenever you see that the bluetick coonhound is not following your commands, you should understand that it will not pay attention in that session. So you have to just stop dictating it and resume the session on some other day.
Why bluetick coonhounds are hard to train?
Bluetick coonhounds are just another specific sect of regular coonhounds. Coonhounds are famous for being good hunters. They are often used in the farms to help the farmers with finding the raccoons. So they are mostly driven by instincts and they are less bothered about training.
Their independent working nature and stubbornness make them good hunting dogs. They tend to follow the direction in which their instinct leads them. But when it comes to staying at home and being a good family dog, they find it difficult to maintain the protocols of a family. Also, they do not like to be directed or dictated much. These are the problems of training a bluetick coonhound.
Can you train your bluetick coonhound the agility?
Yes, bluetick coonhounds can be trained in agility just like any other dog breed. They are also good at being agile and thus can be trained in such a way but at the right age.
The bluetick coonhounds can be taught obedience first and that should start at the age of 4 months. The puppy stage is the best time to teach to follow the directions but when it learns to follow the directions of its trainer and owner then you can enhance the skills of the pet dog by adding new tasks.
Where can you start training the bluetick coonhound?
Home is the best place to start training the bluetick coonhound puppy. They are most comfortable in the area where they are living. The obedience training and then the basic commands should be taught to the dog.
However, the dog may need more space to follow the commands than is available in your living room, so you can take your pet dog to the backyard. The natural surrounding will be great for the health and the mood of the dog. Only remember to put a fence in the backyard or the dog may get diverted by a smell and try to escape the place.
Agility tests should always be practiced in open spaces so the backyard or an open field will be ideal for such training.
How to define the task for your bluetick coonhound?
Finding the task defining a hard task itself is a common scenario for first-time dog owners. What you have to remember is, to make your body language prominent and use the simple tasks, to begin with. Also do not give it too many tasks in one single day. That way it will be confusing for the dog to follow and remember.
For example, if you have succeeded in making the dog understand that when you utter “sit” it has to sit, then give it some treat and play with it. Do not try to teach it many other commands like “fetch”, “run” or “quit” on the same day. Going fast in the teaching process will not help the dog and it may hamper its learning process altogether.
How to teach scent trailing to your bluetick coonhound?
Scent trailing is one of the most common tasks the owners teach their dogs. This comes naturally to the hound dogs, but when you are teaching them, you have to give the dog some object, like a piece of cloth, and let it sniff well.
Then hide that piece of cloth in the surroundings and let the dog find out by sniffing around. This way the smelling and finding the trail will be learned by the bluetick coonhound.
Is mirror training helpful for the bluetick coonhounds?
For first-time dog owners, mirror training is an effective and easy method to train the dogs. This is nothing but doing some simple activity and letting the dog follow you. Bluetick coonhounds have the habit of pleasing their owners so this training system works well with them.
Repeat some action before your dog and wait for some time to see its reaction. After the first few attempts, you will see that the dog is repeating your action. Often the owners get another person involved in this method to become a model and let the dog repeat his or her actions successfully.
Is an electronic collar an effective training object for the bluetick coonhounds?
The process is also popular as a clicker training method. In this process, an electronic collar is fitted to the neck of the bluetick coonhound. The owner can make the collar utter a sound or a mild shock which will let the dog follow the commands. Most owners do not prefer to use such gadgets thinking these devices are not safe for the pets. But these are made with all the safety protocols and the dog does not usually get hurt in the process.
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