Train Your Dog: the Positive Gentle Method is a very good video for those who want to begin home dog training. It covers typical behaviors that are usually covered in basic obedience classes. One of the aspects of the video that I particularly like is that it presents training sessions with puppies and adult dogs.

Conducting the training lessons are Nicole Wilde and Laura Bournhenne. Nicole Wilde is well known in the world of dog training, having hosted a radio talk show on the subject and written several very good dog training books, including So You Want to Be A Dog Trainer; It’s Not the Dogs, It’s the People; and Help for Your Fearful Dog. I’m less familiar with Bournhenne, though her biography indicates extensive work with animals.


Content

The subject matter is extensive, but each topic is handled in an individual lesson (see organization, below). Each is simply explained and relatively short. In most of the lessons, one of the trainers demonstrates with a dog or puppy as she discusses the techniques.

Each behavior is broken down into several steps, including luring the dog into the desired behavior (such as sit), then attaching a word to the action, and finally requesting the behavior with the new word. These lessons are so clearly described and demonstrated that it makes the training seem quite easy, as long as the progression of steps is followed. Viewers can see how these behaviors build slowly, resulting in eventual success. They can also see how to handle situations when dogs don't react correctly.

Each step of the the way, the trainers emphasize positive reinforcement - ignoring wrong behaviors and consistently rewarding correct ones. They also show how to effectively use treats as rewards and not bribes. They explain what they are doing with the dogs and why they are doing it.

Only one lesson didn’t ring entirely true for me. The dog in the lesson on “heeling” wasn’t exactly representative of what most owners face. The dog was a beautiful Doberman that was relatively calm and hardly pulled on the leash. Where was the tugging, lunging dog that most owners have to control? I think a dog with those behaviors would have made the lesson more realistic.


Organization of the Lessons

The DVD is fairly well organized, allowing the viewer to click on each separate behavior or command and watch that. This makes it easy to concentrate on learning the techniques for teaching an individual behavior. DVD sections include:

Our Methods: Wilde and Bourhenne explain the concept of positive reinforcement and the importance of rewards
Basic: contains individual lessons on sit, down, stay, come, and heel
Other Essentials: lessons on leave it, give, wait, gentle, touch, to bed
Behavior Issues: use of crates and baby gates, ringing bells, staying by door, jumping, nipping, and housebreaking
Bonus: car safety, leadership, come, what constitute rewards and consequences, clicker training

The only organizational problem I had was with the Bonus section. The only true “bonus” was the information on clicker training, which is an alternative training method. Everything else in the Bonus section would have made more sense if included in other sections. For example, why not put the additional information on “come” in the Basic section where the behavior is demonstrated? Or, why not discuss rewards and consequences in the Our Methods section, where the topic is first introduced? Better to combine these so that all of the information is in one lesson - then the viewer doesn’t have to jump back and forth. Finally, the section about leadership (how to be a quiet authority rather than an intimidating force) is so important that it shouldn’t be buried in a Bonus category.


Editing

The editing of the DVD is sometimes distracting. When speaking directly to the camera, the trainers often appear confused - not about their content, but about where to look, whether to stop talking, etc. Certainly some of these shots should have been redone. The cut-off points in some of the lessons are rather rough as well, so whoever did the editing didn’t do an entirely professional job.

I’m a dog trainer, and I can tell you that this is one of the references I often review when I feel it’s time for me to get back to basics. It’s an excellent tool for dog owners who wish to teach basic obedience and start their dogs on the road to being good family members.



Read a review of Nicole Wilde's book, So You Want to be a Dog Trainer


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8