One of the most loved breeds of dogs in the United States is the playful and good-humored Pug. However, many owners do not take the time to learn how to train a Pug, assuming the Pug’s small nature will keep them out of trouble. Unfortunately a Pug, while small and cute, is one of the more manipulative dog breeds and can be incredibly stubborn when it comes to following commands. Proper Pug obedience training can be labor intensive and should start as young as possible.

Why You Should Know How to Train a Pug

A Pug’s temperament is unique in many ways. First, a Pug will be perfectly happy spending all of its time with you and can become quite attached. It is not uncommon to find your Pug following you around the house attached at the hip. This is to be expected given the Pug was bred to be a companion dog for Chinese and European aristocracy. However, the attachment can lead to socialization issues if they are not introduced to other dogs and humans from a young age. Pugs are well tempered and interact great with small children and cats, apparently not affected by attachment issues leading to aggressive behavior in other small breed dogs.

Many Pugs act larger than they look which while endearing, can be very dangerous if your Pug is not trained correctly. Additionally, Pugs can quickly forget their manners with strangers, or other dogs, and are prone to jump up on people for affection. The good news is that these behaviors can be controlled with good training.

Click Here To Learn How to Remove The Obstacles Preventing Successful Pug Training

How to Train a Pug

The first thing you need to know when training a Pug is to take control of the household. Unbelievably, that cute little Pug thinks he is in charge of the house and will do anything in his power to prove his dominance if left unchecked.

Therefore, you need to be leader of the pack. Maintaining alpha leadership is the key to establishing dominance of your household. Here are some basic tips to help you maintain alpha leadership over your Pug.

Feeding Times: Feed your Pug at set intervals. Given the chance he will eat all daylong so do not let your Pug determine when it wants food.
Walking: Walk your Pug at least twice daily, but make sure to control the walk. Do not let the dog determine the direction or pull on the leash. When learning how to train a Pug, leash control is critical.

Jumping & Furniture: From the beginning it is important to impose boundaries and control your living space. With a small dog like a Pug, it is easy to let the dog up on the furniture whenever it wants. Do not react to barking or whining and make sure to set appropriate limitations on what furniture the Pug is allowed on.

Coming and Going: Do not pay attention to your Pug when coming and going from the house. Give your Pug attention only when it reaches a calm, relaxed state. Paying attention to a rambunctious dog can be positive reinforcement for bad behavior.

You need to become the alpha leader in order to truly learn how to train a Pug. Failing to be the alpha leader put your Pug in a position where he feels in charge.

Optimizing a Pug’s Mental Stimulation

A Pug can be worn out quickly, but many still don’t get enough exercise or mental stimulation. How many Pugs do you see playing fetch or running around the local dog park? When it comes to learning how to train a Pug, reducing the chances for the dog to challenge you and to be overwhelmed with energy and boredom will remove most bad temperament issues that people have when it comes to their rambunctious little friends.