24 Bře Fine-Tuning Training Volume

Last week, we discussed training volume for our dogs and all the factors that influence it. This week, I want to help you recognize and decide how much is too much and fine-tune your training sessions so they perfectly match your dog’s ability and willingness to work.

Every dog is different, of course, and I want to give you a list of tips on what to look out for and consider when deciding the training volume for your dog:

• Enjoyment: Your dog should enjoy training with you. This may seem like a no-brainer, but you would be surprised. Regrettably, I often see dogs not nearly as excited as I would like them to be when they get to the training field. 

My Archer can recognize the road to our training field from about a kilometer away. Once he realizes we are headed there, he starts whining and barking and generally wreaking havoc, and he can’t wait to finally get on the field with me. When I get him out of the car, he all but yanks my shoulder out of its socket, pulling me towards the gate and jumping excitedly two meters in the air. 

This is a bit of a crazy example, but you get my point: your dog should look forward to training with you. If he doesn’t, one of the reasons might be that you are working him too hard. Try giving him a break and see if that helps. Other reasons might be not enough praise or perhaps the wrong kind of reward.

• Retention: Your dog should not have trouble remembering what you did last time your trained. This can be especially obvious when working on a new exercise. If you don’t train often enough, your dog will forget what you did the last time. And so, instead of progressing in the next session, you will basically rehash what you did in the last session and not make any progress.

If you are sure you are doing everything correctly and still feel like your dog has the memory of a goldfish, maybe it’s time to up your training volume and train more often.

A good example of this problem is when training obstacles, like the hurdle or the A-frame. Many of my clients understandably don’t have a hurdle or A-frame available to them otherwise, so they only train them once a week or even once every other week when training with me. That might be fine for a dog who has already mastered these exercises, but during the learning period, it is usually hard to progress on a specific exercise if only training just once every two weeks.

• Off days: One day out of the week should be an ‘off day.’ Archer hates me for this rule; for him, a day not worked is a day wasted, but I remain adamant about this despite him literally calling me names. Does your dog have his own unique way to call you unspeakable things or is that just us? Archer can express a slew of insults with just one look or bark.

Dedicate at least one day of the week as a complete rest day. No training, no intense physical conditioning. Just a nice walk, maybe some swimming, playing fetch, or chilling together on the couch or in the garden. Every dog needs some downtime even if he makes it look like he hates it like a certain crazy malinois I know.

• Once a day is ideal: Training twice a day is usually too much. For the vast majority of adult dogs, training the same sport twice a day is just too much. I am not talking about doing two or even three rounds of obedience in the span of like 2-3 hours—that’s usually fine. But don’t do an intense obedience session with two rounds in the morning and then do it again in the evening. 

For some dogs (Archer included), it’s usually okay to do two different sports, such as doing obedience in the morning and protection in the afternoon. However, even crazy workaholic Archer would not benefit from intense obedience training twice a day.

An alternative to this is for dogs who don’t require longer, more intense sessions and prefer very short ones: multiple, short spurts of training. Typically, this is the case with puppies, where you would train them for about a minute several times a day. The number of individual training sessions per day usually decreases with the rate of them growing.

• Problematic exercise: If you are having trouble with a specific exercise, just stop doing it. This applies when you have tried several different approaches, nothing seems to be working, and both you and your dog are getting frustrated and sick of that particular exercise.

If you find yourself in such a situation, take a break. Either don’t train obedience at all for a few days or refrain from that problematic exercise for a longer period of time, like 2-3 weeks. You will be surprised at how beneficial such a break often is. There is a good chance that you won’t have a problem at all after you resume, or you will at least start from a clean slate and likely do much better this time. If you need any help, I am always there for you.

• Free time: You should always have enough time to do other things besides training. You should never train so intensely that you can’t take your dog for a proper walk, a hike in the mountains, or out for a chill day by the lake. If you happen to be that busy, skip a training session and go do something relaxing or fun. Not training is sometimes the best training decision you can make. Both of you need to get your mind off of obedience even if the trial is coming up next week. Actually, especially when the trial is coming up next week.
• Vacation: At least once a year, give yourself and your dog a total break from training. I can’t recommend this enough. I usually do this around Christmas when I go visit my parents at their mountain cottage. We don’t train, we don’t talk about training, and we don’t think about training for 2-3 weeks straight. It’s just long walks, hiking, cross country skiing, playing in the snow, cuddling by the fire, and relaxing. When new year rolls around, we are both ready to hit it hard with newfound energy and motivation.

Please think about these tips. Whether you are prone to overtraining or not training enough, analyze your training plan and adjust it accordingly. Don’t beat yourself up if life gets in the way. Working with your dog should be fun for both you and your dog. Make sure he is training just the right amount, and you will see how fast you will progress. 

Just be mindful, and you will figure it out. I believe in you.