We all know that the old adage “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” is a myth. Just like human beings, dogs learn something new every day of their lives. My Golden Retriever is ten years old yet still mentally alert and eager to learn new tricks. As with people, learning new behaviors often means unlearning old ones. Dogs are very much creatures of habit and modifying or extending them will need extra patience and focused guidance in training.
With an older dog you need to take its physical limitations into account when training. While the three year old may have a boundless capacity for running, jumping and retrieving obstacles, the older dog may still want to do those things and learn new ways of doing them but is more easily tired and loses interest sooner than a younger dog.
When you are training an older dog it is better do it in shorter blocks of time with a lot more repetition. Make any runs shorter and any obstacles lower you should also throw the ball two or three times rather than the twenty that a younger dog might enjoy. Older dogs sometimes incur hearing loss do so don’t assume that they are ignoring you when at a distance and facing away from you.
Older dogs need longer recovery periods between training sessions. While an active game of fetch may still be enjoyable you need to know when to stop as your dog may be inclined to go on longer than is safe or healthy for them. An older dog’s ligaments stretch more easily and if you over do the sessions, injuries are more likely to occur.
Cut back on food rewards when a dog is older, while the desire to reward may be stronger than it is with a younger dog it is all too easy to over treat an older dog that will have more trouble shedding the extra weight.
Consistency in training is just as essential as it is with a younger dog and if play periods begin and end around the same time every day this helps to cure the dog. Use familiar areas for specific activities as this familiarity is good for learning new things.
When I work with my Golden Retriever playing fetch, we always do it in the back yard, never the forest. Digging is a behavior that is almost impossible to eradicate but even in older dogs it is possible to channel this behavior into harmless areas.
If all you have is a ten by twelve yard for you dog to indulge in digging it can help and the boundary can be marked by ground composition or variations in scent. Even older dogs can learn what is theirs to play with and what isn't and their sense of smell remains keen.
Older dogs can be less malleable and so it is best to focus on their existing strengths. One dog may be good at fetch and release while another is more inclined to hang onto the ball. Some dogs like to play with a Frisbee while others never get the hang of it – the point is to work with what the dog is good at rather than to force desired behavior.
