Training a dog can be difficult, especially if you have no prior experience in dog training or working with animals. Some people will give up, while others may decide to pay for professional training. There are some possible reasons why you cannot reach your dog obedience. If you understand where you may be making mistakes with obedience training and fix them, you will have a better chance for success. All dogs are different in behavior, intelligence and temperament, so it is important understand your breed of dog and the possible barriers that are preventing your dog from learning and responding to commands.

Sometimes dogs test their owners, kind of like children, to see what they can get away with or if you will let them win. Consider this as a possible reason why you cannot teach your dog obedience if your dog ignores your commands when it really counts or plays dumb in certain locations. You must be consistent with your training and only reward the dog when he responds appropriately. Reprimands are also important, but should never involve hitting, kicking or slapping your dog. Doing so, may injure your dog and makes him less responsive to any training technique.

Consistency is important in dog training, and not being consistent with commands is another possible reason why you cannot teach your dog obedience. You need to use the same command each time you want your dog to perform a certain task. Do not tell him stay one time and then say stop or halt the next. The dog learns with consistency and all family members need to know the proper commands to use so that the dog is not confused and easily understands what is expected of him. Keep in mind that it is hard to learn if someone keeps changing the rules.

Another reason you cannot teach your dog obedience may be because you have not done enough distraction training. Your dog may obey you in the home, but you take him for a walk and he ignores your commands. If this sounds familiar, you need to go back to training. Start at home and make sure he understand the commands, then a gradually add distractions. Start small. Add another person to your training session or another animal and work from there. He will eventually learn to obey away from home even if there are other people or animals around.

Do you allow your dog to get his way if he growls or snaps at you? If so, this could be a reason why you cannot teach your dog obedience. This a problem that only worsens if left alone. If you are unable to train your dog and he exhibits dominant behavior, you may want to consider a professional trainer who is has experience training dogs with dominant and aggressive behavior. If the problem is not taken care of, the dog may resort to growling and snapping at everyone and if someone challenges him he may bite. It is bet to get help with this problem early on.