Positive attitude is the name of the game for dog trainer

"Good dog!" and "Yes!" are probably the most common words heard in Claudia Sihler's dog training classes.

Sihler, originally from Munich, Germany, where she trained formally as a veterinarian but studied canine behavior for her doctorate degree and found she loved dealing with dog behavior more than stitching up wounded animals.

She's now one of two certified Association of Pet Dog Trainers in Alaska, and offers seven-week courses based on the positive-reinforcement method used through APDT. People familiar with the National Public Radio show "Calling All Pets" with Patricia McConnell will recognize Sihler's method, based on rewarding animals for good behavior rather than punishing them for bad behavior.

Participants in Sihler's class often clip treat bags to their belt loops, ready to reward at all times. Treats are often used as a way to get the animal to focus on the handler, or as a sort of "carrot-on-a-stick" approach, to lead them through the process of doing a behavior, such as "sit" or "down."

"It's really important to understand that you really can do a lot with only positive reinforcement," Sihler said. "It's so much better to use positive reinforcement for doing something right than to use punishment for doing the wrong thing."

There are often a range of goals written by participants on a marker board in her classes -- from "no jumping" and "no kisses" to "come when called," and Sihler said she sees many common threads among the dogs in her classes. Pulling on a leash, jumping up on people and refusing to come when called are three primary behaviors she's asked to help correct, along with dog-dog aggression problems which seem to be more prevalent in the Valley, where dogs often have larger territories to call their own, and may not see other dogs regularly.

Some of the behaviors, Sihler said, will be helped tremendously by regular exercise.

"A lot of time it's because dogs are not really well-exercised," Sihler explained, adding that the dogs tend to get bored, and that's where the behavior problems grow.

When asked why dogs should be trained in basic obedience, Sihler had several answers. The foremost reason, Sihler said, is to make your pet a well-behaved companion. She helps pets and owners go through the American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen program, which teaches responsibility to owners and provides basic training and good manners to dogs.

The program involves a 10-step checklist which the dog must pass in order to be certified. The checklist includes allowing strangers nearby, sitting politely for petting, politely moving through a crowd, walking on a loose leash, coming when called, calmly reacting when approached by another dog and handler, showing minimal reaction to common distractions, and behaving calmly when watched briefly by another person.

"It's not only training the dog, it's showing the dog the rules of living in society," Sihler said. "We teach our kids not to play football in the living room -- that's the same reason we train our dogs."

While obedience training is an important step toward having a well-behaved dog, it's valuable in other ways, Sihler said. It provides exercise to both the pet and handler that simply isn't achieved through nightly walks.

"Dogs need mental exercise as much as they need physical exercise," Sihler said. One hour of obedience training, filled with other dogs and distractions on top of new things to learn, she said, will wear a dog out as much as three hours of physical activity. And, like office workers who hit the gym after work to exercise their muscles or laborers who puzzle out a crossword or play computer games that tap into a different part of their brain, dogs benefit from the challenge of learning new things.

Above all, she said, training increases the bond between dog and handler.

Much of Sihler's class, similar to other obedience classes offered throughout the Valley, focuses on strengthening that bond, from encouraging the dog to look to its handler while heeling to teaching the dog to look to its handler for guidance in the presence of distractions.

"Just doing training with a dog is spending quality time with the dog," Sihler said.

"Dogs bond with us better if they see us as their leader ... When a dog understands who its leaders are, the dog bonds with them, adores them for being their leader and obeys them," she said.

As the weather cools and the snow sets in, Sihler said it's important to continue exercising and working with dogs -- both to keep that bond strong and to help them fight winter boredom.

"Just keeping them busy with some exercise and training is important," Sihler said. Winter may be a good time to enroll in obedience classes or, for dogs who already perform well as good canine citizens, to try an agility class, which are offered by Sihler and several other trainers in the Valley.

For more information about Sihler's class schedule and pricing, call 357-2521 e-mail her at bettercompanion@animalbehavior.net or visit her Web site at www.bettercompanion.com. Training is available in the Valley through other groups as well, including Cook Inlet Kennel Club and several local kennel operators. For more information about other classes or groups providing them, check listings in the yellow pages or ask your veterinarian for suggestions.