Training Staffordshire Bull Terriers – 5 Useful Tips

Training staffordshire bull terriers is easy and fun if you have access to the right training resources, especially as anyone who has owned a staffy knows how friendly, loyal and courageous they are. Their high intelligence and the special bond they form with their owners make them the ideal family dog.  Because they are such great dogs to have around and in some ways seem almost human, it is easy to forget about some of their ‘doggy’ tendencies! Nevertheless, training staffordshire bull terriers is still very important because it will make your faithful companion even more adorable and easy to be around.

For example, all dogs have a hunting or chasing instinct, and staffies are no different.  Fortunately their desire to chase is much less apparent than in many other breeds, but it can still cause problems if it is not properly handled. Training staffordshire bull terriers to stop them chasing is important for a number of reasons.  Firstly, if they chase after everything that moves it will be very difficult if not impossible to ensure their safety from cars and other vehicles.  Secondly, if they chase after other animals they may injure or even kill them. Finally, if you are taking your staffy for a walk it is supposed to be relaxing for you both and the last thing you need is to be worried about what they are getting up to.  

TRAINING STAFFORDSHIRE BULL TERRIERS – HOW TO STOP YOUR STAFFY CHASING

If your staffy has serious chasing tendencies, the first thing you need to do is undertake some basic retraining. As a starting point, you will need to keep your staffy on a leash whenever you are in open public areas.  The leash is the fundamental means you have of controlling your dog and keeping them safe so you can start work on more advanced behaviours.  

Click Here to STOP Your Staffy Chasing FOR GOOD!

Here are 5 tips for training staffordshire bull terriers to stop chasing:  

1. Training Staffordshire Bull Terriers –  Keep the Focus on You  

Make sure your dog focusses its attention on you.  You are the boss and your dog needs to learn that it must take its cues from you. This is a fundamental point that is relevant to all aspects of staffy training.  When you take your dog for a walk, make sure they look directly at you before you start moving.  Under no circumstances should they start walking before they receive a visual and verbal cue from you.    

2. Use Leash Training  

If your staffy likes to pull on their leash and seems reluctant to focus on you, make them sit down and wait for you.  If they pull on the leash, make them stop and sit beside you.  Within a short period of time they will learn to control their walking to a pace that is dictated by you. You can also use this method for training staffordshire bull terriers if your dog pulls at the leash in an attempt to chase another dog, or someone on a bicycle, for example.  Once again, make them stop and sit until the object of their attention has passed.  They will soon learn that indiscriminate chasing is something you will not permit.  

3. Use Distraction  

When your staffy is not on a leash, you can use a toy to distract them from chasing.  Throw it in another direction and they will chase after it instead.  

 4. Use Rewards  

Reward your staffy with a small treat or a pat after you have restrained it from chasing.  In this way it will learn to associate ‘good’ behaviour with a reward.    

5. Avoid Using Extreme Measures

Many people will revert to extreme measures for training staffordshire bull terriers and to stop them from chasing, such as using electric fences or collars.  This is inhumane and unnecessary.  It is always better and more constructive to concentrate on developing and rewarding your dog’s ‘good’ behaviours rather than punishing them for something they have done wrong. If your staffy likes to chase cars, other people or animals, it is not only annoying for you, but also dangerous to your dog and to others. Concentrate on fixing their behaviour in the early day of your ‘training staffordshire bull terriers’ partnership, and you’ll both be much better off!

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