The Scottie is a smart dog and a fast learner. The downside to this is they are just as quick to pick up bad habits as they are the good. As such, their training has to begin early too. It also has to be very consistent and always fair throughout a dog’s life so they understand what their owner expects of them. Scottish Terriers are never happier than when they are given something to do, but once they are back home they are just as happy to relax and chill out with their owners.
The key to successfully training a Scottie is to make their training as interesting as possible and to avoid too much repetition. It's also a good idea to keep training sessions short which helps dogs stay more focussed on what it’s being asked of them, bearing in mind that the more intelligent a dog is, the faster they get bored and the Scottish Terrier is a very smart dog.
They do not answer well to harsh correction or any sort of heavy handed training methods, but they do respond extremely well to positive reinforcement which always brings the best out of these intelligent and quick witted dogs, especially when there are high value rewards involved. However, care has to be taken as to how many food rewards are given to a Scottie because they have a tendency to put on too much weight all too easily.
