The Norfolk Terrier 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. Their training has to begin early and it has to be consistent and always fair throughout a dog’s life so they understand what their owner expects of them. Norfolks are never happier than when they are given something to do which is why they are so amenable to learning new things.
They excel at many canine sports which includes activities like flat racing and flyball because they thrive on the attention they are given during training and the one-to-one contact when competing with their handlers. The key to successfully training a Norfolk 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 that much shorter 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 that Norfolks are very smart little terriers.
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.
