Week 4
Complete
I hope all is going really well with your training so far! Here are the concepts we'll be learning, behaviors we'll be teaching, etc. this week:
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​​​Hopefully by now you've had a chance to read ALL the handouts!
If you don’t have all of them already, return to the main course page (click the button below) and scroll down to the downloads. It'll open in a new window so you won't lose your place here.​​​​
2:59
4:32
3:04
10:35 Total
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Sit
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Down
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Off
1. Sit
Complete
Description
Teaching your dog to sit is usually pretty easy and often a behavior most people start with in their dog’s training. I prefer to work on watch me, nose touch, stay and recall first, but that’s just my personal preference because I believe those can be life saving behaviors. Sit, though, can be an instrumental behavior for your dog to learn, especially when used as an incompatible behavior such as having the dog sit when greeting people to lessen the chance of him/her jumping up. I also recommend having a dog sit at curbs so he/she won’t be as likely to wander into the way of traffic.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
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Key points / Tips
Sit is (usually) most easily taught by luring. Start with your dog in a standing position. Hold a treat over his/her nose and slowly lift the treat up, slightly over his/her head and back toward his/her rear. This should cause the dog to lift its head and drop its back end to the ground. When it does, mark and reward.​​​​​​​​​​​​​
Problem solving
Your dog will likely start “throwing this behavior” to earn treats. Have him/her sit beside you, not always in front of you. Fade the lure as quickly as you can and start coordinating other behaviors such as down and stand.
If your dog doesn’t seem to understand what you’re asking for, try luring him/her from a down position. Begin with the dog lying on the ground, hold a treat at his/her nose and slowly raise the treat up until he/she lifts its head. Mark and reward that movement. Next, raise the treat a little higher until they lift their chest off the ground. Keep raising the treat higher with each repetition until he/she is lifting itself into a sitting position.
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2. Down
Complete
Description
Down can be a useful thing for your dog to do when you want them to settle on the floor.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
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Key points / Tips
Start with your dog in a sitting position and a treat in your hand at your dog’s nose. Move your hand from his/her nose “in” towards its chest, then straight down towards the floor.
Your dog should follow the treat into a lying down position. Mark and reward immediately!
If he/she doesn’t quite lie all the way down, mark and reward each progression. Ultimately, he/she should get rewarded when the front elbows touch the floor/ground.
Giving your dog treats while he/she is lying down should help increase the duration he/she lies down.
Problem solving
If your dog just isn’t getting the hang of it, try luring him/her under something – your legs or even a small table or a chair. You’ll actually be encouraging him/her to crouch down and crawl under. If you’re using your legs, you’ll need to make a bridge with your legs so there’s room for him/her to fit under them. Move the lure from your dog’s nose to the ground, then switch hands if you need to, pulling the lure under your legs and “out” the other side. Your dog will have to lie down to get to the treat. Mark and reward as soon as his/her elbows touch the floor.
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3. Off
Complete
Description
It’s just not acceptable for a dog to jump on certain things, humans included! You can count on it happening, though, and need to teach “off” to help solve the problem.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
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Key points / Tips
Have your dog climb up on some sort of platform, such as a raised bed. Toss a treat onto the floor as you say the word “off”.
If your dog has a habit of jumping on you, stand on his/her leash. Speak in an excited tone and animate your movement to try to entice the dog to jump on you. As it tries, say, “Off”. This takes a bit of coordination but usually works rather quickly.
Problem solving
It may be helpful to use a second person to entice the dog to jump so that you can hold onto the dog and not actually allow him/her to succeed with jumping on the other person. Just as the dog tries to, throw a treat off to the side and say, “Off”.
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