This is an important command for you and your dog to master. It will clearly define you as the dominant one in the owner-dog relationship, and will provide a solid foundation for more advanced training later on.
You can start training your dog to sit and stay at around three months of age. Some general things to keep in mind when you first start out:
- Keep the training sessions short, ten minutes is fine initially.
- Make the training fun, don't make it feel like a chore, to you and your dog.
- Sessions should be full of praise and positive reinforcement (more about this later).
- Be repetitive, practice over and over until it clicks with your dog.
Training Your Dog To Sit
The first step in the process is getting your dog to sit on command. There are three training techniques I use with my dogs, depending on their age and temperament.
1. For young puppies I like this method. When you see your puppy about to sit, or in the act of sitting, just say "Sit" in a firm tone. When your puppy sits praise him. In your dogs eyes this technique builds an association with your verbal command "sit", and the act of sitting. Most puppies make this connection very quickly.
2. For older puppies or dogs this method works every time. With your dog standing in front of you, grab a tasty treat and guide it over his nose, then continue up over his head. Hold the treat a couple of centimeters above your dog while performing this motion. It will cause your puppy to follow the treat up with his nose, and at the same time plant his behind on the ground. You should say the command "Sit" as your dog is getting into the sit position. Praise and reward your dog as soon as he sits. After a while you will only need the verbal command, not the treat.
3. You need a collar and leash for this next technique, which is best suited to bigger dog breeds. Stand next to your dog, both of you facing the same way. Hold the leash straight up tight, directly above your dogs collar. At the same time push down on your dogs back and say "sit". As soon as your dog sits, reward and praise him. Within no time you can stop pushing him down, then stop holding the leash up tight. All your dog will require is your verbal "sit" command.
The "Stay" part of the Sit and Stay is our next step. Since we have already trained our dog to sit on command, I prefer to use a "release" or "away" command, instead of "stay". This is bacause when I tell my dog to sit, I really mean sit and stay, until I tell you to do something else. The release command I use is "off you go".
The process goes like this. Tell your dog to sit, he'll stay in the sit position, then break or release this sit command by saying "off you go". You should use your dog's name then your release command to start with, which will cause your dog to come to you. When he gets to you praise and reward him. After a while you will only need to use your release command, your dog will understand that he is free to go. If your dog breaks the sit command before you issue the release command, say "no!" and put him back in the sit position and start again.
Over time you can increase the time and distance between getting your dog to sit and then releasing him from it. You may even want to add some distractions, or do your training in different locations. When your dog holds his sit position even when a cat cruises by, you know he is ready to move on to more advanced obedience training commands.
If you understand and apply these methods you should achieve the desired result. It may take a bit of patience and plenty of repetition, but you will get there.
Training with treats and other food based rewards is a great way to motivate your dog and speed the training process along. Most dogs are highly motivated by food rewards, and treat training using this kind of positive reinforcement is used to train all sorts of animals, including tigers, lions, elephants and even house cats.
Before you begin a treat based training session, however, it is a good idea to test the dog to make sure that food will motivate him through the session. Begin around the dog’s regular meal time by taking a piece of its food and waving it in front of the dog’s nose.
If the dog shows an enthusiasm for the food, now is a great time to start the training. If the dog shows little interest, or none at all, it may be best to put off the training until another time. Don’t be afraid to delay the start of meal time in order to pique the dog’s interest in training. The advantages of proper training will far outweigh any delay in feeding.
It is generally best to get the dog used to regular feedings, instead of leaving food out all the time. Not only does free feeding encourage the dog to overeat and increase the chances of obesity, but a free fed dog may never be fully motivated in reward based training.
The come when called command Once your dog has shown interest in the food offered to it, it is time to begin the training. Since you already got your dog’s undivided attention by showing it food, now is a great time to start. Give the dog a few pieces of food right away, then back up a few steps. While holding the food in your hand, so “come here". When the dog comes to you, praise him effusively and give him a few pieces of food.
After the dog is coming to you easily, add a sit command and hold the collar before you give the food. After the sit command is mastered, other commands, and even some tricks, can be added. Food based positive reinforcement training is the best way to teach a variety of important behaviors.
One good exercise is the sit, stay, come when called exercise. This exercise can begin with the owner walking the dog, then stopping and asking the dog to sit. After the dog is sitting quietly, the owner backs away and asks the dog to stay. Ideally the dog should continue to stay until called by the owner, even if the leash is dropped.
At the end of the exercise, the owner calls the dog. When the dog comes to the owner, it receives food and praise from the owner. This exercise should be repeated several times, until the dog is reliably coming when called.
It is important to keep the training sessions short, especially in the beginning, to keep the dog from becoming bored, and from consuming its entire meal in the form of treats. After the dog has been responding regularly, the treats and food rewards can be slowly reduced. It is important to still provide these food rewards, but it may no longer be necessary to provide as many.
After awhile, as well, it will not be necessary to give the dog treats every single time he responds as requested. In general, it should only be necessary for the dog to receive a food treat one out of every five times he comes on demand. The other four successes can be rewarded with praise and scratches.
Once the dog understand the basics of the “come here" exercise, the basic exercise can be expanded, and many games can be created. These type of games can be great fun for owner and dog alike, as well as a great learning experience. Some off leash work can be introduced as well, but it is always best to start with the dog in a safe environment, such as a fenced back yard.
For variety, you can try taking the dog to other safe environments, such as a friend’s house, a neighbor’s fenced yard or a local dog park. Try turning the dog loose in these safe places, and practice the come when called exercise. Always praise the dog extensively, scratch him behind the ears and tell him what a good dog he is. The goal should be to make coming to the owner a more pleasant experience than whatever the dog was doing before he was called.
Both Chris Smith & Jonathan Cheong are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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