When we think about the experience of owning a dog, one of the
first things that come to mind is walking together with your
pet. This is one of the greatest bonding experiences you can
have with your dog. In addition, walks are exercise for your dog and opportunities
to introduce your pet to new environments. You should also
think of walking your dog as an opportunity to establish your
role as pack leader. The best way
to determine whether you are your dog’s leader (or your dog is
your leader) is to look at where you and Fido walk in relation
to each other. I will give you a hint – the leader
leads!
Think about the last time you took your dog out on a leashed
walk. Did your dog walk at your side with a loose leash? Did
you enjoy the walk? Did your dog enjoy the walk? If you
answered no to any of these questions, read on to learn how to
teach your dog to “Heel” so that both you and your dog can
enjoy your walks together.
Nobody enjoys being dragged around, especially when it’s their
dog that’s doing the dragging. Despite what you may think, your
dog doesn’t really enjoy dragging you around either. Not only
is the constant pulling and tugging difficult physically on
your dog’s hips, neck, and throat, but it is stressful for your
dog to fill the leadership position. It is your job to teach
your dog to “Heel” so you can both walk comfortably and
happily.
Command “Heel”
“Heel” is the position in which your dog is facing the same
direction you are with the collar lined up with your left leg
(“Side” is the same position on your right). Your dog’s front
toes ought to be in line with or behind your own toes.
Your dog should be parallel with you in a straight line,
not sticking their rear end out or crossing in front of your
path.
Begin teaching your dog to “Heel” at mealtime. Take your dog
and their bowl full of kibble into a controlled environment
(with or without a leash) and feed one piece of kibble at a
time. The key to feeding the kibble is to take each piece with
your left hand and bring it down to your dog exactly in the
position where you want Fido to be. It is essential that your
dog does not lunge for the kibble or receive it if he is out of
position. Each time you give the kibble, smile at your dog and
say “Yes! Good Heel.”
The next component in teaching Fido to “Heel” is being a
responsible leader. Now that you have stepped into the
leadership role (much to your dog’s relief), you need to be a
clear and communicative leader. This means telling your dog
each time you are going to begin moving from a stopped
position, rather than just starting to walk and expecting that
your dog catch up. The command we use is “Let’s Go”. Each time
you are going to begin walking, just before taking that first
step, remember to tell Fido “Let’s Go” and then take off.
Eventually, Fido will understand that “Let’s Go” means it is
time to start moving and you will both take that first step
together. Your dog will appreciate the warning and should be
already in a “Heel” position when you take the first step
together.
During the teaching process, offer the kibble while you are
walking in an area with minimal distractions, as well as when
your dog is seated in a proper “Heel” position. In the
beginning, offer a piece every 2 steps. Take 2 steps and
bring down a piece of kibble while continuing to walk.
Take another 2 steps and pause, asking your dog to “Sit”,
and giving a piece of kibble while seated in the “Heel”
position. Repeat this process until the meal is complete.
Eventually, you will be able to increase this to every 5,
10, or even 50 steps.
Another key tool in teaching this command is to never ever let
your dog walk even one toenail ahead of you. In the event
that Fido gets out in front of you, PLANT YOUR FEET! Ground
yourself until you can get your dog back into position (use
kibble, treats, or even a favorite toy to lure him back). You
are teaching Fido that we only move forward if he is in the
proper position. If your dog has been dragging you around for
weeks, months, or years, this is going to be quite the shock to
him.
It may take some time for Fido to realize that you only move
when he is in position, but if you are consistent, your dog
will figure it out. If you are in a rush or inconsistent, Fido
is going to get frustrated with you for not reinforcing the
“Heel” each and every time you walk together and your dog will
never develop a solid “Heel” response. This may mean shortening
walks or limiting distractions for a while until you can master
a good “Heel” for the duration of your outings.
By teaching your dog to “Heel”, you are opening a world of
enjoyable walks and outings together. You are also reinforcing
your position as the leader. Both you and your dog are going to
enjoy the walking experience much more once you have mastered
these commands.
How to Teach Your Dog to Stay and Sit
Have you ever wondered why your puppy, who is perfectly behaved
most of the time, seems to forget their manners at the most
inappropriate times? For example, you are having guests for
dinner, and upon their arrival, they are expecting to be
greeted by your perfect puppy, Fido, that you have been raving
about. But instead of sitting and waiting to be acknowledged,
Fido is jumping all over them. Or when you are on a walk and
another dog passes, Fido is insistent on pulling you over to
meet his new friend. We at ECAD believe there are two
possibilities for why well-trained puppy might forget their
manners: lack of leadership by the pet parent and the pet’s
boredom.
Lack of leadership by the pet parent often causes inappropriate
behaviors to become progressively worse. For example, if Fido
barks when a strange car pulls into the driveway and this
behavior is not corrected, the barking can lead to growling.
Alternatively, if Fido jumps when greeting people at the door
and this behavior is not corrected, this can escalate to
nipping or biting. Combat lack of leadership by following
through on every command. Every time. No exceptions.
The pet’s boredom can show itself in behaviors including
nuisance barking, digging, chewing, licking, eating poop,
raiding the garbage, eating plants, counter-surfing, whining,
escaping, jumping, chasing, and much more. To combat boredom,
use commands! Learning skills and tasks, social skills and
manners, and overall self-control keeps your puppy thinking
about being with you, not thinking up mischief!
For today’s lesson, you will learn how to effectively teach
your dog to “Sit” and to “Stay”. These two commands allow you,
the pet parent, to remain in a leadership position and combat
your pet’s boredom behaviors in unpredictable situations.
Command 9 – Sit
“Sit” tells your puppy to place their rump on the ground.
Teaching Method:
Step 1: Start by
holding the treat between your thumb and forefinger, closing
the rest of your fingers into a fist. Allow Fido to see and
smell, but not have the treat.
Step 2: Now that
you have Fido’s full attention, move the hand with the treat
over his head and say, “Sit.” This will cause Fido to raise his
head to follow your hand and his rump will go down naturally.
Step 3: The
second Fido’s rump hits the ground, reward with the treat and
an enthusiastic “YES!”
Step 4: Repeat
steps two and three for a minimum of three consecutive times
before you reduce the amount of hand motion over Fido’s head
causing him to sit.
Step 5: As you
decrease the hand motion, add gentle scratching and petting his
chest when Fido sits. This reinforces that sitting not only
provides food and verbal reward, but also offers a physical
connection.
Once you are confident that Fido understands what you want when
you tell him to “Sit”, you can begin to use this command as a
controlled position. This means that anytime Fido is excited or
seeking your attention, use the command “Sit” and when he sits,
you can engage with him. “Sit” is a great command that allows
you to remain the leader, while eliminating Fido from wandering
in boredom. However, there is one more phase to this command
that will put you in full control: “Stay!”
Command 10 – Stay
“Stay” tells your puppy to remain in its present physical posture and place. “Sit” followed by “Stay” tells Fido what physical posture you want him to hold for an extended period of time.
Teaching Method:
Step 1: Start
with your puppy in a “Sit” position, give the command “Stay”
and slowly begin to walk around Fido in a circular motion with
one hand remaining gently on his back. The hand on Fido will
remind him that you are there, and if he attempts to stand up
to follow you, you have the opportunity to immediately correct
with a firm “No” and gently push Fido’s rump back down.
Step 2: As soon
as Fido is able to stay in a seated position while you make a
complete circle, you can now practice making the same circle
without touching him. Remember, every time a circle is
completed you must praise, saying “YES!” and then rewarding
your pet.
Note: As Fido’s
skill level and patience increases, you can begin to move
farther way and turn your back to your dog. Do not forget the
positive reinforcement with an excited “Yes!” and reward when
Fido has achieved each increasing difficult level of
self-control.
Step 3: Now that
Fido has demonstrated a “Sit-Stay” while you are visible,
increase the skill by extending the duration of the “Stay” with
you out of sight. This is done by giving the “Stay” command,
and then walking into another room, returning immediately, and
then praising and giving a reward. Increase the time by
counting to 5 before you return, Then count to 10. Always
praise and reward when you return. Now you can count to 15, 20,
30… until you have completed a full minute.
Step 4: Practice
makes perfect! Add more variables, go to different rooms, and
add distractions. Do anything you can think of that might cause
Fido to lose focus on staying.
It is important not to move too quickly through the steps of
the “Stay” command. Always remember your training session must
end on a positive note. Make sure you consider different
elements such as your puppy’s maturity and age, how tired or
playful they are, and how long your training session has lasted
so that you and Fido end on a happy moment!
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All training tips in this series are from ECAD (Educated Canines Assisting with Disabilities), a non-profit organization dedicated to training service dogs for veterans with disabilities. Learn more about ECAD.