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If you do not plan to take your four-legged friend to exhibitions, you can do the training yourself. For a treat and praise (1) from a beloved owner, your pet will easily learn everything. And it is also important that the training takes place in the form of a game – this is how dogs learn commands better (2). So, step by step instructions on how to start a home training course.
Sit
Take a treat in your hand and bring your fist to your pet’s face so that he can smell it. Slowly raise your hand up so that the dog reaches for the treat, turning up his nose. At this point, intuitively, dogs most often sit down.
Voice the command. If the dog sits on his own, give him a treat. If not, repeat the command and lightly press your hand on the sacrum. After several such repetitions, the animals understand what they want from them.
Second phase. After the dog began to sit down, it becomes simply unbearable to receive the treasured treat.
The dog can sit down for a second or two, and then undermine and start wagging his tail, jumping and demanding a treat. At this point, you can’t give him anything. It is necessary to plant the dog again, wait five seconds and only after that praise for the exercise performed.
When the dog stops jumping before receiving the treat, move on to the third step. When speaking a command, show it with a gesture (see figure). It is believed that the command is learned when the dog begins to execute it at a distance of 2 – 3 m.
To lie
If your pet has learned the “sit” command, consider that he has almost learned “down” as well. We give the command “sit”, we wait until the four-legged one does it, after which we show him a delicacy in his hand, which we gradually take aside at floor level. At this moment, when the animal begins to reach for the yummy, we give the command to “lie down” and press the dog a little on the withers, preventing it from jumping on its paws. The dog will reach for the hand with the treat and stretch into the correct position.
The second stage is to learn this command using a gesture (see figure). Add a gesture to the voice command when the pet starts to lie down on its own, without your hand on the withers. Then gradually increase the distance from which the dog executes the command.
Beside
We teach the team on a leash, it is desirable that before that your four-legged friend walks up and gets tired. We take the dog on a short leash, say “next” and give a treat. We repeat the exercise when the pet begins to pull ahead.
Give
The team learns in the form of a game. Take a ball, stick, or other object that your pet likes to chew on, and when he takes it in his mouth, try to pick it up. At this point, you need to voice the command “give”. When the dog releases the toy from its mouth, praise it and give it a treat. The animal may not give up the toy the first time, so show the treat and trade with it.
Stand
This command is best learned when the dog learns to lie down on command. The prone position will be the original. The pet must be collared and on a leash. Lift the dog up by the leash so that it stands on its paws. Voice the command and give a treat when the animal takes a stance. Treat with a treat when the dog will stand straight, not trying to sink on the ass.
To me
Here you will need an assistant. You need someone to hold your puppy in your arms or on a leash while you move a short distance from him.
Stop, pat your thigh with your hand and say, “Come.” At this point, the dog should be released to run towards you. If he doesn’t run, squat down, start calling and show a yummy in your hands. When the puppy approaches, treat him with a treat and pet him.
If the dog has repeatedly ignored your command, pause and do something else, take on a leash or leave the stick. Otherwise, the animal will decide that you can not obey.
Place
Training consists of several stages. Training should begin when your little friend knows the commands “down” and “come”.
Choose a place, lay a rug, a blanket or put a special sunbed there, then put a toy or a bone next to it and start training.
Step one. Bring the dog to his place and say: “Lie down.” After that, move a short distance and call the pet to you. When the dog completes the command, give encouragement and praise.
Step Two. Repeat the exercise, but now point to the side of the sunbed with your hand and say: “Place.” The puppy can be pushed slightly in that direction by repeating the command. If the dog settles down, say “Place” again. If you don’t want to, give the “lie down” command, wait for it to be completed and repeat the “place” command. Thank you with a treat, then again step back a few steps and call your pet to you.
Step three. Leave a treat on the bedding or hide it in a toy to make it more interesting for the dog to look for it. Say the command “place”. When the dog comes up to eat the treat, say: “Lie down”, praise for the command, and while he lies on the mat for at least 5 seconds, repeat the “place” command and treat him again with a treat.
After a few days of training, increase the distance at which the dog approaches his place to a few meters.
– Basic commands, such as “sit”, “lie down”, “stand”, can be taught by yourself, and complex ones, for example, “barrier”, “die”, “fetch”, “jumping on your back” – only with a dog handler. In these commands, you need to carefully monitor the execution technique, and in some exercises you even need to catch the dog, warns cynologist Zlata Obidova. – The general training course lasts two months, after which, if the dog has learned everything, a certificate is issued. But everything is individual. For some animals, even 15-20 sessions may not be enough.
When signing up for courses, pay attention to what breeds of dogs are recruited into the group. Animals should be similar in size. Dwarf breeds cannot train with fighting breeds.
Popular questions and answers
About what other points to consider when training a puppy, we talked with cynologist Zlata Obidova.
At what age can a puppy be taught commands?
How often should a puppy be taught commands?
How to reward a dog for a command?
When the dog begins to follow the commands well, you need to wean him from the treats. Give a treat not for each exercise performed, as it was at the beginning, but after 2 – 3 correctly executed commands.
Instead of treats, you can stroke and praise.
Sources of
- Khainovsky A.V., Goldyrev A.A. On modern methods of training service dogs // Perm agrarian bulletin, 2020 https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/o-sovremennyh-metodikah-dressirovki-sluzhebnyh-sobak
- Panksepp J. Affective neuroscience: The foundations of human and animal emotions // New York, Oxford University Press, 2004 – 408 p.