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I am creating this, mainly so I can remember this information for my next dog (if we ever get another since my husband likes to travel), and to help people have well behaved dogs by sharing what is helping me the most.
I want a well behaved dog, and I’m assuming because you clicked on this article you do too! I found out that I have been pretty much letting Snow (our GP) walk all over me, I let her do basically anything she wants, and because I wasn’t tough enough with the initial sit training, I have to repeat the last lesson we learned. So, I’m going to explain what I am learning to the best of my ability and tell you why it’s working!:)
Tips
- The first part of training your dog to sit is by finding a mat they can sit on, leading them to the mat while they are on the leash with a prong collar, and pointing your finger where you want them to go. Take your pointer finger in the hand that’s not leading the dog and point it towards the mat as you lead your dog there.
- Say SIT once all four paws are on the mat, give them a treat if they do.
- Hold the leash, and take a step away from your dog, do this and make your way around the mat. Basically you are going to take 1 step back and then step in to reward them with a treat or just verbal praise.
- After they master this (mastery means they don’t break the sit), you need to then practice timed sits, and the more time you add, the more distance you create between you and your dog. So 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 second sits will be what you’re after next. Here is what that should look like –
- Lead your dog to the mat like before and say sit.
- Distance yourself away a couple feet and count to 10.
- If they don’t break the sit, give them a command that they know means they can break like “Come!” or “Free!”
- Put the treat to the ground and when they get to you, raise it up so they sit.
- After they sit you can give all the praise and treats!
- Do the same thing for 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 seconds (dropping the leash to help create distance)
- If they do break, you need to repeat the same time they broke at, so if they broke at 30 seconds, you do 30 seconds again.
- ALSO, make sure that if they break you just continue counting, don’t go back to 1 once you move back to your spot. If you had to stop at 15 seconds, just continue from 15 when you go back to your spot.
- Frequency – Practice this 3 times a day and for no longer than 15 minutes, some people do it for less, but once you pass 15 minutes, you have totally lost them.
- The next step is sitting right next to your dog with the leash and prong collar while they hold the sit. Set your constant clock on your phone and sit with your dog. Praise and correct (see below for correction tips) as needed. Once the timer reaches 1 minute you are done. Maybe at the end of the day you can try 2 minutes, but this isn’t a 3 times a day thing like the practice above. So one day you might do 1-2 minute sits, then 3-4, and then 5 minute sits. You aren’t looking for mastery with this, and you are also not going to crate them for an hour afterwards, just let them be free.
- After this you will take your dog into public places, pick an aisle, tell your dog to sit while holding the leash and distance yourself from them for 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 seconds. You can do this in another aisle too, but like I said don’t go over 15 minutes. The point is to bring your dog into a place that has a bunch of distractions, so they can work on focusing on you instead of everything else.
Correction
This is the reason I had to delay a lesson. It’s because I didn’t (correct) hard enough. When my trainer showed me how to correct Snow she literally yelped because she pulled so hard. When she didn’t listen, the trainer took both hands and pulled up on the leash as if she was trying to make a towel snap. I winced, but she told me what would be done if Snow was in a pack of wolves. They would pin her to the ground and hold her there with their teeth! Then she said this, “The correction HAS to be greater than they want to break the sit.” I was like Woah! That’s so true! I still didn’t like it, but man, it totally made sense! When I started correcting her like that, she responded and she stopped breaking the sit.
Crate time
After each practice session they need to sit in their kennel for at least an hour to absorb and remember what you just taught them. Trust me, I struggled with this! You aren’t supposed to give them things in the kennel either like bones or toys. Their attention needs to be on nothing for that amount of time.
Frustration During Training
Just be careful to not get super frustrated during the training process. It’s easy to do, and I tend to yell commands instead of saying them, which makes the training process not enjoyable for you or your dog. Take a deep breath, if they aren’t getting it, you may need to make your correction a little more severe. Remember, you won’t have to do this for the rest of your dog’s life. Just until your dog understands what is being asked of them. You use this correction for everything, if they jump on people, if they go towards something they shouldn’t etc. You will feel mean, but it takes pretty strict boundaries to get a well behaved dog. I hope this helps you with your dog! Let me know if you liked it, or have any questions.
Items I Use and Love for Dolly Snow