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Now that you and your faithful companion have mastered walking and sitting at heel it is time to start the next faze of obedience training. Teaching your dog to walk calmly on the leash, to stop when you stop and down when asked are simple commands every dog should have. These rules make for a less chaotic lifestyle for you and your dog. Like I have said earlier in the training tips obedience is the main fundamental behavior ALL police canines must have. But, it is equally important with pets. An obedient dog is a happy dog because he/she understands his or her boundaries and everyone is more relaxed and happy around an obedient dog. So lets begin our discussion on teaching your dog to down.
Anytime you are preparing to work on obedience be prepared mentally and have your training supplies on hand. You should have a training collar (slip chain or cloth slip), six-foot leash and a toy/food reward.
From the heel position (dog on your left side) have your dog sit. Position the ring on the training collar on the front side of you dogs neck so it will point downward. With the leash attached to the live ring (the ring on the collar that the chain or cloth glides through) place your right hand on the leash a few inches from the live ring. You want to make sure you do not have too much leash in your hand or it will be cumbersome and you will not be able to make a correction. Using your right hand pull downward. Make sure to pull down with a slight angle forward to allow you dog to complete the behavior. If you pull straight down the dog may not be able to lie on the ground. This will differ slightly depending on the size and weight of you dog. As you pull downward tell your dog to down. Remember, dogs learn with signal, pressure and praise. You are teaching the dog to down. The signal is the word “down”. You are striving for your dog to go into the down position quickly and correctly when you say down. The pressure is the leash correction. Dogs want to do what you ask of them. They want to beat the correction. Once the dog learns the command they will down quickly to beat the correction and in return feel self-accomplishment. Any command that is completed correctly should be followed by praise. Now remember if you are working on an exercise and you plan on repeating it a couple of times keep you praise simple with a pat on the head or back while you say good boy or good girl. Too much or over praising may make your dog to loose focus. Keep the exaggerated praise for the end of the exercise. At first your dog may not want to lie down. Most likely they are confused as to what you are asking them to do verses the refusal to following your command. You may have to use varied amounts of downward pressure from the leash. As you give the leash corrections repeat the command “down”. You may, at first have to use short jolty or pops on the leash downward as you give the down command. If you had to use medium or heavy corrections to get your dog in a down give praise and then move forward with your dog allowing the dog to get up. Walk around with them for a short time to relieve any stress he/she may be feeling. Bring your dog back to heel and repeat the exercise. If your dog goes into a down without much resistance you are a head of the game. Praise your dog in the down. Sit next to your dog praising him/her while repeating the “down” command. After a short time move forward with your dog allowing the dog to come out of the down. As the dog comes out of the down give them their toy reward. Tell your dog he/she was good. Make sure to use a happy excited voice. A voice your dog will associate with good behavior. Make sure to repeat the exercise four to six times in short obedience sessions. The more you work on it the less and less leach corrections should be needed. As with all dog training only use the amount of compulsion needed to affect the behavior. You should never over correct your dog. Eventually you will be able to add the down to your obedience session. Once you and your dog are proficient in the down you will want to have him/her down from the stand or walk. Remember, dogs are time and place oriented. If you have your dog down from the sit position every time your dog will try to beat you to the command and lie down when you want him to stay in the seated position. You always have to stay one step ahead of the dog because they are trying to stay ahead of you. Giving the down command from the heel position. At first you may feel as if you have two left feet when attempting this exercise. I have found that it is best to have a predestination picked out before attempting the down from the walking heel. What I mean is pick a spot in the grass in front of you that you will affect the down once you reach that point. As you near the point of the down prepare yourself to complete the leash correction. While still walking reach with your right and position it on the leash a few inches below the training collar. Give your dog the down command as your start to give downward leash corrections. Remember to continue to move forward until the dog is down. Once down stand next to him/her for a couple of seconds before praising. You want to make sure your dog is going to stay down before praising. If your dog gets up position him/her in the heel position and give the down command as you did when you started teaching the down. Work on the down from the heel position both walking and standing until your dog is proficient. Afterwards you can work on downs while playing ball with your dog. Have your dog down on occasion before you throw the toy. This will quicken the down because the dog knows that once he/she is in the down the toy will come. Make sure to mix it up to keep the behaviors fresh. Down stays- Down stays come after your dog is proficient with the down command. Down stays are simple, but you must be patient. The amount of patients you will need will all depend on your dog. Like most exercises this behavior is taught on leash. Position your dog in the down using the techniques you have learned. Stand next to your dog briefly to make sure he/she is going to remain down. Take your right hand and move it down in front of your dogs nose. As you do this say the word “stay”. As you say stay step forward starting off with your right foot. Take one full step away from the dog. Turn and face your dog. Repeat the stay command. Stand quietly for a few seconds. Return to your dog by walking around to your dog from the right. Make sure the leash does not drag on or pull at the dog. This may prompt your dog to get up. Move back into the position of heel next to your dog. It is fine to repeat the “stay” command as you move. Stand next to your dog for a few seconds to make sure they will remain in the down. Then praise your dog. If your dog gets up or breaks from the down repeat the exercise until they remain in the down. As your dogs proficiency increases you will want to move further away from him/her during the down stay. You might want to walk around your dog or have some one else move around the dog while he/she is in the down stay. Make sure to verbally reinforce the stay command. Key points- signal, pressure and praise are the basic foundation to training your dog. Make sure your commands are clear to the dog. Be willing and able to give correct and timely corrections as they are needed and ALWAYS follow up with praise. Keep obedience training short, high-spirited and it will be fun for both you and your dog. Next installment will be recalls and troubleshooting. Happy training! |
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