Have you just recently bought or adopted a dog? If you have, then you would most likely want to teach it some commands. In the last article, we gave you some tips and tricks on how to make your dog obey to your ‘sit’, ‘stay’ and ‘come’ commands (which you can read about here).
In this article, we are going to provide the tips and tricks on some more advanced commands which can be just as useful as the basic ones outlined in the last articles. Let’s begin!!
Down
A lot of dog owners and trainers will forgo teaching their dog this command as they think the ‘down’ command is too similar to the ‘sit’ command. While that might be true to a certain extent, the ‘down’ command is more reliable and a better reinforcing command than the sit command.
For example, quite a lot of dogs are unable to maintain the sit position for extended periods of time. If a really tempting distraction is too enticing and the dog is unable to overcome its instincts, they will often leave the sitting position and run after the distraction. More work is involved in this situation if they are in the sitting position.
Furthermore, research has shown that dogs in the down position are more relaxed, or in a ‘submissive state’. However, as your dog will be in a more submissive position, it might take a bit more work for them to master this command. Here are some tips to help make it a bit easier:
- Similar to the other command training, remember to use treats.
- Have the treat enclosed in your fist, and hold it near the nose of your dog. When his/her attention is focused on the treat, lower your hand closer to the ground. Their head should also lower to the ground, following your hand .
- Next, move your hand along the ground, away from him/her in a straight line. This will encourage your dog’s body to follow their head towards the floor.
- When their body is in the ‘down’ position, reward him/her with the treat and shower them with lots of love.
- If they are simply walking towards the treat rather than leaning in using their body, you’re moving your hand too fast. Slow it down.
- If they try to sit up, say ‘NO’ in a stern manner and move your hand away. Never try and force him/her down (or force them to do anything they don’t want to). Always use encouragement when they are moving in the right direction. he/she d
- Just like any other command training, make sure you do this on a daily basis.
Oftentimes, the ‘down’ command is more reliable and better for your dog than the ‘sit’ command
Leave it
Just like us, sometimes curiosity can get the better of your dog. In such situations, you might want your dog to ignore a potential deadly thing on the ground and come back to you. Here’s some tips to teach your dog the ‘leave it’ command.
- Like before, remember to use treats.
- Enclose a treat in both of your hands, and show him one of the enclosed fists and say ‘leave it’. Your dog will try to do everything he can to get to the treat, such as licking, sniffing, pawing or barking at you or your fist. When they give up on the first treat, offer them the treat in your other hand.
- Repeat this process until your dog is able to ignore the treat in your first hand as soon as you say ‘leave it’. You can also think about giving your dog the second treat ONLY if they look up at your when they move away from the first treat.
- You can increase the difficulty of this training (and better reinforcing your dog to follow your command) by using two different treats: a standard treat and a treat you know your dog will go crazy for. For this training, enclose the super appealing treat in your first hand, the standard treat in your second hand, and follow the process above.
- You can also up the ante by placing the treat on the ground and covering it using your hand and repeat the above training process. Once your dog has got the hang of it, hold your hand just above the treat, but not fully covering it. Repeat the training process, but slowly move your hand farther and farther away from the treat every time your dog has mastered his control.
Sometimes the curiosity can get the better of your dog.
Out
Does your dog have something in his mouth that he shouldn’t have? This command is very useful if you want your dog to drop whatever is currently in its mouth. Here’s some tips to help your dog follow this command:
- Remember to use treats to enforce positive behaviour!
- Start off by giving your dog one of his/her favourite toys. It should be firmly clenched between their teeth. Then grab the toy and pull it towards you. Initially, your dog will be reluctant to hand the toy over, but they should release it eventually if you keep at it long enough. Once your dog has let go over the toy, offer it back to him/her and repeat the process above.
- Repeat this process numerous times and soon enough your dog will lose interest in keeping the toy. As soon as that happens, say the command ‘out’.
- Repeat this training every day until your dog drops the toy from its mouth as soon as you say ‘out’.
A ball is fine, but sometimes your dog may be holding something that you don’t want them to hold.
Patience is key
We know that training your dog to follow your commands can be a very exhausting and lengthy process. But trust me, it’s a very worthwhile investment while your dog is still young. But if you want more help in training your dog, then you may want to think about taking your dog to a dog training school or look into dog training courses online (click here to try one out!).
Have we missed any commands that you think are extremely useful? Let us know down in the comments below!
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