The fourth in the series of dog training tricks is the Place command. This command may be used when you want to guide your dog into a particular spot. He will follow at your command. This can be useful when you have a dog that likes to bury his feces in the yard or somewhere else you want him to go. This means that he cannot easily find his way out. Be careful though, as the dog may refuse to follow you if you use this command too much.
One of the dog training tricks is for you to make the dog sit or lie down while you put your arm around its neck. You can do this by using an appropriate reward and a firm voice. Praise the dog until it sits or lies down. If it does not obey, repeat the command until it does. As always, practice until the dog understands what you want from it.
A dog that understands the Sit command is also able to keep quiet when you are speaking and still stay behind. This means you will not need to shout at the dog. It will not jump around wildly or yelp at anything. It will simply stand quietly without jumping or making any noise. If the dog sits politely, you can even praise it again.
Teaching the dog to stand still is a little bit trickier. However, it is simple to teach once you understand the concept. Begin by holding one of the dog’s legs with your thumb and forefinger close together. Give the dog a treat and tell it to sit. Then say the command for it to stand calmly next to you.
Have a ball or some other small praise reward handy when you begin. This will help the dog realize that you mean it when you say the command. As the dog sits down next to you, simply repeat the command for it to stand. Do not use the back door to take the dog back in as this will confuse them. You should be consistent in your commands.
Start off by having the dog sit in the sitting position and then give it a treat. Praise it when the dog sits and then let it know that it is doing what you want by giving a verbal correction for it to stand. Repeat this process until you are satisfied that the dog will always sit calmly next to you. Once the dog understands the sit and stand commands, you can then begin to use the verbal command for it to stay where you want it to.
If the dog starts to jump around or yelp, do not punish it. If you do, you will confuse the dog and it will not learn to sit or stand properly. You will instead only be reinforcing bad behavior. Repetition of the command is essential in the dog learning it is suppose to sit and stay.
To teach your dog to sit and stay, practice the exercise above using the same verbal cues for it to listen to. As the dog begins to respond, use the verbal command for it to sit down next to you and stand quietly until it does. Give it lots of praise before you take it outside again. Teaching dog command words is very important to have a well behaved dog. Your dog will be grateful for you when you get him out of the house!
A good way to train your dog to sit and stay is to first find a quiet place where you can place him. Then you want to have a treat ready so you can give your dog treats whenever he responds correctly to the sit command. When the dog has mastered the command to sit, then you will start to use the verbal command for it to stay where you want him to.
If you are outside with the dog, try to make it so the dog can see you by sitting or kneeling next to you. It will be easier for the dog to respond to your commands if you keep your hands by your side. If you have a friend, then both of you can practice the command together. Keep your dog on a leash and practice the command until it is simple and easy to say. It may take several days before you get the dog to respond correctly to just your voice.
You will find that the dog to sit can be very difficult to train depending on how stubborn your dog is. However, it is important to not give up when it does not seem to be responding to other methods. Remember, teaching dog place command takes patience. But if you stick with it and give the dog the attention he needs, then you will find the training dog trick really useful.
