The Easy Way to Teach Your Dog to “Stay”
Teaching your dog to stay stationary and not perform any form of action is a difficult task for an animal to understand. Because you are not asking for your dog to actually ‘do’ something, such as ’sit’ and ‘lie down’, they have to comprehend how to remain still and hold its current position.
So how do we go about teaching our dog to “stay”?
Using an already known action will make it easier on your dog to learn how to “stay” so ask your dog to sit. Now, instead of going ahead and praising him like you would normally do, this time you will want to add the command “stay” in the same way you asked him to sit. As soon as a few seconds have passed and your dog staying in his position, go ahead and praise him or give a small treat.
You can help him stay in position by staying close to him and make sure there are no distractions that could get his attention. By using your body language you can ensure he will stay still.
If your dog decides to get up and leave before having praised him, repeat the steps by first telling him to sit, and then to stay. Try to praise him before moving on his own so that he can start relating the “stay” command with not doing anything but to stay in position. Gradually you can build up the time your dog needs to stay.
The next step is to start making it a little more complicated by asking your dog to stay and move away a little bit without him moving.
dog training | Danah Reed | 26 February 2009 |
