“Oh, No, Otto!” – The benefits of the Long Down Exercise
This video made the rounds on the internet recently, and we felt it was a great opportunity to discuss the value of working The Long Down exercise with your dog, especially if you have the dream of a pleasant morning coffee at your local cafe with your dog without causing this level of chaos! If […]
Heeling and Sitting [Instructions]
What is “heel” and why do we teach it? “Heel” is a position in relation to the handler, where the dog’s front legs line up with the handler’s front legs. Dogs can be in heel position while in a sit, stand, down and while the handler in motion. Most people think a dog and handler […]
Finish to the Right
Return to Heel Position We’ve practice keep the dog in heel position and moving with the dog in heel position. The next step will be to get them to set up into heel position. For this exercise, we will start with them in front position, as if they have just completed the recall exercise. Finish […]
The Random Recall
Random Recall This is a slightly harder version of recall than the formal recall. You will follow the same steps as the formal recall, but instead of starting with your dog in a sit/stay or place, you will allow your dog to get six feet from you and become distracted. They can be sniffing, they […]
Stay – Down Position
Down/Stay The third and final stay position! Since we’ve already learned sit/stay and stand/stay, the down stay should be an easy addition to their skill set. We will use the down command and the downward leash pressure that we taught last week to build duration in the down. One thing to keep in mind as […]
The Down Position
Down is the last of our three main obedience positions. Great for settling our dogs, having them hold long stays, completing husbandry tasks, doing cool tricks, and more! For our purposes, the criteria for down will be that the dog is in a down position and also has both elbows on the ground. Lure Down […]
Formal Recall Command
Recall (“Come”) The recall is arguably the most important command we can teach our dogs. It is also a very difficult command to perfect and practice with distractions. How we define “come” or recall to a dog can make a big difference in how quickly they understand the position, and how we can use that […]
The Stand/Stay
Stand/Stay Now that your dog has been introduced to the stand position, it is time to build duration in the stand with the stand stay. Most of our practical uses of the stand (examination at the vet, grooming, etc) require a prolonged stand, so the stand/stay will come in handy in real life situations. Place […]
The Place Command
What is place? Place is a go-to-your spot command. The dog should go to an object when commanded and put all four feet on the object. The dog should remain on the object until directed to do otherwise. Why are we teaching place? Place can be used to get dogs in and out of their […]
Stand Position
Manual Stand The manual stand is a great tool to help your dog get comfortable with body handling exercises. We would use this exercise to help decrease anxiety in stressful situations, help to desensitize them to veterinary examinations, and as the first step towards getting your dog to accept nail trims. It is SO effective […]