Here's a question that came my way last week. Watch the video, then check out my step-by-step instructions.
Hi Courtney,
You can teach your pup to lie down in just a few easy steps. Here
they are:)
- First, check with your vet to make sure
that there are no medical reasons for his behavior. If he does the
behavior on his own then probably not an issue but it's good to rule it
out anyway:) - Find something your dog likes. He's gotta eat, so
his favorite food is a good start. Toys work too if that's what trips
his trigger. - Find an "obstacle" for him to have to go under.
Think limbo bar about head height when he is lying down. (He'll get
there). Most people don't have limbo bars lying around so the back bar
on a metal folding chair works well too. - Get him used to the
prop you are going to be using for training and make sure he isn't
afraid of it. - Take the food/toy (called a lure) and
rub it in his face and get him excited without giving it to him. - Hold
the lure about an inch in front of his nose and try to get him to move
his head under the prop. - If he likes the lure enough, he'll try
to find another way around the obstacle without going under. (Don't
give in:) - Reward him for making small steps with the lure in the
right direction of the behavior. (Anything that looks like lying down
works.) - Increase your criteria. In other words, make him work
for it. When he is comfortable going down to a certain level, then
make him go a bit farther. Don't make him go too far too quickly or
he/you may get frustrated. - If the prop is the right height and
you are using the right lure, he's going to go into a down. It may
happen fast so be prepared, but it could also take some time.
When you get this far, drop me a line on the blog. We'll need to talk
about:
1. Fading out the lure
2. Finding out what the cue will be. (It could be verbal, visual or
both.)
3. Getting rid of the limbo bar:)
Remember, try to not put in a cue or command like a verbal"down" just
yet. You'll find yourself doing it at some point but try not to. This
should be fun and a good training challenge for you and your pup:)
Hope this was useful to many of you out there, and if it prompted any
questions, be sure to write and I'll address that too.
Keep on training!
Chris
Filed under: Dog training tips
Tags: food lures, Positive Reinforcement, pugs, putting behaviors on cue, toy lures, training a down
I thought I heard somewhere that pigs can fly - didn't know that was true of Pugs too
also, you are halfway to teaching your dog to limbo, not a horrible party trick.
True. Who doesn't like silly dog tricks. Got any that you've trained with your goldens?
taught a foster dog to skateboard, but the new parents were not that impressed, so looking for new tricks.
Currently trying to teach my sisters 140 pound Komondor the skateboard trick just to freak her out.
Nice. You may need a longboard for the Komondor:) The new parents of your foster dog should have been happy you took the time to train the pup...even if it was skateboarding:)