My Training Notes

Some Basic Obedience Commands


This has taken five years to sink into my conciousness: the most important part of dog training is to have my dog's attention. If my dog is running around, sniffing the ground, I can't teach him to sit or come or heel. I first must teach him to pay attention. I want my dog to look at my face when he pays attention to me. Simply speaking to my Yorkie will have this effect. Some dogs will be encouraged to look at their trainer if the trainer communicates excitement. For my Chow I hold a piece of food in my hand, say "Ready", and move the food toward my eyes. When he looks at me, I give him the food. Never stop working on this command. Give this command at random when you have your dog outdoors.

What words should you use for your commands? Most trainers recommend one-word commands. I like the standard commands because they ARE standard. If I should have an auto accident and my dog is in the car with me, the EMT and/or police officer will be familiar with the standard commands for controlling my dog. Some people think that their dog does not obey because the owner is using the wrong command. But the actual word really does not matter - as Chris Norton says, "You could use 'peanut butter.'"

Your dog should obey on the first command. Give the command once and then enforce it. DO NOT GIVE THE COMMAND IF YOU ARE NOT IN A POSITION TO ENFORCE IT. I have watched people give the "sit" command three times and then the dog sits. I have watched other people give the command ten times and then the dog sits. Dogs can count! Note that "be" is not the same as "bebe," "moo" is not the same as "mumu," etc. So "sitsit" is not the same command as "sit." For example, my mother's dog responded to "comecomecome" but not to "come."

If you are training with food, the dog gets the treat ONLY if she obeys on the first command. If you are using collar corrections, the dog is corrected only AFTER she has had an opportunity to obey. The correct sequence here is 1) ONE command, 2) verbal correction (a sharp "No!" or "Hey!"), 3) the collar correction. Some trainers will give the verbal correction simultaneously with the collar correction. Their point is that the dog should obey promptly and should not be given a second chance. With either method the dog is learning to associate the verbal correction with the physical correction.

I wish that I might have a dollar for every time that I have seen dog owners give a collar correction first and then give the command second. This trains the dog that when my owner jerks me, he is going to say somthing. What you want to train is that when you say something, your dog must obey. (See my first two examples in the section on biting.)

A dog is encouraged to "sit" by pulling up on the leash and pushing down on his rear. Pulling up raises his head and almost compels him to sit. With food: hold the treat in front of his face and bring the treat up (and back a bit). Thus we reinforce the upward movement of the head with the leash and the food in the hand. --> "Hand moving up" is the hand signal for "sit."

"Down" by grabbing the leash CLOSE to the collar (or grab the collar itself) and pulling down to the floor (and forward a bit). With food: hold the treat in front of the dog's face and bring the treat down. --> "Hand moving down" is the hand signal for "down."

"Stand" by pulling the leash STRAIGHT forward just a few inches and then stop with palm toward the dog. With food: hold the treat in front of the dog's face and bring the treat forward. This works because the dog moves his body forward as he stands from a down or sit. Alternatively, take a step forward and the dog will stand as he moves forward at your side in the heel postition.

Of course you can see by now that the hand signal for "stay" is your hand in front of the dogs face, your palm toward the dog. No treat is given here. The anticipation of a food treat is a great distraction to the dog. Stay beside him and hold him in place if necessary. When he learns this, move one foot away. Gradually increase your distance.

If your dog breaks from the stay position, it is your fault. You must return to your dog and release her BEFORE she breaks. This is the only way to have a successful learning experience. When your dog breaks, that's NOT a training experience. If your dog can stay for only five seconds, you should perform LOTS of successful five second stays.

To train my Chow, I brought my hand briskly toward his nose, stopping one or two inches from his nose. I didn't threaten to hit him but he did need a FIRM hand signal.

Eventually teach your dog to obey "stay" from a distance. This is good when the dog is running toward the street. "Stand" (or "stop") can precede the "stay." Some people make distinctions between "stay" and "wait." Variation 1: Stay means remain here until I return and wait means I will call you to come to me. Variation 2: Stay means freeze and wait means remain in this general area. Most of the trainers in my circle disagree with variation 2. (Myself, I tend to use the commands interchangably but enforce "stay" more rigorously than "wait."

"Come" is very important. Train your dog with the six foot leash and then use gradually longer leashes or a rope, etc. Let your dog see the food in your hand before you say "Come." Do not tug on the leash, your dog may interpret that as a "collar correction."

Train your dog to heel by holding a piece of food in your left hand. (Hold the leash in your right hand.) At random intervals give the food to your dog without stopping.

NEVER CONFUSE "SIT" WITH "DOWN." NEVER SAY "SIT DOWN." The command to refrain from jumping on people is "OFF" not "DOWN" unless of course you want the dog to lie down. Then be sure to enforce the "down" command. This will be hard to do since the dog is excited. "Off" is better.

Tell the dog to sit as you place him in position AND THEN SAY, "GOOD SIT." Otherwise the dog will not know that he did what you wanted him to do. Once I watched a professional dog trainer wrestle with a dog for several minutes to get the dog "down." He finally got the dog down, said nothing, and let the dog get up. That dog is still wondering what was the purpose of the whole exercise.

You can teach almost anything by breaking it down into several simple steps. Food can be used to place the dog in position and to guide the dog through the motions.

Socialization is very important for a Chow. By all means take him to SEVERAL dog training classes for the socialization as well as the training. Find a trainer who is not prejudiced against Chows. Sit in on several sessions without your dog before you sign up. Here is a link which gives some pointers on chosing a dog trainer: Ten Questions Every Dog Owner Should Ask.