Who doesn't want to have their dog stay, at their signals..Right?! In this dog training below, you'll be learning how you can teach your dog to stay, in 6 easy steps.
This comes in basic behavior training of dogs and it's very important for them to understand their owner's instructions and respond to them quickly. If you ever wanted to play "dead" with your dog, then this is a must to learn training before you do it. This won't be much difficult if you follow the steps given below:
How to Teach A Dog to Stay
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STEP ONE - Prepare them to focus on your signals
Before getting to the teaching part, find a quiet location where your dog can only focus on your signals without getting distracted.
Make sure that your dog is calm when you are teaching them to stay. If your dog is energetic, you may want to take them for a walk before starting up.
Let them relax in their starting position like sitting, or lying down, or standing but you do need to have taught them that first. Choose whichever position they find most comfortable. You will also need to pick a cue word and make sure you stick to it. Something like ‘Stay’ or ‘Wait’ works well.
STEP TWO - Give them a Verbal Cue 'Stay' or 'Wait'
Ask your dog to take their preferred starting position and reward them for it. Then, using a clear hand signal, give your dog the verbal signal 'Stay.' It is best to hold your hand up with a flat palm facing away from you.
Now Remove the hand signal and immediately praise your dog before they move.
You'll need to be quick with this, so you might want to practice without your dog first. Move on to the next stage once you can do this 5 times in a row without your dog getting up before you can reward them.
STEP THREE - Repeat while breaking eye contact with your dog
Repeat the previous steps, but this time, as you withdraw your hand signal, break eye contact by looking away from your dog. Then, like previously, REWARD them.
Because eye contact is a strong hook for dogs' attention, this is a terrific approach to see how successful they are at remaining. Once your dog is comfortable with this, go to the next stage.
STEP FOUR - Increase the time while rewarding them for staying at their position
Next, you'll want to gradually increase the length of time your dog can stay before being rewarded. This will be different for each dog. Some may only be able to increase by a second at a time, but others may be able to rise by up to 30 seconds.
Keep track of how far you've progressed each time you practice.
You may have pushed up too quickly if your dog is moving. If this is the case, go back and reduce the time before working your way back up.
As a basic rule, before increasing the duration, you want your dog to stay successfully 5 times in a row.
STEP FIVE - Optimise the time duration to make your dog comfortable with it
After that, you can begin to put distance between yourself and your dog while they remain. Before you proceed, you should ensure that your dog can stay for at least a minute or two.
When you instruct your dog to stay, take a step away from them and then return to them to reward them. As the distance increases, your dog may find it more difficult to stay, thus you may need to lessen the length of time you ask your dog to stay for and gradually increase it.
Gradually increase the distance between you and your dog. If they are having difficulty or are highly sensitive to movement, you may need to start by just shifting your body weight away from them.
STEP SIX - Add in distractions to test your dog's impulse control
When you may freely walk around your dog while they are in a stay, check if you can swiftly drop out of sight and then return to treat them. You might also start introducing distractions, such as toys or dancing around them, to put your dog's impulse control to the test.
Build things up gradually, like with all the other phases, and if habits start to slide, go back and build them up again.
When your dog feels comfortable being asked to "stay" in a familiar setting, you can switch locations and restart the training. You can also teach your dog a release word, such as 'OK,' to let them know when it is time to leave the stay. You should, however, always return to your dog to allow them out of the stay. If you call your dog out of a stay, they may become confused.
Watch the video below outlining the steps to teach your dog to stay: