How Do I Teach My Dog To Sit And Stay?
“Sit” is one of the more basic obedience commands and is typically the first position taught. Basic obedience will be the beginning of a dog's understanding of classical conditioning. This is also their initial introduction to a reward vs. correction based learning system. In this post you will gather information on the process of teaching your dog the basic command “sit”, using leash pressure suggestion and positive reinforcement. After your dog understands your desire for them to sit you will learn how to enforce the paired command “stay”.
Appropriate age to teach and equipment to use
The soonest a dog can be taught to sit is around 8 weeks. Typically this command is reinforced using the reward system (treats and praise). At around the same time period you should be introducing your dog to wearing a collar or leash. While teaching your dog the sit and stay commands you will be using the leash to produce light pressure to better assist you in guiding your dog. This is considered a leash pressure suggestion. You do not want to force your dog into any position by over correcting or abusing the pressure of the leash to get them to comply.
Teaching the sit command
Use a treat, place this over the dog’s nose and lure the dog’s head backwards until their butt is placed on the ground. Once the dog is in a sit position you may reward them by giving them good praise and the treat. The next step to the sit command involves using the same reward method and implementing the leash. Repeat the initial steps to get your dog to sit using treats and add slight leash pressure by pulling upwards to initiate the motion to further enforce the movement for the desired action. The correct process for teaching this command goes like this:
Use slight leash pressure and pull up
Treat follows the leash motion
Dog sits - relax leash pressure
Reward with treat
Enforcing the stay command
To get your dog to stay seated you want to begin to introduce movement and distance from them when in the sitting position. During this teaching process if your dog decides to stand up with you or move in the direction you’re going, simply tell the dog no and repeat the sit command and try again. Creating distance from your dog while reinforcing the sit and stay can look like this:
Place your dog in a sit and start by taking one step backwards, if your dog stays, step towards them and reward them with a treat. Continue this process by increasing the space between you each time. This teaches the dog that they do not need to always follow you to be praised. The food and attention will come to them when it is time.
Positive reinforcement at the right time to praise the desired behavior
Positive reinforcement is the act of you giving a reward for the desired behavior. Simply, you will only give treats when the dog does what it is told. If the dog does not sit or stay seated your reaction will be to say no and guide your dog back into the proper position. Once the dog is where you want them to be then you can reward them again.
