Teach Your Dog to ‘STAY’
Traditionally considered one of the basic commands, teaching your dog to ‘stay’ has a variety of every day uses, plus, it can be a literal life saver. Excitable dogs can be a danger to themselves and whether they have a habit of bolting through doors or trying to race across the road, the ‘stay’ command should stop them in their tracks. It’s also great to use to keep your dog calm when guests come to your home, and to stop them from begging at the dinner table. Ideally you should make sure your dog is comfortable with the ‘sit’ and ‘down’ commands before starting ‘stay’ training, and though they won’t learn the command overnight, as long as you are consistent and go step by step, they will get there.
Before You Start
Initially, it is best to train your dog to perform the ‘stay’ command in an area with minimal distraction like a void deck or the top of a multi-story car park, before trying out the behaviour at the dog park.
(A) Build Up Duration
1) Keeping your dog on a leash, ask her to sit in front of you.
2) Firmly say ‘stay’ and simultaneously put your hand out, with your palm facing towards your dog. Hold this position for just a few seconds, and if your dog stays, reward her with a treat and verbal praise.
3) Repeat the previous step, but hold the position for a few more seconds with each repetition. Always reward your dog with a treat and lots of praise when she holds the ‘stay’ for as long as you have asked.
4) As your dog gets a little more comfortable with the ‘stay’ command, try looking away from your dog while asking her to perform the behaviour. This will let her know that she has to hold the position whether or not you are focussed on her.
5) When you are ready to release her from the ‘stay’, use another verbal cue such as ‘okay!’ or ‘all done!’, to let her know it is ok to run around again. Be creative with your unique verbal markers.
6) Once your dog can hold the ‘stay’ for a full minute, remove the leash and check that she understands that she needs to hold the ‘stay’ whether or not she is wearing this.
7) If your dog breaks the ‘stay’ by getting up before you have released her, use a neutral verbal marker like ‘oops!’ and put her back into the sitting position so you can try again. It is essential that your dog figures out that the only way to get that treat from you is to stay and follow your instructions. Work her brain!
Note: Build your dog up for success! Often dogs will break the ‘stay’ if you are moving too fast for them, so try asking for a ‘stay’ for a shorter period before gradually building up to a longer duration. Work at your dog’s pace.
(B) Add Distance
1) Put your dog in a sitting position and using the physical cue (holding your hand out in front of your dog in a stop motion), and the verbal cue ‘stay’, take a step backwards away from her.
2) Always return to your dog to give her a treat and reward her for staying. If you call her to you she may think she is being rewarded for coming to you rather than for staying. Be sure to separate the cues and the reward, in order to mark her success, instead of confusing her!
3) If your dog moves to follow you as you step away, lead her back to her original position and try again.
4) Repeat this process until your dog is comfortable, gradually increasing the number of steps you take. Make sure to take this slowly and if your dog breaks the ‘stay’, return to a distance she is comfortable with and work your way back up.
5) When you are ready to release her from the ‘stay’, use a verbal cue such as ‘release!’ or ‘all done!’, to let her know it is ok to run around again. I use ‘go play!’ with my dog, Chowbox, who recognizes this marker as a cue for release.
6) Once she is consistently able to ‘stay’ while you take a few steps backwards away from her, try turning your back on her and walking away (having first used the physical cue and asked her to ‘stay’). Be patient as she might find this difficult to understand at first.
7) Make sure that you can walk away from your dog both facing and facing away from her. You may also want to try walking around her. These are further proofing steps to check your dog fully understands the ‘stay’ command.
(C) Generalize + Include Distractions
The final step is to ensure that your dog can hold the ‘stay’ position no matter what is going on around her. Here are a few suggestions of generalized distractions you can use to slowly acclimatize your dog and make sure she will be able to perform the ‘stay’ command anywhere, no matter what is going on around her.
1) Put your dog in a sitting position and ask her to ‘stay’ using the physical verbal cues.
2) Try having somebody walk past you. Then have them run past you. Then you try running away from your dog (her instinct will be to chase after you). Try walking close to her while tossing a ball, or one of her toys in the air. Have someone walk past you with another dog. Ask someone to ring the doorbell. Try placing a bowl of food on the floor nearby. Use as many different temptations as possible to proof this behaviour – but do not do too much at one go. Do not forget, the aim is to set your dog up for success!
3) Remember, this stage will be hard for your dog so make sure to use high value treats like a juicy piece of meat so that it’s in her interest to ‘stay’.
4) If she does break the ‘stay’, just put her back in her original position and try a less tempting distracting behaviour. Patience is key to teaching a solid ‘stay’, so just take the training one small step at a time.
==
Teaching a solid ‘stay’ can also save your dog from life threatening situations. Very often, our dogs may wander too far from our reach, or too near to a threat such as a moving car or a busy road. With clear, strong and reliable communication from you, your dog will respond with trust to your verbal cues. Good luck, and share your success stories with us at woof@upforpaws.com!