The Sequence of Commands from Basic to Advanced

Narrated from: Dog Training

As you move from the basic obedience training and onto more advanced training for your dog you will see how many of the advanced commands are taught with the basic commands being firmly implanted in your dog’s head. Make sure you teach him his commands in progression so you don’t confuse him. Work on just one command for at least a week in two fifteen minute intervals each day. His response to the commands you give should be immediate. He should respond before he even seems to give it any thought. In addition you should not repeat the command over and over again. Don’t accidently teach your dog that “Sit, sit, sit! SIT!!” means that he should probably sit for you. Make your commands firm but not loud. If you are repeating the command three times before he takes action he has not learned the command. Help him understand the command if he does not seem to understand it after a couple of tries. For instance, when you are teaching him to “sit”, if holding the treat over his head does not make him sit then hold the treat over his head and put your arm behind him to help his rear legs bend. Never apply pressure to his rump to make him sit because this can cause damage to his hips.

As you begin training make it as much of a game as possible. This should not be a miserable drill; besides, the more you both enjoy the session the faster he will learn. Additionally training sessions should be held before meal times and not after his belly is full. So get the basics out of the way by teaching commands like “Sit”, “Down”, “Crate”, “Come”, “Leave it”, and “Okay” but do not leave one command and move on to the next until he knows it well. After he has learned three or more commands go through them in random order. There have been many dogs taught the commands and to go through mini drills of each command in the same order every time. Eventually the dog will go through the entire routine in order, all by himself.

Once the basics are learned and you get an immediate response every time, you can move on to additional commands. “Pull it” is an easy one, “Get it”, “Leave it”, “Bring it”, and “Hold it” are slightly more difficult ones. “Find” it is a fun one to teach but it is a little more advanced. Be creative but be consistent in your training. Consider it a special play date for your dog. Just be sure to use the same words every time and the same hand signals. Think of it this way; if you combine “Pull it”, ”Push it”, “Bring it”, and “Drop it”, you can have him trained to bring you a beer from the refrigerator! Baby steps will bring him along, and remember that an average dog is capable of learning over twenty-five different commands! The combinations and possibilities are endless so keep working with him. Some dogs will take more patience than others, just don’t give up!! The two of you can get there!

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