Real Estate Innovation

The Top Four Commands Your Dog Needs

You’ll come to find that the old saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”, is completely false. A dog, no matter what age they are, can learn to do basic obedience. You just have to know a few things yourself. Everyone can train a dog, but if you’re not training them correctly they’re not going to pick up on it, and it’s going to learn you frustrated, and your poor dog extremely confused. So to make it easier on everyone take these simple tips on how to teach your dog to do these four basic commands:

1. Come

This command is one of the most important for your dog to know for your convenience, as well as for their safety. Nothing is scarier than if your dog runs away, and you’re not able to catch them, or even worse if they run into a dangerous situation, like into the street with incoming traffic, and you’re not able to get to them fast enough to save them. In these situations, it’s crucial for your dog to know to “come” on command. There are a few ways to teach your dog this command. The most affective and easy is to put your dog on a long lead. Let them wander away from you, even let them get distracted with anything else they find more interesting. Then, in a stern voice, say “COME!” Then, immediately after, sharply tug toward you on the lead letting your dog know what’s expected on them. If they don’t come all the way to you, pull on the lead again until they reach you. Only say “COME!” once. This is so they know they need to come the first time their called. Again, it plays a very important role in their safety later on. Finally, when your dog makes it all the way over to you, give them lots of praise and on occasion, a tasty treat. (I say on occasion if you reward them with a treat every time, they’ll learn not to obey you unless you have the treat to give.)

2. Down

It can be annoying and frustrating when your puppy jumps up on you; think about how much worse it could be if they did it as a full-grown dog? If you are looking to make sure that your dog doesn’t jump up on you, give them the command down and ignore them until they have all four paws on the ground. Remember that your dog is jumping up on you to get your attention, and that if you don’t give it to them that they should stop and see what is going on.

3. Heel

When your dog is out and about with you, they should know that their proper place is by your side. If your dog is constantly dragging behind or they are running forward and dragging you along, this can result in safety problems down the line, so take some time and make sure that you know what you need to do to ensure that they are not going to be giving you a problem. Keep them on a short leash and make sure that they know that hearing the ‘heel’ command means that they should stay close.

4. Sit

There are plenty of situations where you want to let your dog sit and cool their heels for a while, and it is lucky that this is one of the most easy commands to learn. Say the command word while keeping their head up and pressing their hindquarters down; this can tell them what you want out of them. Praise them when they do this, and you’ll find that they will soon respond.

Be persistent, consistent, and have a little patience. This and repetitiveness is what it’s going to take for your dog to understand what you expect from them.

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- Thomas Turner