The “sit” command is the most fundamental command to teach your dog. This training command paves the way for many other commands and is a terrific method to establish a rapid relationship with your dog. Below are the seven easy tactics to train your dog.
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7 Best Ways to Teaching Your Dog to Sit
These methods can assist you in teaching your dog to sit, whether you have a young puppy or an untrained senior dog:-
1. Select the appropriate setting.
Avoid teaching instructions at the dog park, for example, and instead pick a relaxing, distraction-free area where you have control.
To maintain control over your dog and assist keep his or her focus on you, all training exercises should be carried out “on a leash.”
2. Maintain one foot on the leash.
Your dog will stay put better if you maintain a foot on the leash. Your dog is not intended to be choked or forced to the ground with this action.
Instead, you should maintain a foot-on-the-leash position with just enough lead for your dog to wander about on, but not enough for them to leap up on you.
3. Lift your dog’s head with your treat-holding hand.
When teaching your dog to sit, place a dog treat between its first two fingers and hold it palm-side up six inches from its snout.
This positioning helps your dog to naturally sit up so that they can view the treat more clearly.
4. Say “sit.”
Use the verbal signal “sit,” being sure to pronounce it clearly, while your dog sits down to better view the treat. Put some emphasis on it.
Make it a request, not a mandate.
5. Give your dog a treat.
As soon as your dog sits, give them the pleasure and lots of positive reinforcement, such as caressing and saying, “Good dog.”
By only rewarding them when they are fully sat, your dog will learn to identify being seated with the praise.
Make sure they are in a proper sit posture rather than hovering their rear end just over the ground.
6. Continue.
Reset your dog so they are in control and paying attention before you start the command. Repeat the process for up to 15 minutes.
Give your dog a break after 15 minutes; they typically can’t focus for longer than brief training sessions.
Three times a day, train your dog for 10 to 15 minutes at a time, and be sure always to conclude each session with your dog correctly executing the command.
7. Make things harder.
As your dog improves, take your foot off the leash or train in an area with a little bit more distractions to assist them in learning to pay attention to you.
Getting Your Dog to sit with a CAPTURE or LURE
There are two ways to teach your dog to sit: by CAPTURING the sit or via LURE. Either approach should provide the same outcomes.
Just be sure to lavish your pet with compliments and expensive goodies as soon as they settle down. The objective is to teach your dog that sitting is rewarding!
The CAPTURE a Sit Technique:
To use this technique, you must wait for your dog to spontaneously give a sit. In a place free from noise and distractions, watch your dog.
As soon as your dog’s bottom touches the ground while sitting independently, CLICK or say “YES” and reward them with a goodie.
The catch technique is a pleasant approach to strengthen your relationship with your dog and gives them a chance to consider what you want from them.
The LURE a Sit Technique:
This technique is a little more conventional. You will hold a goodie in front of your dog’s snout to entice him to sit.
First Step:
As your dog’s head rises, slowly slide the treat straight back; they will often sit up on their own. Remember that you shouldn’t say the word “sit” just yet.
All you want is for your dog to get used to the habit. Treat them as soon as their bottom reaches the ground by clicking or by saying “YES.”
A trick to getting a dog to sit is to hide the reward or even enter the room empty-handed so they won’t start to rely on it instead of your hand moving over their head.
But make sure you take care of them thereafter.
Continue to step two after you feel that your dog is at ease with either of these techniques.
Second Step:
You’ll need to cue the SIT behavior now that you and your dog have learned it.
This just serves to label the conduct with a gesture or word. If you’d like, you may be a little creative and use the phrase “Sit,” a hand gesture for it in sign language or another language, or even a motion.
Utilize your Step 1 abilities to get a sit, but this time speak or signal “Sit” just before you get the behavior. Once they are seated, CLICK or say “YES,” then treat them.
Do this ten to fifteen times, or until you believe your dog has connected the cue to the desired behavior.
Third Step:
It’s important to strengthen the cue by introducing new components, such as length, distance, and distractions, and generalize it by exercising in as many diverse settings as you can.
Asking your dog to sit when a toy is squeaking, from the kitchen while you are in the living room, etc. Always use your imagination and remember to share your sweets!
The message is reiterated: sitting results in rewards.
Fourth Step:
The end result of teaching your dog to sit is that you want them to continue doing it until you tell them to quit.
You grant your dog permission to move forward when you teach them a release cue. Say OKAY or BREAK (or any other word you choose!) to signal release once your dog is seated.
Fifth Step:
Make the behavior dependable by practicing it in each scenario you intend to utilize it in (e.g., halting at a crossing, during playtime, while they are off-leash, etc.).
It requires repetition for the habit to become dependable.
A relationship based on trust is held together by teaching basic obedience. It’s how we interact with our pets and forge close relationships.
When we have trust as our foundation, our dogs will always seek us when they are unsure or confused. Trust is the most crucial component of any connection.
We can make sure they are safe by doing this.
The Difference Between Straight and Sloppy Sits
Dogs can acquire varied body postures and a propensity to sit in particular ways, much like people do. A dog that has been taught to sit may choose to do so with the legs neatly tucked under.
As an alternative, a dog may decide to sit with its legs stretched out to the side in a sloppy, lethargic manner.
While owners who are teaching their dogs to be merely companion animals may give less consideration to how the dog sits, those with more specific goals, such as those who are training the dog for rally obedience, maybe a little pickier about attaining neat, square sits.
Conclusion
The techniques for teaching a dog to sit are effective because they reward desired behaviors while discouraging undesirable ones, which eventually go away.
The primary tenet of positive reinforcement training is this.
Author
Sarwar Abdullah
Content Developer at Dog Region
Author Bio
Content writing is my passion. And I believe in following my dreams to achieve my goal in life! I am a full-time entrepreneur who believes in investing his time in his profession and passion equally.
