Home Based Dog Training

“How can I make my dog stay?” is the question I hear more than any other.  The stay is one of the most useful skills for a dog to know.

It is important to use both a verbal command and a hand signal.  The universal hand signal for stay is to put an open palm in front of the dog's face. 

Start with the dog on lead and sitting in a heel position (on your left side with its ear in line with the seam of your pants).  Make sure that the training collar is positioned high on the dog's neck.  Then say “stay” in a firm, no nonsense voice and give the hand signal at the same time as you give the verbal command.  Take note of where your dog's butt is.  Pick a spot on the floor or ground as a reference point and if your dog moves its butt, so much as a centimeter, away from that spot, correct the dog by giving it a quick pop on the training collar (in the upward direction) and then gently guide the dog's butt back to where it was.  (This usually does not look graceful.  Don't worry about that at first.  You are manually putting your dog back into a spot, so it's difficult to make it pretty.)  When your dog stays, lay on the praise.  Remember that there's no such thing as too much praise.  You should praise ten times for every one time you correct, so if your dog stays for even a second, be sure to act like you are overjoyed with that second.

Remember that if you put a dog in a stay, you have to release it from that stay.   So, every time you say “stay” you will need to then give your release command, “okay,” “popcorn” or “yippee” ... whatever your release command may be.

Once your dog is successful with that version of the stay, then the next step is to take a step away from your dog, with your right foot, and then pivot to face the dog.  Often, this will prompt the dog to come out of its stay, in which case you will need to correct it by pulling up on the dog's collar and returning the dog to the original position.  Remember to praise the dog if it stays, even if it's only for a few seconds.  Practice the stay in this manner for several days or weeks before moving on to the next steps.

Allowing the dog to deviate even a few centimeters from its original position will teach a dog that “stay” means, “stay in the general area in which I started.”  You want the dog to believe that “stay” means “I absolutely, no matter what, cannot move.”

Once the dog begins to consistently stay with you facing it, it is time to take a few steps backward.  Holding on to the leash, begin taking one step away and facing the dog.  Then try two steps away and face the dog.  Eventually, you will be able to work your way out to the end of the leash.  The next step is to leave the leash attached to the dog's collar, but drop the leash and move farther away.  (You leave the leash attached so you have something to grab, should things get out of hand.)  Practice the stay for several weeks on lead before you attempt it off lead.  It is much more difficult to correct a dog off lead, and your dog may know this.  The first time you practice off lead, don't be surprised if your dog takes that opportunity to take off.  For that reason, when you begin practicing the stay off lead, do so in a safe, enclosed area.

It is crucial that you do not rush the training of the stay.  Make sure your dog has a solid understanding of the command before you give it a chance to test it.  If it doesn't fully understand what stay means, and you drop the leash and turn your back, your dog is almost guaranteed to take off, and not even know that it is disobeying you.

You will be tempted to start using the stay command in everyday activities.  This is perfectly fine, as long as you correct the dog if it disobeys, and as long as you release the dog.  If you tell the dog to stay when the UPS carrier arrives at your door, and then you get distracted by the package, and don't release the dog from its stay, it will probably come out of its stay on its own.  Now the dog has learned that it can come out of a stay whenever it wants.  You don't want your dog to learn this.

Remember to NEVER give your dog a stay command and then allow anything traumatic to happen to the dog.  You don't want your dog to associate the stay with fear or pain.