Teach Your Dog to Sit

The teach your dog to sit command is  considered the easiest to teach a dog. Practice should make you and your dog a pro . Try it,  and use these simple steps:

• Face your dog and have a treat with you. Hold it a little above his nose, and gradually move it upwards. (Don’t move it up too quickly or your pup may jump up to get it.)
• Your dog should sit down on his own to ensure he never lets the treat out of his site.
• As he is sitting, indicate your approval by saying “good”.
• When he/or she sits, give you dog the treat.
• Practice  for a while. At the beginning, give him the treat as soon as he sits. Slowly delay it so he keeps sitting for a while longer. Subsequently, don’t give him a treat every time, substituting it with generous praise and giving him the much-desired snack once in a while.
• You may also find it helpful to assign a hand position to the sit command.
• If your puppy does not respond to this, you can shift him into a sitting position. Or, simply try again. You don’t need to punish him, as he could not possibly be expected to know what you want him to do (remember he doesn’t speak your language, just as you don’t speak his). The next time he sits, reward him.

If he is really having trouble, enrolling you and your pet for an obedience class could be a good idea.

An alternative method suggested by some experts uses the whistle. This obviously works well if you are likely to be involved in outdoor activities together. In this case, you will have to stand in front of your dog, say “sit”, blow your whistle and then gently push him into a sitting position. Repeat this a number of times till he starts sitting on his own. Then gradually phase out the verbal command, only using the whistle. Keep practicing the process and gradually increase the distance between you and your pet.

Whichever method you choose, remember that once your pet has mastered the command, continue his training by trying it out in different places, under different circumstances and with distractions.

Things to remember:

• Use the same command all time. Do not, for instance, say “sit down” if you have trained him to respond to “sit”. Use a decisive tone of voice and issue the command a single time (not “sit, sit, siiiiiiit).
• It would help if your pet has already learnt to respond to his name. Another helpful idea is to try the training when you dog is on an empty stomach, to increase his enthusiasm about getting that treat.

Teaching your dog to sit is probably the easiest trick, as it is a natural posture for all dogs. Not only does this sit technique help you position your dog for success to listen to you , it  promotes good behavior and is a great control technique that establishes your leadership role in the relationship between you and your dog.

As with most of my  training, I use a clicker and treats to help my dogs’ learning curve. If you do not have a clicker, you may skip the part and follow the steps as per normal. However, I highly recommend you get a clicker starter kit or enroll in basic clicker class if you see this as an ongoing activity for you and your dog. I can’t say highly enough the benefits and ease of using clicker in my training.

Bite Note: When learning a new trick and game, it is best to start on familiar grounds like indoor or backyard with minimum distraction. Do not proceed to new grounds until the technique is mastered. Once your dog masters the skill, then you may proceed to public places like parks with some distractions. Gradually intensify the distraction.

Steps to Teaching your Dog the Basic Command - Sit

1. Have the treat in your hand and hold it in front of your dog’s nose. Let him sniff it, lick it but do not let him have it.
2. Do not alter any command or signal.
3. Slowly move the treat from his nose and then over his head. Since your dog won’t be able to get to the treat in its normal position, he will sit down.
4. If he doesn’t sit, move the treat back to the tip of his nose and then slowly back over his head.
5. Repeat step 4 about five to eight times. Again, do not alter any sound.
6. When he eventually sits, it’s this spit second you mark the behavior with a click and follow by a treat. Do this a couple more times.
7. Once your dog is able to sit reliably, it’s when you introduce the verbal cue/command “sit”. Try step 3 again but this time before his butt lands on the ground say the word “sit”.
8. Give the dog the treat and praise him lavishly but not fuss way too much about it. You do not want to divert your dog’s attention somewhere else.
9. Keep practicing the technique but each time you do it, use smaller pieces of treat. Your ultimate goal is for your dog to sit down without requiring a treat. Imagine how annoying it would be if you had to feed your dog every single time you wanted him to sit.

Additional Bite Tips

• Don’t ever reward your dog if he sits without you asking him to. Doing so will confuse the dog and give him the idea that he doesn’t need to listen to you to get a reward.
• Each time you give your dog something it likes, tell him to “sit” before your dog can have it or do it. For example, before he can play with the ball or before he can have a treat. In doing so, it will teach your dog great discipline and you will have a more patient and calmer dog.
• Practice makes perfect, so try and use the sit command at least 3 times per day as a minimum. You don’t want your dog forgetting the command, so use it every time it’s necessary.
• To help him generalize the behavior, practice in all areas of your house, inside and outside, parks and vet clinics. Should the place get too distracting, go back to using the treat to help him master the technique.
• If you want to, you can teach your dog a hand signal for “sit” instead of just the voice cue. Use the steps above but with step 3 instead of bringing the treat over your dog’s head, use your other (empty) hand. If he sits, keep practicing the empty hand technique. It is important that you make the decision of either using a hand signal or a verbal cue from the start. Switching command cues from one trick to the other will only cause more confusion to your dog resulting a frustrated trainer – you.
• You may substitute the click for the word “Yes” in an excited tone.
• KISSER-in-Five motto – Keep It Short and Simple with Easy Repetitions in no more than FIVE minutes training at a go. If your dog is able to master a new trick successfully in three minutes, stop the training immediately. Always end the training with positive note - setting your dog to succeed. You want to build his anticipation for the next training session
• Article can be found at http://www.smalldogsparadise.com/dog-training-tips/teaching-your-dog-the-basic-command-sit/