Clicker Training2-Sit & Down

Be sure you have finished The Clicker lesson and have at least begun the Targeting and Attention lessons)
Teaching the sit & down are very easy, but may require patience. Instead of physically putting the dog into position, saying the command & hoping he makes the connection, you will be helping him to discover them. Have a bunch of tiny soft treats ready. You are going to use one as a "lure" to help him to get into the position you want. The lure is only used at the beginning - I will show you how to quickly fade it. (Be careful to follow the instructions carefully for that as you want your dog to always respond to you, whether or not you have a treat!) Kneel or sit in front of your standing dog. Show him a treat in your right hand, then move it from his nose up & back a bit over his eyes but slightly out of reach. Most dogs will rather quickly sit so they can better reach it. You might need to be patient & wait for a moment. But when he does, immediately C&T and praise. Please remember that the click has to come at the exact moment his rear hits the ground so he learns that that is what got him the treat! At this point you want to give the treat right away, too. It's okay if your dog gets up after the click - the click actually ends the exercise each time. If he doesn't sit at all - maybe keeps backing up trying to get the treat, then just give your NRM and turn away & ignore him for a few moments. Of course... don't give him the treat! Then try again, from the start.

Notice that I never said when to say "Sit". That's because it is best to wait until the behavior is being performed reliably before adding the verbal cue. That way he doesn't connect the word with the wrong behavior. Also, dogs learn the hand signals much more easily so tend to ignore the verbal commands that go along with them. It's best to teach them separately.

To continue practicing the sit from a stand, just walk a few steps yourself so he gets up. Then lure him into a sit again, C&T. You can also practice the Down & Sit together, one after the other, but it is good to also practice plenty of Sits from a Stand.

Be sure at this point you are reinforcing each correct response with a C&T. This is a Continuous Reinforcement Schedule (CRS). Very soon you will become variable... that is explained later.

The Down is very similar to the sit. Lure him into a sit & kneel next to him. Place your left hand gently on his shoulders (you can pet him gently if you like) and use a treat in your right hand to lure him into the down position. Start the treat at his nose, then drop it straight down to the floor and out a bit towards his toes so he needs to lie down to get it. Be careful not to go out so far that he needs to walk forward to get it! Some dogs drop right away... some remain with their rears in the air. If that happens, just keep the treat on the floor, but keep it enclosed in your hand so he can't get it. Be patient! Eventually he'll drop his butt and then you can C&T and enthusiastically praise.

If he doesn't get it after several tries, then try some behavior shaping. Instead of holding out for a complete down, you will instead C&T the very beginning of it - when he just drops his shoulders a little bit. C&T that a few times, then the next time hold out until he drops down a little bit more before you C&T. Continue until he has to lie all the way down to get the C&T! Jackpot time!

Some dogs, especially little ones, can achieve success at first if you stretch out one of your legs, making a bridge for him to walk under. Lure him into a sit in front of your leg, then show him a treat in your hand coming from under your leg and lure him into crawling under your leg to get it. The EXACT instant he is actually lying down, C&T and praise excitedly. What a good dog!

Once your dog is down, you can then practice "doggy push-ups". You know... sit-down-sit-down, C&T'ing each one. But don't forget to also practice plenty of sits from a standing position.

Troubleshooting - is your dog not interested enough in your treats to work for them? Then get better ones. Read the section on treats on the FAQ page.

Okay, so your dog is popping up & down like a little jackrabbit for that tasty lure, right! Practice a bit more with the lure like that, then proceed to the next step, which is to "lose the lure". If this is not done properly, you will end up with a dog that will perform the behavior only if he sees a treat. Hardly what we want! Instead, by carefully phasing out the lure, you teach him that it is not the sight of a treat that gets him a reward, but response to your command.

Kneel down in front of your dog. Review a few times luring him up & down w/ a treat in your right hand, C&T'ing each response. When you lure up for the sit, have your hand palm up. When you lure for the down, have your hand palm down. Next step is to have a treat in your right hand - that treat will still act as the lure but will NOT be given to your dog. Have a bunch of little treats in your left hand. Lure him into a sit (or down) with your right hand, click, but then give him a treat from your left hand. He doesn't get the treat from the right hand at all! Don't forget to click as soon as he sits (or downs), just before giving the treat.

Practice quite a few sits & downs, as well as sits from a stand that way, using a CRS again. Very soon he will perform the behavior, then quickly look toward your left hand. That's good! What a clever dog! Now do a few using a VRS before continuing to the next step.

Remember... if you know you did plenty of reps of the previous step (at any point in the training of any exercise) and your dog just doesn't respond correctly, then give your NRM and wait for a bit, giving him time to think about it. It's funny when they start offering all sorts of behaviors, hoping for the reward! They lie down, offer a paw, bark... just smile & think about how clever your dog is to try all of those things... and wait for him to get it right! Then click & jackpot!

The next step will to be to go to using your right to just give the signal (the same luring motion but without a lure). First, review a few times with the lure but giving the treat from your left hand as explained in the last step. The last time, go ahead & give him the lure treat, then right away do the exact same motion but with an empty right hand. As long as your hand motion (the signal) remained the same, your dog will most likely be "faked out" and will respond as before. C&T & praise very enthusiastically! Remember, palm up for sit, palm down for down. Practice this until your dog responds reliably to each signal, then go to a VRS before continuing to the next step.

Now, ready to ease those aching knees? After a few warm-ups with kneeling, start practicing these standing up in front of your dog. Warning! Stand straight up! If you lean over, you'll get a sore back. And besides... it looks really silly. If your dog is pretty confused by the difference when you first stand, you can do a few crouching, getting a bit more upright each time until you are standing upright. Although at first your signal will need to be quite exaggerated you can slowly shape it to be much more subtle. The signal should eventually just be a slight downward motion with your palm down for Down, and a slight upward motion with your palm up for Sit. (Note to obedience competitors - that signal is also accepted in the ring. But if you prefer the arm straight in the air signal, you can just teach that, as well, later!)

The next steps are to vary where you are when you give the signals. Work on standing a bit farther away each time as well as standing at different angles (and beside your dog) before giving the signals. Remember to practice each of those more advanced things separately so each will be stronger, and to use a CRS until each behavior is strong.

So when do you stop using the clicker for these exercises? Whenever you feel that the dog has really learned the signals and is very reliable in responding to them. Does that mean at that point you never need to reinforce the behavior? Certainly not! Use the Variable Reinforcement Schedule (VRS) for rewarding (even w/ the C&T), and also begin using other things as reinforcements. Make an actual treat reward not as common. Instead, get the response,then praise enthusiastically, praise quietly, throw a ball, play tug 'o war, give his dinner, open the door to go outside - whatever. The best trainers are variable & unpredictable! The dog never knows what he's gonna get or when... that makes it all the more fun for him. If you don't believe me... take a stroll past the slot machines in Las Vegas!

If, after time, you start getting less of a response, just go back to positively reinforcing more often for a short time to refresh his memory. You never 100% stop using treats or rewards. A behavior that is never reinforced will go away. A behavior that is reinforced variably with stay strong. With compulsion (leash checking, etc.) methods, you would always go back to a few quick, sharp checks as reminders or as a warm up before going into the obedience ring. With purely positive methods, you simply "review" positively rather than negatively. Have fun!!