Obedience Training 101: Three Ways to Teach Your Dog to Sit

Part 2: For High Energy Dogs Teaching your pooch to sit on command is one of the cornerstones of any obedience regimen. There are traditionally three different ways to teach your dog this important command, each tailored to different canine personalities. Today, we will go over the method most effective for furry friends with boundless energy.

Before beginning any of these methods, keep these three quick guidelines in mind:

1. Be indoors. Teaching your dog anything outside is difficult – there are too many distractions.
2. Limit your speech. The only word your dog should hear during training is “sit” and the release word. Using too many words will confuse her.
3. Stay focused. If your pooch starts to look listless or distracted, take a break and try again later. Five to ten minute training sessions are ideal.

Step By Step Guide: This method is designed to keep the focus and attention of dogs that are rather young, have exceptionally high energy, or tend to be easily distracted. Part 1 of this series discussed a common method used to train a broad range of dogs, and part 3 will address very low energy dogs.

1. Have a leash and harness in place. Remember to reinforce positive behavior, but negative behavior should be ignored – responding to it is reinforcing it.
2. Stand close to your dog and keep the leash taut so that your dog cannot move about.
3. Gently help your dog sit by pushing down on the area just above her rear legs. DO NOT push too hard or too quickly. You are suggesting that your dog should sit, not forcing her to.
4. If your dog refuses to sit, take the leash and walk her around the room for about ten seconds, then return to the training position and try again.
5. As soon as your dog’s rear end touches the floor, say “sit” clearly and firmly.
6. Keep your hand in place for about 30 seconds, and repeat the word “sit” in identical fashion several times.
7. Stand up and move in front of your dog while repeating the sit command. If she stands up as soon as you move, continue repeating steps 3 through 6.
8. Once you are in front of her, if she remains seated, use a release word, like “come” or “here” clearly and concisely, and encourage her to come to you. Praise her when she arrives.

  Using these simple steps, your dog should learn to sit and come on command. Be aware that this may take several weeks of consistent training.