Teaching your puppy how to down can be such a useful obedience tool, especially if you are someone who wants to incorporate it into your day-to-day activities. Down tends to be an easier long-term position to maintain, so it’s great for those Sunday funday brunches. If you are someone who eventually wants to work on off-leash recall, a ‘down’ command is an amazing safety measure to ensure your pup will go into a down position immediately on command, even in the face of distractions or potential dangers. In this blog, we will discuss how to teach down.
To teach down, you will need:
Teaching the position and luring
“Down” means your dog’s belly is completely flat on the ground. For smaller breeds, or to make it easier, you shouldnstart by sitting or kneeling on the floor. Give your puppy a little space to work, at least an arm’s length away from you.
Using a lure
Using a lure, such as a treat or kibble, helps guide your puppy into the down position. Hold the treat near their nose and slowly move it to the ground. Most puppies will follow the motion and lower themselves into a bow or full down. When they get this right, offer lots of praise and a treat. This will encourage them to do this again, because who doesn’t like treats?
Fading the lure
Now that your puppy is following the lure, you can introduce a hand signal. A simple gesture, like a flat palm pointing toward the ground, gives them a clear “Down” signal. When they respond correctly, reward them right away. Soon enough, they’ll be learning to obey the cue even when there’s no tasty bribe involved in getting them to the down position. Though, they’ll still appreciate a treat for doing a great job.
Teaching the verbal command
Introducing a verbal command helps your puppy understand the word, “down,” and not need a hand signal or tasty treat. Say “down” while guiding them, so they can connect the word with the action. When they respond correctly, reward them right away. This is great for when your puppy is not right beside you and you can’t give a visual prompt, such as at a park.
Teaching duration
Duration is all about how long your puppy can hold the down position. Building this skill helps develop patience, focus, and self-control, as well as obeying the down command for more than five seconds. This is done by rewarding them as they hold the down position, which encourages them to stay in the down position.
The Five Ds
Duration is one of the five Ds. These are training methods to challenge your puppy and build reliability in the down position. This is important so that you can go to different places, such as a park, restaurant, or your kitchen and be confident that your puppy will stay in the down position. The other 4 Ds are:
- Distance – How far you walk away OR how far you are from your puppy when you prompt them. By increasing the distance, you can teach them to stay in the down position even when you move away.
- Distraction – Any type of sights, sounds, and stimuli around them. This helps them maintain focus despite interruptions.
- Direction – Walking away from them in different directions or asking them from another area. This encourages your puppy to obey the command from different set ups.
- Disappearing – Going out of sight (one of the most difficult!). This teaches them to obey the command even when they can’t see you.
Practice Tip: Start with one D at a time. As your puppy gets better, you can slowly add more Ds or make them harder. If you find your puppy is struggling, you may need to decrease one or more of the D’s.
Additional Troubleshooting:
We want you and your pup to be successful! If your puppy is struggling, we recommend potentially adjusting one or more of the following:
- Keep your puppy hungry before practicing
- Up the value (aka the tastiness) of your treats
- Reward more frequently
- Decrease the difficulty of one or more of your D’s
- Have fun with it! If you or your puppy are getting frustrated, take a break and play with them
- Keep your goals realistic. Start with less distraction when asking for down or work on a smaller time frame for them to hold down. Make sure they are achieving successful repetitions. That will lead to both a happy owner AND pup
- Always end on a successful rep!
We are here to help
Are you struggling with teaching your puppy obedience commands such as “Down”? The good news, you don’t have to face it alone.
At Beyond the Dog, our training is science-based and backed by over 20 years of experience. Co-founded by Dr. Kristyn Echterling-Savage, Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist (CAAB) and Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA).
Every dog and household is unique, which is why our training is fully personalized to your goals. All of our training programs are offered through one-on-one sessions at your home or local neighborhood, depending on your training goals. We’d love to help. Schedule a free consult today.”
