Your homework this week is to work on these exercises to set the foundations for the rest of the course. We will be progressing each exercise and using them to enhance future exercises.

Settle: For your first week focus on building steps 1-5 to build the positive association with their blanket. This will help you in your second week when you put the blanket on the floor, they will immediately see it as a positive, safe place to be.

Marker word: Make sure you have a chosen marker word and you use it every single time they get something right.

Attention to name: Build this is in your home. Try it in different rooms of the house. You can then progress to quiet outdoor areas or spaces, such as your garden or a quiet field.

Learning theory: Use this process to build a solid sit foundation. Practice in your home and start step 1 outdoors in quiet areas.

Loose Lead Walking: Practice this in your home. Practice in one room, until you can walk around your room using only one treat with your dog by your side. Practice for 30-60 seconds on a walk during a quiet time.

Week 2:

Make sure to bring a selection of treats, your blankets and some non-squeaky toys.

The settle is an exercise that teaches our dogs an ‘off switch’ to help them learn to relax and calm down in any environment when their owners are busy and cannot give them attention. Overtime this exercise will become a natural behaviour for your dog chooses to do themselves as they learn how to relax.

What you need:

Blanket or bed and food or treats cut into very small pieces (so you don’t use so many). Initially when working in the home, I recommend the low value food such as their daily food, but you may wish to upgrade to higher value when you work on this exercise in public areas. You may also wish to use enrichment toys such a Kong, or licky mat etc.

Golden Rules:

• Do not give any commands to your dog, we want the attention off us and onto the blanket or bed, as the exercise is progressed your dog will naturally choose to sit or lay down themselves as it is relaxing and rewarding for them.

• Do not get caught, again we want the attention off us and onto the blanket, so we don’t want them to think the food is coming from us. We want them to think the food is coming from this magical bed that produces their treats, so why would they want to move or leave this space?

• Drop the treats in the same place, preferably between the front two paws.

• If your dog’s start to relax (lays down, relaxed body language) then reduce the treats, if your dog starts to become restless and may get up then increase the treats.

Settle exercise step by step:

Step 1: Place a blanket on the floor close to you.

Step 2: Scatter 3-5 treats on the blanket that you are going to settle your dog on.

Step 3: Once your dog is on the area, aim to drop 3-4 treats in-between their two front paws.

Step 4: When your dog has 1 treat left, drop another 2-3 treats in the same area and repeat this like a dripping tap until your dog starts to show signs of slowing down, relaxing, or stationary behaviour.

Step 5: As they slow down, sit, or lays down, you can start to drop 1-2 treats at a time. If your dog becomes unsettled, go back to stage 3.

Step 6: If your dog has laid down, reduce the treats to 1 at a time. Slowly increase the time you drop the treats. For example, every 5 seconds, every 10 seconds, every 15 seconds etc. If your dog becomes unsettled, reduce the time to treat ratio or go back to step 5.

Step 7: If your dog lowers its head and is completely relaxed, you can stop dropping treats, your dog has successfully settled, and the relaxation has become its own reward. Any signs of becoming unsettled, increase the treat ratio and go back a step.

Step 8: As your dog remains on their settle area, when in the house, you can start to take small steps away. Move around the room with your dog staying on the blanket area. Eventually you can build this to leaving the room for small amounts of time without the dog following and staying on their bed. You can also use settle aids here.

A marker word is a short and simple word that is used to tell your dog that they are doing the right thing. It is a word such as ‘yes’, ‘good, or a clicker for example. The marker word allows you to get the exact timing of when your dog has done the right behaviour you have asked as it is a signal to your dog in that exact moment that they have got it right and they will now be rewarded. Therefore, the marker word will become a signal for a reward, such as food, toy or praise.

You can build the the meaning of the marker word for saying the word and giving your dog a piece of food. This is called ‘charging the marker’.

What you need:

Food/treats, optional: clicker

Step 1: Choose your marker word

Step 2: Say your marker word once, then give your dog a piece of food.

Step 3: Repeat this to build associate that your marker word means ‘reward’.

This marker word will now be used every time your dog gets something right at the exact moment they do it, followed by a reward.

Making sure your dog responds to their name every time you say it is important to build their focus and response to you no matter what is going on in the environment. This can be very useful when there is a bigger distraction around or you need to calm them down if they get too excited or starts to pull as it will act as an interrupter and prevention before any excitement to a trigger can build.

Their name will mean ‘look at me’.

What you need:

Treats and your marker word.

Tips:

• Only say their name once, if there is no

response then show them what it means, do not repeat.

• Mix up your rewards to different food and treats, especially when outdoors.

Attention to name exercise step by step:

Step 1: Stand close to your dog and say their name once.

Step 2: Wait for them to look at you, as soon as they do use your marker word and reward your dog with a treat and lots of praise. If they do not look at you within a couple of seconds, do not repeat their name. Simply put a treat on their nose and guide their face to look up at you. When they look at you, use your marker then reward.

Step 3: You can stand a little further away or wait until they are looking away/occupied sniffing something, and repeat.

Step 4: Build up in different environments.

If they are finding it too difficult, try in an easier environment.

The learning theory contains the 4 stages to how our dogs learn. We use the sit exercise as it is generally an exercise most dogs already know, so that owners can focus more on the learning process to how dogs learn a new exercise. However, using the sit also helps to set the foundations of the exercise ready to progress in the upcoming weeks.

Our dogs learn through body language, therefore we show our dogs using the ‘lure’ technique what behaviour we’d like them to do first, before adding in our complex words.

What you need:

Name, Treats, Marker word.

Learning Theory: Teaching a Sit step by step:

Step 1: Show your dog what to do using lure (treat). Say your dogs name, when they look at you, place a treat on their nose. With the treat on their nose, guide the treat over their head slowly. As their head goes up, the bum will come down into a seated position. When their bum hits the floor into a sit, use your marker word and reward with the treat on their nose.

Repeat until they are following the treat into the seated position straight away.

Step 2: Show your dog what to do in the same way, using the same hand positions, but without the treat in your hand. Say your dogs name, when they look at you, place your empty hand on their nose in the same position then guide it over their head slowly in the same way. When their bum hits the floor into a sit, use your marker word and reward with the treat from your pocket or side etc.

Step 3: Add your word, for example ‘sit’. Dogs hear sounds, so only say your word once to avoid confusion when teaching them the word paired with the action. Say your dogs name, ask them to ‘sit’ (or your chosen word), wait 1-2 seconds, then use your hand signal you have just been practicing in steps 1-2. Mark and reward.

Step 4: This stage will happen naturally. Through repetition of step 3, your dog will learn that the word ‘sit’ means bum on the floor and will do it when they hear the word, before you use the hand signal. This is when you know they have understood the word in that environment.

Step 5: Repeat stages 1-3 in each new environment.

This exercise teaches your where the best place to be is, by your side, therefore reducing the need for pulling. Our dogs typically pull simply because they are quicker than us and haven’t been taught how to walk nicely on the lead.

This will build your relationship between you as you learn and spend time together, whilst promoting a calmer, relaxing and safer walk for both of you.

What you need:

Treats (different values depending on the environment, you can use kibble when in your home). Flat collar or harness and a flat lead.

Tips: Once you have given a treat bring your hand up to shoulder height. This way your dog looks at you and doesn’t just follow the food. Give plenty of encouragement when not giving a treat, you don’t have to talk constantly and can phase it out, but whilst they are learning, verbal praise will help to engage /enjoy being by your side when you are not rewarding with the treat.

Loose lead walking exercise step by step:

Step 1: Choose which side you’d like your dog to be on. Standing still have the treats in the hand on the same side as your dog and the lead in the opposite hand. Reward your dog by being by your side.

Step 2: Take a step forward and reward with a treat. Repeat 1 step, 1 treat, 1 step 1 treat. Keep the lead in the opposite hand and loose. (see management section below if your dog starts to leave your side/pull on the lead).

Step 3: As your dog stays by your side increase the steps to 2 steps, 1 treat. Repeat. Build this to 3 steps, 4 steps etc until you can walk 10+ steps using one treat. Use your voice to talk to them and tell them they are doing a great job staying by your side. As you build the steps try to make the walk smoother and more natural, reward the treat as you are walking, rather than stop start to imitate a natural walk.

Step 4: Phase out from having the treats in your hand. Put them in a pocket or a bag that is out of sight and only bring the treat out when you reward.

Step 5: Repeat these steps in different areas around the home, garden, eventually outdoors when they are staying by your side.

Management:

Prevention is always key, so you can use attention to name or increase treat to step ratio when you are near distractions or triggers if you know your dog will pull. However, there will be times when your dog will still pull during training as they learn to stay by your side. You may notice this when you go from one step to two steps when reducing the step-treat ratio. It’s only natural, so this management tip just helps to calmly show your dog where they need to be as you progress the exercise.

Management steps:

Step 1: If your dog pulls forward and there’s tension on the loose lead, stand still immediately.

Step 2: Without pulling the lead towards you or turning them with it, call their name (if they come to you lure them into position by your side), if not, pop a treat on their nose and guide them back to your side in your starting walking position.

Step 3: If they are too far in front to put a treat on their nose, climb down the lead to get closer to them insuring they can’t go forward, and you are not pulling them back. Then when in a close range, guide them back to your side using the treat.

Step 4: Once they are at your side reward and continue with your steps.

Step 5: If they pull again, repeat this process and reduce your steps or environment to make it easier so that they understand to stay by your side.

Step 6: If something has distracted your dog and you are finding it hard to get their focus back to you or on a treat, try a higher rewarding treat/toy. If this doesn’t work, turn around and walk in the opposite direction away from the distraction until you can get their focus again.