Mary Allen
How do I teach my dog to stay?
How to train stay?
Why doesn’t Just Stay work?
Questions over questions! You just want your dog to stay seated for a moment.
What looks super easy to you can be really confusing for your dog. Waiting for a while without moving is something dogs don’t naturally understand.
So that you can confidently let your dog wait alone for a few minutes without having to collect them later, you should teach them to stay.
We have created a step-by-step guide that will take you and your dog by the hand and paw.
In a nutshell: sit down, stay! – That’s how it works
Teaching a puppy to stay can be quite frustrating.
The little paws always want to go somewhere and the nose is already in the next corner.
Here you will find a summary of how you can practice staying with your dog.
- Have your dog perform “down.”
- Hold up your hand and give the command “stay”.
- If your dog stays down, give him a treat.
- Have him get back up with “Okay” or “Go.”
Teach your dog to stay – you still have to keep that in mind
Stay is a command that doesn’t make any sense to your dog at first.
Normally he’s supposed to do something and gets food – now suddenly he’s supposed to do nothing and gets food.
Doing nothing and lying down puts enormous demands on your dog’s self-control. Therefore, do not overdo it with the frequency of training.
Dog fidgets
If your dog just can’t sit still while practicing stay, you should keep him busy.
Play with him a bit, go for a walk or practice another trick.
Only when your dog is ready to listen calmly can you try again.
Good to know:
If you start out of the “place” there is a much higher chance that your dog will lie down. Getting up takes a lot of time in which you can already react.
Dog runs behind instead of lying down
Doing nothing is hard and also the opposite of what we normally want from our dogs.
In this case, start extremely slowly with your dog.
Once he lies down and gets the “stay” command, just wait a few seconds and reward him.
Then slowly increase the time.
Later you can go back a few meters or even leave the room.
If your dog does run after you, you lead him back to his waiting spot without comment.
Uncertainty
Lying around alone is not only boring, it also makes you vulnerable.
Standing up costs your dog valuable time that it would not have in the event of an attack.
Therefore, always practice in quiet surroundings that your dog is already familiar with.
Variations of Stay
Once your dog understands the “stay” command, you increase the difficulty.
Throw a ball and make him wait, run around your dog or put food in front of him.
Teaching the dog to stay with Martin Rütter – tips from a professional
Martin Rütter also recommends always walking away from the dog backwards.
This way your dog will notice that you are still with him and you can react immediately if he does get up.
How long will it take…
… until your dog will understand the command “stay”.
Since every dog learns at a different rate, the question of how long it takes can only be answered vaguely.
It takes most dogs a long time to understand that they are not supposed to be doing anything
Around 15 training sessions of 10-15 minutes each are normal.
Step-by-step instructions: Teach the dog to stay
Detailed step-by-step instructions will follow shortly. But first you should know which utensils you might need.
Utensils needed
You definitely need treats.
If your dog can already stay and you want to increase the difficulty, you can also use toys.
The instruction
You let your dog “space!” carry out.
Hold up your hand and give the command “Stay!”
Wait a few seconds.
Give your dog the treat.
Have your dog stand up again with “Okay” or another command.
If this works well, slowly increase the time between the command and the treat.
For advanced: Slowly back away from your dog a few meters. Give him the treat while he is lying down. Then he can get up.
Important:
Reward your dog only when he’s lying down – instead, giving him the treat when he comes to you will reward him when he gets up.
Conclusion
Keep training is a game of patience.
Starting in a quiet environment helps tremendously with training.
It is always best to start with “down” – this way you increase the chance that your dog will lie down voluntarily.
Do not practice this command for too long – it requires a lot of self-control from the dog and is extremely taxing.