Needs some tips!

[Lewis Moon]

Cerbie is learning at a pretty fast clip....but one issue he has (or I have...) is that he won't go into the down position without being "lured". That is; he waits until I either bring a treat down to the ground or touch the ground with my hand in front of him. I'd like to ge able to have him go down at a distance with a verbal command....

Any tips?

[Brad]

Wait him out, and when he lies down, click and reward. He'll clue in pretty quickly. Lure him back up if you have to, but let him offer the down behaviour. My pup learned this in about 15 pieces of kibble. Once the behaviour is patterned, attach the command to it. Easy peasy

[Root Beer]

I apologize for the fact that this is actually a copy/paste of an old post that I made back in October. It was my post, but I'm just too lazy to write it all out again! I did go through and make a few small modifications, though!

 

Anyway, this is how I now teach the "down". In the end it is rock solid and it does translate very well to a distance down.

 

Get a mat - any kind of mat will do, but make sure it doesn't slide on the surface on which you are working. Get a bunch of treats that throw well (so cheese on a fuzzy carpet might not be the best choice! I like kibble on a hard floor so the dog can hear it clatter). If you use a clicker, have it ready. If you don't, use a short and distinct marker word like "x" or even "click".

 

Toss a treat to send your dog away from you and then sit on the floor in front of the mat. That's important.

 

Once your dog has gotten the treat, wait for him or her to return to your locale. At first click (or mark) and reward her just for returning to where you are. Toss another treat and repeat this a few times.

 

After doing that a few times wait, after your dog has returned, until the dog makes some contact with the mat. Any contact is fine - a single paw, multiple paws, or maybe you'll get lucky and get a down right away. I did this with all four of my dogs and all four were different. Dean gave me the instant down, Sammie just one paw. Click (or mark) that contact, give your dog one treat and then release and toss another to send the dog away.

 

Repeat, repeat, repeat.

 

If your dog is not already offering a down on the mat, do this for a few days and then lengthen the time that you wait after your dog returns to you. As long as the dog does not get frustrated, wait for a sit or a down. If you get a sit or down, click (or mark), jackpot, and then toss a treat. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

 

Now, if you aren't getting a down already, after a few days of rewarding the sit, wait your dog out once you have the sit. For some dogs, this can take a bit of thought process. Others will get it almost instantly. The fact that you are still sitting next to the mat helps.

 

Once the dog has chosen to lie down on his or her own (it doesn't matter if the dog is straight, crooked, all the way on the mat, or mostly off), click (or mark), jackpot, and toss.

 

At this point, you will only reward the down. Once the dog is offering a down every single time, repeat the process, sitting in a chair. It will go much faster this time. Once the dog is offering a down every single time, stand and repeat the process. Again, it will go much faster.

 

Once it has become a strong default in the context of this game, you can name it. I would give it a different name if your dog has been struggling with "down". I use "splat" as a fast, "splat down" behavior. I found that once my dog knew it on the mat, I simply started to cue it in new situations, without the mat, and the dog understood. I even added distance to this.

 

What I personally like about this approach is that the dog is learning it in the context of a game and he or she actually learns the behavior without even realizing it. This is good for a dog who is stuck on the behavior. And since you aren't using a lure, you don't have to fade it, which can be a challenge for a dog who struggles with fading a lure (to which there actually is both an art and a skill!)

 

Hope that helps.

[Lewis Moon]

Wait him out, and when he lies down, click and reward. He'll clue in pretty quickly. Lure him back up if you have to, but let him offer the down behaviour. My pup learned this in about 15 pieces of kibble. Once the behaviour is patterned, attach the command to it. Easy peasy

 

Wait him out.....always the hardest part.... but I want this command to stick.

I've resisted using clickers and opted for a hearty "good boy". I really don't want to put something in the command/reward chain that I might not have on my person at any given moment. I do a lot of "on the fly" training, taking advantage of "teachable moments".....like when he has gone out to potty and daudles a bit...when he comes to my call I always give him a "good boy" and a good ear scratching.

[mum24dog]

Wait him out, and when he lies down, click and reward.

 

Simplest way possible.

I was having a bit of a problem getting one of mine to lie down so I went for a little walk to think it out.

When I got back my young daughter had done the job. She'd spotted that he lay down straight after jumping on the couch so she C/T for that and had the down on cue by the time I got back.

 

Pam

[mum24dog]

I've resisted using clickers and opted for a hearty "good boy". I really don't want to put something in the command/reward chain that I might not have on my person at any given moment.

 

"Good boy" is not as precise as a clicker though and you can still clicker train even if you don't have one on you by substituting a word like "Yes" to mark the behaviour.

Clicker training is the generic term for a particular application of operant conditioning, it does not mean that the clicker itself is an essential piece of kit to do it, although it is handy.

If you aren't fussy about the precision of a behaviour, then it doesn't really matter too much what part of the overall behaviour your reward marks. If you want it spot on the clicker comes into its own.

 

Pam

[Brad]

Keep in mind that the clicker is not the reward, it's the marker for success. The reward follows in the form of treats or toys, or whatever gets the pup happy. Once the act has been given a command, the clicker is no longer required, just the command then treat. Then treat every few successful downs, until a treat is not the motivator. Clicking is just a better timed and more consistent way of saying good boy.

[mum24dog]

Keep in mind that the clicker is not the reward, it's the marker for success.

 

True, but in the case of the "Good boy" it was probably being used as both marker and reward. I say "probably" because I don't know whether the particular dog would consider it a reward.

 

Pam

[ejano]

I apologize for the fact that this is actually a copy/paste of an old post that I made back in October. It was my post, but I'm just too lazy to write it all out again! I did go through and make a few small modifications, though!

 

Anyway, this is how I now teach the "down". In the end it is rock solid and it does translate very well to a distance down.

 

Get a mat - any kind of mat will do, but make sure it doesn't slide on the surface on which you are working. Get a bunch of treats that throw well (so cheese on a fuzzy carpet might not be the best choice! I like kibble on a hard floor so the dog can hear it clatter). If you use a clicker, have it ready. If you don't, use a short and distinct marker word like "x" or even "click".

 

Toss a treat to send your dog away from you and then sit on the floor in front of the mat. That's important.

 

Once your dog has gotten the treat, wait for him or her to return to your locale. At first click (or mark) and reward her just for returning to where you are. Toss another treat and repeat this a few times.

 

After doing that a few times wait, after your dog has returned, until the dog makes some contact with the mat. Any contact is fine - a single paw, multiple paws, or maybe you'll get lucky and get a down right away. I did this with all four of my dogs and all four were different. Dean gave me the instant down, Sammie just one paw. Click (or mark) that contact, give your dog one treat and then release and toss another to send the dog away.

 

Repeat, repeat, repeat.

 

If your dog is not already offering a down on the mat, do this for a few days and then lengthen the time that you wait after your dog returns to you. As long as the dog does not get frustrated, wait for a sit or a down. If you get a sit or down, click (or mark), jackpot, and then toss a treat. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

 

Now, if you aren't getting a down already, after a few days of rewarding the sit, wait your dog out once you have the sit. For some dogs, this can take a bit of thought process. Others will get it almost instantly. The fact that you are still sitting next to the mat helps.

 

Once the dog has chosen to lie down on his or her own (it doesn't matter if the dog is straight, crooked, all the way on the mat, or mostly off), click (or mark), jackpot, and toss.

 

At this point, you will only reward the down. Once the dog is offering a down every single time, repeat the process, sitting in a chair. It will go much faster this time. Once the dog is offering a down every single time, stand and repeat the process. Again, it will go much faster.

 

Once it has become a strong default in the context of this game, you can name it. I would give it a different name if your dog has been struggling with "down". I use "splat" as a fast, "splat down" behavior. I found that once my dog knew it on the mat, I simply started to cue it in new situations, without the mat, and the dog understood. I even added distance to this.

 

What I personally like about this approach is that the dog is learning it in the context of a game and he or she actually learns the behavior without even realizing it. This is good for a dog who is stuck on the behavior. And since you aren't using a lure, you don't have to fade it, which can be a challenge for a dog who struggles with fading a lure (to which there actually is both an art and a skill!)

 

Hope that helps.

 

 

Kristine, I love your posts -- so full of practical information. I've been struggling with down with Robin for months now...he knows what it means but only does it when he thinks there's something in it for him....I'm going to start all over again with your method.

[Root Beer]

I've been struggling with down with Robin for months now...he knows what it means but only does it when he thinks there's something in it for him....I'm going to start all over again with your method.

 

It really worked wonders with Dean. In fact, he learned to "down" so well that he started to default down rather than sit! But that was pretty easy to help him sort out once he was solid on his splat down.

 

He did me proud at our Rally competition in December. There's a bonus sign in Level 2 Rally where you leave the dog on a sit, walk 5 or 6 feet away, turn and cue the dog to down. The dog has to down without breaking the sit to get the bonus points and then hold the down until you return around the dog back to heel. He nailed it!