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But My Dog Knows SIT!
I recently met with a client and her very excitable and friendly pup. Based on her intake form, I already knew that jumping up was an issue and asked to meet with her outside – initially without the pup – so we could discuss a greeting strategy. With super-yummy treats at the ready, I instructed her to keep plenty of space between us when she brought the pup out on leash. I also asked her to begin delivering treats as soon as the pup saw me in order to redirect his attention and inspire him to focus on her instead of me. But she (like many clients) had already taught him to SIT and so she asked him repeatedly to do so. Because he was unable to comply, she was not delivering any treats.
It’s not uncommon to hear pet parents say in frustration, “But he KNOWS how to sit!” They may even add: “He’s just being stubborn.” We need to gently explain the importance of practicing skills in many different environments and around gradually increasing distractions in order to build truly reliable behaviors.
What training steps would you suggest to help get this client to her goal of having her pup SIT to greet visitors?
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15 Replies
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@Katt – What serendipity! You may want to cross post here, and talk about all things SIT in this thread. 🙂
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I know I’m just a student and still learning. She could start by managing the behavior. Maybe tossing treats in the opposite direction of the door to get his nose to the floor and not having paws on the person is a start. He might know Sit, but an exited dog isn’t going to hear her. She could also start using turn-away, and have guests do the same thing. Once he has four on the floor mark and reward. All the while working up to incompatible behaviors such as a sit and stay. But like I said, I’m still learning????
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Hi @Katt , I think your instincts are spot on!
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Thank you! I trying to learn as much as I can!
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This is great @Katt ! Tossing treats in the opposite direction of the guest not only gives the dog something else to focus on, it also gets them willingly moving farther away from the guest. ????
Once the dog is focused on their pet parent, and I’m able to be within treat-tossing distance, I’ll begin the tosses. I try to land them behind the dog, and once they eat that treat and begin to approach me, I’ll gauge the enthusiasm of their approach. I may need to toss a couple more treats until I see the dog will be able to approach and then SIT when I ask them to. And even when they can sit, I still deliver treats behind them so they can keep rehearsing the important behavior chain of approach-then-sit.
There are definitely dogs whose jumping is low-key and who will be quickly discouraged if the person turns away, but others just think it’s fun to jump up and bounce off a person and a turned back won’t dissuade them. ???? I’m working with a large St. Bernard-Doodle now, and he could literally knock a person over with one jump!
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That’s a big dog! I bet he’s just a big sweetheart though. I hope the training goes great! I’m glad I was able to give a helpful suggestion!
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He is super-friendly, but absolutely out of control, and the mom is pregnant! So glad they’re addressing training now, before baby arrives in April. ????
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I like tossing treats down on the ground ifn front of the pup to reward four on the floor and get the dog’s focus down, not zeroed in on the approaching person. Once they can reliably achieve calm with 4 on the floor with practice, I add in “sit.”
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@Katt @LisaOMy These are GREAT suggestions. I completely agree. Not only are excited dogs not in that “think and learn” zone sometimes I think asking for a sit in that situation can cause a little frustration on the dog. All that excitement is behind the sit if they actually get into the position. A treat scatter is a great suggestion and build on that. Another reason its good to train the dog in front of you:)
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Question: What if the dog is not very food motivated or too excited to take treats? Would you entirely remove the dog from the situation until they’re able to calm down before approaching the visitor?
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Such a great question, @ClaudiaRida . Here’s what works for me 99% of the time, either one thing or a combo:
- Bump up the treats to fresh proteins! ????
- Increase distance between dog and guest, at first
- Orchestrate meetings outside first, before practicing indoors
- Exercise the dog before guest arrives
- Reduce his regular meal amount before the lesson
I can’t think of a client with an excitable/friendly dog where these steps didn’t work, and I work with a lot of them. ????
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Thank you, @virginiad – those are excellent strategies that I will add to my toolbox ????
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No problem! ????
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- Bump up the treats to fresh proteins! ????
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All great ideas. a couple of other members mentioned that teaching sit in this situation can cause frustration. I totally agree. Many times trying to get a a dog to sit when that doorbell rings is very difficult for a dog to do. When company comes the dogs are already over threshold. I usually will find a spot in the house where the dog can go and I can shape the calm behavior. Slowly work up to visitors. The spot in the house should be in an area where the dog can’t get to the visitor in early stages of the training but you want the dog to still be able to see the visitor. You can use a tether or gate. Reward calm behavior have visitors ignore the dog. Also when visitors visit always have the owner sit between the visitor and his dog. The spot should have a dog bed or blanket with a favorite bone or toy. There is a lot more to this but you guys get the the idea. I have used this method many times. It works great for overexcited dogs and aggressive dogs. The method works for many dogs but it is not for every dog.
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This is a lovely idea for setting the dog up for success. Nice share, @bmacwatt
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