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Great points, @jenwalker – I think dogs are VERY adept at seeing our unintentional cues. I became a much cleaner trainer when I stared working with other species!
To answer your questions, I think dogs watch our eyes a lot. Many of my clients will be looking directly into the dog’s eyes while giving a cue like “down”. That seems to keep the dogs in place. When I cue the human to look “where they want the dog to be”, they cast their eyes lower and the dog almost always instantly drops to the ground. Fascinating stuff!
I’m interested in other cues people unintentionally give… what do you all think?