Teaching the Command "No"
The following tip was written by PAW adopter Candy
Hamner:
One of the most important commands to teach your dog
is the command "no." Not only is this good for family
living, it can help you to save your dog's life in a
threatening situation. The command is also helpful if
you want to re-direct your dog's behavior from a
negative behavior, such as chewing on your chair leg,
to a positive behavior, such as chewing on his toy.
How do you teach the command "no"? The easiest way is
to "set your dog up" for correction. Start indoors,
using a collar and a leash, focusing on one activity
you would like him to stop.
Let's say you have a problem with your dog taking food
off the kitchen table. Have him on lead and walk him
by the table. Place small pieces of food on the table.
When he takes the food off the table say "no," give
him a slight leash correction, move him away from the
table, and give him something he can have (such as a
toy or safe chew bone) and praise him. Repeat the
exercise a few times allowing him to take the food.
Next step: take him to the table and say "no" before
he reaches for the food, giving him a slight leash
correction and lead him away from the table. Praise
him lavishly for not going ahead and taking the food.
Give him something he can have. Repeat this a few
times until he stops when you say "no" without using
the leash correction.
If you have trouble with your dog chewing your
furniture, try teaching "no" to re-direct him to
something more appropriate to chew. Make sure you
have several desirable chew bones or toys to offer the
dog. You may need to experiment to find the kinds of
toys she really enjoys. When your dog reaches out to
chew on your chair leg, go to the dog, place your
fingers lightly under the collar and move the dog away
from the chair leg saying "no" as you move the dog
away. You might want to add "this is mommy's" then
when you give her a toy and say "this is your toy.
Good dog" and happily praise her when she takes her
toy and chews on it.
Next, try the command in other situations. Always have
the dog on lead and always lavishly praise him for
doing what you ask. For example, while you are
walking outside and he pulls on the lead to run after
a squirrel, say "no," pull him towards you and praise
him. Practice this exercise while keeping the dog on
lead until you can say "no" without pulling on the
leash and the dog stops the behavior. Eventually, you
can begin to use the command off lead when in a safe,
fully confined environment. Always praise the dog
lavishly for every success, and if you use food
treats, offer them to the dog as a reward.
This command is a wonderful command that helps in the
safety of your pet, your home and visitors.
Note: Many dogs have heard the word "no" so often in
the past that it has no clear meaning for them. In
such cases, another command-word could be substituted
for "no," such as "ack!"
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For more Dog Tips about pet
care, adoption and the work PAW does, visit our
website at:
Partnership for Animal Welfare, Inc.
www.paw-rescue.org
P.O. Box 1074, Greenbelt, MD 20768