At the bottom of the page, you can download training logs and worksheets to help you practice this approach at home. You can also view and download a convenient flow chart to guide you along the way.
- What is our Goal?
- What is our Starting Point/Baseline?
- What are the steps I need to take to get from our Starting Point to our Goal?
Question 1. What is our Goal?
Our Goal:
The dog will lie down in response to the verbal cue “Down” and a hand signal (presenting of palm faced down without bending over).
Important to remember: We are not teaching the dog how to lie down. She already lies down when sleeping or relaxing. We are teaching her to perform a behavior that she already knows in response to our signals.
Sample Starting Point to Goal Sequence
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Step 1 (Starting Point) | Dog has no reliable ‘down’ cue but will sit reliably to some kind of cue. Start with dog in a ‘Sit’ position. |
Step 2 (Food lure 1) | Food in right hand. Right hand lure head all the way to ground. Reward with food from right hand. |
Step 3 (Food lure 2) | Food in both hands. Left hand behind back. Right hand lure head all the way to ground. Reward with food from left hand (should be behind back). |
Step 4 (Empty hand/Closed fist lure) | Food in left hand and behind back. Right hand closed fist lure head all the way to ground. Reward with food from left hand. |
Step 5: (Flat hand lure) | Food in left hand and behind back. Right hand open flat with palm facing down. Lure head all the way to the ground. Reward with food from left hand. |
Step 6: (Flat hand lure 6 inches) | Food in left hand and behind back. Right hand open flat with palm facing down. Lure head toward the ground stopping hand 6 inches above ground. Reward with food from left hand. |
Step 7: (Flat hand lure 12 inches) | Repeat Step 6 but stop hand 12 inches above ground. |
Step 8: (Flat hand lure 24 inches) | Repeat Step 6 but stop hand 24 inches above ground. |
Step 9: (Flat hand signal standing straight) | Food in left hand and behind back. Right hand open flat with palm facing down. Stop hand before your back begins to bend (your posture should remain standing straight). Reward with food from left hand. |
Step 10: (Goal: Verbal/Hand signal) | Say the word “Down” in your normal tone of voice, then 1 second later present right hand open flat hand with palm facing down. Move right hand no more than 3 inches downward. Reward with food from left hand. |
This is just an example of what a plan might look like. I purposely tried to stay somewhat vague about actual technique. The purpose of this post is not to give you a ‘how to of down’. There are plenty of other places you can learn that. Rather, the purpose is to introduce you to a tool that can help you break down any behavior into incremental steps for teaching your dog anything.