Teach any dog to sit in minutes

Learning to sit - surely that is just for dogs who are headed for the show ring? My dog is never going to learn to dance the Macarena, so why should I bother? The activity even has a scary sound name: "obedience".

Sitting on command isn't an exotic skill, though. You'll be having your dog sit many times a day once you get in the habit. Is your dog pushing at the door as you juggle leash, keys, and dog toys? Just have the dog sit before you open the door. Does your dog try to run across the street on a walk, oblivious to traffic? Command a sit as the dog approaches the edge of the street. Even before they are very good at staying put, the sit will give you a bit of time to catch up. Does your friend's dog jump up or bark at you when you come to visit? Having the dog sit will distract the dog from barking, not to mention identifying you as the source of something good.

Quite simply, food rewards are the easiest and most effective technique for most dogs. Some dogs will respond to a play reward, praise, or other things they like, but I'd try the food first. Later in this lesson I'll talk about cutting back on the rewards, so that your dog will still sit even when you don't have a treat in your hand.

If you are worried about your dog getting overweight, reward with regular dry dog food, taken out of their measured ration.

Your dog doesn't need to be especially hungry for food rewards to work. Just have your training session before a meal rather than after, or use a food reward which is a bit more tasty than their regular food (even a different brand of dog food, just used for rewards, can be a big hit, without compromising nutrition).

Your usual food reward should be small, such as a single piece of dry dog food or a quarter of a slice of hot dog. This keeps the training session moving quickly and lets you get in a lot of attempts.

Do you need to be prepared to scold or punish the dog if they aren't doing what you want? Although there are books about how to use these techniques effectively, in general, I'd advise just ignoring unwanted behavior and moving on to something that the dog can do. It is easy to get frustrated when a training session isn't going well, but unless you punish carefully and deliberately, it won't contribute to learning. Most pet owners would rather train with rewards anyway, finding rewards to be more fun for both the dog and the trainer.