- Should you allow your dog on the furniture?
It's a pretty common question that we get from our students.
I'm actually going to talk to that today
in our Two Minute Training Terms.
I'm Ken Steepe, welcome back to McCann Dogs.
Now here comes the part where I play a G-chord
on my acoustic guitar and Hippy Shake,
our toy poodle, barks twice.
(guitar strum) (bark, bark)
Welcome back to McCann dogs.
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This is our Two Minute Training Terms series,
where I try to explain to you, in two minutes or less,
a word or a phrase or an idea,
as it relates to dogs and dog training
to help you better understand your dog.
Now I've chosen a different location
for our Two Minute Training Terms today,
and it's actually sitting on the couch,
which is way more comfortable,
and something you may see more often in the future.
Let's not waste anymore time.
Let's put two minutes on the clock, and here we go.
Some people would suggest that you should never allow
your dogs on the furniture.
This kind of ties in with the whole dominance theories
that if your dog is elevated, they'll see themselves
as the pack leader.
We prefer to think of positions of status
by means of an understanding of manners and boundaries.
Because they're so infrequently good examples
of one size fits all dog training,
we're going to look at this from two kinds of dogs.
Dog number one.
Dog number one is that dog in training,
that you're working really hard to get them
to listen to you and respond to you the first time
every single time.
You've probably been working really hard
to give them clear expectations
and show them clear boundaries.
With these dogs in training, it's a good opportunity
to have them go lie down on a mat,
or maybe a bed that's right next to the couch or chair.
Maybe they can hang out there with a bone
and you can relax for a bit,
and know that you still have to keep one eye on them,
but you're able to watch TV a little bit
or maybe you can even set a crate
next to the couch or chair, so that you know your dog
can be safe if you really get involved in that movie
and get distracted,
you know that they can't get into trouble.
It's a great opportunity for you to set those expectations
and clear boundaries for those dogs in training.
Whether you control food or toys or access to the furniture,
it's a great way to help you with your overall
big picture management of your dog.
Dog number two.
Dog number two is your average, well-behaved dog.
Dog number two is the kind of dog that has great manners,
listens to you when you call for them,
just has a clear understanding that there are boundaries,
and there are rules in the house.
Now for this average well-behaved dog,
it's entirely up to you whether you let them
up on the furniture or not.
Whether you set them up a space,
maybe you lay out a dog bed or something like that,
a blanket to try to protect your furniture,
and they have one specific spot that they go lay down on,
or you're probably going to get drool
and maybe some claw marks on that piece of furniture,
keep that in mind when you're making this decision.
What I think is a really important tweak for dog number two,
the dog that listens, is have them up on the furniture
by invitation only.
What that means for us is when we have a dog
that we're training, now they're listening to us,
they understand that they need to show good manners
in the house, that we have expectations
and they're following them,
then we invite them on the couch.
You know we might be sitting on the couch,
read to watch a movie or something,
we'll tell them up, up, and have them lie next to us.
Maybe we can give them a bone,
or maybe we can just pat them,
regardless, the one clear, definitive rule we have
about being up on the couch,
is will they get off the couch when we ask them to.
Basically, what that means, is after we've invited them up,
if we need to get up and go to the other room,
or maybe readjust a blanket or something like that for them,
when we say off, without issue, without any fuss,
they just happily get off the couch.
That's part of the rules about being on the couch.
It's really an important factor
for setting clear expectations.
The other great part about allowing your dogs
on the furniture by invitation only,
is that if you have guests over, or if you have family over,
or whatever, you don't have to worry
about them hanging out on your couch
and your dog hopping on their lap.
Your dog understands that there's a clear expectation
to keep four feet on the floor,
and not jump on the couch unless you invite them up.
The other great part about allowing your dog
on the furniture by invitation only,
is that you can be really selective
about what pieces of furniture your dog is allowed on.
Maybe your dog is allowed on the couch,
but they're never allowed on the loveseat.
Maybe they're allowed on the recliner,
they're never allowed on your bed.
What I want you to keep in mind
for those average well-behaved dog,
you have clear expectations
and you're really consistent about your expectations
of them jumping up on the furniture.
That's all I have to say about that.
Tell me that this is the one.
I was really comfortable,
so I could see me making it under two minutes here.
(buzzer)
You know what, I don't feel so bad about going over,
because I was comfortable the whole time.
I think we should shoot all our videos this way.
I hope you enjoyed this Two Minute Training Terms,
and I hope you found it helpful.
If this is your first time on the channel,
make sure you hit that subscribe button.
We publish new videos every Monday, Wednesday and Friday
to help you do something awesome with your dog.
Beside me is a video
that youtube thinks you'll want to watch next.
On that note, happy training everybody.