- Today we're gonna dive into a little Dog Training 101.
Do you feel like your dog's a little unpredictable
when it comes to sitting, or lying down,
or when you ask them to stay,
you're not really sure how long they're gonna do that for?
The reality is the unpredictable one here is probably you
and by the end of this video, I'm gonna help you fix that.
I'm Ken Steepe and welcome back to McCann Dogs.
(guitar strumming) (dog barking)
We help more than 500 dog owners every single week
to overcome the same dog training challenges
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make sure you hit that subscribe button
so that I can help you to have a well behaved
four legged family member.
Your dog isn't a mind reader.
Imagine what it would be like if they were though.
(sci-fi mind reading music)
Every time we train our dog,
we wanna be clear, consistent, and fair.
You work pretty hard to have reliable
and speedy responses to all of your verbal cues,
but how does your dog know when their job is done?
Is it when you move away?
Is it after you've rewarded?
Your dog really needs a more definitive cue
to let them know that they can stop doing
whatever it is that they're doing.
You're gonna see that you struggle
with stationary exercises,
for example, more if,
your dog doesn't really know
when they're allowed to move.
For our release word we use the word, okay,
and okay doesn't specifically mean
that you're allowed to move,
it just means you can stop doing
whatever it is we've asked you to do.
Using the McCann method we have two stationary hold skills,
one's a stay and it's a little more formal,
and one's a wait and it includes a remote release.
So for the stay, we'd return to our dogs side
and we'd say, okay,
but with the wait we can be at any position, any distance,
and say, okay, and your dog is released.
Yeah, good girl, alright.
(barking)
Good job.
Maybe you're working on your walking on a loose leash skill
with your dog in at your side,
and you see them giving really great effort.
They've been in position for a longer period than normal,
you an use your okay, and all that okay means
is that they don't need to work so hard in at your side.
Or you can even use your okay
when you want your dog to go sniff the grass or go potty,
that way there's no confusion when you ask them
to get back in at your side.
(mumbles) Get in.
Good girl, let's go, good girl.
They can maybe move around in front of you,
and maybe you can have a game of tug
or do something that's fun for them,
but that okay means you can stop giving me
that amazing attention
and being in that tight position at my side.
Just a short editorial break
as I'm literally editing today's video,
we had a great question come in on the YouTube channel
on one of our other videos,
and I'm gonna paraphrase a little bit
from Cameron Hughes, she asks,
for lease training, we're working in the house and the yard,
but how do you suggest handling the every-day walks,
just when she's beginning to learn to walk
on my left-hand side,
and she also mentions that she goes
on two 30 minutes walks everyday.
And this is the perfect example
of using that release command with your dog,
whether you use okay, or whatever word you choose.
It isn't fair to expect your young dog in training
to walk for 30 minutes in that great, at-you-side position,
it's probably a little overwhelming for them,
and you wanna set them up to be successful.
So break things down a little bit.
In this example, I might tell Cameron
to pick to light standards on your walk
and ask your dog to get in at your side
and walk with that great attention,
and when you get to the second one
you can tell your puppy or young dog,
okay, and they can break it off a little bit.
Maybe two more light standards down your walk
you can ask them to get back in.
That way you're really reinforcing the great choices,
and you're not struggling to maintain their attention
for that entire time.
And now, back to your regular scheduled program.
You can use this release word in your training
for your dogs to exercise a little bit more self-control.
For example, when we let our dogs out of their crates,
we'll open the door, but they're not allowed to run out
until we've said okay.
This is especially helpful
if you are maybe in a busy parking lot
with your dog in your vehicle
and you let them out of their crate,
or even if you have them in the back seat
and you're allowing them out,
they're not allowed to leave, you can clip your leash on,
and then you say okay once you're ready.
By using this word, you immediately become more predictable.
You expect your dog to keep doing
whatever it is you've asked them to do,
until you use that release word.
You do need to be a little bit self-aware though
when you use this release word.
For example, if I reward my dog, then say okay,
and then reward my dog and then say okay,
reward my dog and then say okay,
what do you think your dog's going to expect
the next time you reward them?
They're going to expect you to say okay.
And the same thing goes for motion.
We talked about the wait scale a little bit earlier,
and it's such a valuable skill,
but if I ask my dog to wait at the bottom of the stairs,
and then every single time I get halfway up, I release them,
they're going to start to expect
that every time I hit that halfway point,
they're allowed to go.
So be really self-conscious and self-aware
of when you're using that release word,
and mix it up a little bit.
Mix up the timing of your okay,
and mix up the distances that you're releasing your dog from
and really soon you're gonna start to see better longevity
in your stays for example,
you're gonna see your dog remaining in position,
even when tough distractions go by,
because they know that's it's you're expectation
that they remain there until you release them.
I mentioned our stationary skills videos
a little bit earlier,
and I think that's a great place for you
to start using your predictable release work.
So click that card right there.
On that note, I'm Ken, happy training.
(upbeat music)