Training go to your spot is an excellent skill to help with jumping on visitors. If a puppy is laying calmly at their spot, they can not be jumping in guests walking into the house. It is also useful for families with children (make the dog’s spot a kid free zone) during dinner times, and if you choose to train go to your spot with a towel or small blanket you can bring the blanket with you when you are out and about and use it as a place for calm behaviors at restaurants, while shopping, in shopping carts at dog friendly establishments, etc. You will also find videos below showing how to crate train your puppy. Dog beds should always be child free zones.
Once your dog can repeat each step 8/10 times, move the the next step
Step 1: Build the value of the “Spot”
Create a “spot” with a mat, towel, or dog bed. Spots should always be child free zones. Toss treats on the spot and mark with “Yes” every time they step onto the mat. Practice in every room of the house (video example)
Call them off and then repeat 5-10 times per session. Do this for 1-2 times a day, for 1 week.
Step 2: Place your dog on leash near the mat and wait for your dog to lay down without being asked.
When they lay down on the mat without being asked, mark, “Yes!” and give treats between their front legs. Immediately give a release word (ex: free, ok) and toss a treat so they can leave the matt. Repeat 4-5 times per session, a few times per day. (video example) Start to name it “bed” or “spot” as they are laying down, and then start asking before they lay down (video example) Always give a release word, before they leave the bed (even if you are only asking them to go to the bed for 1 second. This is the foundation for the idea of “stay.”
Step 3: Ask for longer and longer downs on the mat.
Cue “bed” and pause a few secs after your dog lays on the bed then mark, treat 3-4 times right in a row. Then release with “Free”. Your goal is to get your puppy to maintain position for 30 secs to a minute. Giving treats intermittently throughout the minute will help your puppy excel at this. (video example)
Release your puppy from the “bed”, if you think they will break the down without permission.
If your puppy gets out of the bed without you releasing with “free”simply cue “bed” again, and have them hold the down for a shorter duration. Evaluate how you can change the training environment. Was it too distracting? Was your dog too excited or stressed? Does your dog have a physical issue that causes pain in this position? When our dogs break a behavior, it is our mistake for taking the training wheel off too soon. Put the training wheels back on and set them up for success. We all like to do things we are good at. Our dogs do too!
Step 4: Begin adding movements around your puppy while they are laying on their mat.
One of the first movements to add is to turn your back to your dog. Pair the movement with your marker word “Yes!” Doing this makes watching distractions a secondary reinforcer, so that your dog does not get stressed while they have to stay on the bed, but rather loves being on the bed watching the world around them! Gradually make the movements faster and more difficult. If your puppy breaks his stay, you moved too far too fast (it was our mistake, not theirs!) Simply go back the the last successful step and build up a little slower.
Step 5: Begin gradually moving further and further away from your puppy
(in natural movements) in different directions. Move a foot at a time, mark return, give a treat in a calm treat delivery ( on the bed between his front legs) and move away again. Your goal is to be able to walk out of the room and gradually build the duration out of site. Remember anytime your puppy breaks position, it was our mistake. Simply remind them what you wanted, lure or point to the bed, and go back to the last successful step and push the boundary gradually. (Video example)
Step 6: Building Calmness
Begging offering the treats only for calm body language, and looking at things calmly (and not staring at your for treats.- video example) We always want distractions to be the predictor of a reward, so also start to mark “Yes” and give treats for your dogs attention being drawn to things in the environment. This sounds counter intuitive. Don’t we want our dog paying attention to us? The fact is that your dog is laying down and being calm, and you are rewarding them for doing that, before they jump up to run toward the distraction. Plus, our dogs can’t learn to cope with the environment if their attention is always on us.
Step 7: Begin asking your puppy to go to their spot from further and further away from the bed.
Start very close, increase the distance one step at a time. Be sure to practice from different directions and positions. Your goal is to be able to get your dog to go lay on her bed from across the room.
Step 8: If you would like to use “go to your spot” as the calm behavior when people come visit
begin by ringing the doorbell, or knocking (when no one is visiting) and then cue “go to your spot” or “bed.” Mark with yes when your dog goes to her bed, and then work on distance with duration. Doing this often, will make the doorbell the cue to go to her bed. (A person coming over is the biggest distraction. This is PHD level. So be sure you put in plenty of practice before game time!) Consider setting your puppy up for success by placing them on a pet tether attached to their harness so they can’t leave the bed when you first begin to practice this with people coming over. Also consider giving yummy stuffed kong toys or other food toys, or yummy marrow bones while on the pet tether. This not only rewards your puppy for staying on their bed, but also makes calm behaviors and people entering the house a super positive experience. (Make sure no one approaches a tethered dog with a high value food item!)
Once your puppy has mastered the first 8 steps, begin training outside, in different environments and adding distractions gradually