Dog commands: How your dog learns the most important signals

The long history of domestication of the dog goes back not least to the successful cooperation and dog commands with humans. Dogs have long been – and still are – invaluable helpers in hunting, herd management, and home and yard protection. Some common commands have been established for communication, which you will find explained below.

Contents:✍

• Does a dog understand commands?
• What are commands used for in dog training?
• How can I teach a dog commands?
• Dog commands List
• Hand signals: Silent dog commands
• Videos: Sit, down, stay

Does a dog understand commands?

The intelligence of dogs has been researched conscientiously for a long time. In fact, it has been proven that clever four-legged friends can save and implement a repertoire of up to 250 words individually. In addition, there is the ability to interpret facial expressions, gestures and behavior of the people they know and, to a certain extent, to perform abstraction work.

Associating words with things or commands is not a big challenge for dogs, even if there are geniuses and simpletons among the individual animals.

A classic example of more complex understanding: in an unguarded moment, the dog has done something forbidden. If master unsuspectingly comes along, the four-legged friend shows a behavior that could be interpreted as remorse. Although the dog does not have a seriously bad conscience, it can retrospectively establish a connection between the act and a known prohibition.

What are commands used for in dog training?

When training a young dog, basic commands - dog trainers now prefer to speak of signals - are an important basis for harmonious coexistence, because the young animal must first learn what it is allowed to do and what not to do. It makes sense e.g. B. "good/fine" and "no". The basic commands are not only used for control and easier handling of the animal, but ultimately also for its safety. Further training can be built on these dog commands: Desired behavior is rewarded, prohibited behavior is verbally marked as such.

Signals can then follow that instruct the dog to sit, lie down, or heel. As soon as the basic commands are in place, the more complex tasks are added. For example, which encourage the dog to engage in activities and can vary depending on the dog's environment, for example following a track, retrieving something - or simply giving it a paw or making males interact with their human.

How can I teach a dog commands?

To do this, you need to create a link between the signal and the expected action. This requires patience and consistency: some dogs understand very quickly what you are asking of them, while others need a little longer. Break down – if possible – the learning process into the smallest steps that are easier to understand. And: Practice only a few minutes at a time, but several times a day instead of planning long units. The concentration span, especially in young dogs, is relatively short. Excessive demands due to practice phases that are too long or too difficult can spoil the fun of it.

Examples of teaching dog commands

•  "No!" : If you are caught behaving in an undesirable way, say "No" to the puppy in a sharp tone and adopt a stern posture for a moment so that the dog startles and stops doing what it is doing. It is important to immediately distract the animal and praise it for pausing so that it does not just pause in confusion and then continue with the forbidden action. In this way, the young four-legged friend internalizes the command and associates it with “stop”.
• "Come": Make eye contact with the dog, lean forward or crouch, and use the command to entice the animal. When the dog comes, praise and reward him profusely: "Come" becomes something pleasant. If the pup runs away instead, don't run after it or it will turn into an exciting (from a dog's point of view) hunting game. Move away on your part - as soon as the dog tries to catch up, command and praise it. To be on the safe side, you should use a tow line outdoors until the "come here" works. Do not scold when the dog dawdles: This can produce exactly the opposite learning effect.
• "Sit": Lure the dog with a treat, but hold your hand so that the dog has to look up at you and give the command. To keep an eye on the treat, he assumes a sitting position, which is profusely praised. You prevent jumping up or the like with "No". Give the dog the treat while he is actually sitting, gradually increasing the time between sitting and giving the treat.
• “Down”: Holding the treat in your closed hand, move it across the floor in front of the sitting dog, saying the command as you do so. If the dog follows with its nose and lies down, it is praised.

Important: take small steps. At first, you can also reward the right impulse without the command being executed perfectly. For example: If the dog is “down” for a very short time, it will be rewarded. Then he can jump up again immediately. Then, over time, you can increase the intervals he has to lie down to get a reward. Once the commands are sufficiently linked, the use of treats can slowly become more sparing and be replaced by praise or petting.

Dog commands List

A number of command words have become established in German-speaking countries.

The most important dog commands

• Seat - sit down
• place - lie down
• Come/here - walk towards the holder
• Off-ending an action or giving up an item
• No-demand desist
• Peep - attract attention
• Next - don't stop or get distracted
• Quit - ends the current activity, such as a game
• Search - Prompt to follow a trail or find something
• Bring's/apport - Request to fetch

You can find out how to correctly call your dog back in the guide "Recall for the dog".

Basically, you can choose a very individual command for every situation. Fantasy words are also good commands for dogs, as long as the same word is used consistently for a specific command. Short audio signals of one or two syllables are advantageous.

Videos: Sit, down, stay

Aside from the fact that dogs have great ears and the commands don't have to be loud, you can also use a lot of body language and hand signals to guide your dog. Dogs that are used to paying attention to such signals are often very attentive to what their owner is doing.

Also, it is in the nature of animals to communicate a lot through body language. You too will learn to “read” your dog better and better.