TEACHING YOUR DOG TO LIE DOWN ON COMMAND

Of course, your dog already knows how to lie down. What you are going to teach
him is to do it when you tell him.
First, sit your dog at your left side. Put two fingers of your left hand, palm facing
you, through the collar at the side of his neck. Have a treat in your right hand.
Show him the treat directly in front of his nose, say “Down,” and lower the treat
straight down and in front of your dog as you apply a little downward pressure on
the collar. When he lies down, give him the treat and praise by telling him quietly
what a good puppy he is. Keep your left hand in the collar and your right hand
off your puppy while telling him how clever he is so he learns to be praised for
lying down. Petting your dog as a form of praise will get him all excited and he
will forget what you wanted him to do.
Reverse the process by showing Felix a treat in front of his nose and bringing it
up slightly above his head with a little upward tension on the collar as you tell him
to “Sit.”
In the following illustration, study
the way the right hand moves down
and in front of your dog in an L shape,
and the position of the left hand. Place
the treat between the dog’s front legs so
he learns to lie down in place and without
moving forward.
Some dogs don’t respond to a treat.
This seeming lack of interest happens
when the treat is vaguely waived somewhere in the vicinity of the dog’s head,
instead of directly in front of his nose. Another reason could be that the dog is not
interested in that particular treat. You need to experiment with what works best
for your dog. (Stay away from treats containing a lot of sugar or salt, which are
unhealthy for your dog.)
Other dogs are just not sufficiently interested in food. If your dog won’t lie
down for a treat or other object of attraction, such as a toy, you can physically
place him into the down position and then praise or reward him with a treat. (An
object of attraction is anything your dog will actively work for.)
To place Felix in the down position, place him into a sit at your left side. Kneel
next to him, with both of you facing the same direction. With your left hand reach
over his back and pick up his left foreleg with the palm of your hand, keeping your
thumb pointing straight up. Place your right hand behind his right foreleg with
your thumb pointing up. Say “Down” as you lift and lower your dog down. Praise
and keep your hands still to a count of five. If you apply pressure on your dog’s
forelegs with your thumbs, he will try to pull away from you and you will find
yourself in a wrestling match with your dog. Not a good idea!
For the particularly squirmy dog, place your left forearm firmly against his left
side as you place him into the down position.
Practice having your dog lie down at your side five times in a row for five days,
or until he does it on command and without you having to touch his collar. Verbally
praise him and reward with a treat every time.
When he understands what the Down command means, you can move on to
the next step. Sit your dog at your left side and put two fingers of your left hand,
palm facing you, through the collar at the side of his neck. Say “Down” and apply
slight downward pressure on the collar. When your dog lies down, slowly take your
hand out of the collar, praise, and give him a treat every other time. Practice over
the course of several days until he will lie down on command without you having
to touch his collar.