Teaching your dog to settle on a mat is very useful—for both practical and safety reasons. Dogs need a safe place to settle down. When you teach your dog to settle on a portable mat, your dog has a safe place to settle anywhere! You can send your dog to his mat while you are cooking, eating dinner, or even while you are out on the town. Your dog always has a safe place to lie by your side.

The settle on a mat behavior is a skill that is particularly useful for service dogs. As KPA faculty member Laurie Luck and her service-puppy-in-training Whit demonstrate, this behavior can be fun and entertaining to train!