teaching foundation behaviors: name cue
Here’s how to teach a name cue:
- Start indoors, with few distractions.
- Say your dog’s name once and wait.
- When your dog looks toward your face, click and offer a treat.
- Repeat until your dog is offering a response reliably.
In this video, KPA CTP Amber Quann is teaching Jamie to respond to his name. Amber begins by saying the dog’s name and rewarding him from her hand when he looks at her. Once she’s established a solid response, Amber tosses a treat a few steps away from Jamie before calling his name. When he returns to her, she offers a treat from her hand instead of tossing the treat to provide an incentive for returning to her. She repeats this exercise until Jamie is returning to her quickly and enthusiastically.
For more training tips and ideas, check out our blogs and our Dog Trainer Foundations course! Be sure to check out the new Immersion version of the Dog Trainer Foundations course for an even more personalized, structured learning experience and five hours of coaching to help get you to the next step!
Happy Training!