How to Train Your Stubborn Dog to Lie Down

How to Train Your Stubborn Dog to Lie Down
Medium difficulty iconMedium
Time icon5-10 Days
General training category iconGeneral

Introduction

It’s a nightmare getting your dog to move out of the way of the door, let alone getting him to follow any obedience commands. He’s so big and strong as well that he knows nobody can make him do anything. He’s gotten more stubborn as he’s got older. Now getting him into the car is a nightmare, he’ll just refuse and he knows he’s too heavy for you to lift him. Not being able to train him to lay down really causes problems sometimes. For example, when you’re at the vet you can’t get him to lie down so the vet can examine him properly. 

Training your stubborn dog to lie down will open the door to a whole range of other possibilities. Succeed with this basic command and you’ll find teaching him to ‘wait’, ‘sit’ and any number of other instructions will be easier too.

arrow-up-icon

Top

Defining Tasks

Training your dog to lie down would normally be relatively straightforward. But you’ve got yourself a particularly tricky customer who doesn’t like following orders Fortunately, all dogs have a weak spot, and that is usually food. You need to find the food that drives him crazy and use that to assert your control. If he’s a puppy he should be a fast learner even if he’s stubborn. You may see results in just 5 days. If he’s older and been living without rules for many years then you’ve got more of a challenge on your hands. You may need up to 10 days before you see consistent results.

Succeed with this training and you’re halfway there to teaching him to ‘stay’ too. You’ll also be able to get him to lie down so he’s not stood in the way of the TV in the evenings.

arrow-up-icon

Top

Getting Started

Before you set to work you’ll need a few bits. The most important component is food. Take his favorite food, such as cheese, and break it into small pieces. You’ll also need a much-loved toy and a clicker for one of the methods.

You’ll need a quiet room to practice in at a time of the day where you both won’t be distracted. Try and set aside 10 minutes each day for the next week or so.

Once you’ve got all of that, just bring patience and a pro-active attitude and you’re good to get going!

arrow-up-icon

Top

The Click & Praise Method

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon
1

Get him clicker friendly

Use the clicker to signal to him whenever he does something right. With any behavior he performs correctly, give him a click and then give him a treat. After some time you will have an effective way to signal to him when he’s acted correctly, speeding up the learning process.

2

Kneel

Kneel in front of him so you’re at his height. Then hold out his absolute favorite food, right under his nose. Keep your hand firmly shut, you don’t want him to get to it, but you want him to sniff around and know what’s there.

3

Verbal cue

Give your ‘down’ instruction in a clear voice. You can use any word you like, just make sure it’s not being used in conjunction with another command. Try and hold eye contact as you give the command, this will keep him focused.

4

Guide him

Slowly move your hand towards the ground. His nose will follow your hand, forcing him to the floor. If he doesn’t move his back down you can gently push him down with your free hand. Don’t push too hard; you don’t want to scare or hurt him.

5

Click & reward

As soon as he hits the ground, click to let him know he’s done the right thing and hand over the treat. It’s important he gets the treat as soon as possible so he associates it with the behavior. Now practice this for several minutes each day. As he gets the hang of it you can just stand above him and slowly cut out the hand guide and the tasty treats. The clicker alone should do the trick now.

The Favorite Toy Method

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon

Effective

0 Votes

Ribbon icon
1

Get him excited

Each morning and evening play around with one specific toy. Talk in an animated voice and get him as excited as possible. You can play tug of war, you can even take it on walks and play fetch. The more excited he is by it, the harder he’ll work for it when you start training.

2

Positioning

Stand directly above him with the toy in your hand. Remain calm at this point, you want him to concentrate on your instructions. Make sure you’re in a quiet room where he won’t be distracted.

3

‘Down’

Give the command in a clear voice. Hold eye contact while you do it. At this point he’s probably staring up at you with an inquisitive look, but he’ll soon catch on. As you give the command, slowly move the toy towards the ground, but hold it firmly so he can’t get it. This will guide him all the way to the ground.

4

Reward

Once and only when he’s fully on the floor, give him the toy. Play around with it for a minute and give him lots of verbal praise. The more attention he gets from you now the more eager he will be to perform the behavior again for the play time.

5

Reduce guidance

Practice this several times each day. As you practice, give him less and less guidance. No longer lead him to the ground with the toy. Instead, stand above him holding the toy and just give the verbal command. Once he’s fully got the hang of it you can lose the toy and just rely on the instruction alone.

The Irresistible Food Method

Least Recommended

1 Vote

Ribbon icon

Least Recommended

1 Vote

Ribbon icon
1

Setting up

Head for a quiet room with your dog in tow. Get his attention by kneeling in front of him and holding out a treat in front of his nose. As you’re setting up, don’t talk to him and play with him, just keep eye contact to get him focussed.

2

‘Down’

Give the command in a clear but upbeat voice. You want him to know this is a fun game, but you also want him to know you’re asking him to do something. You can use any word or phrase you like, just try and keep it relatively short.

3

Lead him

Using the treat in your hand, slowly guide him to the floor. Move extremely slowly so he has to bend right down to get to it. Continue until your hand is flat on the floor, as is his face and body. If his bottom legs are up, use your other hand to gently push him to the ground.

4

Reward

As soon as he’s completely on the floor hand over the tasty treat. You can also play around with him for a minute. The more attention and praise he gets, the more keen he will be to play again.

5

Practice

Practice this several times each day. Consistency is key, so try not to have a couple of days break until he’s fully got the hang of it. When he is into the swing of it you can slowly cut out the treats.

Written by James Barra

Veterinary reviewed by:

Published: 12/01/2017, edited: 01/08/2021

Training Questions

Have a question?

Training Questions and Answers

Dog nametag icon

Linus

Dog breed icon

Boxer Mix

Dog age icon

1 Year

Question icon

Question

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

He's super stubborn. I can get him to sit just fine but when it comes to laying down, I say it clearly a couple times, and nothing. The only way I can get him to lay down is tugging a LITTLE bit at his collar and down he goes. But it's getting to the point where I shouldn't have to do that anymore. He has IBS so I have to train him with toys, what should I do?

April 25, 2020

Linus's Owner

Expert avatar

Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

Recommendation ribbon

1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello Mackenzie, Check out the article linked below. I suggest following the "Leash Pressure method" found there. https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-german-shepherd-to-lay-down Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

April 27, 2020

Dog nametag icon

Fred

Dog breed icon

Cross lab and collie

Dog age icon

1 Year

Question icon

Question

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Thumbs up icon

0 found this helpful

Got him from a charity. He has been well trained in most things by previous owner except lying down. He sits without you saying anything. We can’t get him to lie down and have tried various methods; he just won’t go past sit. He is trying really hard to do what we want; I wonder if he was ‘over trained’ to sit, if that’s possible. Our main reason to teach this is so he is comfortable and more stable in the car.

June 17, 2019

Fred's Owner

Expert avatar

Caitlin Crittenden - Dog Trainer

Recommendation ribbon

1133 Dog owners recommended

Hello Caroline, First, using a treat, touch it to his nose until he is licking it, then move it toward the ground slowly enough that he can keep licking it the whole time. When it gets to the ground, slowly move the treat toward him, along the ground under his belly instead of moving it away from him like the article mentions. If he lies down when you do this, praise him and open your hand to let him have the treat. Sometimes dogs don't respond to moving the treat away from them and you have to move it toward them once it's on the ground. If the above tweak doesn't work, then check out the article linked below and follow the "Capture method" or the "Leash Pressure method". All of the methods from the article you commented on are versions of the Lure-Reward method from the article I linked below (the method from the article I linked below that I don't suggest you use since it hasn't been working). Lure Reward training is the quickest way to teach Down to most dogs, but some dogs do not like lying down because it's submissive, uncomfortable, or you may not be luring in a way that he can understand. When that's the case you need to use the Capture method or Leash Pressure method. Only use the leash pressure method if he isn't overly fearful or aggressive since that method is the firmest of the three. When you use the leash pressure method you are not physically forcing the dog to the ground, you are applying just enough downward pressure to make standing uncomfortable for him and waiting until the dog gets tired of being uncomfortable and chooses to lie down - at which point you will reward him heavily for lying down. Down command: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-german-shepherd-to-lay-down Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

June 17, 2019


Wag! Specialist
Need training help?

Learn more in the Wag! app

Five starsFive starsFive starsFive starsFive stars

43k+ reviews

Install


© 2024 Wag Labs, Inc. All rights reserved.