How to Train Your Beagle Dog to Sit

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How to Train Your Beagle Dog to Sit

Easy

3-14 Days

General

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Introduction

Beagles are fantastic dogs for the family. They’re friendly and full of love. Everyone in your household loves your Beagle and he can always put a smile on your face. However, he isn’t the best-trained dog. Beagles are known for being stubborn and require creative training techniques, and he certainly proves the point. You can’t get him to ‘sit’, ‘wait’ or any of the essential commands. He’s more interested in following his nose than following your instructions. It can be extremely frustrating training him and so far you’ve had no luck. Fortunately, that is all about to change.

Succeed with this training and you’ve got the perfect foundation to teach him a range of other commands. ‘Sit’ is important for teaching him discipline and asserting your position as the pack leader. Once you’ve done that you’ll be able to stamp out bad habits with ease.

Defining Tasks

Training a normal dog to sit is relatively straightforward. Beagles, however, don’t always make life so easy. You need to be creative and really appeal to their natural instincts. They’re hounds and following their nose is what they love doing best. That means you need to use some smelly treats and food to get him on task. Once you’ve found the right incentive you’ll be able to swiftly whip him into shape. If he’s a puppy he should be very responsive and he could get the hang of it in just a few days. If he’s older and particularly stubborn then you may need a couple of weeks.

Get this right and you’ll be able to quickly instruct him to sit. This will make feeding him at meal times and putting on his leash a walk in the park. Teaching him ‘down’ and ‘stay’ will be much easier if you’ve already mastered ‘sit’.

Getting Started

Before training can start you’ll need to stock up on a few items. Find some extra smelly treats. Alternatively, break his favorite food into small pieces. You’ll use this to motivate him during training.

You’ll need to invest in a clicker for one of the methods. Then set aside 10 minutes each day for training. Try and find a time where you won’t be distracted by kids and a noisy household. Take him to a quiet room and practice there.

The only other thing you need is patience and a pro-active attitude. With that, your work can begin!

The Food Lure Method

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Step

Setting up

Take him into a quiet room. As you go, stay relatively quiet. You want him focused and concentrating so don’t get him too worked up. Make sure you’ve got a pocket full of treats too.

Step

Hold out a treat

Capture his attention by holding a treat in front of his nose. Make sure he can smell it but that he can’t get to it.

Step

‘Sit’

Issue a ‘sit’ command in a clear voice. Try and keep it upbeat and playful. Beagles learn best if they think they’re playing a big game. You can use any word you like, Beagles can learn hundreds of different phrases.

Step

Arch

Now slowly move your hand back over his head. He will naturally follow your hand with his nose. This will force him to sit down so he can keep close to it. If he doesn’t sit down on his own you can gently push his bottom down to help him the first few times.

Step

Reward

As soon as he sits down, hand over the treat and give him lots of praise. The happier he feels, the more likely he is to repeat the behavior next time. Practice this for a few minutes each day until he’s got the hang of it.

The Clicker Method

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Step

Get him clicker friendly

A clicker can be used to signal to him when he’s behaved or performed a trick correctly. This method of communication will make training much quicker. So, click straight after he follows any instruction. If you tell him to wait for his meal, for example. Use it consistently for a few days.

Step

Hold a treat out

Hold a treat in front of his nose. Keep it at his head height and make sure his attention is on you. Try and use the smelliest food you can find, this will appeal to Beagles' heightened sense of smell.

Step

Guide him

Rotate your hand back over his head. Do this slowly so his nose stays close to your hand. He will naturally sit down as he tries to arch back and stay close to the treat.

Step

Click & reward

As soon as he sits down, click. This will signal to him he’s performed the trick correctly. You can then hand over the treat and give him some praise. The better the reward the more eager he will be to do it again.

Step

Lose the treats

Practice this daily until he’s fully got the hang of it. You can then gradually cut out the treats. Keep using the clicker, however, so he knows he’s still doing the right thing. You can then use the clicker to teach him other commands too.

The Timing Method

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Step

Wait until before a meal

Try and do your training before a big meal. Beagles love food and you’ll find he’s much more focused if he’s hungry. So, head to a room with some tasty treats in your hand and your beagle in tow.

Step

‘Sit’

Give the command in a friendly voice. You want him to think this is all great fun. Beagles learn fast and remain focused for longer if they think they’re playing a game. You don’t have to use the word ‘sit’, you can use any phrase you like.

Step

Guide him

While on your knees, slowly move your hand back over his head. He will tilt his head back as he tries to follow your hand. This should automatically make him sit down. Keep moving back until he sits.

Step

Reward

Now hand over the reward. Make sure he gets it within 3 seconds, otherwise he may not associate the behavior with the command. You can also spend a minute or so playing with him after to keep it upbeat.

Step

Practice

Now you just need to practice until he’s into the swing of it. As he improves you can train him at any point in the day, not just when he’s hungry. Make sure you only give the command once though. Give it a number of times and he’ll think he doesn’t have to follow your instructions the first time.

How to Train Your Beagle Dog to Sit

Introduction

Defining Tasks

Getting Started

Success Stories and Training Questions