Dog Training Basics

Posts Tagged ‘how to prevent a dog from running through a doorway’

Do you have one of those irrepressible dogs who is so excited to get outside that he runs out the door before you want him to?  Don’t worry if so, because I have some good tips on stopping this problem for you. Happily, you can easily learn how to correct this behavior with some practice.

• Start this training with your house’s inner doors-not the front door. This will make it a lot easier to control the dog until he learns not to go charging through doors in front of you. A dog with this behavior problem will try to get ahead of you so he can pass through the door before you can. You shouldn’t let this happen-instead command his with a firm tone of voice to sit and stay. When he gets in the desired position be sure to give him lots of praise. It might take a minute for him to really relax and settle down, so wait a little before  beginning to open the door again. OK, when he relaxes, go ahead and open the door. He will probably get up and try to go through the door, once he sees it open. This will probably happen at first, but don’t let it upset you. Keep working on getting him to sit and wait until you are sure he has it down.

• Now that you have him  remaining in sit and stay position, you can open the door a little wider-just enough for you to slip through. Opening the door only partway is a little less temptation for him to try to follow. If he again leaves  his sit and stay position, just return him to his spot again and repeat the command him to sit and stay. Until he shows you he can stay in his sit position even after you have gone through the door, you will just keep repeating this stage of the training.

• Now itt is time to try a harder test-the front door. Since he knows fun and adventure wait for him through that door, he will probably be much more eager to cross through it. You should be  ready for this, and have put a leash already on your dog so you can stop him from running through the doorway ahead of you. For a larger breed, it is a smart idea to put one end of the leash around the front doorknob, so that if he does charge out, he won’t get very far. If he does lurch out the door before you can stop him, this will bring him to a quick stop, and give him something to think about. If your dog does try to go through the door, you just need to go back to the last step and work some more on the basics.

• Keep repeating the training several times daily until it is well learned. To really reinforce this behavior, every time you come to a door (or curb or a boundary) make sure your dog sits and waits for your command to move forward. Making your dog stop at each curb is also is relevant to  boundary training your dog.

Well, now you know that it is a simple process to train your dog not to run through the doors ahead of you. If you haven’t previously obedience trained your dog, this article should have showed you that obedience training is a priority to enjoying a fun and trouble free relationship with your doggy For many more articles to help you learn how to solve behavior problems or to learn the basics of obedience training please click here- www.BehaveDoggy.com.

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