Here's How You Can Teach Your Dogs To Follow Hand Commands

Here's How You Can Teach Your Dogs To Follow Hand Commands

Many dogs have an easy time understanding hand signals for training. If your dog already knows verbal cues, teaching them to follow hand commands won’t be too difficult! Here’s how to do it.

Association

Your first step is teaching your dog to associate a hand gesture with a verbal cue. Here’s how to do so.

  • Pick a command your dog already knows well.
  • Choose a hand signal to pair with that command.
  • Start by giving the command, accompanied by the hand signal.
  • Reward your dog immediately when they obey the command.
  • Repeat until your dog understands the association.
  • Slowly eliminate the use of the verbal command, reducing its frequency. Continue to reward during this time.
  • Once your dog responds reliably and consistently to the hand signal, remove the food reward as you did when training verbally.

Examples Of Hand Signals

  1. Sit. From a hand at your side, bring it up and fold it, as though you’re about to toss something over your shoulder.
  2. Down. Raise your hand over your head and, keeping your arm straight, bring it down slowly until it is by your side.
  3. Come. Hold your arm out straight in front of you. Sweep it forward until it touches the shoulder on your other side.

Feature Image Source: Pixabay

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