Hey, Katie Saywell here from The Dog’s Code, www.thedogscode.com is where you will find us.
We’re a coaching company specialized in Dachshunds, Dachshunds, Sausage Dogs, Wiener Dogs, however you want to pronounce them. The ones with the short legs and the long bodies. Yep, they’re the ones, the little gem we tend to be quite adamant on what they want to do.
Top nine things that you must teach your Dachshund puppy. We want to teach a cue for sit.
I say cue rather than command. Command seems like you’re going to do this now my way. You’re going to do it. And that’s not really how we want to train our dogs. We want to be nice and kind with them. We want them to do what they want to do because we’ve asked them to do it, not because they’re scared to death of us. We want them to make a choice and set them up for success.
Okay. So cue, the cue is calmer, is nicer, it flows. We want to teach our Dachshund puppies to sit. Okay, so what is a sit? A sit is their bum on the floor How do we teach it? We get a treat, we use the treat on the end of the nose and we… we lift the treat and the head goes up and the bum will automatically sit. When that is reliable and consistent you can add the cue word “sit”.
Number two. Wait. So, why is it important to teach a wait? So it’s important to teach a wait because it gives your Dachshund impulse control. They’re not just going to get whatever it is because they choose to, they’re going to wait for it. They’re going to wait until we ask them to go and get it. They’re going to wait until we give them that cue, that is okay for them to go and get whatever it is, whether it’s the… whether it’s the breakfast, whether it’s a lunch, whether it’s the dinner, whether it’s the… the cap, the folks, whatever it is, they’re going to wait until we give them that cue to say it’s okay, you can have it.
Cue number three. Look. Getting your dog to look at you is one of the main things that you will rely on for the rest of your Dachshund’s life. If you can have a cue to look, to watch, to get eye contact from your Dachshund, then you are well on your way to success. The cue for look will be used at every opportunity that you can use it. So whether is in the house, your Dachshund will begin to rely and look to you to see what you want them to do next.
Number four. This way… this is a bit of a directional one. You could teach a right and left, but I prefer this way. So when you’re walking along with your Dachshund, and you once change direction, is a bit of a cue just to let them know that you’re not just going to pull them on the lead. This way, they look at you, you walk the opposite direction or whichever direction it is that you’re aiming to go.
So number six. Number six is settle. Think about places you’d like your Dachshund to settle. The pub, their own bed, the sofa, or the chair. Might not always be on your lap, might not always be snuggled in your neck, but we’ve got to build their confidence so that they’re able to settle in a place that you ask them to on cue.
Number seven. Come. You want your dog to come when you ask them to. Also known as a recall, you want to get them to return to you no matter what is going off in front of them. So I hear quite a lot about prey drive and folk’s poo, and they run off and they did this. You know what? If they’ve got a cue for come, so shout your dog’s name and they shall come and get them to come to you. Start it off small, start it off in your house and then take it outside. Okay.
The number eight. Be quick, or an alternative cue for them go into the toilet. Be quick I find is quite exciting, it’s a different tone of your voice, it’s something that your Dachshund will register and it’s something that you’re not going to use in everyday life. So when they go to the toilet, when they’re in the process of going to the toilet, say be quick and then heavily reward.
And finally, number nine. So number nine of the top things that you must teach your Dachshund is their name. Teach them what their name is. Sit, wait, look, this way, settle, come, be quick, each and every time their name is said you expect the response that they’re going to look at you or come to you. From then on you can then ask, you can give the cues for any of the others that we’ve spoken about.
If you’ve enjoyed the blog, leave us a comment below, we can help you with your puppy at online puppy school or get in contact for older Dachshunds.