How to Train a Puppy to Stay

If your puppy already knows the commands "come," "sit" and "down," it's time to teach her the slightly more difficult command to "stay." This is an especially useful command, as it will help your puppy develop patience while keeping her out of trouble.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Dog treats

1. Decide on a hand gesture to use with the "stay" command. Puppies learn best when you combine words and hand gestures, so choosing a unique hand gesture will make training go faster.

2. Ask your puppy to sit. Say "stay" and use the hand gesture you've chosen.

3. Take a step away from her, keeping your hand in the "stay" gesture. After a second or two, step towards your puppy and reward her for staying in the sitting position.

4. Repeat this part of the training several times in your first training session, always providing a reward when your puppy doesn't get up to follow you.

5. Increase the amount of time you have your puppy sit and the distance between you and your puppy, always returning to and rewarding your puppy for staying. Increase the time and distance gradually, adding just a foot and a second or two at each training session. As you increase the time, hold the "stay" hand gesture when you give the verbal command.

6. Return to a shorter stay time and a shorter distance if your puppy comes to you when you increase the time and distance.

7. Work on the "stay" command until your puppy can sit for one to two minutes. For a young puppy, this is a long time. As your puppy matures, though, you should be able to gradually increase the time to fifteen minutes. Your puppy should master the "stay" command in no more than a week, though especially active puppies may take longer to master it.

Tips & Warnings

• If your puppy keeps standing up as you move away, set aside teaching "stay" for now and return to teaching "sit." For variety, ask your puppy to lie down rather than sit as you train her. This can also help her learn that you might ask her to stay in any position. Hold a training session with your puppy at least once every day so he doesn't forget what he is learning.
• Make training a fun time for your puppy by rewarding her with treats and with a positive attitude. Your puppy will watch for positive body language and will listen for a positive tone in your voice. If these are missing, your puppy might feel like training is punishment, even if you do provide treats.