Be Behavior

[Guest Duke]

 

 

Duke has been with me for a year now and I definitely see some different behavior and personality traits emerging; good, funny and not so pleasant. At night I put his bed on the floor at the bottom of my bed, he will typically fall asleep there but like clockwork he wakes up in the middle of the night and whines, wanders or looks to come up on my bed. Early this morning I heard him rouse and I got up myself to go the bathroom when I came back he was planted in the center of my bed. I put his martingale on to gently get him off, he was awake when I did this, awake enough to jump up onto the bed, I even acknowledged him before I put the collar on him and gently pulled him off, as he was up and nearly off, he turned his mouth towards my hand in an aggressive way. This isn’t the first time; it happens if I try to do the same thing to get him off of the couch. I have used and want him to learn the command “off!” Right now I am saying “off” and throwing a treat to the floor. Suggestions?

 

 

 

 

[Guest Swifthounds]

I have used and want him to learn the command “off!” Right now I am saying “off” and throwing a treat to the floor. Suggestions?

 

Use this strategy to train a bit each and every day, during times when you aren't going to be in bed (like early evening), until he's very good at it. You need to have it down cold in a non-sleeping setting before you can reasonably expect it to work in a more bed time setting where the stakes are higher. No sleeping on the bed until he has mastered the basic skills of getting on the bed only when invited and off the bed when instructed - use a crate or baby gate if needed.

[Guest Duke]

I have used and want him to learn the command "off!" Right now I am saying "off" and throwing a treat to the floor. Suggestions?

 

Use this strategy to train a bit each and every day, during times when you aren't going to be in bed (like early evening), until he's very good at it. You need to have it down cold in a non-sleeping setting before you can reasonably expect it to work in a more bed time setting where the stakes are higher. No sleeping on the bed until he has mastered the basic skills of getting on the bed only when invited and off the bed when instructed - use a crate or baby gate if needed.

 

 

i already have small cut up pieces of motivating chicken to do this all weekend.

Edited February 11, 2011 by Duke

[Jackandgrey]

While you are training a reliable off the bed, or any other time you want to remove him it really is better to use the leash attached to the collar, turn away and an upbeat let's go, rather than tug at the collar. Then when training the off, remember, that tossing the treat for him to chase off the bed isn't really teaching him the behavior you want. The treat should be the reward for the action you want.

 

Also I wonder if he is cold come the middle of the night? That's when Jill used to leap into bed with me and I succumbed to the jammies thing. She stopped when she was warm.

[Guest sheila]

I must be doing something very very wrong. When my dogs are on a spot that I want I just say, 'MOVE' and 99% of the time they do just that w/o hesitation. The 1% of the time they don't I either take them by the collar and lead them off, or swat them on the hiney (depends on which end is closer). I've never had a dog that I had to coax or cajole or even train to do this.

OK wait, I lie, Kiowa once snarked at me and I scolded him loudly and he lost all furniture privleges for a few wks until he got with the program.

I know the whole 'alpha' thing is scorned but my dogs are healthy, happy, well adjusted and they do what I say w/o qualms. Their tails wag as they do it and the nuzzle me all the time (unless I tell them to stop).

[Guest mcsheltie]

When you need to physically get him off something, throw a leash around his neck. Don't take the time to put on his collar and put your hands in a position to get snarked.

[Guest Giselle]

I must be doing something very very wrong. When my dogs are on a spot that I want I just say, 'MOVE' and 99% of the time they do just that w/o hesitation. The 1% of the time they don't I either take them by the collar and lead them off, or swat them on the hiney (depends on which end is closer). I've never had a dog that I had to coax or cajole or even train to do this.

OK wait, I lie, Kiowa once snarked at me and I scolded him loudly and he lost all furniture privleges for a few wks until he got with the program.

I know the whole 'alpha' thing is scorned but my dogs are healthy, happy, well adjusted and they do what I say w/o qualms. Their tails wag as they do it and the nuzzle me all the time (unless I tell them to stop).

By definition, you DID train them It has nothing to do with "alpha" nonsense. It has everything to do with command-response-consequence (in this case, dog must get off when owner says "Move" or dog will physically be taken off). Command-response. That is the simplest tenet of dog training.

 

OP: Simplest way is to do a slight tug on the leash, verbal cue: "Off!", and reward with a treat for getting up/getting off the furniture. I emphasize rewarding the getting up, too, because you want to reward ANY movement up and off the furniture. If you reward successive small behaviors, you will easily arrive at the larger and more complex behavior.

 

You can free-shape it, if you want, but I find that most clients want the easiest option (and free shaping requires a bit of timing and expertise). In this case, luring is easiest. BUT if you wanted to free shape this (as I love to do), you get a dog who understands the behavior INFINITELY better. Ivy learned everything with free-shaping, so she'll listen even if I'm calling from another room and she can't see me. It doesn't require me standing above her and commanding it. She does it because she truly understands the verbal command VS my physical presence. Training food for thought! Every dog is capable of it!

[Guest Duke]

While you are training a reliable off the bed, or any other time you want to remove him it really is better to use the leash attached to the collar, turn away and an upbeat let's go, rather than tug at the collar. Then when training the off, remember, that tossing the treat for him to chase off the bed isn't really teaching him the behavior you want. The treat should be the reward for the action you want.

 

Also I wonder if he is cold come the middle of the night? That's when Jill used to leap into bed with me and I succumbed to the jammies thing. She stopped when she was warm.

 

 

I appreciate this feedback, I will use the leash, since it is the tug of the collar he doesnt seem to like and will only reward after he is off. He might be cold I just havent, as you said, succumbed to the jammie thing, yet. I did start to close the door, which keeps it warmer and prevents him from wandering.

[Guest Duke]

I must be doing something very very wrong. When my dogs are on a spot that I want I just say, 'MOVE' and 99% of the time they do just that w/o hesitation. The 1% of the time they don't I either take them by the collar and lead them off, or swat them on the hiney (depends on which end is closer). I've never had a dog that I had to coax or cajole or even train to do this.

OK wait, I lie, Kiowa once snarked at me and I scolded him loudly and he lost all furniture privleges for a few wks until he got with the program.

I know the whole 'alpha' thing is scorned but my dogs are healthy, happy, well adjusted and they do what I say w/o qualms. Their tails wag as they do it and the nuzzle me all the time (unless I tell them to stop).

By definition, you DID train them It has nothing to do with "alpha" nonsense. It has everything to do with command-response-consequence (in this case, dog must get off when owner says "Move" or dog will physically be taken off). Command-response. That is the simplest tenet of dog training.

 

OP: Simplest way is to do a slight tug on the leash, verbal cue: "Off!", and reward with a treat for getting up/getting off the furniture. I emphasize rewarding the getting up, too, because you want to reward ANY movement up and off the furniture. If you reward successive small behaviors, you will easily arrive at the larger and more complex behavior.

 

You can free-shape it, if you want, but I find that most clients want the easiest option (and free shaping requires a bit of timing and expertise). In this case, luring is easiest. BUT if you wanted to free shape this (as I love to do), you get a dog who understands the behavior INFINITELY better. Ivy learned everything with free-shaping, so she'll listen even if I'm calling from another room and she can't see me. It doesn't require me standing above her and commanding it. She does it because she truly understands the verbal command VS my physical presence. Training food for thought! Every dog is capable of it!

 

 

Problem is I am so guilty of having given him all of these privileges when I first got him and now that this behavior is emerging and I want to change it, therein lies the problem. His head turns towards my hand are upsetting; I will always use a leash to get him off and will reward any movement up. In the meantime do you suggest that I eliminate all couch and bed privileges? can you expand more on free shaping

Edited February 12, 2011 by Duke

[Guest Swifthounds]

Problem is I am so guilty of having given him all of these privileges when I first got him and now that this behavior is emerging and I want to change it, therein lies the problem. His head turns towards my hand are upsetting; I will always use a leash to get him off and will reward any movement up. In the meantime do you suggest that I eliminate all couch and bed privileges? can you expand more on free shaping

 

All sorts of situations arise in life where we want or need to ask a dog to modify his behavior to do something other than what we've previously reinforced. I've trained, re-trained, and modified tasks for my dogs. A dog's entire stability and security in the world stems from knowing the rules and expectations. When those change, they just want to know what they are.

[kudzu]

Something else that can help, in addition to the very good advice already suggested, is to teach your dog to target your hand. Teach him to "Touch" the palm of your hand with his nose. Like "Off" it must be trained so you still need the management suggestions others have given in the meantime. There are various ways to train it. As Giselle mentioned, I prefer shaping in my case directed shaping. However, most people who have not done that type of shaping would prefer to start with luring. So you put the treat in your hand. I tuck it under my thumb so the dog tends to nose nudge to get it. That nudge is when I click. Sometimes it helps to show the dog that you have a treat & let them watch you tuck it under your thumb. After a few tries with the treat in my hand the dogs are usually touching my hand quickly when I present it. Now I try it without the treat. Usually the dog quickly gets it. At that point I switch hands so the dog learns to target either hand. I do work to make sure I get a solid nose touch not just a fly-by version. Also, work to make sure the dog touches the palm side of my hand, not the top. This matters when using this to direct the dog to the position you want them.

 

At this point, if the dog is reliably touching my palm when presented I add the command "Touch" as they are touching. (Use whatever command you want.) Then I add it just before they touch. With repeated reps they learn that "Touch" means if they touch my hand right then they will get a treat. Now I move my hand farther away, maybe just an inch or two, & start over. It goes much faster the second time around. In the way you start to move your hand farther & farther so the dog has to walk a one step, then two, etc. to touch your hand. In separate sessions you can teach him to touch low or high. Also in separate sessions you can work on rewarding faster & faster responses, dropping the reward for slower responses. Work on only one thing at a time, either high or low or faster or farther. Doing it separately helps the dog recognize exactly what he is doing that is earning the reward. It will all come together later, don't worry. As the dog become reliable at each of these levels, I start to fade the treats in a variable pattern. They have to touch two inches away twice in a row to get a treat or 3 times but still sometimes just once, etc. However, touching four inches away gets a treat every time until that distance is reliable. This is how you get a dog who learns to perform reliably at successively higher levels. Go at your dogs pace & don't do it so much that he gets tired of it. Leave 'em wanting more.

 

Now you have a dog who knows how to target plus you have a built in target, your hand. This simple action can be extremely helpful in directing & positioning your dog without having to lay hands on him. Thus you now have a way to not only direct your dog onto & off of the sofa but also to a different section of the sofa or bed. It helps avoid the need for taking him by the collar or tugging with a leash. It has become one of the essentials & one of the first things I train. It is useful for getting them onto & off of things, teaching them to go up the scary, open-backed basement stairs, getting them through other worrisome situations & even helpful as a replacement for commands a dog does not know yet. Dog may not know "Come" but he will trot over to touch my hand. Dog may not know "Leave it" but I can direct him away from something with "Touch". It's one command with 1000's of uses.

 

I do also teach my dogs various commands like "Up", "Off", "Move", "Wait", etc. but sometimes I need the more precise positioning a hand target enables. Plus, as said it can be quite helpful long before all those other commands have been taught. Another note is that if you have a dog who is reluctant to leave the sofa or bed but does so to touch your hand you would do best to reward that well for quite a while before fading the treats, or whatever high-value reward you are using. Until responding in that situation becomes a habit for this dog you need to make it worth their while.

 

AND... teach him that touching his collar is a good thing by simply feeding him treats while you touch his collar & withdraw the treats when you stop touching his collar. That is not clicker training but more classical conditioning. You can then teach him to at least tolerate a collar tug the same way. However, my preference is to use clicker training to teach him to respond to gentle hand pressure on his collar. I would do these somewhere & place other than when he is on a bed. Later you can do it in that situation.

[Jackandgrey]

Great post above! Thanks.

[kudzu]

Problem is I am so guilty of having given him all of these privileges when I first got him and now that this behavior is emerging and I want to change it, therein lies the problem. His head turns towards my hand are upsetting; ...

 

There should be no guilt. It is something new you have learned & now Duke will have new things to learn. Life changes & we learn new things in response to that change. His head turns towards your hand will take on a new & much better meaning if you work on hand targeting & desensitizing him to being taken by the collar. Most dogs tolerate that until it comes to particular situations or levels of pressure. Teaching him that yielding to pressure brings rewards helps him view the situation differently. Working with him on these items will help you both build better communication & more confidence.

 

I will always use a leash to get him off and will reward any movement up.

Yes, that was very good advice you were given.

 

In the meantime do you suggest that I eliminate all couch and bed privileges?

Each situation is different & everyone must choose what is best for them. I view these as privileges that must be earned. In your situation I would feel he had lost his privileges until he learned some new skills. So, yes, I would eliminate those privileges for now.

 

can you expand more on free shaping

I know the above was directed at Giselle but I'm going to answer. Shaping is just rewarding successive approximations of the desired behavior. So my above sketchy outline of teaching a hand target shows a form of shaping. The ultimate behavior you want is a dog who will touch his nose to your hand regardless of where your hand is. However, you start with your hand right by him so he is almost assured success. Then you increase the distance or put your hand at a different orientation to his head. In this way you are "shaping" him to learn that he must touch his nose to your hand regardless of where it is.

 

I learned "free shaping" as something like "101 things to do with a box". Links: Shirley Chong's version from Deb Jones Basically, you let the dog show you what he will offer & pick one of those things to shape into a new behavior. Directed shaping is when you have a plan in mind ahead of time. You know what you want the dog to do & some idea of the steps you will look for to get there. Of course, you may have to revise that plan as you go depending on the dog.

 

Now I will tell you a story. Even after learning some basic clicker training I never really learned how to do directed shaping, what I consider shaping to really mean. (That's just me.) However, I started working with a trainer when my Deerhound was getting older but not gaining much self control. She is the one who got me started on shaping & teaching my Deerhound to target, "Touch", was the first thing I ever shaped her to do. One day long before she had a solid recall or "leave it" my Deerhound discovered something unknown to me but very interesting to her. Thankfully we had worked hard on "Touch" because I was using it as practice while I learned directed shaping. I wanted her away from it but knew the odds of getting her to Come or Leave It with me 300' away were slim. Without really thinking I called, "Luna, touch." To my surprise she spun & came running straight toward my outstretched hand. Holy cow! She hit my hand so hard it hurt for the next 15 minutes. LOL That's what shaping can produce & the dog does it with such joy & enthusiasm that you simply cannot believe it. I love shaping!

[Guest sheila]

I must be doing something very very wrong. When my dogs are on a spot that I want I just say, 'MOVE' and 99% of the time they do just that w/o hesitation. The 1% of the time they don't I either take them by the collar and lead them off, or swat them on the hiney (depends on which end is closer). I've never had a dog that I had to coax or cajole or even train to do this.

OK wait, I lie, Kiowa once snarked at me and I scolded him loudly and he lost all furniture privleges for a few wks until he got with the program.

I know the whole 'alpha' thing is scorned but my dogs are healthy, happy, well adjusted and they do what I say w/o qualms. Their tails wag as they do it and the nuzzle me all the time (unless I tell them to stop).

By definition, you DID train them It has nothing to do with "alpha" nonsense. It has everything to do with command-response-consequence (in this case, dog must get off when owner says "Move" or dog will physically be taken off). Command-response. That is the simplest tenet of dog training.

 

 

 

OK thanks for the clarification. I suppose 'alpha' was not the correct phrase. I just wanted to make the point that my dogs pretty much do whatever I want them to w/o balking/snarking etc. If anything they seem to want me to tell them what to do. I'm not a dog trainer though, I'm just a pet owner and not down with all the lingo.

I had both hounds with me today in a pet supply store and we were in a very narrow aisle that had unwrapped and open bins of various rawhides and other chewy things and a lady commented that I was 'very brave' to bring my dogs into that aisle. I got her point but my dogs, while very interested in the items were well behaved the whole time we were there (probably 10-15 min in the aisle). Any time that one or the other seemed on the verge of taking something I just said, 'Eh! Leave it.' and they did just that.

Of course we came home with a varied selection of yummy chewy things that they are happily chewing on as I type.

[Guest rratney]

When Ella first joined me, she jumped on the bed (which I don't want her to do). I yelled NO!! very loudly and spanked the bed (not Ella) and she jumped down immediately. She jumped on the bed a few days later and I repeated the warning. She did not jump on the bed after that, except once after she came back from staying at my daughter's house, where they allow her on the bed. I had to repeat the admonition when she jumped on the sofa and she hasn't done it again.

 

Ron in Boston

[kudzu]

Ron, it worked for you & that is fine. It may work for many but not all. For some dogs that may be frightenenimg even if we are only being stern & we do not think we are being harsh, loud or intimidating. The result could be some form of fear aggression. Other dogs may perceivesuch an act from a human as aggressive & though perhaps not frightened may respond in kind. This is how people get growled at & sometimes bitten.

 

Different dogs perceive things differently. In addition to the above risks we should consider communication. For example here is a hypothetical situation. Let's say I do not want dogs on human furniture unless invited. If my dog gets on my bed I use a correction & make the dog get off. What did the dog learn? Actually we don't know. lol One dog may never get on any furniture ever again. Another may seem to learn it is not ok when humans are home but will when humans leave. Another may stay off that bed but feel others are fair game. One of my fosters, nonGH toy breed, seemed to learn such things as it isn't ok when she sees me got on this bed at 5:05 PM on Monday with cloudy skies during a new moon in Feb of leap year & a floral spread is on the bed partially pulled down & overhanging the left side by 6.825 inches. It is OK with other beds or if any of the aforementioned details change.

 

It is hard to communicate to a dog what not to do. It is much easier to teach what we want instead. In the long run it is faster as well. Though I confess my impatience makes it feel like it takes forever.

 

My dogs are taught how to get onto & off of things. In the process they learn not to get on or off until I request it. Also, I show them where I want them to rest instead of my bed. They learn that place is their bed. They get rewarded heavily in the beginning for being their. Those rewards are faded out over time except for rare & random occasions.

 

The result is dogs who can go new places but still understand most of the rules. "Here is your bed." "Get on your bed." They now know what is their bed & that they know where I want them to sleep. They know the rest of the furniture is not where they should sleep.

 

We all approach in different ways. This doesn't make other folks approach right or wrong. This is my approach because it has helped with the wide variety of dogs we have had. It hasn't always been my approach. It was the prevois wide variety of dogs who helped teach me this approach. <g>

Edited February 21, 2011 by kudzu

[Guest Duke]

As the OP my response to the people that say, "I just did this" is congratulations! Be thankful that is all you had to do.

 

Questions for Giselle or Kudzu:

 

 

 

Duke will go into the down position 100% of the time and I have even gotten him to “stay” with 90% accuracy. However, the off command doesn’t work without the leash to guide him off. Any suggestions? Will this come naturally with the command alone?

[Guest Swifthounds]

What do you do when you say "off" and have the leash on? Are you just tugging on the leash and saying off? Do you keep a tasty treat to toss on the floor?

[Guest Duke]

What do you do when you say "off" and have the leash on? Are you just tugging on the leash and saying off? Do you keep a tasty treat to toss on the floor?

 

 

"off" sternly, then leash when there is no movment, gentle with a sing song voice like it is fun, with a click and a treat as he gets off.

 

he goes into down on command but not off. Off he does the opposite, he plants himself.

[Guest iconsmum]

Duke has been with me for a year now and I definitely see some different behavior and personality traits emerging; good, funny and not so pleasant. At night I put his bed on the floor at the bottom of my bed, he will typically fall asleep there but like clockwork he wakes up in the middle of the night and whines, wanders or looks to come up on my bed. Early this morning I heard him rouse and I got up myself to go the bathroom when I came back he was planted in the center of my bed. I put his martingale on to gently get him off, he was awake when I did this, awake enough to jump up onto the bed, I even acknowledged him before I put the collar on him and gently pulled him off, as he was up and nearly off, he turned his mouth towards my hand in an aggressive way. This isn’t the first time; it happens if I try to do the same thing to get him off of the couch. I have used and want him to learn the command “off!” Right now I am saying “off” and throwing a treat to the floor. Suggestions?

 

 

8 foot nylon drag line with you at the far end

[Guest iconsmum]

By definition, you DID train them It has nothing to do with "alpha" nonsense. It has everything to do with command-response-consequence (in this case, dog must get off when owner says "Move" or dog will physically be taken off). Command-response. That is the simplest tenet of dog training.

 

 

Hi

I'm a trainer...not sure what the above means since it's not a tenet of dog training to "command" anything without first having taught what the command means...although in this case, the dog likely thinks that the "command" means "I get down or somebody's going to manhandle me down", which is old, out-dated, force-based training... (although trainers lingo is "cue", which is a better insight into how it's done...)

Professional, science-based, fun and elegant:

antecedent (cue)/ behaviour (response)/ consequence (reward)

So, here are your choices- depending on the behaviour you want you can:

 

lure it, (toss a treat on the floor, and, when the dog gets off to the bed to eat it, click or yes the dog and give him a way higher value reward immediately - add a hand cue and then a verbal last - takes a few repititions but works permmanently with no touching or confrontation;

 

shape it, (wait till he gets off on his own, you need to set this one up and it requires some thought because you need the repititions, so not the best choice for now...click or yes it and give high value reward. When you get repititions up you can add the hand cue and later the verbal = no touching or confrontation;

 

capture it, just hang around and wait till it happens, click or yes it, reward it heavily, figure out how to get the repititions, add the hand cue and later the verbal -

 

all the above are positive reinforcement solutions that owe nothing to your ability to pull the dog off the bed - or not. It teaches him a hand cue and a verbal and installs compliance with no threat. Dog thinks he's figured out how to get you to treat him, which leads to him annticipating your request (becoming operant), and an operant dog is a total joy to have around.

hth

[Guest sweetpea]

What do you do when you say "off" and have the leash on? Are you just tugging on the leash and saying off? Do you keep a tasty treat to toss on the floor?

 

 

"off" sternly, then leash when there is no movment, gentle with a sing song voice like it is fun, with a click and a treat as he gets off.he goes into down on command but not off. Off he does the opposite, he plants himself.

 

 

 

Just an aside, I was taught that you say the command once.

Then you show the dog what you want to happen.

Then you reward.

 

He heard you the first time you said off.

 

Right now he might be confused about what you want from him, so he's defaulting to something he knows you want, which is down.

 

(I'll butt out now, I just have a thing about folks repeating commands over and over and louder and louder, it's not that the

dog doesn't hear you, it's that the dog doesn't connect the word with the action yet. Patience grasshopper)

 

Buzzy

[kudzu]

You already have Sit & Down. That is an excellent start. Well done! Have you tried teaching him to target yet? The hand targeting is really useful.

 

You asked for suggestions so I will offer mine. You may think it a lot to do but it is really not a long or difficult process. The idea is to create a skill set you can draw upon while also building better communication & helping him understand that responding to your commands can be rewarding, even the ones he may not want to obey such as getting off the sofa. If I were in your position I would try a combo of the following (you should bear in mind I am not a dog trainer but just a dog owner):

• 
   
  
• I would block access to the sofa or human beds until some other training was done.
  
• Remember that the leash is there as a back up only & not to be used for pulling or coercing as a means of training. It is your safety net should he get up unbidden before learning to get off on command.
  
• I would reward him for being on his own, very comfy bed. That makes it less likely he will want to sleep on the human furniture without permission.
  
• Think of the many components of what you are asking him to do. Getting off the sofa isn't just one action. He must first get into a position that allows him to get off. Most of my dogs stand up first then step off. Picture in your head how you want him to off & break it down into the different steps. Do not wait until he has performed the complete behavior chain, all the various steps in a row, before rewarding him. Try to teach those steps one at a time, rewarding for repeatedly performing the first step, advancing to the next only after the prior step is performed reliably. This gives him a better chance of success & many more opportunities to earn rewards. It is that history of success that makes him want to respond to your future requests.
  
• Teach him to stand up on command. I use the command Up but pick whatever works for you. You can use the Down & Sit commands you have already taught to get him into position. Sit is particularly useful since he is more likely to want to stand up when sitting. Lure him at first if needed but I would fade that lure very, very quickly. After that keep the treats out of sight if at all possible. Hold them behind your back or put them on a shelf, table or counter in easy reach. Are you using a clicker or other marker like a word? This is where that comes in so handy.
  
• Once he will reliably stand up on command I would teach Off by first teaching him to leave his own bed on command before attempting it with human furniture. At this point I would not use a command for off. My approach is to start with the dog standing on his bed. If he is laying down ask him to stand up first & reward for that. Then I would use a hand target or lure to get him to move forward. (I often use my hand target at times others might lure.) If he even starts to move in any way that could be an attempt to leave the bed I would click or use whatever marker you've chosen & reward. If you are not using a marker than you must get the reward to him very, very quickly. After a couple times you should be able to get him to move a bit farther so reward for that. (Again, remember to fade the lure quickly. Same idea applies to a hand target.) In this way you can shape him to get off the bed. Might take 3 tries or 300 depending on the dog. Go at his pace, not yours. Don't do too many reps at a time. Once you are at the point of him getting off or at least most of the way off the bed then you can add the off command. In your case you may want to choose a new word to speed up the process since you have a history of failure with the current command. You do not have to though. Old commands can be retrained.
  
• Next I would teach him to do a Paws Up which is just putting his two front paws on an object. Not including detailed steps but ask if you want them. Clue: Think of the individual movements he needs to perform the behavior & reward for the smallest beginning parts then build on that, meaning shaping. I would make it something he will not be tempted to climb up onto completely such as a step stool, ottoman or smallish chair.
  
• What position where you in when you did all that? I was picturing you standing in front of the bed. Now go back & teach it again with you sitting in a chair next to it. Then with you sitting on the floor.
  
• Once he is doing Paws Up I would then use the off command to teach him to get off the object on command. This helps him generalize the idea that off isn't just walking off of his bed but also means getting off other objects as well. Don't expect him to immediately recognize the off command in this context. You may have to shape it as described for getting off his bed.
  
• Think of other places & situations where you can use the off command to help him generalize it even more. Perhaps try it to get out of the car since he has to get 'off' the car seat or floor if a van or SUV. Maybe use off when he is on the last step on the way down. Say it just before he steps off that step & onto the ground.
  
• At this point if you have other items he can get onto completely & safely stand on then I suggest you teach him to hop up onto those & then use the off command for that as well. It would also be helpful if you could teach him to down on those object, stand up on command & then get off. The car seems a logical place to start for me but you may have other things available.
  
• Were you standing outside the car? Then go back & teach it again while sitting in a chair next to the car or other object. Depending on the object & if safe do it again while sitting on the object.
  
• When he has learned the above, is performing those behaviors willingly & reliably sometimes with just praise as the reward instead of a treat then I would trying it with the sofa. Start standing next to the sofa. First I would try just Paws Up, reward, then Off, reward. Then I would advance to getting him onto the sofa but quickly asking for an off before he can sit. Then get him up, ask for a down, ask for him to stand and then to get off. Reward at each step.
  
• Go back & retrain it sitting in a chair next to the sofa & then while sitting on the sofa.
  
• Now plop down on your sofa, turn on the TV, invite your dog to join you & relax. You deserve it!!
  

 

Keep in mind while training that any movement you make or words spoken during training a new command can become cues he uses to determine what you want. So if you want him to respond reliably to just a voice cue you will want to limit your body movements & what you say. This is also why you have to go back & retrain the command while sitting in various positions or even laying on the floor, with your back to him & so forth.

[Guest Swifthounds]

Just an aside, I was taught that you say the command once.

Then you show the dog what you want to happen.

Then you reward.

 

He heard you the first time you said off.

 

Right now he might be confused about what you want from him, so he's defaulting to something he knows you want, which is down.

 

(I'll butt out now, I just have a thing about folks repeating commands over and over and louder and louder, it's not that the

dog doesn't hear you, it's that the dog doesn't connect the word with the action yet. Patience grasshopper)

 

Buzzy

 

 

Repeating a command when there has been no action can tend to teach your dog to not do the command when you simply ask once.

[Guest Duke]

kudzu,

 

thank you for all of your help, I printed out your adivce to read over and over