Have you got a new Dachshund puppy? Do you want to teach them how to stay still when you ask? Maybe you don’t know which commands to teach them first? Here’s how to teach your Dachshund to stay.
How To Teach A Dachshund To Stay:
- Set aside time
- Ask your Dachshund to sit
- Hold up the palm of your hand
- Ask your Dachshund to ‘Stay!’
- Reward your Dachshund
- Increase the length of time
- Walk a few steps backwards
- Turn your back to your Dachshund
- Use the ‘stay’ command outside
- Phase out treats
But, before you start teaching your Dachshund new commands, there’s more you need to know! Read on for tips on how to find out how to teach your Dachshund to ‘stay’ and what you need to do next.
This article is based on research and personal experience as a Dachshund owner of 10+ years. I’m not a Vet, qualified dog trainer or dog behaviourist.
How To Teach A Dachshund To Stay
After you’ve taught your Dachshund to ‘sit‘ and to ‘lay down‘, the next command you should teach is ‘stay’.
It’s probably going to be a bit more difficult to teach your Dachshund to stay, because unlike ‘sit‘ and ‘lay down‘, you’re asking him to remain in one position for a longer amount of time.
Training for this command does require a bit of patience from both you and your Dachshund.
So get rid of any distractions, get a handful of bite-sized treats, and let’s begin.
Set aside time
Learning to ‘stay’ is probably going to be a bit confusing for your Dachshund at first and may take a bit more time.
That’s because up until now he’s learned that sitting or laying down equals a treat. Now he’s being asked to wait around even after he’s performed that first command!
So it’s a bit like a command on top of a command. This means you need to be patient and take your time with your Dachshund until he gets the hang of things!
Ask your Dachshund to sit
Before you ask your Dachshund to ‘stay’, you need to ask him to either sit or lay down.
It’s up to you which one you choose, but it’ll be much easier to just pick one position for him to learn the command ‘stay’. That way he won’t get confused about what you’re asking him to do.
Hold up your hand
Hold up the palm of your hand (like a ‘stop’ signal) about 30cm away from your Dachshund’s face, and then say the command, ‘stay’.
If your Dachshund starts to move, say ‘Ah-Ah!’. If he stays still say ‘good boy!’ or ‘good girl!’.
Reward your Dachshund
When you give the reward to your Dachshund is important for the ‘stay’ command. You need him to understand exactly what he’s been rewarded for.
So if your Dachshund stays in his position and doesn’t move, give him a treat while he’s still in that position.
If you start to praise him and he stands up to walk towards you and then you give him the treat, he’ll think you’re rewarding him for approaching you and won’t understand what ‘stay’ means.
Increase the length of the time
Start to ask your Dachshund to stay in position for longer periods of time by holding off giving him the treat for longer so he knows he has to wait.
When asking your Dachshund to stay for longer, repeat the command word ‘stay’ every 10 seconds or so.
Walk a few steps backwards
It’s time to try walking a bit further away from your Dachshund. Ask him to ‘sit‘, then ‘stay’, and then start stepping back from him with your palm still up so he knows to wait.
Don’t reward your Dachshund if he stays for a moment then gets up and walks over to you. He needs to stay in the same position for this command to work!
To reward him, walk back towards him and then praise him, so he understands that he’s being rewarded for staying where he is. Not for coming towards you.
Turn your back on your Dachshund
Once your Dachshund understands the ‘stay’ command, it’s time to put his willpower to the test!
Turn your back on your Dachshund and start doing something else for 30 seconds or more. This’ll show you whether your Dachshund is really listening to what you want him to do!
Did he stay? Or did he move? Again, it’s really crucial that you only reward your Dachshund when you return to where he’s staying and hasn’t moved, as opposed to letting him come up to you for the treat.
Ask your Dachshund to come
This step is optional but, when you’ve walked away and your Dachshund has stayed where he is, you could also use the ‘come’ command to get him to come over to you before you reward him.
However, it’s best to leave that stage until after you’ve mastered the ‘stay’ command so he understand the difference between the two.
‘Stay’ and ‘come’ are two very distinct and different commands so it’s important to keep them separate in training.
That way your Dachshund will understand which command you want at different times.
Remember, don’t reward your Dachshund for coming towards you unless you have asked him to.
Use the ‘stay’ command outside
Try using your ‘stay’ command and hand motion outside in the garden. Practice everywhere you can so your Dachshund truly masters the command.
Phase out treats
Once your Dachshund gets the hang of the ‘stay’ command, start phasing out the treats and give him lots of verbal or physical praise instead.
So, there you have it! Teaching the ‘stay’ command is really important for a new Dachshund. Once you get him to ‘Sit‘, ‘Lay Down’ and ‘Stay’, move on to the next command and continue your Dachshund’s training!
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