Training Your Livestock Guardian Dog to Sit, Lay Down, Stand, and Shake
Whether you’re raising your Great Pyrenees or other livestock guardian dog (LGD) breed to be a beloved family pet or a livestock guardian, your dog will need basic training. The easiest commands to teach your dog are:
Sit
Down
Stand
Shake
You’ll want to start your dog training by teaching your dog these simple commands before moving onto more challenging ones, such as “off” (i.e., no jumping), “speak,” and “be quiet.” (For more on these commands, check out my articles, The 4 Commands Your Livestock Guardian Dog Must Know and Train Your Livestock Guardian Dog to Speak and Be Quiet.)
For the most effective training sessions, take the following steps:
Exercise your dog before training
Choose a training environment with no distractions
Make training fun
Get your dog’s favorite award readily available
You’ll also want to take frequent breaks and gradually increase the level of distractions in the environment as your dog progresses. For detailed information on all of these steps, see my instructions, How to Start Obedience Training with Your Dog.
How to teach “sit,” “down,” “up,” and “stand” to your livestock guardian dog
Some people find that the commands “sit,” “down,” “up,” and “stand” are easiest to teach to your dog in combination.
“Sit” refers to going into a sit position from standing, whereas “up” refers to going into a sit position from laying down. “Down” refers to laying down. “Stand” refers to standing up from a sitting position.
So, “sit” and “up” both refer to a sitting position? Yes. Isn’t that confusing? No.
To your dog, the movement from standing up to sitting down feels very different from the movement from laying down to sitting up. Your dog will be less confused if he has two different commands to describe these two different movements, even though the ending position is the same.
Some people like to teach the “sit” and “down” commands separately (and leave out the “up” and “stand” commands altogether). If you prefer not to teach your dogs the commands “up” and “stand,” check out the next section instead.
Step One: Sit
Place treat between pointer finger and thumb – make sure your dog knows you have something he wants
Keep the treat “tethered” to your dog’s nose and move it up over the bridge of his nose and continue up from there, so your dog’s nose is pointed at the ceiling, this will typically cause him to sit down instinctively
As soon as the dog’s bottom touches the ground, say “yes, sit,” then release the treat
Step Two: Down
Starting from a sitting position, tether the treat to your dog’s nose
Lure your dog into a down by moving the treat to the ground slowly
As soon as your dog is in a “down” position, say “yes, down,” then release the treat
Step Three: Up
Lure your dog back into a sit by tethering the treat to his nose and moving your hand back up
Your dog should rise into a sitting position to get it
As soon as your dog is in an “up” position, say “yes, up,” then release the treat
Step Four: Stand
From the sitting position, tether the treat to your dog’s nose so they know you have it
Take the treat and slowly pull it away from your dog’s face, but in a slightly upward fashion
The dog should rise onto all fours – as soon as the dog is in a standing position, say “yes, stand,” then release the treat
Below is a video that demonstrates all four steps:
Some common mistakes include moving the treat too fast and wanting your dog to follow the treat with his eyes instead of his nose. You want to move the treat slowly and keep it close to your dog’s nose.
Once your dog is able to perform all four commands, you can start to wean him off of the lure. You can start by pretending you have a treat (but really it might be in the other hand or on a close-by counter). Then say the word while using the hand motion for the action before the dog gets into that position. Release the treat from your other hand once the command has been followed.
Another way to teach “sit” and “down” to your livestock guardian dog
In the video below, another professional trainer shows how to train a Great Pyrenees puppy to sit and lay down. Her methods are slightly different as she does not have the dog perform all of the movements together. Her methods, however, are just as effective.
How to teach “sit” to your Great Pyrenees
These are the steps from the video above:
Step One: Show your dog the action without verbal cues
Tether treat to nose
Move treat over bridge of your dog’s nose and slightly upward to push him into a natural sit
Release the treat as your dog sits
Repeat 10 times
Step Two: Give the cue as your dog performs the behavior
Tether treat to nose
Move treat over bridge of your dog’s nose and slightly upward to push him into a natural sit
Release the treat AND say “sit” at the same time as soon as your dog sits
If your dog lays down afterwards, don’t use a lot of words but motion and encourage your dog to stand back up
Repeat 10 times
Step Three: Using the hand signal and verbal cue together
Get your dog into standing position
Hold hand flat, palm up, with a treat between your fingers
Give hand cue and say “sit” at the same time
Release the treat as soon as your dog’s bottom hits the floor
Repeat 10 times
Step Four: Test your dog’s understanding of the hand cue
Stand up
Get your dog into standing position
Give your hand cue, with a treat between your fingers so you’re ready to reward your dog once he or she sits
Don’t use a verbal command
Release the treat and say “sit” as soon as the dog’s bottom hits the floor
Repeat 10 times
Step Five: Test your dog’s understanding of the verbal and hand cues combined
Stand up
Get your dog into standing position
Have a treat in your other hand
Give the hand cue (no treat in this hand) AND say “sit” at the same time
Reward as soon as your dog’s bottom hits the floor
Repeat 10 times
Step Six: Change the environment
In order for a dog to truly understand a command, he needs to repeat the command about 100 times and in varying environments (different locations, people, situations and with distractions)
With each environment change, return to step one to begin the process again
How to teach “down” to your Great Pyrenees
Step One: Show your dog the action without verbal cues
Get your dog in starting position (can be sitting or standing – should practice both)
Tether treat to nose
Move your hand straight down to the floor
Release the treat when your dog is down
Repeat 10 times
Step Two: Give the cue as your dog performs the behavior
Tether treat to nose
Move your hand straight down to the floor
Release AND say “down” at the same time as soon as your dog’s elbows/back legs hit the floor
Repeat 10 times
Step Three: Using the hand signal and verbal cue together
Stand up
Keep food in hand
Get your dog into standing position
Hold hand flat, palm down, with treat between your fingers
Tether treat to nose and bring your hand to the floor
Your dog should follow into a down
Say “down” and release treat as soon as your dog’s elbows/back legs hit the floor
Repeat 10 times
Step Four: Test your dog’s understanding of the hand cue
Stand up
Get your dog into standing or sitting position
Give your hand cue (palm down), treat still between your fingers so you’re ready to reward your dog once he goes down
Don’t use any verbal commands
Release the treat and say “down” as soon as your dog’s elbows/back legs hit the floor
Step Five: Test your dog’s understanding of the verbal and hand cues combined
Stand up
Get your dog into standing or sitting position
Have a treat in your other hand
Give the hand cue (no treat in this hand) AND say “down” at the same time
Release the treat as soon as your dog’s elbows/back legs hit the ground
Step Six: Change the environment
Again, dogs need practice just like humans do when learning a new task. Provide training sessions with different people (like a spouse) in various environments and situations.
With each environment change, return to step one to begin the process again
Keep in mind that is it okay to take a break if your dog is being too excited or rambunctious. They may need a mental break and it is fine to go grab a toy and play for a little bit before returning to training. Some light exercise to burn off the extra energy can also be helpful.
How to teach “shake” to your livestock guardian dog
If you have a Great Pyrenees, your dog will love this command. Great Pyrenees are known to constantly touch people with their paws. This is one way they like to connect with people. The “shake” command is a natural one to learn for them.
Follow these steps to teach your dog “shake:”
Get your dog into a sitting position
Gently tickle the back of his leg to induce a little paw movement
When you see movement, praise him with an enthusiastic “yes” and release the treat
If you do this enough, your dog will begin to learn that the movement of his paw pleases you, and he will start to offer more and more movement
As soon as you’re confident that your dog will offer his paw, say “shake” just before your dog’s movement so they begin to associate the word with the movement
Some dogs will offer one paw or the other or will alternate, reward for both paws (you can even end up teaching your dog to “shake” and then ask for the “other paw”)
The video below illustrates these steps in detail:
