7 Essential Skills Every Dog Should Know
Heel, stay, stay: What commands should every dog obey for a smooth, harmonious life together? It's a question almost every owner asks themselves when a new dog arrives. If puppies learn to obey commands instantly, it makes many things easier later on. But puppies also need to learn how to interact with other dogs and people to maintain a relaxed daily routine.
The foundation for a good relationship should be laid in puppyhood. Long-time owner of a dog training school and coach for personality development with dogs. The mother dog and well-run puppy playgroups at dog training schools contribute significantly to young dogs' socialization, helping them interact calmly with people and other dogs later on. Furthermore, some basic commands are important later for controlling the dog. This type of training usually begins as soon as the puppy is allowed to move in. When you want to teach your dog something, the basic rules include plenty of patience, regular repetition, and positive reinforcement—that is, rewarding desired behavior with petting, praise, or treats.
Experienced dog owners can, in principle, teach their dog everything themselves. Beginners, on the other hand, should seek advice from a dog training school and then practice the exercises at home. There, they will also learn how to create a good training environment. Regardless of experience level, professionally trained dog trainers can always help if problems arise, such as a lack of progress or if the dog refuses to cooperate.
Every dog should listen to this.
1. Sit – Basic Command for Control.
"Sit" is one of the lessons every dog should master. First, it helps calm the dog in exciting situations by having it sit. "Down" tells the dog to lie down. At the same time, 'sit' is also an important starting point for training other exercises. It helps the dog to focus completely on its owner, so it can then respond appropriately to further commands.
2. Stay – Patience and Self-Control.
"Stay" is essentially the same as "Sit." It prevents the dog from running away or getting into dangerous situations, such as when crossing a street. During training, it helps to gradually increase the amount of time the dog is expected to stay in place. And when that works, the owner can move a few meters away or even change rooms. "If the dog stays where it is as commanded, this behavior should be positively reinforced."
3. Here or come – recall signals.
With a trained recall command, owners can call their dog back at any time, even if it's off-leash. Dogs constantly encounter distractions during walks or can find themselves in dangerous situations near roads. "A reliable recall, even from distracting and challenging situations, is one of the most important skills in dog training. It should therefore be well-established and practiced step by step."
4. Drop it – Letting go of things.
With the "Drop it" command, the dog learns to let go of objects. This can be helpful during playtime, but it primarily protects the dog if it picks up potentially dangerous objects on the roadside that could, for example, injure or poison it. Commands like "No" or "Stop" can also prevent it from picking something up in the first place.
Exercises for relaxed coexistence
5. Leash Training – Walking Together
Walking on a leash also requires training so the dog walks on a loose leash beside its owner and stays close. Pulling against the leash can quickly cause stress. On slippery surfaces in winter, this can even be dangerous. The expert tip for practicing: "Focusing on its owner is also an important preparation for letting your dog run off-leash. Therefore, it should be practiced from the very beginning so that the dog cooperates well with its owner and stays close."
6. Socialization – Interaction with other dogs and people
A dog that is socialized with other dogs and people from an early age is more relaxed and less likely to react with fear or aggression. "It's not so much about the dog performing specific exercises with unfamiliar people or animals. It's enough if a dog has positive and calm experiences interacting with others in its first few weeks of life. "Generally, especially during puppyhood, it's important to ensure that social interactions aren't completely random, but rather with experienced dogs. Contrary to popular belief, there's no such thing as 'puppy protection' – not every adult dog is friendly towards puppies. An adult dog is allowed to correct a puppy if it's physically bothering it, among other things – but it should do so appropriately."
7. Practical example: Medical training – a relaxed visit to the veterinarian
Dog at the vet: "So-called medical training gets dogs and other pets used to going to the vet. On the one hand, this is meant to show that a vet visit isn't a bad thing so that the dog can be brought to the practice and treated calmly. On the other hand, it's also about getting used to the many specific touches: Both the vet and the owner have to repeatedly examine and touch parts like the mouth, ears, or paws. A dog that learns this as a puppy has fewer problems with it, or ideally no problems at all, and is more relaxed when being groomed and treated," explains the dog trainer.
Even senior dogs can still learn.
Like us humans, dogs learn very quickly, especially in their early development, and reliably internalize lessons. However, this doesn't mean that a senior dog can't learn anything new. "Patience is key here, because even senior dogs or rescue animals can still learn; it just sometimes takes a little longer to change ingrained behavior patterns. Keep trying and reward even small steps forward. Then, on the one hand, larger improvements will gradually become visible – and on the other hand, the relationship between dog and owner will also improve through regular, intensive cooperation. Dog trainers can provide support and further tips if a lesson isn't working.