Keep It Simple: Four Things Every Dog Should Know

These basic cues can get them - and you - out of hairy situations while also calming them down. photo: AdobeStock 

I’ve worked with dogs as a certified trainer, behavior consultant, group walker, and pet sitter for seven years and just last week began a new gig as a shelter behavior trainer. I have loads of education in canine behavior and, like many Bay Woof authors and readers, I am a total dog science nerd. I could talk about the complexities of canine behavior until your eyes glaze over. 

But as my first week in my new position has reminded me, all pet guardians, myself included, benefit most from keeping it simple. Our goal at the shelter is to make the dogs feel as safe and comfortable as possible while training basic skills to help them become urban dogs with polite manners. These should also be goals for every dog and every dog guardian.

So what are the simple foundational behaviors we need for our pups?  And why would I bother to share a rudimentary refresher course with Bay Woof’s (mostly) seasoned dog guardians? 

I’ll answer the second question first. All of us can benefit from refreshing the simplest training exercises because, in an overwhelming city environment or new situation, it may be the simplest skills that can save everyone involved from unnecessary strife and drama. Just this past week, almost every dog I’ve worked with starts seemingly knowing nothing - yet after a couple of sessions, these same dogs reveal that they’ve actually been trained on much more advanced behaviors. That’s because even the most well-trained dogs may forget their cues and responses in a new or stressful situation. They may need some time to acclimate, decompress, or move away from the stimulation in order to remember and respond to more complex behavior cues. 

That’s why we all need to have four simple strategies on tap to help our dogs get back into the think-and-learn zone and re-engage with us. These basic cues can get them - and you - out of hairy situations while also calming them down. 

So what are these four essential cues? They’re probably simpler than you think. Here’s a quick refresher for every responsible dog guardian.

Find It!

Scatter treats on the ground in front of your pup. Dogs see with their noses, not their eyes, so the snuffling action involved as they’re trying to find the treats lets them experience their biologically intrinsic predation behavior while also releasing dopamine and endorphins. Additionally, this game gives them a task to focus on instead of a potential problem when you’re out on the street. It allows  whatever the upsetting person/place/thing is to pass by without further drama. 

Sit!

Say “Sit” while placing a hand right under your dog’s nose and pulling your hand upwards so that gravity takes over and your pup’s butt has to hit the ground. 

Say “Yes!” and give your pup the treat. This cue keeps the focus on you and helps calm and distract your dog from a potential problem. 

Look!

Hold a treat between your forefinger and middle finger, place it between your eyebrows, and say “Look!” As soon as your pup gives eye contact, say “Yes!” and give the treat. You can further reinforce this behavior by saying “Yes!” and giving a treat during random moments when your dog just happens to be looking at you, which encourages what we call “Auto Check-Ins.” Your dog will start to look at you more because you are reinforcing them for doing so, again keeping the focus on you and away from potential problems. 

Let’s Go! 

As soon as you see a potential problem in the distance, say “Let’s Go!” in a fun, sing-songy way and turn around in a U-Turn motion to move away from the issue. Practice this randomly inside and outside without “problems” on the horizon so that it will be easier for your pup to respond when there is an actual problem. 

These four simple strategies will help ensure that your pup can refocus on a task, respond to cues, re-engage with a human, and move away from a problem while giving them the space and distance needed to calm down. They help both the dog who is yelling, “Get away! I need space and distance!” as well as the dog who is yelling, “I am so excited to see you! Let’s be friends now!” That’s because the frustration at not getting what they want immediately and the terror that makes them want to get away now are almost exactly the same in terms of expressed behaviors. In fact, these two extremes generate the same stress chemicals - and stress is stress.

Working with our dogs regularly on these four basic strategies will help balance out adrenaline and cortisol with dopamine and endorphins, enabling them to learn that living in a city can be a very good thing. That’s a win/win for everyone - and you don’t have to be a dog science nerd to appreciate that.