Teaching your dog to ‘Take a Nap (or play dead)’
This behavior takes patience so work in baby steps and in time your dog will be doing a fun trick you can show all your friends.
Step1: Ask your dog to “Down”. With the treat to it’s nose, lure the head to the side so the dog goes into laying on its side. Click then treat. Release the dog. Repeat this 3 times.
Step 2: Ask the dog to “ Down” lure the dogs nose to the “lay” position (dog should be lying on it’s side) and say “Lay” (or whatever cue word you want to use). Click and treat. Repeat this with the lure 2 times and then ask the dog to Down, then Lay without using a lure. If the dog is unable to do it, go back to Step 1 and try it again.
Step 3: Once your dog can Lay on command on his side, ask him to “Stay”, count to 5 and release. Repeat this 3–5 times.
Step 4: You can begin incorporating the command, “Take a Nap” once they have understood through Step 3 above. If they have, you can complete this step. Ask them to down, lay and as they go into the lay, say “Take a Nap”, click when they lay on their side, release and provide the treat. As they get better at this, you can ask them to stay on their side. Release. Practice this 3 times.
Step 5: Ask for the down, then take out the command “Lay” and replace with “Take a Nap”, wait for them to lay on their side, click and treat. Release. Repeat 3-5 times.
Step 6: Now ask them “Take a Nap” and wait to see if they will go into the position of laying on their side. If they do, click & treat, ask them to stay, then Release.
If they aren’t sure what you mean, trying luring 1 or 2 times when saying, “Take a Nap”. Do not use the words Down or Lay at this point.
Remember to praise the positive behaviors MORE than the negative ones you don't like. For more information or to get in touch with me, please go to www.pawsitivity.net.
