Are you making an attempt to teach your French Spaniel to sit? The skill of sitting up is easily taught to very small dogs, but bigger dogs are a different story. It’s problematic for them to keep their equilibrium.
Teach Your French Spaniel to Sit: Prep
Sitting is one of the initial techniques that should be taught to your French Spaniel and forms the ground work for plenty of other tricks. In order to train a French Spaniel to sit up, prepare some snacks as a reward, and set your French Spaniel on her butt in a corner, to ensure that she can not fall either backward or sideways and has very little or no room to stumble.
Teach Your French Spaniel to Sit: Acquaint Her With The Sound of The Words
Protect her from falling forward by maintaining your hand under her chin and with the other hand dangle the snack above your French Spaniel’s face. Keep saying distinctly and deliberately, “sit.” Do not force her to sit too long at one time, but do repeat the instruction routinely and reward her often with lots of cheers and snacks.
Teach Your French Spaniel to Sit: Help Her Balance
In her first lesson your French Spaniel will require considerable help from your hand to keep her from falling forward, but as she gets control of her balancing muscles and sees what you want her to do, she’ll depend less upon your hand to keep her steady. Then you can gradually give your French Spaniel less help and support until you will merely have to maintain one hand in position 2 or 3 inches from her neck or chin, to be available to prevent her falling forward; eventually you may remove this hand and just dangle the snack just above the level of your French Spaniel’s head.
Teach Your French Spaniel To Sit: Remove the Assistance Slowly And Gradually
After steady practice she will sit up long after you set her up. Next she should be set up against the wall, so as to offer her help for her back only. After she has grasped this and can maintain her place effortlessly, practice with her using chair legs, pillows or other things that offer her less and less assistance. Ultimately she will be able to preserve her equilibrium and sit up without needing something to rest on.
Teach Your French Spaniel to Sit: Putting It All Together
During the course of all these lessons the words "sit up" will have been ingrained upon her psyche by constant repetition. Now is the final training to teach your French Spaniel to sit up right after she hears the words. Most likely, if she has been properly taught, you will simply have to get her out into the room, reveal a reward, hold it up a suitable distance from the ground, say "sit" and she will do so. Then you'll give her the reward while still in place.
The only prerequisite for perfection is to train with your French Spaniel multiple times a day until she sits when commanded to and without being shown a snack; give her the treats only after she has obeyed the command.
Teach Your French Spaniel Other Tricks
You have now the basis for teaching your French Spaniel many other skills. She now can learn to beg by moving your hand up and down in front of her paws, which she will move in rhythm with yours. She also can be taught to salute by moving one paw up to the side of her head, or to hold a wooden pipe in her mouth, or to wear a hat on her head or wear other clothes.
In training a French Spaniel to submit to being dressed up, don't try to get her to wear too many items at one time. Try her at first with just a hat. After she becomes accustomed to that you can put on a coat and over time introduce her to the other garments.
Delight in "teaching your French Spaniel the sit up trick" and most importantly have fun while you're doing it!
Don't forget to check out these other articles about French Spaniels
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