"Teach Your Cocker Spaniel Puppy The Difference Between 'Wait' and 'Stay'"
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What's The Difference Between 'Wait' And 'Stay'?
It's important when training a puppy that you understand the difference between the 'Wait' and 'Stay' commands; they may seem fairly similar, but they are distinctly different, and the difference is explained as follows.
Training A Puppy To 'Wait' On Command
'Wait' is an informal, temporary command. It's best used to prevent your cocker spaniel puppy from running out of the front door before you, or jumping in or out of the car, and can be used before crossing the road, or when you meet people in the street. Your puppy must learn to obey you and wait until you give him permission to move.
Your puppy will learn that whilst in the Wait position, he will be allowed to move away, but only after you have released him.
Training A Puppy To 'Stay' On Command
'Stay' is a more formal command, and is used when you want your puppy to remain in place, no matter what, until you can go to him.
For example, he may be across the other side of a busy road, one which you don't want him to cross. In this situation, you would use the 'Stay' command as you want him to remain where he is until you can safely get across the road to secure him.
In this situation, the 'Wait' command would be ineffective, as your dog may anticipate being called to you and may release, darting across the road and into traffic.
Your puppy will learn that when he is in the 'Stay' position, he must not move away, and that you will go to him - always - before releasing him.
Training A Puppy To 'Wait' On Command
You can use the 'Wait' command to teach your puppy to allow you to walk through a doorway first. By training a puppy to wait in this way, you'll be helping to reinforce your status as the leader of the pack. If you allow your dog to walk through a doorway before you, he'll believe that he is the pack leader.
Try this exercise indoors first, and ensure there aren't any distractions for your puppy.
Stand in front of a closed door, but not so near that you can't open it, and ask your puppy to sit by your side.
Put your hand down by your side, open palm towards your Cocker Spaniel's face (you can use this as your visual 'Wait' command when he's by your side).
Open the door slowly, and give him the 'Wait' command. If he moves, close the door and gently move him back to the starting position.
Ask him to sit, and repeat the exercise again.
If your puppy remains still for several seconds, walk slowly through the door, say his release word, and his name, and allow him to follow you. Give him a treat and lots of praise.
Gradually extend the length of time you ask your puppy to wait. Later, when you feel he's mastered the Wait command, you can practice with distractions to make it more difficult for him.
This command is ideal to use before feeding your puppy. Make him sit and wait while you prepare his food, and have placed the bowl on the floor. If he sits and waits patiently you can praise him before releasing him. If your dog lunges towards the food bowl before you have released him, move him gently back to where he was, and try the Wait command again - he'll soon learn that he won't be fed until he obeys your command!
When you feel your puppy has mastered the 'Wait' command, try using the verbal and visual commands separately, to confirm that he understands. If he fails, continue with the training, and test him again later.
When training a puppy, these exercises should be repeated between 5 - 10 times each training session until you're confident that he's fully mastered the command.
If you use this exercise at an outside door, take care to have him on a lead just in case he makes a dash for it!
When you're confident that your puppy fully understands the 'Wait' command, it will be time to move on to the 'Stay' command.
Training A Puppy To 'Stay' Command
Call your puppy and ask him to sit.
Stand directly in front of him, approximately 30 cms away from his front paws.
Lean forward, and put your hand in front of your puppy's face, palm facing his snout, in the universal stop signal.
Give your puppy the 'Stay' command and slowly move one step backwards, away from him - keep your hand in front of his nose.
If he stays for 5 seconds, move back to your puppy and praise him with the words 'Stay, good stay', and give him his treat.
When training a puppy to 'Stay', don't allow him to stand up or come to you, otherwise he may believe that he's being rewarded for standing, or for following you.
If your puppy does either of those, don't say anything; simply move him back to his starting position, ask him to sit, and begin the exercise again.
If your puppy won't stay for long, you could try rewarding after 2 seconds and work up to 5 - don't give him time to fail!
Repeat the 'Stay' exercise several times during your training session until you are confident that your puppy fully understands what's expected of him, and why he's being rewarded.
At your next session, begin gradually increasing the amount of time he's left in the stay position by a few seconds.
It's important, when training a puppy to stay, not to move on until your puppy has mastered staying put for at least 60 seconds. When he's done that you can increase the distance you stand from him until you are at least 3 metres away.
Try giving the 'Stay' command to your puppy and then moving out of the room, or out of his sight, for 30 seconds. If he's still sitting when you return, praise him and give him a treat.
Don't praise your puppy until you have returned to him otherwise it may encourage him to run to you - the exact opposite of what you're trying to teach him.
Gradually increase the length of time you stay away, but don't leave him sitting for too long - you don't want him to fail.
Use these dog training techniques as often as you can to reinforce your puppy's learning.
Experiment with the 'Stay' command in different parts of the house and garden, and for varying lengths of time.
Eventually, you will be able to leave your puppy for up to 15 minutes, perhaps even more.
For 'Stays' longer than a few minutes, we recommend that you ask your puppy to lie down before putting him in the 'Stay' position as it's kinder to your puppy. The commands to use are 'Down' and 'Stay'.
When training a puppy, we recommend you practice the 'Stay' command in both the 'Down' and 'Sit' position until your puppy has mastered both commands.
To really test your puppy, try throwing a ball for him while he's in the 'Stay' position. He should remain in a sitting (or down) position until you release him, using your chosen release word.
When you feel your puppy has mastered the 'Stay' command, whether sitting or lying down, try using the verbal and visual commands separately, to see if your puppy has understood. If he gets it wrong, continue with the training, and test him again later. Don't move on to other puppy obedience training until you're certain that he's learned each lesson.
We hope you've found the tips in our training a puppy article helpful.
By now, your puppy should have learned the difference between the 'Wait' and 'Stay' commands, and mastered both verbal and visual commands separately; he'll now be ready to move on to the 'Come' command.
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