Training the ‘leave it’ command is a great way to get your things back, have an obedient puppy. It will save hours of heartache of chasing and trying to pry your dog’s mouth open to grab that stolen sock! The command can also be used for anything your dog becomes fixated upon like other animals and people.
- Give your dog a low value toy (one they are not that fussed about).
- Call your puppy to you and offer them a treat.
- As they drop the toy give the command ‘leave it’ and reward.
- Repeat this for at least five minutes, three times a day. (Don’t go overboard the puppy will get fed up).
- Now build up to a higher grade toy and repeat the process.
- Once you are confident that your dog has begun to understand the leave it command and is dropping the item every time you can move on to more desirable items, like a dog chew.
- Exactly the same process but this time use a higher grade treat (like meat).
- If this is going well stand up, drop the object the puppy should pick it up (if he doesn’t still reward them, they are just paying attention to you which is great!).
- If your puppy does pick it up give the command leave it and your puppy should drop it, reward and repeat.
- You should now be at the stage where you can tell your dog to leave the object from anywhere in the room!
Using the command for ignoring people and dogs
Begin with a person or dog at a distance, when the puppy looks at the person/dog say ‘leave it’ the puppy should look at you then give the reward. Repeat this at the same level you did with the objects until a person/dog can come into sight and you can command ‘leave it’ and the puppy will look at you. This is harder than the object training but you can quickly bring the person/dog closer and closer whilst having the puppy pay attention to you at all times. Remember do not progress until the puppy is responding to the command. If they appear to have ‘forgotten it’ go back to basics and have a greater distance between you and the person/dog. Make sure you are giving your dog tons of praise every time they pays attention to you and be proud!
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15 Responses to this article
Hello,
thanks for the guide it actually really helped, I have a Doberman Pinscher puppy and hes 6 weeks old and learned the method quickly, and I really like that ur not charging for the books/guides like those other people, so thanks and keep up the good work
glad the articles are helping you out. I like this information to be free so owners and pup’s can have easier lives and comments like yours inspire me to continue.
Hi,
i have a 16 week old shih tzu she is very good will let me clean her face, she does most things and is nearly house broke but when i gave her a corn on the cob the other day she became very possesive and ready to bite….. i wonder what advice you could give me into getting her out of this. the strangest part is if i find her eating something the children have dropped and say leave it she walks away?
awesome thanks
Hi. I’ve been reading the articles but I have a question. I have a 4 year old dog called Ryley. She’s extremely well behaved – comes when called, plays well with other dogs and never barks. 4 days ago we got a new puppy. He’s a westie cross and 17 weeks old. He’s almost house trained and the two dogs act fairly well together, but when I take them for a walk, if the puppy sees another dog (and often a person too) he starts barking like crazy and becomes quite fixated on it. If he’s off the lead and there’s nothing around he walks by my side beautifully, but then if he sees another dog (and again sometimes people) he charges at them barking. If they’re far away he only goes a certain distance then stands there and barks, as if claiming his territory. Sometimes he runs around a bit almost like he’s showing where the line that the dog can’t cross is. It seems strange given that it’s a big open field and there are lot’s of people and dogs often walking around. He does come back to me if i shout him and walk away, but he continues to turn around, barking at the dog as we walk away. Can anyone tell me what’s going on and how do i correct him? I plan to try and teach him the leave it command, but so far im not even having much success with sit! I have always walked Ryley on the field and she plays with the other dogs, and now this puppy is barking at everyone and so they keep their distance – which makes it worse as then he can’t socialise. He met another (very old) dog this morning and barked but i let him go up to it and he just sniffed it and that was it? I’m confused, and despite myself found i was getting upset when i know i have to remain calm!
Hi, nice to hear from you. Ah okay, this is a tricky problem. I would try walking the puppy on his own in the park and see if this changes his behaviour. You will need to walk them together eventually but for the socialisation period I always do this on a one to one basis to build individual confidence. Reward him with treats when approaching a dog, allow him to see the dog but then keep his attention on you until you are able to approach the other dog and let him have a positive interaction. Praise him for demonstrating good behaviour. Have you read the good means good? This is vital in this situation. How is his body language when he is barking and does he get over excited before leaving the house?
Hi,
Fab article we’ve done the leave it command with our 5 month Golden Retriever puppy with her toys, treats and dinner and it’s worked however when we walk her she insists on grabbing every bit of litter (especially food wrappers, takeaway cartons etc…) and won’t let them go even for a treat. If we take them off her she can be quite nasty – although we can remove her dinner bowl etc… at home fine. I’ve no idea what else to do to stop it so any advise would be much appreciated!
Thanks
I would work on using bits of rubbish in the house first with the leave it command and then do this in the garden. Then you can set up the same out on walk. Be consistent and start with low level items working up to the things she really loves so that you can be successful.
hi i’ve got a 7 week old german sheppherd puppy im having a few problems with him and dont know what to do first thing is he eats his food so fast and seem to be a bit aggresive with it i tried holding his coller when i put his bowl down put he just jumps and whines to get at it he wont listen to me when i try to give him a comand and he bites my feet all the time when he does that i make a high pitch noice and walk away from him but he just runs after me a bites again im for ever triping over him cos he is always after my feet i have an older dog who he gets on great with but he has started barking at my cats and he has started nipping at my 1 year old son which is worrying me so can u plz tell me how to sort this out and how to get him to listen to my comands thanks very much
Hi sarah,
Have you tried feeding him using a kong? This guide should help with your feeding problems.
Nipping and mouthing in German Shepherd puppies can be a little trickier to deal with than other breeds, however, it can be done with perseverance and a few changes in the usual tactics. Walk away and if he tries to continue the behaviour lead him by the collar and place him in another room for a ‘time out’. He only needs to be away for a couple of minutes. It is going to take some short term dedication to being extremely consistent, so that he learns that nipping equals the removal of social interaction. You can also use some obedience to prevent the nipping. When he follows you watch him closely and upon approach offer a treat (which will raise his head and interrupt the nipping before it has begun). You can ask him for a manner of responses, such as sit or lie down which will teach him to approach you and offer a different behaviour. i would also recommend reading over good means good which should help with his attention span and get him listening to you more. Let me know how this goes and if you need and different strategies, i am more than happy to help
Hi, I have a similar problem. My puppy is 8 months old and he likes to eat anything (including a whole sock when he was 8 weeks old). Basically my problem is that when I let him off the lead, I have to scan ahead to check for rubbish. If I manage to spot some and see him moving towards it – I shout “leave it” and he does and comes to me for a treat. Then once he has had his treat, he runs back and gobbles up the rubbish. If I don’t catch him in time, he will run around me showing me he has the bit of rubbish in his mouth and I try to make him drop it, so he swallows it down quickly. I am becoming very concerned because he is eating plastic bags as well as bits of tennis ball. Can you give me any advice. Thanks x
Hi i just got a long white haired german sheperd, she is 11 weeks old now but when she plays she bites really hard and she doesnt seem to realise that it hurts but i have had not luck at all stopping her, any help would be much appreciated
Check out my article ’stop puppy biting’
My puppy eats everything outside. Sticks, bark, pinecones, anythiing he can pick up. He knows “drop it” and will drop the item but as soon as he gets praise and or a treat he will grab something else. We spend our whole time outside fighting over every stick and stone. Even on walks he will pick up whatever he can as he is walking without missing a beat. Any suggestions or will he outgrow this. He is 4 1/2 month old Aussie.
I would get him focussed on a toy instead. This will be really easy with an Aussie and works wonders on the recall too. Get him retrieving in the house and then move outside, until he has a good retrieve and watches the ball when you have it, he will soon lose interest in sticks and bark.