Just need advice

[bbrannonjane]

I just got my 8 week old boxer 5 days ago..
I am trying the "sit" command. I reward him with his favorite toy and praising or half of a small treat. He is NOT interested in learning this at all. He will either freak out and keep barking at me or do the opposite and stop being playful to laying down to sleep??

Just trying to get advice.
How do I make it fun for him but not "play time"? When is the right time to try and train him? It too soon to start? and how do I stop him from barking when trying this??

 

[bbrannonjane]

Also...

When he does finally sit he constantly barks.
I feel I cannot reward him sitting because I would be rewarding the barking too..

 

[Bathel]

Young pups have short attention spans. Keep your sessions short.

I used cheese to treat my pup... American cheese slices at that She would snap to attention when I got it out... it only took about 3 sessions get her to the point she know what I wanted. I would then mix the sit command with praise at times and other times with cheese. Slowly I got her to sit without the need for any cheese. I think it took about a week... after that I keep reinforcing the command as they tend to get to the "teenage" years and forget/refuse...

You really need to find the treat that really gets your pups attention... be that a hotdog... cheese... beef jerky or whatever... when you find that treat, you won't have too much of an issues.

 

[TwoDogs]

It sounds like your pup is trying to figure out how to get the treat but is frustrated because it isn't clear enough for him. Exactly how you are going about training the sit? Maybe a different way would work better.

 

[RockTheBoxer]

Consider using a clicker during training. We started by just clicking the clicker and then treating. This alerted Rocky that when we clicked, he got a treat. Then as we moved into various commands, once he did what we were asking, we clicked and treated. The clicker marks the behavior and the reward followed. We also used hand signals in conjunction with the word and now there are times we can just use our hand and he'll do what we are asking. This has come in handy for letting him inside through the slider. Rocky is to sit and wait before he comes in so he doesn't just barrel through the door.

 

[bbrannonjane]

Young pups have short attention spans. Keep your sessions short.

I used cheese to treat my pup... American cheese slices at that She would snap to attention when I got it out... it only took about 3 sessions get her to the point she know what I wanted. I would then mix the sit command with praise at times and other times with cheese. Slowly I got her to sit without the need for any cheese. I think it took about a week... after that I keep reinforcing the command as they tend to get to the "teenage" years and forget/refuse...

You really need to find the treat that really gets your pups attention... be that a hotdog... cheese... beef jerky or whatever... when you find that treat, you won't have too much of an issues.

And that won't hurt his tummy? I haven't tried anything like that in fear of diarrhea (potty training too)

 

[bbrannonjane]

It sounds like your pup is trying to figure out how to get the treat but is frustrated because it isn't clear enough for him. Exactly how you are going about training the sit? Maybe a different way would work better.

I have tried tapping his back by his tail. When he finally puts it down and still, I will praise him.


I'm also having a real hard time just getting his attention. Any advise on general obedience?
He's constantly nipping biting and chewing. Everything and everybody in the house. I firmly say "no" and ignore him a few minutes if he bites me. And hand him a toy of his own to chew on if he's chewing on something thats not his. Cannot walk anywhere without him nipping my feet like it's a game.

 

[TwoDogs]

I have tried tapping his back by his tail. When he finally puts it down and still, I will praise him.

How about holding the food lure in front of and level with his nose and slowly moving it back over his forehead. His should try and follow it. His head will go up and back and his bum will go down. As soon as it does, praise and give him the food. When he has done that a few times you can start saying"sit" right before you move the lure. When he has done that a few times you can use an empty hand and reward from the opposite hand.

 

[Kellyt]

We used the way Twodogs mentioned and our pup got it straight away.

 

[FinnMom]

You might find a positive reinforcement puppy class very beneficial for your pup AND you, although it would be a good idea to wait until he has had all his shots. Hubby and I took Finn and we all learned a lot and had a great time in the process!