THE HOLD COMMAND
With your dog at heel, place the dummy in his mouth and heel as he holds the dummy. Keep in mind, the dog going from heel to a sit position while holding the dummy is difficult for a lot of dogs because it involves 3 separate commands.
Do the finish exercise without a dummy – then place the dog in front of you and place the dummy in his mouth and repeat the finish exercise with his holding the dummy.
After he is has successfully accomplished the above exercises, have your dog sit facing you holding the dummy and you back up about 10 feet – call your dog (you could also give him the heel command) take a few steps back as he approaches you and with your left arm make the gesture as if you were holding the leash for him to do the finish.
Jean Smith's Retriever Training Course
Teach Me Please Dog Series Inc.
P.O. BOX 1515
St Helens, Or. 97051
1-800-833-1913
