To get your dog to lie down when he is not near you will take some work on your part, but it is not as difficult as it looks. It is the prerequisite for a good emergency down and it is therefore an important part of insuring your dog's safety when he is off leash. If you see danger coming and can keep your dog safe with one word, it will be less risky to work him off leash.
With your dog on a “Sit, Stay” position while you are standing in front of him, signal “Down” in the usual way, bending and patting the floor in front of him as you give the command. Praise him and tell him to sit. If he does not sit, slip your hand into the collar and pull straight up, repeating “Sit” as you do. Now tell him to stay and back up one giant step. This puts you one giant step from a correction. Raising your arm straight up as you say the command, say “Down.” This is the distance or field signal, used because it can be seen from very far away. If he responds with a down, lower your arm, praise mildly and command “Stay.”
After a moment, release him, praise and try again. If your dog does not respond to the familiar word and unfamiliar hand signal, take one step forward with your arm reaching for his collar as you step. Slip the hand that gave the signal right into his collar, pulling down as you repeat “Down.” Now, praise him, even though you made him do it. That's how he learns. Now move him to a different spot and try again.
While your dog may not seem too clever when he fails to lie down when you say “Down” and raise your arm instead of patting the floor, he has a right to be confused by a new signal. It might take him a few turns around the block to get used to the distance signal. By the end of your first session on the distance down, he should be lying down with you signaling from six feet away. Always be prepared, particularly in the early stages of the training, to rush back to him and correct him with the hand that gave the signal in one sweeping gesture.
The correction is implied in the hand signal, reminding the dog that even though you are far away, you can still correct him quickly. But no matter how well things go, do not increase your distance for a full week after reaching six feet away. If you try to go too far too fast, your dog will get the impression that you no longer have good control over him. In fact, if it takes you much longer to get to him, he will become convinced that his suspicions are correct. You have to go slow, particularly when working at a distance.
Once the dog has perfected the “Down” from a distance at a distance of six feet, you can do the training in two ways. You can gradually increase the distance, working farther away when he is cooperative and alert, or shortening up the distance when he seems to be having an off day.
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