How to train your dog to stay

Set your dog up for success by starting your training in a quiet, familiar place like your home or garden. The fewer distractions, the better. 

Ask your pup to sit, or lie down if they find this more comfortable. Reward them with a treat immediately. Encourage them to stand back up, and then repeat.

This stage rewards them for being in the position you want them to be when you start moving away from them. 

Ask your dog to sit again and wait one second before rewarding them with a treat. Then encourage them to move about and have a brief break, before repeating.

Gradually build up the time between asking them to sit and rewarding them, until your dog can stay sitting still for five seconds. At this stage you will still be standing right next to them!
 

Now you can add the word “stay”. Ask your dog to sit, then say “stay” and wait five seconds before rewarding them with a treat.

Then encourage them to move away and have a short break. Only say “stay” once, don’t repeat yourself as you want your dog to be able to listen after just one ask.

Gradually continue to build up the time that your dog stays sitting still. Once your dog can sit still for 10 seconds, start to make the length of time you ask them to stay still before rewarding them completely unpredictable.

For example, ask for three seconds before rewarding them then letting them move, then four seconds before rewarding, then two, then five, then eight, and so on.

This means your dog won’t be able to predict how long you need them to stay still, so they shouldn’t start to get ready to move about until you have made it clear by returning to them and rewarding them.
 

Remember:

If your dog gets up before you have rewarded them, this could mean that the length of time you’re asking them to stay still for is too long at this point, or you have been training for too long and they’re tired or getting bored.

Go back to some shorter stays, then finish the session or do something simple your dog knows well and can get right. Stay positive! Showing your dog that you are unhappy may confuse them and make them worry.

Ask your dog to sit and “stay”. Just lean slightly to the side, away from them, to get them used to you moving your body away from them. Go back to your starting position and reward them. Encourage them to stand up and move around for a short break, and then repeat.

Next, ask your dog to sit and “stay” and this time move one step to the side, then return to your dog and reward them if they have remained sitting down.

Always return to your dog before you reward them. Your dog should feel that the position they are staying in is really rewarding, as it always results in you returning and giving them a treat.

Make sure you reward them when they're in the position you want them to be in, and not when they start getting up out of the stay, else this will teach them that getting up gets them the treat, not staying in position. 
 

Gradually build up how far and in what direction you move. As with building up the duration, we want to be unpredictable. For example, you might practice moving one step to the side, then two, then one step backwards or on the diagonal, then four steps ahead.

This variety teaches your dog that whatever direction you move away from them, they will still only get their treat reward for staying exactly in the position they were in when you said “stay”.

You should now understand the principles and process of teaching your dog to stay, and they should be good at doing this within your home, so it’s time to take it on the road!

When you start training, your dog may think 'stay' only means ‘stay’ inside the house or the garden, or wherever you’ve been practising. You might need to go back to basics when you start to train them in new places.

But don’t worry, your dog will get quicker each time and will soon start to grasp the concept wherever you may be.