Teaching Place

Age appropriate: You can start teaching this verbal cue only after the pup is comfortable eating full meals in the crate. Your pup will probably be around 4-5 months when you start introducing place.

Purpose: Place is a behavior that tells a dog to go to their safe spot in the home. It can help keep the pup focused, out of the way in the home, and settled quietly.   

Objective: When the verbal cue Place is given the puppy will move to their designated place and remain there calmly until you give them the Free verbal cue.  

Procedure: When given the verbal cue Place with the presence of the place area the pup should move to place area and should calmly remain in that area in a down position regardless of distractions.

Week 1 of Place

• This cue should only be introduced after the pup is eating full meals in their crate and has a positive association with it because of their meal times. They should be excited to enter their crate for meals before Place is introduced.  
• You will start feeding their meals on their place mat.  
  • A place mat can be a towel, bathmat, and rug-anything that a dog can comfortably fit their whole body on that can be moved around the house as needed.
  • The pup should start associating meal time with the place mat and take initiative to move towards the mat at meal times.  
• You will introduce the verbal cue with the puppy on leash. You can start by standing next to the mat in a quiet, distraction free environment.  
• When the pup makes any movement towards or on the mat use the marker word Nice and deliver their food reward to them. Do not say the word Place before or after they make contact with the mat. We want the puppy to learn the behavior before naming the cue.
• Note: do not lure, pull, or drag the puppy towards the mat. If they get distracted or don’t understand you should better set them up for success. Try a less distracting environment, putting the mat closer to the pup’s nose, or trying again later.  
• Continue practicing and rewarding with your marker word Nice and food reward. As the pup starts to understand your expectation they might want to stay on the mat. That's great! Use your marker word Nice and food reward several times, varying so there is not a pattern created and then call the puppy off the mat. Once the pup is off the mat they should walk back over to it so they can be rewarded again.  
• Practice this task 1-3 times a day other than mealtimes in short sessions, 5 minutes or less. You should be no more than 2 feet away from the mat in a stationary position. By the end of the week the pup should move towards the mat regardless of where you are standing with an excited attitude.  

Week 2 of Place

• Continue feeding meals and practicing 1-3 times a day in short sessions with the pup on leash.  
• Now, only mark and food reward when the puppy Sits on the mat. Do not ask for a sit from the puppy, wait for it. It might take a couple seconds for the pup to understand what you want, but keep waiting!
• Note: do not lure, pull, or drag the puppy towards the mat or make them go into a sit. If they get distracted or don’t understand you should better set them up for success. Try a less distracting environment, putting the mat closer to the pup’s nose, or trying again later.
• Note: this can be a challenging step for both the puppy and the puppy raiser. We are raising the expectation. If the pup or you get frustrated or confused, take a quick break and go back to this task later.  
• Continue practicing and rewarding with your marker word Nice and food reward when the pup is in a Sit on the mat.  
• As the pup starts to understand your expectation they might want to stay on the mat. That's great! Use your marker word Nice and food reward several times, varying so there is not a pattern created and then call the puppy off the mat. Once the pup is off the mat they should walk back over to it so they can be rewarded again.
• Practice this task 1-3 times a day other than mealtimes in short sessions, 5 minutes or less. You should be no more than 2 feet away from the mat in a stationary position. By the end of the week the pup should move towards the mat and offer the Sit position regardless of where you are standing with an excited attitude.  

Week 3 of Place

• Continue feeding meals and practicing 1-3 times a day in short sessions with the pup on leash.  
• Now, only mark and food reward when the puppy offers Down on the mat. Do not ask for a down from the puppy, wait for it. It might take a couple seconds for the pup to understand what you want, but keep waiting!
• Note: do not lure, pull, or drag the puppy towards the mat or make them go into a down. If they get distracted or don’t understand you should better set them up for success. Try a less distracting environment, putting the mat closer to the pup’s nose, or trying again later.
• Note: this can be a challenging step for both the puppy and the puppy raiser. We are raising the expectation. If the pup or you get frustrated or confused, take a quick break and go back to this task later.  
• Continue practicing and rewarding with your marker word Nice and food reward when the pup is in a Down on the mat.  
• As the pup starts to understand your expectation they might want to stay on the mat. That's great! Use your marker word Nice and food reward several times, varying so there is not a pattern created and then call the puppy off the mat. Once the pup is off the mat they should walk back over to it so they can be rewarded again.
• Practice this task 1-3 times a day other than mealtimes in short sessions, 5 minutes or less. You should be no more than 2 feet away from the mat in a stationary position. By the end of the week the pup should move towards the mat and offer the Down position regardless of where you are standing with an excited attitude.

Week 4 of Place

• Continue feeding meals and practicing 1-3 times a day in short sessions with the pup on leash.  
• The pup should be in a Down position before you start the next step.  
• Instead of remaining stationary next to the mat you will take 1-2 steps away before returning to the mat, using marker word Nice, and delivering the food reward. This is teaching the pup that they need to remain on the mat in a Down position even when you move around.  
• Note: if the pup gets up to follow you stop moving and wait for the pup to move back to the mat. If they continue getting up and moving with you please go back to week 3 to solidify their understanding that Down on the mat is the desired behavior.  
• Trying walking backwards away from the mat, taking big steps from side to side, walking towards, or behind the pup. The pup should remain in a down position. Do not take more than 1-2 steps at a time before using marker word Nice and food reward.  
• At this stage you can also start moving the mat into different environments like different rooms in the house, your back yard, driveway, etc. We want the pup to start generalizing your expectation for the place behavior.  
• Practice this task 1-3 times a day other than mealtimes in short sessions, 5 minutes or less. You should not take more than 1-2 steps away from the mat. By the end of the week the pup should remain on the mat in a Down position regardless of your movement and the environment.  

Week 5 of Place

• We will now introduce the word Place as the verbal cue!
• Start with the pup on leash, 1-2 steps away from the mat.  
• Before the pup moves toward the mat say the word Place in an enthusiastic, happy voice.  
• Then, use the marker word Nice and food delivery when the pup is on the mat in a Down position.
• Note: the pup might move to the mat and take several seconds to lay down. Wait for the pup to offer the down position. Do not lure them or give the verbal cue for down.  
• Continue practicing using the verbal cue Place getting no more than 5-6 steps away from the mat. Only get farther away from the mat when the pup has successfully understood to walk towards the mat and lay down when you are 1-2 steps away with the pup on leash.  
• Continue practicing the pup remaining in a down as well to reinforce that they should stay on the mat in a down position regardless of your position. Try taking more steps away or increasing the time before marker word Nice and food reward in 30 second increments. If at any time the pup stands up and walks off the mat go back to expecting them to remain stationary for less time.  
• Practice this task 1-3 times a day other than mealtimes in short sessions, 5 minutes or less. By the end of the week the pup should remain on the mat in a Down position regardless of your movement and the environment. They should also walk towards the mat when given the verbal cue Place and go into a down position.  

Application of Place

• Practice this verbal cue when you're eating a meal. Move the mat nearby and ask the pup to place with a toy to play with. Periodically reinforce throughout your meal time.
• Practice this verbal cue when you are doing a task in the house. Start in one room (dusting, putting items away, folding laundry) and doing periodic marker word and food reward during your time in the room as the pup remains in Down on the mat.  
• Practice this verbal cue with the association of opening the front or back door in your home that is high traffic. Another family member can knock on the door or ring the doorbell. You can say the verbal cue Place and then use the marker word Nice and food reward for maintaining the position.  
• This task is great because you can teach your pup to settle quietly in their own spot for extended periods of time.
• When the dog arrives in for training mealtimes and training exercises are centered on this verbal cue so the more you practice this verbal cue the more comfortable the dog will be in the training center environment!