Back in my early days of training, a common method to get the dog to understand what position was expected with various commands was the use of pressure. An example of that would be putting pressure on the dog's rump to get him to sit. To get the dog to lay down one would begin with having the dog sit, then put pressure on the withers (point of shoulder blades) to get the dog into the down position, and so forth. Some trainers still use these methods. Not that applying pressure is cruel or even wrong, I submit that there are other more effective methods. First, most dogs resist pressure or push in the opposite direction. Only a more timid dog will immediately give in to pressure. If you are applying pressure on a larger or stronger dog's rump, you may end up in a wrestling match as the dog brace's against the pressure. Most dogs will pull against a harness and even a collar as they manage to drag their owner about. Using positive encouraging words works wonders in getting the dog's cooperation. We recently bought a 2 year old male dog. My husband opened the door to have the dog go out, but the dog did not go out on command like our other dogs. In fact, he backed up. So my husband pushed him from behind to push the dog out the door. The dog resisted instead, pushing back into my husband. At that point, I stepped in. I stepped out the door and in a happy voice invited Lance to come out with me. He came right out with a wagging tail, so I gave him lots of praise and petting. Paired with clear body language, encouraging words lead to resistance-free training. Happy training!
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