Basic Commands

"Down" and "Leave It"

Two commands that can literally save your dog's life. "Leave it" stops them from eating dangerous items on every walk.

📖 7 min read🏷️ Beginner

"Down" creates a calm, stable position your dog can hold for extended periods — great for restaurants, vet waiting rooms, and meal times. "Leave it" is a safety command: the moment your dog spots a chicken bone on the sidewalk, a dead animal in the yard, or your child's dropped medication, "leave it" overrides the dog's instinct to grab it. These two commands work together to create a calmer, safer dog.

Why These Two Matter

"Down" is more calming than "sit" because it's a more vulnerable, relaxed position — dogs are less likely to jump up from a down. It also works better for longer stays in public. "Leave it" is the emergency stop for your dog's nose and mouth. Every dog who walks on a public street needs this command.

Teaching Down

Down is often harder than sit because dogs feel vulnerable lying down. Go slowly, especially with nervous or dominant dogs.

  1. Start from a sit
    Ask for sit first. Hold a treat at your dog's nose, then slowly move it straight down toward the floor between their front paws. As their nose follows the treat down, their elbows may follow — reward the moment any elbow movement happens.
  2. Reward partial progress
    Some dogs won't go all the way down at first. That's fine — reward each incremental movement toward the floor. This is called "shaping." Over 2–3 sessions, raise the bar gradually until only a full down earns the reward.
  3. Try the "under the leg" lure
    Sit on the floor, bend one knee to create a low tunnel. Lure the treat under your knee — the dog has to duck down to follow it. Many dogs find this easier than the straight-down lure.
  4. Add the word "down"
    Once they're doing it consistently, add the verbal cue just before the hand motion. Fade the lure over the following sessions until the word alone does the job.
⚠️ Never use "down" for jumping up. Use "off" for that instead. Mixing the two creates confusion — your dog won't know whether "down" means "lie down" or "get off the couch."

Teaching Leave It

Leave it is taught in two phases: leave food on the floor, then leave anything anywhere.

  1. Phase 1 — Closed hand
    Hold a treat in your closed fist. Present it to your dog. They'll sniff, lick, paw at it. The moment they pull back or stop trying — click/yes and reward with a different treat from your other hand. Repeat until they back away immediately when you present the closed fist.
  2. Add the word "leave it"
    Say "leave it" as you present the closed fist. Practice until they hear "leave it" and immediately look away from your hand.
  3. Phase 2 — Open hand / floor
    Place a treat on the floor and cover it with your hand. Say "leave it." Gradually move your hand away — if they go for it, cover it again. Reward only from your other hand, never the treat they were told to leave.
  4. Build to real-world items
    Practice with food scraps on walks, dropped items at home, and interesting smells. Always reward with something better than what they left — this teaches them that "leave it" predicts something even better is coming.

Real-World Practice

Practice "down" in gradually more distracting environments: living room → front yard → quiet sidewalk → busy park. Practice "leave it" on every walk — when you see something on the ground ahead, cue "leave it" before the dog reaches it. Reward generously when they walk past.

Key Takeaway: "Leave it" is the command that most often prevents a vet emergency. A dog that reliably leaves items on cue could one day walk past rat poison, a dropped pill, or a dead animal without incident. Practice it on every walk.