January
Resolutions that stick: ten minutes of place a day.
The one training resolution that survives February: ten minutes of place a day, every day. Why it works, and how to build the habit around a Houston morning.
Most training resolutions fail because they are vague. Walk more, be consistent, work on the barking. The one that survives is specific, short and daily: ten minutes of place, every day, at the same time.
Why place
Place is the command under every other command. A dog that can lie on a bed for ten minutes while the household moves around it has impulse control, an off switch and a job. Door manners, table manners, calm with guests and calm in the car all come from the same skill. It is also the command that decays fastest when families stop practicing it after a program.
- Same bed, same spot, same ten minutes: the morning coffee works
- Release with a word, never by the dog deciding
- Add one distraction a week: the vacuum, the doorbell, a child running past
- By March, move the bed to the porch and let the street go by
When ten minutes is not enough
If your dog cannot hold place for one minute in a quiet room, it is not a habit problem, it is a foundation problem. That is what a Gold stay installs in two weeks, and the ten minutes a day afterwards is what makes it permanent.
The ten minutes, in detail
Send the dog to the bed with the word you use, and reward the moment all four feet are on it. Sit down with your coffee. If the dog gets up, walk it back without a word and put it on again; no scolding, no treat, just the bed. When it lies down and stays, drop a piece of kibble between its paws every minute or so for the first week, then every few minutes. At ten minutes, say the release word and let it come off. The first week you will do a lot of walking back. By the second week the dog will sigh and lie down when you pick up the mug.
- Week one: quiet room, ten minutes, reward often
- Week two: the family moves around the room while the dog holds
- Week three: the doorbell rings during place, once a session
- Week four: place on the porch, then a patio, then a bench at the park
Why this one resolution carries the others
Families come to us for jumping, barking at the window, pulling, counter surfing and chaos at the door. Under all of them is a dog that has never learned to be still on command. Ten minutes of place a day teaches exactly that, and once the dog can be still, every other problem gets smaller. It is the command our trainers start with on drop-off day for that reason, and the one we ask every family to keep practicing after the go-home session.
Best Dog University Team
Board and train trainers in Cypress, Houston. 16+ years, 900+ dogs. About our team
