problem with cocker sitting when out

[Naj]

I agree, this is a common problem if you teach 'sit' with the dog beside you, rather than at a distance. The dog hears the 'sit' command & dashes in to where it was taught to 'sit' - at your side. I never teach a dog the 'sit' command when it is beside me, always teach it remotely & then it will sit anywhere.

Another problem could be anticipation, although it sounds unlikely in your case. If you habitually sit the dog then immediately recall or turn it then it could be anticipating the turn/recall command. Similarly, if you are in the habit of blowing the stop whistle if it ignores the turn/recall, then go out & correct it, this can lead to confusion/insecurity & the dog returning on the stop command.

Naj

[Polmaise]

My cocker won't sit unless she wants to

Graham.

I am more in tune with this type of 'logic'.
Of course,if you then continue with the activity that you were doing prior to the stop,then you would be encouraging (and subsequently training the dog) to do what it does ''just after that sit/and or stop!''?
If your dog stops on the whistle,then hovers?,could you not wait for the sit,at that point (or at least aim for it?,because you know it's going to do it anyway?) then continue hunting ,or a retrieve,or a recall ,or anything?????...would the dog not 'learn', that the stop whistle is a trigger that pr-empts the next stage in the process that it wanted anyway?>>>>,but it has to sit and wait for that 'trigger/cue'?

[GRM]

Heres the example if the link works sat to start with then after stop whistle she hovers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFote7oc ... ata_player

[keanerthanroy]

I never teach a dog the 'sit' command when it is beside me, always teach it remotely & then it will sit anywhere.

Naj

How do you do that?

[Polmaise]

Heres the example if the link works sat to start with then after stop whistle she hovers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFote7oc ... ata_player

Ahhh!
So your stop is an interuption,rather than a higher reward for what is next then? ..maybe?

[GRM]

The reward for the stop was a retrieve in the hedgerow. Previous to this we had been working on focus which has got a lot better she wouldn't of even been looking in my direction before.

[Rothievale]

Use a diversion, a dummy behind so that there's less inclination to come into you. Also, sit for tea and move away from her while she's waiting for the command to eat. Use a bench, they are often more inclined to sit on a bench and not creep (small persons syndrome!) so you can achieve your distance there and then progress to land again. Don't get hung up on the actual sit especially on wet ground, cockers especially just don't like it.

[Nette]

The other problem is that when I blow the stop whistle, she runs back to me and sits, she doesnt sit where she is

I had the same problem were my weimaraner she would come back to me and sit. My trainer told me to have her walk to heel with me on a lead. Whilst walking I asked her to sit which she did I quickly dropped the lead and I continued to walk.on. Walked forward then turned round and walked back her then continued again walking her to heel. I did this a few times with her I decided to try her to sit a distance, I sent her out pipped the whistle for a sit to my surprise she did it result My weimaraner hates sitting on wet grass too she will hover I can't say I blame her though.

Edited My cocker will sit bum firmly down wet or dry I think it could be she has more hair on her backside then my weim

[Naj]

I never teach a dog the 'sit' command when it is beside me, always teach it remotely & then it will sit anywhere.

Naj

How do you do that?

I never do any formal training but work a sit/stop in around our daily interactions. The obvious place to start is at feed times. By the time you get them at 8 weeks of age, most pups have acquired the behaviour from their breeders of dashing in to the feed bowl. If you keep quiet & simply stand up again/pick the bowl up each time they do this, they will eventually step back & wait until the bowl touches the ground & you can release them. They will be a yard or 2 away from you at this stage, because every time they come near you the bowl gets lifted out of the way. It takes patience the first few goes but once they get the hang of it I introduce a hand signal. Next I wait until they look me in the eye before releasing them, then work on distance & duration. So they learn to stop to a hand signal without ever being touched or lured or put on a lead or corrected or wedded to sitting in relation to me (ie. at my side on a lead), & they are learning to problem solve/present behaviours. I then introduce whistle & voice commands. 4 feeds a day so that means 4 stops/sits a day, that's 28 in their first week, over 100 in their first month with you, & all perfect. You can either walk back to release them or recall them to the food bowl, but they tend to hang back at the last moment.

As they get active in the field I begin by intermittantly using the stop command when they are within two or three yards of me, say 'good' to release them & chuck them a titbit, then work on distance. With spaniel pups I get them into the idea of quartering with me early on. I whizz them back & forth as I zig-zag with them, then suddenly stop & raise my hand & say HUP. The pup mimics me & stops too, again a few yards away from me. I then work on extending the duration & distance. I am only interested in training a 'stop', but if I wanted the dog to sit I would train the stop as outlined & then work on developing the 'sit' from there. There are many ways of doing this. The more you think about it the more opportunities to extend the behaviour come to mind.

Naj

[SarahP]

My cocker bitch is coming up to 13 months and she won't sit when its wet ! It really irritated me at first as when it is dry she is spot on, I have sort of accepted it now and from reading this thread I am pleased to see that mine isn't the only one !