26 Words Every Dog Needs to Know

Every dog needs a vocabulary.  It enriches both of your lives, and while it doesn't need to be huge, you'd be amazed at how many words your dog can learn to understand.  These are words I use every day with both my own dogs and the dogs who come for daycare.  If your own dog knows these words, moving her around, whether it's letting visitors in the door, loading her up in the car, or spending time in a sidewalk cafe on Main St. with your best friend at your feet, will not only be easy, it will insure your dog will have a warm welcome just about anywhere, because your dog is socially acceptable.  She has manners.  What a joy!

Here's my list...how many does your dog already know? 

1. Name - A given.  To do any training at all, your dog needs to know its name.
2. Watch me - An easy way to say "Hey, I'm over here, quit looking at that cute sheepdog across the street and pay attention!"
3. Sit - Probably the most used word in any dog's vocabulary.
4. Down - A little harder than sit, but necessary to keep your dog comfortable if you're going to be stationary for any length of time (like when you're at that sidewalk cafe). 
5. Stand - Excellent word to use when brushing, bathing, or being examined by the vet.
6. Stay -  Whether in a sit, down, or stand, stay means you remain in that place until I tell you to move.  So be fair.  Long stays should be done in the down position.
7. OK - A release word that means "That's it, you're done"
8. Come - Pretty self-explanatory, at least to us.  A good solid recall is actually, especially for some breeds, very difficult to teach.
9. Wait - A less formal command than "Stay", it just means you stop here until I say OK.
10. Heel - A command every city dog should know for navigating through crowds.  Combine it with the "stand" to negate the sit on yucky days.
11. Let's go - Lets your dog know that he's about to be on the move.  More civilized than a yank on the leash.
12. Take it - A little hard to teach, but a great command.  Once your dog knows it, he can help you in all sorts of ways.
13. Give - Now it's time to give me the object I had you take.
14. Leave it - Don't you dare pick up that post-game pizza pate, left so temptingly on the sidewalk!
15. Jump/up/over - Once your dog knows this, you'll use it in all kinds of ways.  Handy for puddles if you have a dainty dog, helpful for getting in and out of a vehicle.
16. Off - Once they're up, at some point you're going to want them "off"
17. Speak - Not only is it fun for your dog, it can help extinguish annoying barking.  Put it on a hand signal, and you've got an instant watchdog when you hear a stranger at the door!
18. Hush/quiet - You barked, I looked.  Everything is fine, it's time to stop.
19. Back - Trying to get into the house with a load of groceries or laundry with a happy dog waiting to greet you?  Teach her to back up!
20. Not there - We've already covered this one, check the archives.
21. Hurry up - It's raining, and I don't want to be out here all night.  Do your business and let's go inside!
22. Crate/kennel/house - All dogs should have a crate, we'll cover all the reasons in a later column.  And they should go into it without an argument when you give them the command!
23. Go lie down - You've been fed, walked, played with, and loved on.  I need a break.  It's time for you to "go lie down".  You can also use "Go to bed", but what if you're away from home, and the bed's not there?  With this command your dog will follow the direction you're pointing, and go there to lie down.
24. Dinner - Give your dog something to look forward to.  Anticipation always makes it finer!
25. Treat/cookie/biscuit - A great way to get a loose dog to come, and another way to give your dog a word that lets him anticipate something tasty!
26. And, of course, "Good Boy or Girl!!! - Dogs read body language far better than we do.  Telling your dog it's good involves your whole body - a smile on your face, a happy tone of voice, and your posture say it all.

So, maybe your dog does none of these yet.  Don't despair!  Keep checking back, at least once a week we'll be covering training methods for all of these commands.

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