Step 1: With your dog in a lay down place your hand near your dog’s chin and lure your dog’s chin into your head. Once your dog is touching your hand with their chin say “yes” and feed. Repeat until your dog seems to understand.
Step 2: Once your dog sees your hand and anticipates putting their head in it, you can add the word. You can use any word or phrase you’d like, but I just say “head down”. Now say “head down” and show your hand, once the put their head down, reward.
Step 3: Once they get it with your hand, start trying it with something else like a stuffy or pillow. Place them in a down with the stuffy or pillow between their front legs and say “head down” and point to the ground. As soon as they place their head down, reward!
Step 4: Remove both the stuffy or pillow and your hand now and just say “head down” and point to the ground. They should now put their head down between their front paws on the ground. As soon as their head touching the ground, reward!
Step 5: Now you’ll start fading the pointing to the ground. Say “head down”, wait a few seconds and if needed point to the ground. Once they put their head down with verbal only, and don’t need to help, they know “head down”!
You can now start practicing in different locations and putting their head on different objects. Once they will do it anywhere, we consider it a finished trick!
Comment and let us know what tricks you’d like tutorials for!