Many dog owners struggle with understanding when to use Drop It and Leave it. Drop it, is used when an item is in a dogs mouth that it should not have. This could be medication, children’s toys, food, etc. The goal is to simply have your dog “Drop” the item in their mouth and move away from it, or at a minimum let you get it. Leave it is when the item you do not want your dog to have it not in their mouth but they are going towards it. You are asking your dog to “Leave” the item and back away. Once you understand these two behaviors, and teach your dog properly how to understand what you are asking, life with your dog will be better. Keep reading to learn more about when to use Drop it or Leave it.
Let’s Get to Training Leave It or Drop It
Leave It
Leave it is one way to teach our dogs impulse control. This can be used to deter chewing on unwanted items and or eating items that may be dangerous to them. This cue can also be developed to teach your dog to leave the cat, kids, or food on the counter alone
- Have high smelling treats (CODE: CURIOSITY15) in one hand and others in a pocket or treat pouch out of site
- Present closed hand to the dog. As soon as they disengage with your hand. Mark with Yes and Reward from pocket/treat pouch
- Repeat a few times until they are disengaging. Then you can add the word.
- Present a closed hand to your dog. Say “Dogs Name, Leave it” and wait for them to disengage.
- When they disengage, Yes and Reward. DO NOT REWARD FROM SAME HAND YOUR ASKING TO LEAVE IT!
Once they are getting the hang of this, try it from a kneeling position to make it more challenging. Once that becomes easy, try to place the back of your hand on the ground. If that is going well try to place it on the floor and then remove your hand from the treat (always be ready to block/pick up the treat before the dog gets it). Build up the difficulty as you go and eventually you can incorporate it into everyday life (cats, people, etc)
Drop It
This cue is used when your dog has something in their mouth that you either don’t want them to have or that they are not supposed to have. “Drop-it” will teach them to release it when you ask. It is always better to trade with your dog with a high-value treat or toy than just taking it from their mouth. Just taking something from their mouth can actually result in resource guarding. This is a much better bigger behavior issue than simply teaching a drop it with the Trade Game.
The TRADE Game!
The key is having something of higher value to give your dog.
- When your dog has something in his mouth, approach him with a treat of high value.
- Allow him to sniff the treat by placing the treat next to his nose as he is still mouthing on the original object.
- When he sniffs the treat, his jaw will loosen just enough for you to take the toy slowly out of his mouth while replacing it with the treat simultaneously.
- At that moment, say “Drop It” as you give the treat for the toy or object.
**If it doesn’t work, your reward is of lower value than what he is already chewing on. Try something better! Smellier! Or maybe that Squeaks!**
