Training cues question

[hunterchristian]

Hello, I have three dogs. German shepherd, jack russel, and chihuahua. I am training all three of them and am in the process of teaching the two littles ones to sit. Should I use their names and the beginning of a cue, like " bella sit" and "apple sit" in order to not confuse them all when only asking one to sit? Or will they all sit anyways regardless if their name is in front or not? thanks!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Saying the name first, although not necessarily a requirement to get a dog to perform a behavior (many dogs will sit regardless), can help get your dog's attention. You'll likely get an orienting response as if your dog is saying "what do you want me to do?" However, if you want all three dogs to sit simultaneously, you'll likey get a group sit without having to prononce all their names one by one.

 

Saying the name first may also turn handy in a household with multiple dogs when doing recalls. For example, I like to practice name discrimination training by having all dogs sit/stay and then calling them one by one.