One of the most common ways a dog escapes from its home and family is by running out an open or partially open door. It’s probably instinctive—the urge to see what’s out there. Dogs don’t come knowing the rules of safety or deportment, so it’s up to us, their families, to teach them proper behavior, especially in such a common situation as an open door.
Punishment won’t work.
You don’t want the dog to become afraid of the door or fearful of going outside. Yelling and screaming at a dog that’s just escaped is only going to make the dog run faster—away from you! Beware, too, of punishment that comes after the fact. Waiting until the dog comes back to you on i
ts own, then berating and punishing it will only convince the dog that coming back was not a good choice. Next time the dog escapes, there’s a good chance he will not choose to come back willingly.
The behavior you want is for the dog to wait at the door until you give him the okay to go out it, on a leash and with you. Once the dog has learned the rule about waiting at doors to the outside, you can help him generalize that knowledge to other similar situations, like exiting a kennel run or a vehicle.
One: Start with an inside door, like the door to your kitchen or bedroom. I prefer to work with doors that open out, as I have more control there, but be aware that some dogs see even an inward-opening door, ajar only a few inches, as an invitation to go through. That’s not unreasonable.
Two: Put your dog on leash. (That alone may excite him, if he’s never worn a leash around the house!)
Three: Be prepared. Hold the dog by the collar if you think he’s likely to barge through. In your other hand, hold treats. Gently guide the dog to where you want him by moving a treat in that direction. Give the treat when the dog is situated a few feet back from the door you’re using.
At this point, cue the dog to Sit if that’s a behavior he already knows well. It’s not necessary to have the dog sit before he’s allowed to pass through doors, but if a good solid Sit is already in his repertoire, at least consider using it. Reward the Sit with praise and a treat, as you always do.
This exercise can certainly be taught to a dog that does not have a solid Sit, but it will probably be more difficult. (There are, however, always exceptions.) If you have a greyhound, for instance, you may find that Sit just doesn’t happen as easily as it does for a spaniel or a retriever. That can be true for smaller long-bodied dogs, too (corgis, dachshunds). Sit is simply not an easy position for them anytime, especially if they have back problems. Consider your own dog’s preferences.
When you first start, it’s not necessary to use a verbal cue (or command). Once the dog has learned the exercise, you may want to add one. I suggest Wait, meaning “halt here and Wait for further information.” It’s an easy word to remember and will come in handy as you add to your dog’s repertoire of behaviors in future. Semantically, Wait implies that action (movement) will follow shortly—as opposed to Stay, which means “no action until you return to the dog.” At doors, your dog will do a temporary halt only, not Stay for a prolonged time.
The words you choose to use for cues are entirely up to you! I suggest choosing cues with which you can be consistent—words you will remember, words that have specific meaning to you. Consistent cues help the dog display consistent behavior.
The dog is now sitting or standing (or even lying down) a few feet back from a door inside your house.
Four: Reach out to the door handle. What happens? In most cases, the dog will break his position and move forward, toward the door. Put your hand back at your side. Does the dog relent and step back near where he was before, resume his Sit if that’s what he’d been doing? Good! Praise and treat.
Five: Repeat as needed. Right now, you are desensitizing the dog to your hand reaching for the door handle. How long does that take? That depends entirely on your dog and you. Give it a few minutes, at most, then end the session. Go do something else for a bit and come back to it.
Six: Do your very best to end each session on a success. In this case, success is the time your dog does not react by moving closer to the door but instead just sits and observes what comes next. Praise and reward with a treat or two!
Training sessions should always be short, but they can be repeated after a few minutes’ break. Don’t expect to get the whole door sequence down in one day. It takes time and lots of practice. Be patient. You may realize your dog is just not “into it” at the moment, so don’t force the issue. Instead, cue your dog to do something he already knows (like Sit) and praise and reward him for doing it.
Seven: Come back later and try again.
In this first part of the training, your job is to show your dog that your hand reaching for a door is not a cue to lunge forward and bound out the door. That’s it! Don’t confuse the dog with physical manipulation—shoving him into the position you want—or extraneous words. (And please don’t lose patience at this point. You have a long way to go.)
When the dog eventually understands that your hand moving toward the doorknob is no big deal (because nothing really happens), move on to touching the doorknob and turning the doorknob. Again, you may see that the dog considers some part of that sequence a sign that it’s time for him to leap forward and out the door. That is the impression you are there to extinguish!
Next, it’s time to open the door—but only an inch or two. You can still have your hand on the dog’s collar to keep him from lunging forward through the slight opening. If necessary, pivot in front of him and use your body to block the opening.
(At this point, it’s not good if the dog succeeds in getting out a door that’s open only a few inches. If that happens by accident, it is not the dog’s fault, it’s yours. Ask for help from a grown family member who can stand outside the door as a body block. For the most persistent door-lungers, consider putting a baby gate on the other side of the door, to totally block the dog from leaving the room that way.)
Your attitude is so important here.
Do not practice with the dog if you are in a bad mood, tired, or hungry. It’s really not fair to the dog and, frankly, you’re most likely at those times to set his training back rather than move it forward. Training should be a happy and fun time for the dog. If you’re miserable, resentful, or angry, your dog won’t be happy either.
You’re teaching the dog something that will make his life better. It will make your life better, too, in some small way. This basic behavior is a building block for much more advanced training.
Next week, we’ll discuss how to get you and the dog out of that darn room, safely!
