Dear Critter Corner: I would like to teach my pup the cue ‘Touch’ for coming to me. Can you offer me some guidance on the best way to teach it so that it is successful?
This is one of my favorite cues to use for so many things. Using it in place of the recall is definitely one I like! You can use this cue in many other contexts as well. Most dogs love this cue and it is easy to teach – a win for both the human and the dog! Here are the basics on how to teach it and some ways to use it.
You will start in a quiet area and rub your hand with treats to make them smell of treats. Then place your hand just in front of your dog’s nose, the second they touch it with their nose you will mark that behavior with a ‘yes’ and follow with a treat. You will repeat this several times starting to say ‘touch’ as you present your hand to your dog. When you feel they are doing well, add a little bit of distance, maybe two to three steps away from the dog. Cue the touch and wait, if they are not paying attention, bring your hand a little closer and wait for the behavior. For this to be a reliable cue, you will want to say it only once, and make sure to follow through once you have asked for it. Make it a fun game for your dog. At this stage, you will add distance and distractions to the training to help generalize it.
Once your cue is reliable, you can use it for other tasks in addition to calling your dog to you, such as having them walk alongside you for loose leash walking, and to help build confidence in our shy or fearful pups.
If using it for leash walking, you will play the game as you are out on your walk, this will help with keeping your pup engaged with you as well.
If you are going to use it for confidence building, you will allow your pup to make the ultimate choice when having them interact with a scary item. When they do choose to be brave and move closer to the item to check it out, give them a big party!
As with all the things that we teach our pups, you want to make it fun!