Have you ever wanted to take a good picture of your dog, only to have him wander off mid-shoot? You think you have him settled and step back for your camera and he’s nowhere to be found? This is where your training comes in. There is no command more important than, “Stay.” For taking pictures, and for life in the real world.

Say the doorbell rings, and before you can say, “Fluffy come here!” she’s out the door when your significant other answers the bell. If you had a reliable “Stay,” you could yell, “Fluffy, stay!” and she’d stay put! Otherwise, you’re running all over town trying to catch your dog. Now, I hope that never happens, but it’s a real possibility when your dog doesn’t understand what you want.

For the picture above, I know Tango is sitting on a desk chair, but he’s perfectly capable of jumping off. I told him to “Stay!” and he did! After I took a couple of pictures, I rewarded him with a couple of treats. Easy.

How to train “Stay?” Start by having your dog sit in front of you with a treat over his head. Bring the treat slowly to his mouth. If he doesn’t move – even a paw, he gets the treat. If he does move, bring the treat back up. Don’t say anything. And try again. You’ll get to the point where you can move your arm with the treat very slowly and your dog won’t move. Do this with the dog in front of you as well as on either side. That way, he’ll know that wherever you are, the exercise is the same. Start introducing the command when you’re reasonably sure the dog won’t move.