FIVE FOUNDATIONAL BEHAVIORS–TACOS
Target
Begin with dog’s nose touching palm of hand.
Good for moving the dog to a wanted stimulus or away from unwanted stimulus
Attention
Teaching the dog to orient to you with eye to eye contact.
Use a cue that is not everyday words. I use “focus.”
Cues
The dog begins understanding words or motion or hand-signals for the desired behavior.
Offering behaviors
Dog offers behaviors, i.e. a default behavior where the dog automatically sits in front of a person.
Settle
Dog can be cued to go to his “place,” or “matt,” etc.
He goes, sits or lies down and stays until a release word is given.
THREE REASONS THE DOG IS NOT RESPONDING:
1. The reward is not high enough.
2. The reward is not often enough.
3. The dog is confused and doesn’t have a clue.