3 Free Tips on Training a Puppy to go to Their Bed
By: David Codr
Published Date: March 12, 2024
For this Omaha Puppy Class update, this German Shepherd-Boxer pup Stevie, got a lesson in training a puppy to go to their bed.
In puppy class we recommend having a dog bed in every room of your home that you hang out in. This way, your furry friend always has a familiar, safe place to go to. So when company comes over or you have your hands full, you can direct them to the dog bed to prevent them from jumping on people. Teaching a puppy to use a dog bed can also prevent separation anxiety.
Training a Puppy to go to Their Bed
In the video below, you’ll learn 3 easy ways to train a puppy to go to their bed, while keeping it fun. All you’ll need is a dog bed, your puppy, and a handful of treats.
In the free puppy training video below, I share an easy way on training a puppy to go to their bed.
Once you’ve taught your puppy to go to their dog bed, you can start teaching them to go to beds in different rooms, with different names. That way your pup will understand exactly where you want them to go. If you have company coming in your front door, you can direct your pup to their bed in another room, and call them back once your company has settled in.
Our instructor Rachel recently taught this lesson in a Puppy Kindergarten Class. She picked Stevie to demonstrate the lesson to the class.
If you want to watch how Stevie learned to go to her bed, you can watch the free training lesson below.
Stevie is small, but mighty, and full of energy. It was clear she was ready to learn and eager to please her parents. Stevie gobbled up the treats Rachel was tossing onto her bed, but quickly realized that she only heard Rachel say her marker word once she had at least one paw on the bed. This helped Stevie learn that going to the dog bed was what her mom was asking.
Be patient while training a puppy to go to their bed. This process may take some time, but will be worth it in the long-run.
Summary on Training a Puppy to go to Their Bed
- Pick a single, fun word for each dog bed.
- With your puppy looking in the direction of the bed, say the cue then toss the treat to the bed.
- Say your marker word the instant your puppy steps on the bed.
- Wait for your puppy to leave the bed then repeat.
- If your puppy lingers on the bed, don’t call them off.
- Our goal is for your puppy to go on and stay on their dog bed.
- Have multiple dog beds for your pup, 1 in each room you hang out.
- Start with about twelve to twenty treats when you begin this dog bed lesson.
- Work on this with your puppy for a few minutes every day.
- Once it’s easy to get your puppy to go to their bed, say the cue and point to the bed without tossing a treat.
- If your puppy goes to the bed, say your marker once then give your puppy 5 treats in a row.
- It will take 3-6 practice sessions before your puppy can go to the bed on cue.
- If your puppy doesn’t go to the dog bed, repeat the process and toss a treat again.
If your puppy has separation anxiety or likes to jump up, our puppy classes will show you how to stop it . Click here for more info or to enroll your puppy today.
Categorized in: Dog Behavior