02/07/2026
Whenever I’m working with my dogs, I’m watching their body language to see if 1. They understand what I’m asking and 2. If they actually like the way I am teaching them.
Here is an example of different ways of teaching the cue “back up”. For some dogs, they may be worried about being within a confined area like the chute while others might not like having a person encroach on their personal space (like the options of having them come between your legs or pushing into them).
You can see from these first three examples, my dogs are stiff with their movements, they each sit to look up at me like “WTF are we doing?” and in the case of the luring/pushing, Gamora is actually trying to resist moving back.
My preferred method for teaching “back up” is to use a mat/blanket/platform to reward placement of the back feet and then use a technique called backchaining - starting with the end position and building to the starting position. This prevents frustration, gives them clear steps, and they are moving their bodies by choice (not by pushing or crowding them).
