Cues and commands, oh my: Non negotiables in my dog training

Some dog trainers never use the word “command” because they feel it’s outdated. (The idea is that we live in partnership with our dogs and shouldn’t be bossing them around like dictators.)

Other trainers happily use the term either because it’s just what comes naturally to them—like “owner” itself, “command” is simply still the most common way to describe an instruction we’re giving our pets—or because they do believe our dogs should comply with everything we say.

Here’s my personal take on when I use “command” and when I use “cue” when talking about Scout’s training. The TLDR? Some things I ask my dog to do are non negotiable while others are mere suggestions. The words I use to conceptualize these behaviors help me be more clear and fair to her!

How I define “command” in my dog training

Scout’s commands are words or other signals associated with specific behaviors or skills that 1) we’ve explicitly taught her and proofed in a variety of circumstances that 2) she must follow when told to…