How to Stop Your Dog From Running Out the Door

Is your dog one of those that is so excited to get outside that he runs out the door in front of you?  If so, you will  be glad to learn how to stop this problem. Happily, you can easily learn how to correct this behavior with some practice.

• You will want to start this type of training  with one of the house’s inner doors-not the front door. This will make it a lot easier to control the dog until he learns not to go charging through doors in front of you. As you approach a door within your house you’ll probably notice how your dog will position himself to get through it before you do. . If he’s had obedience training he’ll already know these two very basic commands, and do what you say. When he gets in the desired position be sure to give him lots of praise. Make sure he is relaxed in the sit position long enough that is not acting like a coiled spring, ready to launch up and run out the doorway. Now that he is relaxed a bit, start to open the door. Once he sees the door opening he will probably leave his sit position and lunge towards it to run through it. When this happens-and it surely will at first- don’t get mad at your dog. Just keep repeating the work with sit and stay until he waits to be told to move to the door.

• The next step is to try opening the dog just far enough for you to slip through. It is less of a temptation for him if the door is just partially opened. The door may tempt him too strongly and perhaps he will try to go through it before your invitation. Until he shows you he can stay in his sit position even after you have gone through the door, you will just keep repeating this stage of the training.

• Now you are ready to try out the results at the front door-this is the ultimate test. He knows this is the door that leads to the great outdoors and fun, so he may be more anxious to leave position and run out the front door than a bedroom door. You should be  ready for this, and have put a leash already on your dog so you can stop him from running through the doorway ahead of you. For a larger breed, it is a smart idea to put one end of the leash around the front doorknob, so that if he does charge out, he won’t get very far. If he does lurch out the door before you can stop him, this will bring him to a quick stop, and give him something to think about. If he tries to get out, just go back to the previous step.

• Make sure you repeat this training daily several times, for perhaps 15 minutes per session. It is a good idea to continue this training even after he has show you he knows to wait for an invitation-it certainly doesn’t hurt to keep reminding him.

So, as you can see, it is a fairly easy process to teach your dog not to run through doorways. If you haven’t previously obedience trained your dog, this article should have showed you that obedience training is a priority to enjoying a fun and trouble free relationship with your doggy For more articles on solving behavior problems and for good dog training advice please click here- www.BehaveDoggy.com.

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