# How do I train my dog to wait outside the shops for me?



## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

I have a labrador puppy who is fantastically behaved for a puppy her age (she's only just three months). I have had grown dogs (rescue dogs) in the past, but this is my first puppy and I'm finding that things I took for granted with older dogs are things I suddenly have to train her for myself lol.

We have a very secure area outside our supermarket where people can confidently leave their dogs (on short leashes so they can't get to each other), and I took her there once (there were no other dogs there that time) to go into the shops, but she immediately got very scared when I left her. Any tips on how to train her to be ok with waiting for me there? I'm thinking leaving her for longer and longer periods of time and making a right prat of myself running in and out of the shop all the time, but thought I would ask before embarking on that particular venture.

Thanks for any help!


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## taquitos (Oct 18, 2012)

Your instincts are right - that would be the correct way of going about it.

Personally I wouldn't leave my dog tied up outside a store though... too many things can happen -- dog can get stolen, hurt himself unsupervised, etc.... it's too much of a gamble imo. Especially with a purebred dog.


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## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

taquitos said:


> Personally I wouldn't leave my dog tied up outside a store though... too many things can happen -- dog can get stolen, hurt himself unsupervised, etc.... it's too much of a gamble imo. Especially with a purebred dog.


Yeah, that is my worry too. But I do want her to be able to stay outside for a while, let's say I want to quickly pop in for a newspaper somewhere or something if you see what I mean. Also, luckily, dog crimes are very low where we live. But better safe than sorry of course.


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## seaboxador (Sep 23, 2012)

Honestly, don't do it. How are you going to feel when you come out and your dog is gone or it has been bitten by another dog. That's not to mention that you don't know about the health of the other dogs there, likely a lot of have gone to the bathroom there and it's a huge health risk.

Are you taking care that your dog isn't going in areas where other dogs have pooped? Are you doing any puppy training and socialization classes? What you're asking about here makes me think that you're missing a few things.


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## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

I'm not intending to do it, but if I want to get a quick lottery ticket or a paper for instance, i need to be able to leave her for a few minutes, surely?

And she's fully vaccinated, of course. I have found a group that does socialisation in a park in our area, so that is sorted. The nearest puppy training classes are quite far away, so I struggle to get there, although I am still looking into it. Anything else I am missing, because I want to give her the best possible in life, of course.


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## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

The OP does not sound like they are from America, where such crimes are common and expected. Seems he knows the risks and is willing to take them, so he's just asking for advice to do it safely as much as he can control.


I would take the pup there, tie it to the post or whathaveyou. Take a lot of small (half a finger nail sized) and soft/smelly training treats with you. Ask her to sit. Reward. Take a step out of her reach and if she moves, ask for a sit, reward. Take another step back out of her reach. If she's still sitting/standing patiently (not pulling with all her might or barking/crying) then go back to her and praise/reward. I would do this the first day and build up distance and distraction from there over the course of the next few weeks. You can eventually start wandering around within a vicinity of her and coming right back to praise/reward, step into a shop so that you're out of site then pop right back out (seconds later) and reward so that she knows you aren't gone long. 

Good luck.


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## Kyllobernese (Feb 5, 2008)

At three months of age, most dogs are not confident enough to be left in a strange place so I do not blame her for being scared. I think you have to work up to it very gradually as you do not want her to have a bad experience at this age. How is she about having strange people and kids coming up to her when you are with her?


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## Selah Cowgirl (Nov 14, 2009)

Start by crate training, and training in the car. I wish I had done this sort of training with my boy at such a young age, I probably would not have had to replace the roof on my dads truck or the two seatbelts in my subaru.


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

Kyllobernese said:


> At three months of age, most dogs are not confident enough to be left in a strange place so I do not blame her for being scared. I think you have to work up to it very gradually as you do not want her to have a bad experience at this age. How is she about having strange people and kids coming up to her when you are with her?


Agree fully with the above, it's a pupppppppyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That being said, the type of dog I would tie up while shopping is not the type of dog I would tie up while shopping because he/she would defend his/her area and a lawsuit would be my next problem but more likely than not the dog would still be there when I returned.


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## Capri142 (Jun 14, 2013)

This takes a time, a lot of patience and certainly not something that a puppy will do.

I had a Springer Spaniel that was well trained off leash. I could walk most anywhere with here without ever worrying about her being distracted or leaving my side. When I went into a shop, I could could put her on a down stay just outside the door as I went inside, knowing full well that she would be there when I came back out. Sometimes I would come back out to find some one petting her. Often, a store proprietor, seeing how well behaved she was would invite her inside the shop. 

I trained her to heel very well off leash a midst all sorts of distractions, I trained her on sit and down stays, using increasing times and distances away from her eventually adding in as many distractions as I could. She was almost 3 years old before I could comfortably trust her to stay for an extended time, out of my site and off leash. 

Unfortunately she got a cancer and died before she was 7


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## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

DJEtzel said:


> The OP does not sound like they are from America, where such crimes are common and expected. Seems he knows the risks and is willing to take them, so he's just asking for advice to do it safely as much as he can control.


"She" ;-) And I'm not. Thanks for the advice 



Kyllobernese said:


> At three months of age, most dogs are not confident enough to be left in a strange place so I do not blame her for being scared. I think you have to work up to it very gradually as you do not want her to have a bad experience at this age. How is she about having strange people and kids coming up to her when you are with her?


Thanks, I'm not worried about it, just wanted to know the proper way of training, so that she doesn't have a negative experience. Also, she loves other people and goes up to them all the time. Another thing I need to work on lol!


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## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

Capri42, that sound amazing, you must be really good at this! And so sorry about her passing


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## Greater Swiss (Jun 7, 2011)

I do agree with much of the advice given above, rewarding for short periods of being left alone etc, progressing to longer times. I do have a somewhat different suggestion though. 

Teach the "long down" and be sure to work up to distractions. It takes a LONG time to get it dependable, but it is definitely doable. I've taught Caeda the long down, and we do it at Schutzhund every time we go, with the distraction of other dogs on the field, people etc. It has turned out to be a wonderfully transferable skill, especially if you progress to stepping out of the dog's view. Circumstances do change things though....Caeda can do a 20min long down at ScH, but I don't think she would last that long at the store lol, (I've left her in a safe spot for about 5 mins and she did good). 

The added bonuses of the long down are that it can help keep the dog out of trouble (winding around the post), and less likely to bother passers by because she has been given a command rather than just tied and left there to her own devices. Also the simple concept of the dog learning to be patient in a down (or sit if the dog really prefers) whether you are there or not is a very worthwhile thing to teach!


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## Jolo (Jul 2, 2013)

Thank you! I think I need a puppy training school to be set up near me lol


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## DeeSpark (May 25, 2011)

This thread is helpful for me too. I recently left my 5 year old dog outside shops for the first time in his life. Once when I ran into the bank to grab some money, and then to run into the bakery to get some food. He barked the whole time wagging his tail until I came back. At the bakery it wasn't as bad because he was under a window so I could just step over there so he could see me while the people were getting my food. I just put up with it though, it wasn't over the top, and people just thought it was funny.

(I also don't live in america, and live in a small town where this type of this is normal).

Maybe try leaving a kong or something chewy and tasty while you go in for short amount of times?


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

Follow the methods described, recognizing that a 3 mos pup is changing rapidly, from fearful to curious to teething to independent ... over the next 3 mos... so be persistent.


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## Capri142 (Jun 14, 2013)

Jolo said:


> Capri42, that sound amazing, you must be really good at this! And so sorry about her passing


 The best training tool................................Patience and lots of it. Too often dog owners expect immediate results.


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## alexdog (Jan 17, 2016)

a friend of mine had the same problem, he solved the situation simply putting a small carpet outside. His dog now lies on the carpet while he is working.


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