The answer
On film the trainers do not answer this question with a number of minutes. They answer it with a state: the hold ends when the dog has settled - lain down of his own accord, without being told to, with the anxious stare gone - and not before. Sage's trainer gives the rule in one line: "Do not release during whining, circling, barking, or, what's the last one? Anxious staring" (watch 14:05), and gives the reason in the next breath - release a whining dog and you have taught him that noise ends the exercise (13:52). The same rule is stated, independently and in almost the same words, over Dutchess, Lola, Louie, Max, Apollo the Bully, Anna, Bourbon, Pepper, Sophia, Phoebe and Zeus, and again in September's owner lessons for Boog and Mazi, where the trainers teach the families to read the face: a dog who stares at you is anxious, and a dog who looks around has settled. Mazi's trainer adds why the stare matters - a dog making that anxious eye contact runs the moment you walk away or look away (watch 03:32). The rule also runs off the cot: Whiskey's trainer stands still on the walk, up to five minutes, until the whining stops, and only then moves on (watch 09:32).
A settle is not a down. Lola's trainer defines it: "The settle was I put them on there and wait for them to lay down on their own. I call that a settle" (watch 07:51). Anna's lesson puts the other side: owners who tell the dog 'down' "look like the dog settled, but all they actually just told the dog is down" (watch 19:03). The handler stays deliberately uninteresting while he waits - "don't tell her anything. Just wait" (watch 25:38) - and the moment the dog settles is the moment that pays: "the second they settle, I release it... You're teaching them this is how you escape the pressure" (watch 16:25).
So the honest answer to 'how long' is 'until he settles', and the recordings show how widely that varies. One dog in a car settled in about four minutes (watch); one husky took fifteen minutes one time and twenty-seven the next (watch 17:10, 27:01); a trainer estimates fifteen to thirty minutes for a first settle with consistency (watch 13:43); Milo's trainer puts the usual spread at two or three minutes for some dogs and ten to fifteen for others, with some whining, barking dogs not settling for thirty or forty minutes at first (watch 18:07); and another recalls that the longest dog took 'like 9 or 10 weeks' to lie down on the cot (watch 02:12). Holding still is itself the work: for a dog short on impulse control, five or ten minutes on place 'is like a whole workout' (watch 02:46). Once the settle is learned, the target duration comes from the household - what the owner needs rather than what the dog wants (watch 10:27), such as being able to stand still and talk to someone in a shop (watch 16:13).
What is inferred rather than said: a self-chosen lie-down is the trainers' visible sign of calm, not a direct measure of it, and the criterion is scoped. Dutchess's handler tells the family to check the eyes in the first week of adjustment, not 'every single time for the rest of her life' (watch 18:48). Ask your trainer what the settle looks like in your dog, and what to do if it does not come.
Angier K9 is a family-owned, play-based Board & Train serving Angier, Raleigh and the Triangle, with three full owner lessons.
What to do
Put him on place and wait without telling him 'down' (watch 07:51). Do not release while he whines, circles, barks or stares at you (watch 14:05). Say nothing while you wait (watch 25:38). Release the moment he lies down and relaxes (watch 16:25). Expect this to matter most in the first week home (watch 18:48).
What the trainers say
Do not release during whining, circling, barking, or, what's the last one? Anxious staring.
I never do, and when I see people release them during whining, I'm like, you know what you just taught them? You taught them, hey, I'm gonna put you on a place, but don't worry, if you start whining and making more noise, I'll let you go.
Actually, I think that when they lay down, I really feel you should treat that like you're training it down. And like, what I mean by that is, you know how like when you teach it down, the second they go into position, you release them?
Dogs settle around 15 to 30 minutes with consistency.
right now she's doing the anxious staring as soon as that's gone and she settles down and chills as soon as she like calms down and lays down then get her off
because this is what you wanna look for. Look at the eyes. If you see her staring at you, there's like an anxious stare, which is she's like, are you really gonna make me do this?
until she's forced to settle i'm not gonna let her go i mean and obviously like after that first week of like getting everything adjusted you can just place her for like a minute it's not like you gotta look every single time for the rest of her life if she's staring right
what we all look for in any command we do is that anxious stare where you're like specifically looking for the stair needs to go away. You can be a little nervous, but you got to actually learn how to settle. And until that happens, it's not really a smooth rep of the command.
We've down and settled as two separate things. The settle was I put them on there and wait for them to lay down on their own. I call that a settle.
they settle, I release it. That way, you're teaching the dog not, hey, I'm going to put you on it for 20 minutes to get them a little more open up to it. You're teaching them this is how you escape the pressure.
They look like the dog settled, but all they actually just told the dog is down.
if i was to put him in a position then he'll rely on me putting him in the position on the cot for him to be able to settle and do that and he's not actually settling he's just going with the command
to see him fully settle and lay down on the cot without me having to ask him to
So, I want to see how long it takes for him to just kind of settle on the place cut.
But I'd like for him to settle without me having to put him in a position like sit or down or something like that.
As soon as he settles in the car, he gets to get off.
um place for a dog like her who impulse control is she's not very gifted with impulse control so making her sit there for five or ten minutes on place is like a whole workout for her because she's having to really try to push to not break the rules
he's kind of starting to settle a little bit so we're going to let him settle and we're going to do it like a longer duration thing here it's good experience for him
I think the record holder is like 9 or 10 weeks it took for a dog to like settle and like lay down on the pod.
Like, it's not what they want, it's what the owner wants, you know what I'm saying? You gotta keep learning. It's like a kid on timeout, think of that.
I don't want the dog like moving around a whole bunch the whole time I want eventually I don't want to have to always be like oh you know do it down or something I just want want to be able to talk
phoebe is that she hasn't really gone into like a relaxed state on the cot and i'm hoping that if she stays on there long enough she will
yeah that's what you want to look for is a saddle so like one thing that we look for when we're teaching place is i kind of want the dog to like do this like just kind of look at you look back right whatever if they're like this they're just like staring at you right um that's actually kind of it's actually an anxious behavior
especially with nervous dogs i won't let them get up until they stop making like this kind of eye contact with me that's like really intense i'm like you You gotta look away and chill out before I let you up.
and like if she screams at me or whines i just act like nothing happened i just stand there until she stops whining and then i go good job and i move forward
thing. So it's a kind of like settle point, and each dog has a different settle point. Some dogs
How it looks, dog by dog
Sage
The fullest statement. Place was her hardest command and most of her filmed hours are this wait. A senior trainer teaches a junior handler the rule - no release during whining, circling, barking or anxious staring - while Sage does the stare on screen, and adds that the lie-down should be treated like the instant of a down: release it. The handler is coached to give space, sit, say nothing, keep the leash slack and use pressure only if she gets up.
On film
She's doing anxious staring.
All right, and now wait for the settle. back up a little bit. Don't sit yet because she's going to get up.
The first time they were placed, I had to make them stay there for a long time.
Dutchess
Two handlers on one dog reach for the same rule unprompted - 'I have to wait for her to settle', 'they're not ready to be released' - and the go-home lesson adds the scoping nobody else states: check her eyes in the first week of adjustment, not for the rest of her life.
On film
so I have to wait for her to settle.
until she's forced to settle i'm not gonna let her go
Lola
A nervous dog, and the file where the rule leaves the cot: in any held command the stare has to go, and a sit held around an unchanged anxious state is not a smooth rep.
On film
And so that's the big thing with Lola is like are you reinforcing like a temporary sit with heightened anxiety?
They should be able to do both, putting it down, or you can just let them, just wait and let them settle.
Anna
The criterion stated in full over a dog who never meets it on film. One staff member explains why the release comes the second she settles - it teaches settling as the way out of pressure - and a colleague draws the down-versus-settle line for the owners: a commanded down only looks like a settle.
On film
A down is they're in command and they're in control.
And they choose to lay down and chill out on their own.
Apollo (the Bully)
A nervous dog, and the clearest argument for why the position must not be commanded: a dog put into a down on the cot relies on being put there and is 'just going with the command'. The real settle is said to build confidence and control the nervousness. Outdoors the criterion is set lower for now - four paws on the cot and attention - with lying down expected later.
On film
what we want is just we want him to actually settle and it will help with building the confidence and controlling the the nervousness and over-excitement
so we'll let him settle for a minute or so and then release so that he understands that the settle is what i'm looking for
i just want all four paws on the cot and him paying attention until i release him
Max (Goldendoodle)
His first place-cot session: breaks corrected and re-cued, then a wait for him to lie down 'without me having to ask him to', release on the settle, and then the trainer's absence added as the next test.
On film
do so I want him to come to that conclusion on his own so we're just
Louie
Duration stated as a question with an answer in minutes - how long until he settles - with the trainer recording quiet work he admits is not exciting, because it transfers to calm behaviour in the house.
On film
But I also just want to have him be able to settle and chill on the place cot cuz that can transfer over to all kinds of things
Zeus
The settle is context-bound: in the living room he lies down almost at once, outdoors with play on his mind he does not, so it has to be earned again there - and without being put into a sit or down. A later recording opens about twenty-five minutes into a hold and then runs near-silent until release.
On film
Because inside the house, in that living room context that we normally practice the place down on,
He's been on the playstop for like 25 minutes after that
Astro
The one dog whose settle is timed on camera: about fifteen minutes the previous time, twenty-seven minutes this time, with another dog on a second cot and a television on. No down is cued - 'he knows down, you make him lay down, but I don't really see a point'.
On film
I don't know if he laid down at all last time I did this with him I think he like I think
milk I'll see how long it took for him to to chill out and just lay down 27 minutes before he laid
Bourbon
The rule carried into a car: the trainer waits until he actually lies down, and releases on the settle - about four minutes by the note's reckoning.
On film
No, I'm just going to wait until he actually lays down.
As soon as he settles in the car, he gets to get off.
Bullet
Bullet's handler does the opposite at the moment of the settle: extends rather than releases, calling it good experience. His file also ranks duration commands by what they cost - place is cheapest once the dog settles, heel the most expensive - which is why a long place hold and a short heel are consistent.
On film
good place all right so good news Bullet is resting now he actually closed his eyes and
shot, right? that that requires almost no effort from the dog once they learn to, you know, just settle as soon as they get on the place cotton.
Stormie
The owner hears dogs crying in the back and asks; the trainer answers that he would rather she asked, and reframes place: for a dog with little impulse control, five or ten minutes of holding still is the workout that pays for everything outdoors. Two weeks later a handler in the field says her problem is not impulse control at all.
On film
there because then by the time i take the dog out the impulse control is better and we can start like adding more things
i don't even think it's an impulse control issue she's just testing to see if i'm gonna like do
Luna
Luna's file gives the spread instead of an average - some dogs settle at once, the record holder took nine or ten weeks - and reads her whining on place as the marker of her current impulse-control ceiling, which will reappear at each new maximum.
On film
I think the record holder is like 9 or 10 weeks it took for a dog to like settle and like lay down on the pod.
true well if you notice the hand thing she started doing because she's whining and she's whining
You're going to stay there. You're going to stay there until you lay down
Rocko
The owner, not a training standard, sets the target duration, and complaining does not end it - 'it's like a kid on timeout'. The pass mark is a domestic scene: cot in the living room, two minutes, you walk past - does he come off?
On film
Like, it's not what they want, it's what the owner wants, you know what I'm saying?
let's say you have the place caught in your living room right and you say place and he goes to place for like two minutes
Dolce
The settle as the public-access test: stand still in a store and time how long it takes her to stop working you for attention and lie down with no down cue. The target is the owner's ordinary life - being able to stand and talk. She is not shown passing it.
On film
and then just like i was wanting to see how long it would take her to just like completely settle
Roxy
The settle without a cot: loose in the room, 'calm liberty', she needs to settle on her own rather than be put on a place bed.
On film
but she needs to settle on her own and not require being put on a play-style, right?
Bernie
Place held in a room where life goes on, with the other dogs as the test: one is worked or led out while the rest must stay, and knocks and people walking in are added on purpose. He is the last to settle - panting while the others sleep.
On film
Because all you need is somebody walking in for them to start thinking about getting up.
Pepper
She is allowed to get excited, returned to place, and the next repetition waits until she has settled. A long television-on recording is a rule-13 place hold with no quotes.
On film
to the place, and then there we go, we want her to settle.
I just want her to stay settled, so I'm just trying to implement that now
Phoebe
Staying is not the goal, relaxing is: she stays on the cot but has not gone into a relaxed state, and the handler waits on the expectation that a long enough hold will bring it.
On film
phoebe is that she hasn't really gone into like a relaxed state on the cot
Sofia
Taught in Spanish on the 'cama' command: she has to focus on not leaving and on being able to lie down and feel comfortable, which is where she practises patience; the release is 'ok'. At home it is the visitor tool.
On film
pero estando ahí en cama, en el mando cama, ella tiene que enfocarse en no salirse de ahí
Esto es un excelente mando cuando usted tiene a familia o amigos que están en su
Wiley
The honest limit: for a dog like Wiley the goal is 'obedient', not calm - a down is stationary, and held long enough it can induce calm, but it is not calm in itself.
On film
calm yes but well no you know what not not calm just obedient how about that that's the best we're
enough, it will create, it'll induce calm behavior, but it in itself isn't calm behavior to begin
Beo
Place taught as a few up-and-sit rounds before a settle is asked for, and long holds run while staff are present but busy - a rule-13 duration hold.
On film
and then after somewhere around the third or fourth time I flip it to just
That was a long morning session for you, but you did great.
Kali
Rule-13 recordings: a place cue, a foot assist faded ('without me stepping on it today'), then a long silent hold. Evidence that place work happened, not of its length.
On film
I think you can do it without me stepping on it today.
Kane
Two long near-silent holds in the kennel phase, and one line that separates the position from the stay: he was told to go down, not to wait there.
On film
I didn't even tell him to wait there, I just told him to wait down.
Whiskey
Rule-13 recordings: a place cue, long near-silence or television, occasional cues, praise at the end. They yield almost no quotes. At her first in-program owner lesson (September update) the trainer gives the rule's walk version: he will stand in one spot for as long as five minutes, act as if nothing happened while she screams or whines, and say 'good job' and move on only once the whining stops, so she learns that whining does not move the walk.
On film
Alright, place!
And so, like, doing it where it's like, hey, I'm going to stand here for, like, five minutes,
and like if she screams at me or whines i just act like nothing happened i just stand there until she stops whining and then i go good job and i move forward
just so she learns like whining doesn't do it but she doesn't whine i will move
Shadow (German Shepherd puppy)
A puppy left on place while a television plays or staff work; three in-house recordings that are sessions, not discards, with almost no speech.
On film
She's gonna stay in place for a bit.
Boog
Boog (new in this update). At an in-program owner lesson the trainer tells the family what to look for on place: a dog who looks at you, looks away, looks around. A dog who just stares at you is showing an anxious behaviour - uncomfortable, nervous, or not knowing what to do - so the handler waits for the shift to observing.
On film
yeah that's what you want to look for is a saddle so like one thing that we look for when we're teaching place is i kind of want the dog to like do this like just kind of look at you look back right whatever if they're like this they're just like staring at you right um that's actually kind of it's actually an anxious behavior
like I'm really uncomfortable maybe they're nervous about it maybe they're just like I don't know what to do so you kind of like look for like a shift where they're kind of just like observing
Mazi
Mazi (new in this update). At the second in-program owner lesson the trainer tells the owner to watch the dog's face on place. Anxious eye contact predicts a break - walk away or look away and the dog runs - so, especially with nervous dogs, he does not let the dog up until the intense eye contact stops: 'look away and chill out' first.
On film
um one thing that you always want to look for is actually their face while they're doing a place
sometimes they'll do this kind of eye contact it's like it's anxious eye contact and so say you walk away or break eye contact they run
especially with nervous dogs i won't let them get up until they stop making like this kind of eye contact with me that's like really intense i'm like you You gotta look away and chill out before I let you up.
Milo
The trainer narrates the criterion on the cot: standing at attention doesn't count; Milo hasn't settled until he lies down and chills. Each dog has its own 'settle point' - two or three minutes for some, ten to fifteen for others, and some dogs that whined and barked took thirty or forty minutes at first, shortening as the holds became more frequent.
On film
Because right now, he's kind of standing at attention, he hasn't settled, he hasn't laid
down, he hasn't kind of chilled out yet on the play scot.
thing. So it's a kind of like settle point, and each dog has a different settle point. Some dogs
settle on the place caught after two or three minutes, then they see that they're not going
to get released. Other dogs take 10-15 minutes, and I've had dogs whine on the place caught and
bark at me and do other stuff that I've had to correct, but I've had them not settle for
up to 30 or 40 minutes at first but then as you do constant durations more frequently
Thor
A puppy who stares at the trainer from the cot with 'the saddest puppy dog eyes', plainly asking for the release word. The trainer says he wants to give it and doesn't: he waits for Thor to settle and nap. Later in the same hold Thor is asleep, and in another session the trainer marks the moment the stare turns into settling as the good news.
On film
like please say my release word so I can come sit with you on the couch and I want to say it so bad
but I have to train him I don't want to train him I just want to hang out with him but I gotta
train him I'm hoping that he will kind of settle soon and take a nap okay so the good thing is is
that's what i like to see he's just chilling sleeping thor is doing really good
puppy dog eyes of all time every time man he he gets me every time that's good news he's settling
Rocky
In the long evening cot holds Rocky regularly ends asleep, and the trainer releases him after he wakes ('I'm gonna go ahead and pop him up now'). In one hold the contrast is spoken: Rocky and Akira are asleep while Bernie is still panting, and the trainer tells Bernie he'll figure it out.
On film
he's waking up he fell asleep on the cot which is incredibly cute and you guys
got to witness it but I'm gonna go ahead and pop him up now buddy good boy cutie
are you panting dude just calm down okay look Rocky sleeping Akira sleeping and
you're just you'll figure it out you know he's he's done this how many times
Penny
Once Penny knows place well, Kelton moves it to longer and longer durations, putting her back if she gets up. In the family lesson he answers the worry about long holds: the first time she may be awake for a couple of hours, but with repetition she just falls asleep on the cot.
On film
and chilling because she knows it very well now so you just be putting her on
the place got for longer and longer durations and just saying I'm putting
Maybe the first time you do it,
be awake for like a couple hours and then if you do it like over and over and over and over again
she just falls asleep there's no other option no yeah there's no other option and the place
Titan
The trainer treats 'place and settle' as a level above plain place: because Titan isn't struggling, he goes 'next level' and tests whether he can place and settle.
On film
Okay. Now, here, because you're doing really good, I'm going to go next level with you.
Okay? You're not struggling too much. I want to see if you can place and settle.
Why it works
The stated mechanism is that the release is a reinforcer and lands on whatever the dog is doing when it comes. Release during whining and the dog learns that noise ends the exercise (watch 13:52); release the second he settles and he learns that settling is 'how you escape the pressure' (watch 16:25). That is why the lie-down is treated like the instant of a down (watch 14:56). A commanded down short-circuits it: the dog relies on being put in position and is 'just going with the command' rather than settling (watch 16:59); a down is stationary, not calm (watch 02:53), although held long enough it can induce calm (watch 44:48). Two further claims are made about why it matters beyond the cot. Holding still is effortful for a dog with little impulse control, so place is exercise and builds the control used outdoors (watch 02:46, 03:08); and a real settle builds confidence and controls nervousness 'because his brain is learning how to handle those stresses' (watch 17:11). Whining is read as the current ceiling of that control rather than distress (watch 41:33). The anxious stare is also given a practical reason on film: a dog holding place on anxious eye contact breaks as soon as the handler walks or looks away (watch 03:32), so the release waits until he looks around (watch 18:59; watch 03:42). The same release rule is applied to a whining dog on a walk - moving forward is the release, so it comes only when the whining stops (watch 09:32). Inferred, not stated: the lie-down is used as the observable proxy for a calmer state; no recording measures the state directly, and the trainers' confidence that the one reflects the other rests on their reading of the dog.
Where the trainers differ
At the moment the dog settles: release, or extend.
One view
Release at once - treat the settle like the instant of a down.
On film
Actually, I think that when they lay down, I really feel you should treat that like you're training it down.
As soon as they do that, the instant they do that, like Connor was saying, boom, they're
Another view
Let him settle and go longer; or let him settle 'for a minute or so' and then release.
On film
he's kind of starting to settle a little bit so we're going to let him settle and we're going to do it like a longer duration thing
so we'll let him settle for a minute or so and then release
How to read it
Plausibly stage-dependent (teaching the settle against building duration on it), but no one on film says so.
How long a first settle takes.
One view
Minutes: about four in a car, fifteen to twenty-seven for a husky, fifteen to thirty 'with consistency'.
On film
Dogs settle around 15 to 30 minutes with consistency.
milk I'll see how long it took for him to to chill out and just lay down 27 minutes before he laid
Another view
Sometimes weeks: the recalled record holder took nine or ten.
On film
I think the record holder is like 9 or 10 weeks it took for a dog to like settle and like lay down on the pod.
How to read it
Different units - one session against a program. Both are estimates or recollections except Astro's, which is timed.
Whether a dog who will not settle is short of impulse control.
One view
Yes - holding place is the impulse-control workout.
On film
um place for a dog like her who impulse control is she's not very gifted with impulse control
Another view
Not for this dog - she is testing the handler.
On film
i don't even think it's an impulse control issue she's just testing to see if i'm gonna like do
How to read it
Same dog, two handlers, two weeks apart; left as recorded.
Whether a commanded down on the cot is acceptable.
One view
No - a commanded down is reliance, not a settle.
On film
That doesn't work.
if i was to put him in a position then he'll rely on me putting him in the position on the cot
Another view
The dog should be able to do both; a down stops him trying to come off.
On film
But see, now that they're on a down, they're not trying to come off.
They should be able to do both, putting it down, or you can just let them, just wait and let them settle.
How to read it
Not strictly opposed: Lola's trainer still calls the settle and the down two different behaviours.
Common owner mistakes
- Releasing the dog while he whines.
On film
I never do, and when I see people release them during whining, I'm like, you know what you just taught them?
Sage · Watch at 13:52 ↗ just so she learns like whining doesn't do it but she doesn't whine i will move
Watch at 9:39 ↗ - Telling him 'down' and calling it a settle.
On film
They look like the dog settled, but all they actually just told the dog is down.
Anna · Watch at 19:03 ↗ - Accepting a held sit with an anxious stare as a finished rep.
On film
And the other thing is like you can teach a lot of just learning how to chill, which people don't know what they're looking for sometimes
Lola · Watch at 38:56 ↗ especially with nervous dogs i won't let them get up until they stop making like this kind of eye contact with me that's like really intense i'm like you You gotta look away and chill out before I let you up.
Watch at 3:42 ↗ - Treating walking past the dog as a release.
On film
let's say you have the place caught in your living room right and you say place and he goes to place for like two minutes
Rocko · Watch at 5:25 ↗ - Assuming the settle in the living room will hold outdoors.
On film
But we need him to also do that here.
Zeus · Watch at 3:56 ↗
Questions owners ask
How many minutes should my dog stay on place?
The trainers answer with a state rather than a time: until he settles, meaning he lies down on his own and stops staring at you (watch 26:40). How long that takes varies a lot - about four minutes for one dog in a car, twenty-seven for a husky on a cot (watch 27:01). Once the settle is learned, the target length comes from your household - in one trainer's words, 'it's not what they want, it's what the owner wants' (watch 10:27).
On film
right now she's doing the anxious staring as soon as that's gone and she settles down and chills
milk I'll see how long it took for him to to chill out and just lay down 27 minutes before he laid
He whines the whole time. Should I let him off?
Not while he is whining, say the trainers - releasing then teaches him that making noise ends the exercise (watch 13:52). Wait for the settle and release on that. One trainer compares it to a child on timeout: it is not what he wants, it is what the household needs (watch 10:27). Another reads the whine as the top of the dog's current self-control, which rises with practice (watch 41:33). If you are worried about what the whining means, ask - one trainer on film says he would rather you asked (watch 01:25). The same goes on a walk: Whiskey's trainer simply stands still until the whining stops, then says 'good job' and moves on (watch 09:32).
On film
I never do, and when I see people release them during whining, I'm like, you know what you just taught them?
again so no I appreciate any question like that I mean I'd rather you just ask a question up front
and like if she screams at me or whines i just act like nothing happened i just stand there until she stops whining and then i go good job and i move forward
Can I just tell him 'down' to speed it up?
Most of the trainers say no, because a down is you in control, not the dog settling: 'They look like the dog settled, but all they actually just told the dog is down' (watch 19:03), and a dog put into position 'will rely on me putting him in the position' (watch 16:59). Lola's trainer says a dog should be able to do both, but still treats them as two different things (watch 08:27).
On film
They look like the dog settled, but all they actually just told the dog is down.
They should be able to do both, putting it down, or you can just let them, just wait and let them settle.
Is it cruel to make him lie there doing nothing?
The trainers present it as work, not deprivation: for a dog with little self-control, holding still for five or ten minutes 'is like a whole workout' and is what makes outdoor work possible (watch 02:46, 03:08). Apollo the Bully's trainer says a real settle builds confidence and helps a nervous dog handle stress (watch 17:11). That is their explanation; whether it suits your dog is a conversation with your trainer.
On film
um place for a dog like her who impulse control is she's not very gifted with impulse control
what we want is just we want him to actually settle and it will help with building the confidence
Do I have to watch for this forever?
No, according to Dutchess's go-home lesson: check for the anxious stare during the first week of adjustment; after that you can place her for a minute without watching her eyes every time (watch 18:48).
On film
until she's forced to settle i'm not gonna let her go i mean and obviously like after that first week
The lesson
The goal
Run a place hold to the settle: wait without cueing a down, refuse release during whining, circling, barking or staring, and release the moment the dog lies down and relaxes.
Learn first
- A raised texture, and never a punishment
- Meaningful release
- The three Ds, and the variables nobody counts
See it done
- The rule taught to a junior handler with the dog staring on screen. Watch at 13:50 ↗
- How to stand, sit and hold the leash while waiting. Watch at 25:38 ↗
- A settle timed at twenty-seven minutes. Watch at 27:01 ↗
- Why not to command the position on the cot. Watch at 16:59 ↗
The drill
Send the dog to place. Back up, make a little space, then sit and say nothing; let the leash out and lock it, and use pressure only if he tries to get off (watch 25:38). Do not release during whining, circling, barking or anxious staring (watch 14:05). Let the room go on around him (watch 33:42). The moment he lies down of his own accord and the stare goes, release (watch 16:25). Note the time it took. Repeat in a new place - the settle has to be earned again there (watch 03:48).
Watch out for
- Releasing during whining (watch 13:52).
- Cueing a down and counting it as a settle (watch 19:03).
- Watching the dog intently instead of being boring (watch 25:38).
- Treating walking past as a release (watch 05:25).
Check yourself
Your dog has been on place ten minutes, sitting upright and staring at you, silent. Do you release? (No - the stare has not gone and he has not lain down; wait for the settle.)