Cue: "Middle:" What is the expected behavior? Sit in between my legs until further notice.
How can this cue be evolved? Can be easily sculpted and built upon to include a "Down Middle"( lay down in between my legs until further notice.) and movement may be added with a "Let's Go!" cue while in the Middle position. Why we love the Middle cue: 'Middle' gives your dog a safe space to go to create a
body block, to check in, to be rewarded, and to seek guidance, and get support. Middle cues allow our dogs to have a safe place to be out of the way, easily under our watch, while we check out at a shop, order our coffee, or have a brief conversation with a passing neighbor on the street.
I love to teach a cued Middle and then to also reward voluntary Middles when they are offered as well, though I don't admittedly encouraged voluntary Middle from all my furiends. For example: My sweet 103lb lab mix friend Charlie only knows/ gets rewarded and praised for a cued Middle at present because if he surprises me with a voluntary Middle, we are both likely to end up on the ground when he takes me out by the knees. Use your discretion in choosing to teach cued versus voluntary Middle cues.
How to teach your dog to "Middle:"
Begin with teaching your dog to follow a lure. A "Lure" refers to having a teeny tiny piece of highly rewarding treat pinched between your thumb and palm with an open hand and teaching your dog that it is rewarding to follow this hand/ treat/ lure wherever you may put it. This is easily taught by placing the treat in your hand (as previously described and seen below,) and rewarding your dog as their nose hits your palm. Begin to move your palm, slowly, and a short distance to begin, praising your dog as they follow the lure and releasing the treat after a couple steps. Build up their ability to follow lures by rewarding frequently as they take a few steps, moving along with you and when bringing this behavior into new environments.
Place a small bit of treat in each of your hands and get your dog to follow your first hand, leading them behind your body and legs, as they move behind you praise them highly, then, very quickly, reach your other hand, through your legs, replacing the hand and Lure to guide them between your legs, Marking with YES! and releasing the treat to them the moment they are between your legs. *It is important to know that some dogs will be very leery about being between your legs/ under you, so reward and release quickly, maybe even helping them create space by sending them away and throwing a bit of kibble away for them to 'Go Find.'
Repeat the lure, using two hands, to guide them into the Middle spot between your legs, rewarding them as they arrive, and releasing quickly. After a couple of repetitions, begin pairing the word "Middle" with the moment that they land in the cue.
An Option: You might prefer for "Middle" to mean "Stand or Sit between my legs until further notice" and have no preference between the two OR you may prefer "Middle" to mean "Sit between my legs until further notice." If the latter is true or you would like "Middle" to sometimes mean to Sit in between your legs, begin pairing the lured Middle cue into ending with a Sit. This is most easily done by taking that second hand that lures them into the Middle shape and then bringing it up towards your belly button, forcing them to look up, as they land in Middle. Most dogs will naturally put their butt down in this case, giving you the opportunity to Mark and Reward with YES! the second their bum hits the ground.
Another Option: If you'd like to teach a Middle Down, simply lure them into the Down shape as they land, pairing the words "Middle Down" as they land in the shape.
Build your dog's duration in the Middle Down by feeding and rewarding while they maintain the shape. If they rise before you verbally release them, simply lead them back, reward highly, and then release quickly, aiming to build up duration slowly, over several training sessions.
Phase out your lures over time by shifting the timing of your cuing earlier and earlier, to eventually come before the action and then rewarding after the action is complete. Example: When teaching a new behavior, we are naming it AS they are being lured into the cue/ shape. As they begin to pair the word with the action and we have a better idea of what their body language looks like when they make the decision to do the action we're looking for, we can begin cuing as they make the decision to follow our lure, eventually cuing the behavior without a lure. (We'll show this in a video breakdown in another blog soon if this is confusing.)
To begin pairing a "Let's Go" cue and a "Middle" to create a "Moving Middle" cue:
As your dog lands in Middle, place a highly rewarding smelly treat in your palm in the luring position with it right in front of their nose, like a target to follow. Let your dog lick the treat, boop it, sniff it, as you say "Let's Go!" and take a couple of small steps. Again, remember that each dog is an individual, and for some, the incorporation of movement may freak them out/ make them a bit nervous. If this is your dog's experience, go SLOW and begin rewarding ANY movement along with you. It's important to remember that if our dog's make any movement towards our preferred behaviors that we can still Mark and Reward those, knowing we can build on them and evolve behaviors over time.
Add in a pivot, utilizing the Let's Go cue and hand target: Placing your hand as a lure to start, while your dog is in the standing Middle cue, cue "Fido: Let's Go!" and take a small step to the right, using your legs and hand target to help guide them to move along with you. Start SMALL!!! Take one very small pivoted step, cueing "Fido: Let's Go!" and reward and release quickly. Again, all dogs are individuals, but many dogs get a little nervous when you first incorporate the pivot, so praise and reward heavily and consider sculpting this movement over multiple sessions in low distraction environments.
Don't forget to Proof your dog's Middle cue (and any taught variations) to enable them to generalize this cue. It's important to practice and practice often to keep skills sharp. Did you enjoy this skill breakdown? Tell us all about your dog's Middle cue training journey in the comments.
Penny Grace proofs her cues at the Jefferson Memorial. Checkout Charlie learning different transitions in/out of his Middle cue.
Comments