Proofing

Proofing is essentially teaching dogs to perform their commands with distractions present.

Why is proofing so important?  Many dogs know how to sit, stay, down, come, and do all those basic obedience skills; but so often I hear, "Sparky is great at home, but when I take him to _____________, he just doesn't seem to listen!"  While there may be other factors contributing to Sparky's lack of focus, one major component is that Sparky and his handler haven't practiced enough in distracting environments and have spent very little time proofing the commands. It is especially vital that agility dogs are proofed on their commands and the obstacles since agility typically entails numerous tempting distractions (dogs, toys, grass, open sky, leaves, birds, awesome tunnels...you get my meaning).

Here's a great video of a dog/handler team working on their stand (for conformation) with another dog distraction.  Does the overly happy Black Lab remind you of anyone?

I like to think of proofing always with the end result in mind: your dog obeying his or her commands regardless of what's going on around him or her, kind of like this Dane. This dog does great, but just realize the Dane (and the Lab) has had a ton of work put into him before he got to this level!  This stellar behavior is always your ultimate goal, but remember that you will need to take baby steps to get there.  So, to start you off, here are some ways you can start proofing your dog's stays.

(Please note that in order to create an environment of success, proofing comes after your dog already knows the command and is proficient at it 85% percent of the time with minimal distractions.)

10 Ways to Proof Your Dog's Stay
1.  Name (it's not their 'release'!)
2.  Walking around
3.  Different body postures
4.  Toys
5.  Dogs
6.  Children
7.  Pet stores
8.  Dancing
9.  Fake commands
10. Food