FF320 Better Still: Stays Without Frustration
Imagine asking your dog to stay, and instead of cycling through sits, downs, spins, paw lifts, barking, or a dozen other behaviors, they simply... wait. They understand that your silence isn't confusing. They aren't anxiously guessing what comes next. They know that remaining still is the job, and they can do it with confidence instead of frustration.
Course Details
Sometimes the hardest behavior to teach is no behavior at all.
Many dogs have never actually learned what stillness means. They've learned that offering behaviors earns reinforcement, so when nothing happens, they assume they should keep trying something else. They're simply responding based on the learning history they've built, even though that's not the answer we're looking for.
This class teaches them something different. You'll show your dog that waiting quietly is a behavior in itself, that silence from the handler often means they're already correct, and that they don't have to keep guessing in order to succeed.
This class is a good fit if:
Your dog believes that doing something is always the right answer, and you'd like to teach them that sometimes the right answer is simply to wait.
You might recognize your dog in some of these descriptions:
- They constantly offer behaviors when you're asking for stillness.
- They become frustrated when reinforcement doesn't come immediately.
- They creep, fidget, vocalize, or keep trying something new instead of simply waiting.
- They seem uncomfortable when nothing is happening and are always searching for the next cue.
- They love to work and think, but struggle to understand that sometimes waiting is the behavior.
- You'd like more reliable stays, calmer waiting, or better impulse control in everyday life or dog sports.
What makes this class different?
Most stay classes focus on adding more duration, distance, or distractions. Those things are important, but they only work well when your dog first understands why they're staying.
Instead of simply practicing longer stays, we'll build the understanding that makes those stays reliable. We'll break every exercise into small, achievable pieces so your dog learns that stillness isn't the absence of behavior. It's a behavior they can actively choose.
As your dog's understanding grows, so will their confidence. Instead of constantly guessing what you want next, they'll learn to wait comfortably for information. Instead of becoming frustrated by silence, they'll learn that silence often means they're already right.
Throughout the class, you'll learn how to:
- Build genuine value for stillness.
- Teach waiting as an active behavior.
- Increase duration without creating frustration.
- Help operant dogs become comfortable with uncertainty.
- Prevent common stay problems before they become habits.
- Build calm, confident stays that transfer to everyday life and dog sports.
Whether your goal is a more reliable stay in Rally or Obedience, a steadier start line in Agility, or simply a dog who can relax and wait patiently in everyday life, the skills in this class extend far beyond the stay itself. A dog who understands stillness is calmer, more thoughtful, and better prepared for whatever comes next.
Extra support included: A Teacher’s Assistant (TA) will be available to support bronze students.
Teaching Approach
Lectures are released on the first day of each week and include step-by-step written instruction plus short demonstration videos. Most videos are between 20 seconds and 2 minutes long, making them easy to fit into busy schedules. Videos are designed to be understood even without sound; if speaking is important, the lecture will clearly outline what is being said. Homework is included at the end of each lecture so you always know what to practice. Supplemental lectures and videos will be posted as needed.
Trailer for this class:
Syllabus
1.1 Why Is Teaching Stillness So Difficult
1.2 Reinforcement Cues and Reward Placement
1.3 Different Types of Stays
1.4 Stays in Real Life
1.5 Assess Your Dog's Ability for Stillness
2.1 Teaching Your Dog That Silence Equals Correctness
2.2 Sit Game
2.3 Rapid Treats for Duration
2.4 Slow Treats Game
2.5 Zen Hand/Reverse Luring
3.1 Props for Stays
3.2 Capturing Stillness in a Stand
3.3 Eye Contact
3.4 Combining Stillness and Eye Contact: Stand By
3.5 Other Stillness Exercises: Chin Rests and Sticky Nose Touches
4.1 3 D's
4.2 Strategies for Increasing Duration of Stillness
4.3 Recognizing Signs of Frustration
4.4 Handling Mistakes
4.5 Stand Stays
5.1 When to STAY and When to GO
5.2 Distractions
5.3 Distance
5.4 Walking Behind Your Dog
6.1 Relaxed Stays
6.2 Adding the Leash to Stays
6.3 Generalization
6.4 Reducing Reinforcement
Prerequisites & Supplies
Sample Lecture
FF320 Better Still: Stays Without Frustration
Teaching Your Dog that Silence Equals Correctness
If there’s one concept in dog training that’s helpful for obedience and other dog sports, it’s that silence equals correctness. If your dog can continue performing enthusiastically without constant feedback, dog sports will be much easier. Many dogs get worried when we go silent, so my goal is to teach my dog that silence is good! I want to help my dogs understand that they are performing the desired behavior without constant verbal praise. This will foster independence, confidence, and better responses to cues.
Dogs that understand that your silence is a cue that they are doing the correct behavior will do better in sports where we can’t always give our dog feedback. From a learning perspective, the less we “chatter” at our dogs, the more they can concentrate on processing cues and learning.
This concept will also help you fade reinforcement like treats or toys. With increased confidence and focus, your dog will not need as much reinforcement to know that they are correct.
Finally, your dog's understanding of this concept will decrease their tendency to offer all the things when you don't give constant feedback. A dog who knows that silence means they are right will confidently and comfortably wait for their cue, knowing they are doing the right thing.
Getting Started
If your dog is used to getting constant praise, it might take a while before they are comfortable with the lack of feedback. Try to reduce the amount of praise you give. Focus on your reinforcement cues, whether those are words or a sound like a clicker.
This video is about the most vocal I am with my dogs during training. Notice the praise (good boy, good job, yay for you) comes after the marker. Before the marker, I am silent.
Here is a pretty standard training session with my dogs. Short, sweet, and no extra chatter. Rise is getting all of the information he needs during this session.
Increasing Silence
Once your dog is used to not hearing much praise from you, you can start to chain behaviors together. Only do this with behaviors the dog knows well and gradually increase the difficulty. Start simple, like cueing sit. Don’t say anything except the cue for the next behavior, like touch. Mark the touch with your reinforcement cue and feed.
As you work through this process, your dog should be able to perform several well-known behaviors in a row without feedback from you. You should be random with your praise and reinforcement cues; don’t always make it harder. Sometimes praise or reward your dog after the first behavior, to keep things fun and interesting.
Examples
Here are a couple of examples from real-life situations.
Example 1: Sit-Stay Cue
- Cue: Ask your dog to "sit" and then "stay."
- Silence: If they remain sitting, stay silent for a few seconds.
- Release: After the silence, release them with a cue like "break" and mark and treat.
Example 2: Walking on Leash
- Loose Leash: Walk with your dog on a loose leash.
- Silence: When they walk beside you without pulling, remain silent.
- Occasional Praise: Occasionally praise or treat them for maintaining the behavior.
Common Challenges
If your dog becomes restless during your silence, offers other behaviors, or shows frustration, shorten the duration and gradually build it back up. Always build on success and don’t forget to randomly reward at various times.
Be sure you’re patient and consistent. It will take time for your dog to equate silence with being correct.
Homework
The way to start this process is to start thinking about it. Go watch a recent training session with your dog. How much did you use generic praise? Be honest; it’s okay if you chattered at your dog the entire session. That’s very common!
The next time you train your dog, pay attention to how much you’re praising and start to decrease the feedback. Don’t stop cold turkey; you want the dog to get used to this gradually, but start the process!
Instructor
Nicole Wiebusch
Faculty
Nicole Wiebusch CPDT-KA (she/her) has been active in dog sports for over 25 years. What began with 4-H quickly grew into a lifelong passion for dog sports. (Click here for full bio and to view Nicole's upcoming courses)...