Every year 100s of thousands of dogs escape their owners front door to either be lost and never return or are hit by a car and are either killed or badly injured
I am the Dog Boss and in this post I will teach you how to teach your dog the wait command in 4 simple steps and ultimately keep them safe.
Step 1 – Start Slow
It is natural for dogs to want to go through an opening out of curiosity. Bring your dog to the door and slowly open it. If they try to bolt close the door and give them a small correction then start over. This is the beginning steps to teach them that they have to respect the threshold.
Step 2 – Add Command
Prior to opening the door completely give them a solid “wait” command. The wait command just means that they cannot cross the threshold of the door. They can sit, stand, or lay down as long as they don’t cross the threshold.
Step 3 – Open the Door completely
In this step open the door completely and leave it open while your dog waits. Then you will walk through the threshold while the dog stays in the wait command. It is important that you and your guests exit first. Then when you are ready to let the dog out you can release them.
Step 4 – Add Time/Distractions/Distance
It is important to proof the wait command just like any command we teach. Continue with steps one and two and before you release your dog add distractions and add distance….
To recap…our 4 simple steps to teach your dog the wait command are
Step 1 – Start Slow Step 2 – Add Command Step 3 – Open Door Step 4 – Add TDD
I am the Dog Boss with Total Dog….
Thank you for reading…TRAIN HARD!!!
Will Templet
Will is originally from South Louisiana and joined the United States Air Force after high school and served seven years as a jet engine mechanic on F15 aircraft. After that he working in the aerospace industry for defense contractors, including 13 years working for NASA on the space shuttle program.
In 2020 Will moved to Las Vegas and began an internship program with Total Dog! Vegas. Will helps with the daily training of all our board & train dogs and was recently promoted to be our Kennel Manager.
Matthew Templet
Matthew Templet started his dog training career in the United States Air Force as a Military Working Dog (MWD) Handler. Matt is a graduate of both the Department of Defense MWD Handler School as well as the MWD Trainer and Kennel Master School. Matt has numerous deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan under his belt accompanied by his Explosive Detection Dog. Matt was awarded the Bronze Star alongside his MWD Basco for their life saving actions taken in Afghanistan in 2011. Matt and his MWD are featured in the hit book, Hero Dogs: Secret Missions and Selfless Service.
Matt honorably discharged from the Air Force in 2018 and started working for Total Dog shortly after. Matt is a Total Dog Master Trainer, responsible for the oversight and quality control of our clients dogs. Matt believes in a balanced approach to dog training, using many different methods and tools to get the desired behavior from the dog. Matt uses these methods to eliminate bad behaviors and ultimately create the Total Dog! Matt believes that every dog has potential if you give them a chance. There are no bad dogs, he says. Matt will design a special training program to fit you and your dogs needs. No dog is too out of control!
Brent Olson
Brent Olson has been working with and training dogs his entire life starting at a young age. His passion for dogs started with his hunting dogs and later progressed to the police dogs he trained for the military. Brent served ten years in the United States Air Force before being medically retired in 2014. Brent is a graduate of the Department of Defense Military Working Dog (MWD) School as well as the MWD Trainer/Kennel Master School. Brent has multiple deployments serving aside his Explosive Detection Dog. His actions in Afghanistan earned him the Purple Heart. Brent is featured in the hit book, Soldier Dogs: The Untold Story of America’s Canine Heroes.
Brent is Total Dog Vegas’ Board and Train Director. He is responsible for ensuring all of TDV’s Board and Trains are trained to the correct standard. Brent enjoys empowering dog owners and making their lives easier by creating a Total Dog. Brent has a special bond with the dogs he trains and takes their safety, training, and health to heart. Brent truly is one of the best in the business.
Ty Staley
Tyler (Ty) Staley is Total Dog Vegas’ Director of Operations. Ty is responsible for Total Dog Vegas’ client relations, business management, trainer support, and business development. Ty has over twenty years of business experience starting as a young adult. Ty has been working at Total Dog Vegas since the beginning of 2020. Ty is a professional who cares about all of Total Dog’s clients and employees.
Ty has had a respect for dogs since he was a young child. Ty has always enjoyed learning about wolves and later learned how connected dogs are to them. Ty ended up getting a wolf mix of his own when he was seventeen named ‘Willie”. Ty appreciates the strength and athletic abilities of dogs. Ty currently owns a Presa Canario that weighs 120 pounds at ten months old. Ty enjoys the bond that can be built between dogs and humans. He takes their training and care to heart.
Justin Kitts
Justin Kitts has always loved dogs. So it’s no surprise that Justin-the-kid, who was always fascinated with animals—from iguanas, to birds, to the ocean-dwelling creatures he studied at the Mystic Aquarium as a high-school student volunteer—would grow up to make that passion his life’s work.
With 15 years of professional dog-handling under his belt, Justin has trained more than 1,000 dogs across the country. His experience runs the gamut of dog breeds, canine personalities, and behavioral problems. There’s no dog too big or too small, too young or too senior. Justin has trained working police dogs and hunting dogs (like German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois), to a range of puppies and older house dogs (like a 5-pound Chihuahua and a 150-pound Mastiff giant).
Justin’s professional work with dogs and his military service has, on occasion, put him in the national spotlight. You might’ve seen him on a recent episode of A&E’s hit show “Wahlburgers,” or read about his combat deployment with K-9 partner Dyngo in Smithsonian magazine, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times best-selling book War Dogs.
It was right after high-school graduation that Justin made the decision to serve his country and enlist in the Air Force. During his 18-year career in the military, 11 of those years have been devoted to military working dogs to include six K-9 partners and three deployments. After returning from their combat deployment in Afghanistan in 2011, Justin and MWD Dyngo were awarded the Bronze Star. In 2012, he was a lead instructor at a highly specialized and intensive pre-deployment training course at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona where he prepared dog teams from all military branches for their upcoming combat deployments. He’s also served on POTUS protection details for presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump. In addition to his military (and police) experience with dual-purpose detection dogs, Justin has also been training dogs privately since 2012 in personal protection and patrol work.
Expertise
Fellow dog handlers and former clients have often observed that Justin’s connection to dogs is unique—that he has an innate ability to communicate with them. He understands dogs and they respond to him with ease. Through his quiet, confident manner and practiced patience, Justin refines his dog-training approach with each and every dog he trains.
In addition to his years of experience as a military dog handler, Justin is a graduate of Animal Behavior College. Through the merging of his professional, military, and private training experience, Justin has honed not only his skilled methods for evaluating individual dogs and their behavioral issues—leash pulling, jumping, barking, and potty issues—but his approach to resolving them.
Justin’s breadth of knowledge and experience includes Puppy Training, Basic Obedience, Advanced Obedience behavior modification, aggression rehabilitation, Detection, and Protection.
Personal Mission Statement / Philosophy:
At Total Dog! Vegas, we operate under the philosophy that there are no “bad” dogs. All dogs have potential if you give them the right chance.
We also believe that dogs are individuals and as such there is no one cookie-cutter method to dog training that fits every single animal.
Melissa Kitts
Melissa Kitts is co-owner and executive assistant at Total Dog Vegas. Melissa has over ten years of customer service experience as well as an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration. Melissa is responsible for the daily interaction with potential, current, and future Total Dog Vegas clients. Melissa is in charge of scheduling all training appointments and making sure Total Dog is giving their clients the best service available. Melissa is also Total Dog Vegas’ professional photographer and snaps photographs of all our clients dogs at the monthly Out and Abouts.
When you call Total Dog you will always be greeted by Melissa’s cheerful voice. She takes customer satisfaction very seriously and wants what is best for the client. Melissa’s professionalism is out of this world! You will not be disappointed when you call to set up your free in-home consultation.
