Welcome to the 5-Minute Dog, the mini-podcast that delivers practical training advice in less than 5 minutes. Have you ever noticed that your training really seems to be paying off? When it's just you and your dog hanging out at home, he responds to the sit cue stay, maybe even roll over, but the moment you step outside or go somewhere new, or, if you have company, come over, it's like he never heard a word that you've taught him. Don't worry, we've all been there. The truth is, dogs aren't great at generalizing. So if we always train our dog in the same room, using the same tone, at the same time of day, they start to associate the entire scenario with the cue. And then when the setting changes say a park with squirrels or a sidewalk full of new smells they might not realize that those same words still apply. And it doesn't mean that they're being stubborn or ignoring us. It means they honestly don't understand that sit means sit everywhere. That sit means sit even when you have company over, not just when we're standing in the kitchen with a treat in our hand. So what do we do? We start taking our training on the road, and that doesn't mean jumping straight into the busiest dog park in town, but we ease into it. Maybe we move to the backyard, then the driveway, then a quiet sidewalk.

Every new environment adds a layer of difficulty, and by training we mean using treats as a reward, especially in those high distraction environments. And then we also pay attention to distractions At home, alone with you. Your dog might be laser focused, but outside or when you have company over, there's motion, there's noise, there's smells All of it competes for their attention. So in those settings we need to lower our expectations a little bit and reward more generously. And here's a quick trick Whenever we're heading out somewhere new or expecting company, start with a little warm-up, Ask for a few known cues, sit, touch, maybe even eye contact, just to get their brains engaged in training mode before jumping into the deep end. So if your dog only listens when you are alone at home, it's not because they're ignoring you, they're just distracted by everything else going on. So just continue to have training sessions in different environments and when you invite company over and before you know it your dog will be able to ignore all of that and he'll understand that sit means sit, no matter what else is going on.