Teaching your puppy to lie on their bed.

Pets are very cute bundles of energy – their antics are adorable but as they grow up, there will be plenty of times when you would like them to settle down and have some quiet time on their bed and it’s important to start teaching your pet to have good manners from the day you bring them home.

This is fairly easy to teach your pet with a bit of work and patience.

Here's how to do it –

It is easiest if you have already taught your puppy to drop or lie down on request.

1. Place the bed in a quiet location with no distractions.
2. Have lots of treats on hand. Ideally have a treat pouch attached to your pants or belt so treats are always easy to access.
3. Stand close to your pet’s mat or bed and lure your pet onto it. As soon as all their feet are on the bed praise your pet and give them a treat.
4. Once your pet understands they get a treat when standing on their bed, start asking them to drop or lie down and reward them as soon as they do.
5. Introduce a word or phrase like “bed” or “on your bed” and each time your pet lies down and settles there give them a treat. 
6. Once your pet is happily lying down on the bed, reward them and then give a release word such as ‘OK’ and encourage them to hop off the bed.
7. Repeat this several times a session until your pet understands to lie on the bed until you ask them to hop off.
8. Slowly increase the amount of time that you ask your pet to stay on their bed.
9. Once you have perfected this in one location, move the bed to other locations start the process again.
10. Once your pet is happily going to their bed when asked, you can give them a safe toy to chew on while on the bed, so they have something to help them relax.

As your pet matures, you should be able to ask them to go to their bed at any time such as when you are eating or have visitors over.