Wait and Stay
The “Wait” command is helpful when letting an anxious, dirty-pawed puppy out of his crate or when keeping a full-grown shep-herd from jumping out of the car until you can snap on a leash. If you're taking your shepherd for a walk and he tends to bound down the porch steps much faster than you, you can tell him to wait so that you can walk down the steps at your leisure.
With your puppy or adult in his crate, barely open the door and hold your shepherd back. Give the command “Wait,” then click and reward. Shut the crate door. Repeat this, opening and shutting the crate door with each repetition. Work on opening the door wider and wider.
The “Wait” is slightly different from the “Stay” command. Your shepherd will know that “Wait” means a temporary pause, whereas “Stay” means he must not move until further notice.
As you feel that you are no longer holding the shepherd and that he is waiting, try this without your hand on him. This time, open the crate just a little and put up your hand in a “Stop” position, as if you were a traffic director. Click and reward. Repeat. Increase how wide you open the crate door with each successful set of repetitions. Eventually, you should be able to tell your shepherd to wait, open his crate door all the way, walk across the room, and come back to release him.
The “Stay” command is an important one and should be mastered as early as possible.
The “Stay” command can be taught as a sit-stay, a down-stay, or a stand-stay. Typically, the sit or down is the most comfortable position to begin the stay. In the following example, the sit-stay is used.
Put your shepherd in a sit. Give the command “Stay!” Wait ten seconds. Click and reward. Repeat. Increase the duration of the stay until you have reached one minute. Now, begin adding distance. Put him in a sit next to you. Give him the command “Stay!” Take one step to the right and immediately step back. Click and reward. Repeat this several times.
Dogs are very visual creatures, and they learn hand signals even faster than they learn verbal commands. To introduce a hand signal for any command, give the signal when you say the verbal command. Then fade out the verbal command — say the command every other repetition — while continuing to use the hand signal.
From this point, you can either add more distance (two steps and immediately back to him) or time (one step away, hold ten seconds, step back). Click and reward. Repeat. Make sure he performs at least eleven out of twelve repetitions correctly in each set before increasing the time or distance variables.
