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Sit, Down & Stand are very valuable skills to teach your dog, and when you train your dog to perform even just one of these three on cue, reliably and immediately, you'll be able to stop most common behavior problems. However, there are a few other basic skills that are also extremely useful when it comes to preventing and stopping behavior problems. In this section we'll talk briefly about how you can teach your dog to Calm Down, Pay Attention, Leave It, Drop It, Come when called, Go to Your Bed, Shush, Follow, Heel and Walk on a Loose Leash. The principles of teaching all of these skills are very similar to teaching Sit.

First, put the behavior on cue via Lure-Reward Training. Then, motivate your dog to want to comply by using Life Rewards, incorporating very short training sessions into your dog's very favorite activities, such as walking, sniffing, or playing with other dogs. Consider how well your dog performs and reward your dog accordingly and then, practice in increasingly challenging training scenarios — at greater distances, for longer durations, and in the presence of more and more distractions, especially people and dogs. Every practice session with your dog will increase the likelihood that they will comply in the midst of similar distractions in the course of everyday life.

Training is about opening communication channels in order to teach appropriate and acceptable outlets for your dog’s normal and natural behaviors. For example, which objects to play with, when and for how long to bark, when to act like a loon or let off steam and even, when to jump-up or pull on-leash. After all, your dog is a dog and they deserve an opportunity to act like one.