Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

Training Tips From Susan: How To Train Your Dog To Leave It With No Command: Susan Garrett's ItsYerChoice

Feb 27, 2025

Discover effective strategies to train your dog to 'leave it' without needing a command. Dive into the innovative 'It's Your Choice' technique, which empowers dogs to make safe decisions independently. This method not only enhances impulse control but also strengthens your bond with your furry friend. Whether facing distractions or tempting treats, your dog learns to prioritize safety and good choices. Plus, grab a free starter pack to kick off your training journey!

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Quick takeaways

The ItsYerChoice game empowers dogs to make independent choices, enhancing their self-control and reducing reliance on commands.

Layered training introduces complexities gradually, allowing dogs to practice self-restraint in increasingly challenging scenarios with effective positive reinforcement.

Deep dives

Understanding 'It's Your Choice' Training

'It's Your Choice' starts as a game that teaches dogs self-control and impulse management by encouraging them to resist grabbing treats until given permission. The training involves using a treat as a focal point, where dogs learn to maintain their gaze on the treat without taking it immediately. This method is purposefully designed to promote independent thinking in dogs, reinforcing the idea that they can acknowledge distractions while still focusing on the trainer's commands when needed. By creating layers of training, handlers can eventually transition the principles learned through this game to real-life scenarios, such as resisting distractions like other animals or food on the ground.

Mastering Impulse Control Through Choice-Based Training

7min

Message From Susan

Hey everyone, it’s Susan, and you’re about to hear one of my training tips and tidbits. These are quick, actionable strategies to help you and your dog in everyday life or for dog sport. Often our short videos with tips are created from your most popular segments of podcast episodes. So, let’s dive in!

Training Tips from Susan: How to Train Your Dog to Leave It with No Command: Susan Garrett's ItsYerChoice

There are many reasons to train your dog to “leave it” on command. Your puppy or dog might be grabbing scraps off the ground when you are out walking, raiding the garbage, stealing food off the table or counter. It’s not safe for your dog, and it is frustrating for you.

The downside of training “leave it” on command is that you’ll have to be there to say it to your dog for life. And perhaps one day your dog is off the lead, away from you, can’t hear your “leave it” and grabs something that is life-threatening. What I like to do is teach my dogs to leave things alone by making it their choice. It all starts with a game I call ItsYerChoice because it teaches dogs to make the choices we want them to make. It removes the need for us to always be micromanaging what our dogs are doing.

The ItsYerChoice game will even help your dog make great choices in the face of big distractions. You’ll be able to get your dog’s attention just by saying your dog’s name, or any word you want to use. I’ve got a demonstration of how it looks in the foundation stages here in this video with my dog Momentum.

ItsYerChoice has not only worked for me; it’s worked for tens of thousands of my students and their dogs of all ages, breeds, shapes and sizes and backgrounds. You can join us to learn one simple dog training game that will change your dog’s approach to distractions and release you from needing to say “leave it” and nagging your dog many times a day: https://recallers.com/iycsummit-join

When you join in, you and your puppy or dog will receive a free 20 minute training video and a step by step Play Book to help your dog get control over distractions. My foundation game teaches dogs HOW to make great choices to ‘leave’ food / toys / distractions. This is DIFFERENT! And because it’s a game, it’s fun, and we all learn best when we are having fun.

Looking forward to coaching you on how to get your dog to leave it because that is what your dog chooses to do. Join me to learn how IYC can change your life with your dog:

See you soon!

https://recallers.com/y/iyc