Center - the dog goes around the handler and enters between the handler’s legs from the back side ending in a down position between the handler’s feet. This command is helpful in obtaining control of your dog in a busy environment as you are straddled over your dog. It can also be used as a flashy way to heel your dog between your legs.
Come - the dog comes to you within arm’s reach so you can grab ahold of the dog’s collar. In the finished stage of come, the dog comes to you and sits squarely in front of you a few inches from your toes.
Down - the dog lays down on the ground either in a Sphinx position or preferably on one hip. A dog that lays on one hip is more comfortable doing so and will be able to maintain the position for a longer time. The Sphinx down position may be desired though for short term down positions such as found in dog sports. Down means lay down, not get off when jumping up on a person. Heel - is a specific position for the dog to find and maintain when you are walking or standing. The position is for the dog to line up it’s nose to shoulder in line with your left leg. Pretend you are wearing the pants of a Marine Corp soldier. Your dog should line up with the cloth pipping of the center of your pant leg.
Hold - is useful when teaching a dog to continue holding an item until you give the “out” command.
Leave It - means to ignore an object that the dog was interested in looking at, pursuing, sniffing, etc. If the dog picks up the object, then use the command “give”.
Let’s Go - is a general command for your dog to follow you. You do not expect the dog to be in a specific position to you other than to follow you during a walk. The dog is not in a “heel” position but is close enough to you to be able to see you out of his/her peripheral vision. This means the dog can range from being a little in front of you, beside you or a little behind you.
No - is a verbal marker when the dog makes an incorrect choice in it’s behavior after the command has been throughly learned. Depending on the degree of the wrong choice, the inflection of the word “no” can change up or down to match the situation. For example, the tone and inflection of “no” used for jumping up on a person (after sitting has been taught as an alternative behavior to jumping) will be different for not leaving a bottle of pills that has been spilled accidentally on the ground. Nope or silence - is a verbal marker when the dog makes a minor incorrect choice. Because it is simply a mistake on the dog’s part because the desired command has not yet been reliably learned, it is just that, a “mistake” and not a choice not to comply. Thus, the word “nope” or simple silence is used as a non reward marker. It is difficult to put a lot of emotion behind the word “nope”, so that is why it is used instead of the word “no” which tends to carry a high level of emotion when spoken.
Ok - is a release command that lets the dog know that he/she can move from a certain place or position. For example, after being told to sit, the dog should remain sitting until it is told that it can be released from that position when it hears the word “ok”. Some people choose alternative words such as free, release, etc. as they feel the word “ok” is used too much in their everyday language. They do not want the dog to misinterpret the release command if they use the word “ok” when talking with friends in a normal every day conversation. If one chooses that way of thinking, that is fine. However, the dog will know the difference in the inflection and tone of the spoken “ok” word in every day language versus the “ok” release command when spoken to the dog. Therefore, MDT prefers to use the word “ok” as the release command.
Out - means to release an item from the dog’s mouth. MDT uses “out” instead of give or release as the tone is easier understood by the dog and can be used in various situations. For example, if the dog was presenting you with an object, one could say “give” but what if the dog is away from you at a distance and you want the dog to drop the item? You wouldn’t say give in that situation. Therefore, to keep things simple MDT uses “out” for both situations. Side - is similar to “heel” except the dog lines up to the side of your right leg.
Sit - the dog places it’s rear on the ground and keeps contact until given the release command. The command to “sit” is the preferred command to give when the dog jumps up on a person instead of “off” as this tells the dog “what to do” instead of what “not to do”. By telling the dog to sit in this situation, the dog is prevented from jumping.
Stay - means for the dog to maintain it’s current position whether that be a sit, down, stand, etc. A stay command really isn’t necessary as long as the trainer has been consistent in enforcing a sit means continue to sit until released. However, it’s been found helpful for the human rather than the dog to work on a stay command as it makes things more clear to the human as to what is expected. Think of all the situations in which you might tell your dog to “stay” and you’ll see that it would be more productive to reinforce a solid sit, down, stand or back command rather than using an extra unnecessary command of stay.
Touch - the dog touches it’s nose to an object such as a target stick, your open palm or your fist. It can be helpful in working with fearful dogs, teaching dogs to move their position as well as teaching dogs tricks.
Place - the dog goes up onto a place board, dog bed or other slightly raised object at the direction of the handler. Since the dog is free to move around on the “place” (sit, lay down, stand, etc.), the dog is not told to “stay”on the place. If the dog attempts to leave the place-board, the dog is simply directed back to the place-board as the command “place” is given again. Later, after the dog learns the place command, the place can include other objects such as flat carpet squares, stair landings, picnic tables, large rocks, etc. It’s a useful command to maintain a dog’s position despite distractions about the dog, e.g. when answering the front door the dog is sent to “place” so they do not jump on guests, while you’re eating dinner so the dog does not beg for food, or while a new mother is attending to her baby.
Stand - the dog either moves into a standing position or stops his forward movement and remains still. This command is especially helpful when the dog is sitting and you want the dog to stand up so that his paws can be wiped or his belly can be examined by the veterinarian.
Take - means the dog takes an object out of your hands or picks up an object in it’s mouth that you pointed to.
Wait - is not used by MDT. For folks who want to use a “stay” command, some will differentiate on the time that they expect the dog to maintain the stay position. Supposedly, the dog is suppose to learn that the stay means you’re going to be in that position for some time to come, whereas the “wait” is suppose to give the dog relief that it will just be a few moments. This is an unnecessary and confusing command because even if the dog could differentiate between long and short durations of a stay based upon the command given, it would vary in time as not every stay or every wait is going to be exactly the same time as the last time the command was given nor do we really know that the dog cares. It is much simpler for the dog to understand that they maintain the position commanded until they are released. Therefore, MDT does not endorse the use of a “wait” command.
Yes - is a verbal marker that the dog made the correct choice, e.g. when the dog’s rear end makes contact with the floor after being asked to sit. The “yes” marker is then followed by something pleasurable such as a food treat or praise. It is used as a marker and not as a release.