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Dog Training Workshop, and an element of the Dog Science Network
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A Request
A request is a statement to your dog in which you either ask him to do something or you suggest that he follow some particular course of action. It should be noted that a request is different from a command in several key ways.
First, when making a request, you should not use your command voice. Rather, in that circumstance, a gladdening tone or your normal speaking voice will better convey the spirit of the communication.
Also, when making a request, you do not precede the statement with an attention-getter in which you call your dog's name, nor do you issue a release at some later point in time. But above all, a request is differentiated from a command in that all commands must always be immediately obeyed in a very precise fashion, while the dog is free to ignore a request if he so chooses.