One of the main benefits of training your dog to respond to hand signals is their ease of use. Once your dog understands the hand signal, you can then use different sounds to get its attention. This training method is best done in an environment without distractions, such as a quiet room. First, teach your dog to look at you when you give a signal. The process is similar to that of verbal commands. The first step to training your dog to respond to hand signals is to teach it the meaning of the signal. How Do I Train My Dog to Respond to Hand Signals? Once your dog learns the commands, you can remove the treats. Your dog needs to see your hand to learn the command, so start training in a distraction-free area. When training your dog to sit, make sure to use a treat to reward him when he does. This way, your dog will eventually learn that the hand signal means the same thing as a word. When training your dog, start with the hand signals, and then introduce verbal cues as necessary. For example, if you want your dog to sit, raise your hand to his nose or lift it over his head. The key to successful hand signal training is to make sure your signal is easy to learn and remember. While holding your hand out in front of your dog, you can slowly bend your elbow and then raise your palm to your face. When you want your dog to sit, make a small gesture with your palm up and then slowly lower your arm to make an arc motion. When you want to train your dog, you can use a variety of hand signals. You can also use a treat as a hand signal. Then, when you raise your hand, the dog will come to you. For example, you can use the hand gesture “drop it” to get your dog’s attention. Training a dog to respond to hand signals can be done in many different ways.