Doggy Zen

The first part of this exercise is named "Doggie-Zen" because in order to get the treat, your dog must give up the treat. Remember "You have to give it up to get it, Grasshopper". This will eventually turn into a reliable "Leave It" for those times that your dog finds something less than desirable that you want him/her to drop and leave behind, such as questionable food, dead animals, etc.

• Present a smelly treat to your dog in your CLOSED fist. Be prepared to WAIT, and let your dog figure this out. Your dog will sniff, lick, and maybe even paw at or nibble on your hand – from your dog's point of view, you obviously need to open that hand! What’s wrong with you?
• If your dog is very persistent, you may need to take your hand away.  So, if your hand is "mugged" or your dog is lunging/leaping toward your hand (or otherwise hurting you), calmly pull your hand up well out of reach, and wait.  Don't jerk your hand away, that only encourages your dog to leap for it.  Make no eye contact, don't say anything -- no scolding, no nothing. Just ignore your dog until the unwanted behavior stops. Then bring the hand back in front of your dog.
• Watch closely, because you want to click the instant your dog backs off or looks away from the treats. At that moment, click and give your dog the treat. At first, the slightest glance away should earn a click and a treat. Gradually raise the criteria and wait for longer and more obvious glances away.
• As your dog gets better at resisting his impulses, you make the game harder and then teach your dog to give up a treat in your open palm. The idea is that your dog learns to wait for a cue that they can have the treat before taking it. Gradually increase the difficulty by opening your hand and increasing the time your dog must wait before taking the treat. If he dives for it, simply close your fist around the treat again.
• Once your dog is reliably waiting for the release cue, move on to "leave it" training.