Training Dogs with Love

Tamar's sessions with Luke, Layla and Gracie began with the most basic command there is—sit. Tamar says teaching a dog to sit is like teaching a child to say please.

To train the puppies to sit, start with a small treat, which Tamar calls the "magnet." Oprah holds the treat and then uses her hand like a magnet, moving it to where she wants the dog's head to go. "Your attention is the big reward," Tamar says.

When the dog sits, she gets a treat and Oprah says "sit" in a sing-song way. "It's about celebrating it. ... So I want the tone of voice and your smile to be part of the reward," Tamar says. "I don't want you to say 'good girl' because 'good girl' is too generic. How can she repeat doing good girl?"