I have a 2 year old Toy rat terrier. I never thought Id have a dog that weighed less than 30 lbs but I guess I had to try it
Turns out she is one of the smartest most driven (with focus!) dogs I ever met. Great dog, but she when we start training, she is in constant motion and its nearly impossible to get her to still when we are training, she does have the most sharp sits and downs I ever so though. She works like a dream for food rewards and I love the energy and focus I get using them. But there are certain things, like the stand for examination, and heeling, to a smaller extent, that I'm finding hard to train because I don't want her to learn it sloppy, but she is always wiggling.

she only weighs 5 lbs, and strangey enough, it does matter because you cant physically manipulate the position of a 5 lb dog who is also a livewire without totally loosing the position (like straightening out a sit, for example)
So I was wondering I am looking for tips anyone has on training techniques for small dogs. Luring works wonderful with her most of the time. There are some tricks Id like to teach her but they require her to sit still (like the "beg" and "handshake") so I need to find a way to accomplish that first.

Heres a tip I discovered recently- when I got her about three months ago, she would crouch down when I picked her up like alot of small dogs who get unannounced rides will do alot of times. I started saying "up" just before I picked her up to give her a heads up on my intentions and she no longer crouches or cowers. I dont like to pick her up unless I have to or to have her sit o my lap or something, because I think it affects the dogs confidence & attitude when they get carried everywhere but getting in the truck she does need a little help and the command really helped her feel more secure.

Things I've learned from my MinPin ( high drive, very distractible):

Build duration slowly - get a sit and wait a half second then mark, do this a hundred times (haha, no really), then wait a second before marking, then 2 seconds etc, etc.

Teach an interim command ( I use "gooood") that you say to indicate that what she is doing is right and she should keep doing it till the marker word comes.

I use her meals as training sessions -there is nothing as high value to her as her raw meat - she is hungry and motivated and will do anything to get the treat.
Once you get some duration on a simple command like "sit" your dog will understand what you want from other stationary commands.
Do heeling the same way - mark and reward for one step, over and over, then two steps, then three.

You will need extreme patience

Cheers!

Oh, yeah, and try the focused heeling DVD by Micheal Ellis. It's full of great info on getting focus and precision.

Are you familiar with Dr. Karen Overall's Relaxation Protocol?

It is used a lot for nervous or fearful dogs, but I have found it works great with dogs who need to learn to settle down.

More info:
http://championofmyheart.com/relaxation-protocol-mp3-files/

There is a downloadable document of the protocol and the author of this page has done audio files to go along with it.

Thanks guys, ill try both these ideas out
I do use marker training and it gets awesome results.
Cindy you have a gorgeous Min Pin

Thanks Mary! She just attained her first CKC Rally obedience title, she's pretty smart too