[YorkieMother]

You should not use a word command until you have the thing which you want them to do the way you want it. Just shhhhhh.

So it is sit...pause....release which is lets go or up or ok. treat and draw the dog out of sit or down.

again sit......pause longer this time ...release.
dog can be infornt or in heel for this.

You work on time lenght of sit stay or distance you do not work both at once and until you have the lenght and the time you want them to stay at a level you are comfortable you do not add a word command.

Distance is sit..you wiggle in place treat and move dog.
next is you take a tiny step back and then forward and release the dog.

We all and me included tend to teach a word before the action and then have to replace the word once we get the action shaped to what we want it to be a ton easier to shape that which we want to the completed form than put a word on the action. As the dog will need to continually relearn the word stay is changable so stay right now is a second but the next it is three steps away or 5 seconds... shhhh no word to action until you get that 3 minute down stay then word it for the judges.

My dogs do not have stay they have sit or down until I say get up period.
Everyone else in the house uses stay after a sit and I giggle as the dog already in a stay on sit but the dogs kids are ok with that.

JL