I'm combining all the dogs into one blog, so please visit us at:
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Saturday, May 14, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
Same old
Zane is continuing all of his normal training. There's nothing exciting to write about. . . just working on improving all of his work in obedience and agility.
This weekend I pulled out a spider than rolls around the floor. Zane decided that it needed to be killed.
This weekend I pulled out a spider than rolls around the floor. Zane decided that it needed to be killed.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Agility morning
Zane is still attending Bella's agility lesson while she takes a break. We're skipping weave poles and jumps are at 8", but he's out working. He's not running a whole course. We do 3-5 obstacles, then stop and play. I try to make sure we stop after something that is giving him problems so that he gets a reward for doing it. So this morning, tunnels were an issue for him for some reason. So after every tunnel, we stopped and played. We also played after the chute as he's still new to it. And sometimes we just stopped after a jump just for fun. The a-frame is taller than he's used to, so I helped him with it a bit. And after the teeter banged a couple of times, I helped him with the teeter. Other than that, he's moving fast, going out to take jumps, and having a blast!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Push
We've been playing a lot of pushing games and tug games this week. He still does some obedience work, but he didn't do any agility until today. We went for a private lesson. He went on the dogwalk with a rubber top. At first he got on, then immediately got off when he felt the different surface. He really notices differences! Then he went over with no problem.
Here he is with mad teeth.
Here he is with mad teeth.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Herding weekend
This weekend we went to a stockdog clinic. Zane didn't get to work, but he watched and took it all in. Overall, he did very well. But. . . he cannot handle puppies. They weren't even that close to him and he started to growl, then got very wild-eyed. I had to get him back to his crate away from there. Puppies are just too out of control for him.
This morning at Rally, he was fine with the dogs. He did his goofy rolling and acting like a baby puppy with some, and when a friend brought out her old, blind Border Collie, he did his rolling, but it was very subdued. It was like he knew that he had to be calmer with this dog.
I'm starting to do more pushing things with him. So I hold food in one hand, the other hand on his chest, and he has to push into the hand on his chest to get to the food. I want a lot of push and pressure so he is really working to get it.
This morning he did nosework at a covered shelter in the park. I hid one find in the open end of a picnic table. He knew it was somewhere up there, put his front paws on the picnic bench, then looked at me very worried that he wasn't allowed up there. He found it though! He found all three hides - good job!
This morning at Rally, he was fine with the dogs. He did his goofy rolling and acting like a baby puppy with some, and when a friend brought out her old, blind Border Collie, he did his rolling, but it was very subdued. It was like he knew that he had to be calmer with this dog.
I'm starting to do more pushing things with him. So I hold food in one hand, the other hand on his chest, and he has to push into the hand on his chest to get to the food. I want a lot of push and pressure so he is really working to get it.
This morning he did nosework at a covered shelter in the park. I hid one find in the open end of a picnic table. He knew it was somewhere up there, put his front paws on the picnic bench, then looked at me very worried that he wasn't allowed up there. He found it though! He found all three hides - good job!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Hot Dog Heeling
When we first started hot dog heeling, Zane would get a couple of nibbles, then walk along wishing he could have more. If he had pushed into it, he could have! This week at Rally, he was definitely more pushy - that's exactly what I want! The only time we had a problem was for the schutzhund turn - he didn't want to leave the hot dog! But I can definitely feel a difference in the level of intensity in his heeling. Hopefully we get the level of drive I want from this.
We working on his chin target again. I want him to maintain it while moving. He actually does a nice sidepass to the right, but has harder doing a sidepass to the left while maintaining a chin target. He can also move forward. But he's not pushing into a chin target when I just hold it out. He'll lightly rest his chin when it's stationary, but not give the pressure I want. So we're working on that. I want him to learn to really push into things.
Bella is on break from agility, so he went to her agility lesson this week. We skipped weave poles as we haven't even started them, and he had issues doing contacts on the a-frame. Then again, we've just started doing a-frames, so that doesn't surprise me. And yes, he went on the dogwalk and a-frame and teeter willingly! Yay Zane!
We working on his chin target again. I want him to maintain it while moving. He actually does a nice sidepass to the right, but has harder doing a sidepass to the left while maintaining a chin target. He can also move forward. But he's not pushing into a chin target when I just hold it out. He'll lightly rest his chin when it's stationary, but not give the pressure I want. So we're working on that. I want him to learn to really push into things.
Bella is on break from agility, so he went to her agility lesson this week. We skipped weave poles as we haven't even started them, and he had issues doing contacts on the a-frame. Then again, we've just started doing a-frames, so that doesn't surprise me. And yes, he went on the dogwalk and a-frame and teeter willingly! Yay Zane!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Wondrous day!
It was a wonderful, exciting, stupendous day for Zane. Some people will go, "Huh? What's the big deal?" when they read this. But for Zane, it's huge.
When I got Zane, he was fearful of dogs. He would hide and lip curl or snarl at dogs who came near. We've done a lot of work - I don't need him to play with dogs, but I do need him to accept dogs.
Today our kennel club had a Pack Walk. Zane was a bit worried about dogs walking behind him and passing him, but he handled it and settled in and didn't freak out about it. A couple of dogs even gave him a quick sniff in the face and he didn't react. At the end, we were all in the shade of a tree. Zane was surrounded by dogs. He just sat there. No reactions! Two months ago, he would have freaked!
The only time he got worried was when an Anatolian Shepherd wouldn't get out of his face. He didn't react, but his body language wasn't happy. I called him out of there and he did fine.
One thing I am noticing is that when he was a baby puppy, he didn't act like a baby puppy around other dogs. He was too scared. Now it's like he's reverting back to that phase and wanting to act like a baby puppy around other dogs. Unfortunately, he's not of an age for most adult dogs to accept that. So now he needs to learn some self-control around other dogs.
Look at the dog sniffing his butt! That would have definitely been a reaction moment in the past.
Look at him surrounded by other dogs.
You can see the concern here. His body is curved, head turned away, ears back, mouth closed. He's not comfortable, but he doesn't react.
When I got Zane, he was fearful of dogs. He would hide and lip curl or snarl at dogs who came near. We've done a lot of work - I don't need him to play with dogs, but I do need him to accept dogs.
Today our kennel club had a Pack Walk. Zane was a bit worried about dogs walking behind him and passing him, but he handled it and settled in and didn't freak out about it. A couple of dogs even gave him a quick sniff in the face and he didn't react. At the end, we were all in the shade of a tree. Zane was surrounded by dogs. He just sat there. No reactions! Two months ago, he would have freaked!
The only time he got worried was when an Anatolian Shepherd wouldn't get out of his face. He didn't react, but his body language wasn't happy. I called him out of there and he did fine.
One thing I am noticing is that when he was a baby puppy, he didn't act like a baby puppy around other dogs. He was too scared. Now it's like he's reverting back to that phase and wanting to act like a baby puppy around other dogs. Unfortunately, he's not of an age for most adult dogs to accept that. So now he needs to learn some self-control around other dogs.
Look at the dog sniffing his butt! That would have definitely been a reaction moment in the past.
Look at him surrounded by other dogs.
You can see the concern here. His body is curved, head turned away, ears back, mouth closed. He's not comfortable, but he doesn't react.
Friday, March 11, 2011
It's Chuckie!
This morning, it finally hit me who Zane reminds me of. . . Chuckie from Rugrats! They both have unruly red hair. They are both irrationally scared of normal things. They both speak in a nasally voice (ok, so Zane's voice isn't really nasally, but anytime I "speak" for him, it's always in a nasally voice.)
Go here to see a clip of Chuckie:
Chuckie and the Potty
The new behavior he's learning: targeting with a rear foot. I do this by having them back up to a large target and gradually decrease the size of the target. He's backing up and putting one or two rear feet on the target, so he's getting it!
Go here to see a clip of Chuckie:
Chuckie and the Potty
The new behavior he's learning: targeting with a rear foot. I do this by having them back up to a large target and gradually decrease the size of the target. He's backing up and putting one or two rear feet on the target, so he's getting it!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Cat Dog
Zane in the cat tunnel.
Isn't that ridiculous?
He finished his Focus & Control class last night. There was another dog there that is leash reactive, and he and Zane have snarked at each other before. Last night they were doing head-on mat races without even looking at each other. It went very, very well. The class helped him a lot.
Isn't that ridiculous?
He finished his Focus & Control class last night. There was another dog there that is leash reactive, and he and Zane have snarked at each other before. Last night they were doing head-on mat races without even looking at each other. It went very, very well. The class helped him a lot.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Fast Progress!
Today I was out cleaning up all the stuff that blew around in our recent windstorms. While I was out there, I rearranged some of the agility equipment. As I moved stuff around, I looked over, and Zane was standing at the end of the dogwalk waiting for me to watch. As soon as I did, he walked up it and walked across! Woohoo! He offered that all by himself. Of course, he got cookies and pets and loving for doing it. He got on and off all by himself several times and even turned around once (without me asking him to). This evening, he also went over the A-frame without needing help. Now granted, they are both lowered, but this is major progress for him.
Then I was wanting him to do a line of jumps and move out ahead of me. As we passed the 4th jump, he would veer off to the dogwalk which was nearby. I guess it's been reinforced enough now that it has value again.
Then I was wanting him to do a line of jumps and move out ahead of me. As we passed the 4th jump, he would veer off to the dogwalk which was nearby. I guess it's been reinforced enough now that it has value again.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Room Searches
This morning Zane did 2 box searches, then I filmed a room search. It's fascinating to watch the dogs work.
And here's Bella doing the same search.
And here's Bella doing the same search.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Unroll a Mat
Here's Zane working on unrolling a mat:
I thought I filmed Bella learning it from scratch, but it didn't record! She learned it in about 30 seconds. She's so amazing.
We met a friend for agility practice today. I sent Zane over the dogwalk there - worked on stopping on it and sitting on it. Then went to the A-frame and learned he's scared of it now too. So more work. Before we left, he offered to get on the dogwalk again. Yay!
At home, I lowered the A-frame to very low so the height doesn't scare him. It will be regularly added to our training now.
While at the agility place, I went off to another area and did some nosework searches. He didn't find one. It was in the middle of a big wood pile. He knew it was somewhere, but couldn't figure out where it was. So that's a puzzle to work on.
I thought I filmed Bella learning it from scratch, but it didn't record! She learned it in about 30 seconds. She's so amazing.
We met a friend for agility practice today. I sent Zane over the dogwalk there - worked on stopping on it and sitting on it. Then went to the A-frame and learned he's scared of it now too. So more work. Before we left, he offered to get on the dogwalk again. Yay!
At home, I lowered the A-frame to very low so the height doesn't scare him. It will be regularly added to our training now.
While at the agility place, I went off to another area and did some nosework searches. He didn't find one. It was in the middle of a big wood pile. He knew it was somewhere, but couldn't figure out where it was. So that's a puzzle to work on.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Retraining the dogwalk
Zane is having fun unrolling the yoga mat. I think I need to move him to a rolled up carpet!
Zane is on a program to re-train the dogwalk. He's never been completely comfortable on it. His goal is to get across it as fast as possible. I want him to be comfortable. And after his fall yesterday, it's going to take some work. The first thing I did was lower the dogwalk. Then I started rewarding any movement on it. Then I had to get him to stop on it. And we worked on sit and down on it.
This evening when we went out, I had him go across it a couple of times (he still wants to avoid it), then just scattered the rest of his meal across it. He went back and forth eating his dinner.
Here's a vid of this morning's work.
Zane is on a program to re-train the dogwalk. He's never been completely comfortable on it. His goal is to get across it as fast as possible. I want him to be comfortable. And after his fall yesterday, it's going to take some work. The first thing I did was lower the dogwalk. Then I started rewarding any movement on it. Then I had to get him to stop on it. And we worked on sit and down on it.
This evening when we went out, I had him go across it a couple of times (he still wants to avoid it), then just scattered the rest of his meal across it. He went back and forth eating his dinner.
Here's a vid of this morning's work.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Scary Day
This morning, Zane started learning to unroll a rolled up yoga mat. Silly trick, but I want him to start getting a little "pushier" with his nose. So we'll be doing lots of pushing tricks.
We also went to the park (a new one) for obedience work. He did well on what I asked, although I still see some chewing of the dumbbell. And he did three outdoor searches out there. Sometimes it's hard to tell when he's working a scent and when he's just sniffing. Must learn to read the boy.
Last night, Beth watched the video and we were doing it wrong. But she had a great suggestion for what we were doing - use two toys - toss to reward TOTO, then send him back over. We'll try it.
She showed me what she originally was trying to tell me. We went out this evening to try it. It, uh, didn't go so well. I don't think Zane has the coordination yet to handle it. Remember, he's only 8 months (almost 9 months!) and still very leggy, and as a friend says, he's put together with rubber bands. He ended up falling off the dogwalk in a very scary way. And of course, it scared the &*%^ out of both of us. Here it is in all our glory.
And here's Bella learning to do it. You can see she has some trouble maintaining her grip a couple of times until she learned how to make a straighter approach.
We also went to the park (a new one) for obedience work. He did well on what I asked, although I still see some chewing of the dumbbell. And he did three outdoor searches out there. Sometimes it's hard to tell when he's working a scent and when he's just sniffing. Must learn to read the boy.
Last night, Beth watched the video and we were doing it wrong. But she had a great suggestion for what we were doing - use two toys - toss to reward TOTO, then send him back over. We'll try it.
She showed me what she originally was trying to tell me. We went out this evening to try it. It, uh, didn't go so well. I don't think Zane has the coordination yet to handle it. Remember, he's only 8 months (almost 9 months!) and still very leggy, and as a friend says, he's put together with rubber bands. He ended up falling off the dogwalk in a very scary way. And of course, it scared the &*%^ out of both of us. Here it is in all our glory.
And here's Bella learning to do it. You can see she has some trouble maintaining her grip a couple of times until she learned how to make a straighter approach.
Challenge!
This has nothing to do with Zane, but I wanted to share something we're doing over here in dog training land. I'm starting a monthly training challenge. It's starting easy with a "shut the door" challenge for April. Why don't you join us?
On Cue Challenge
On Cue Challenge
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Agility discussion
Before we discuss agility, we need to discuss Zane and the furniture. None of my dogs are allowed on the furniture. Then with Bella, if she was invited up, she could get up and cuddle with Jill. Then Zane came and all the rules changed. I don't remember how it started, but it became his job to nap with me. Then anytime I sat on the couch, he was up there. He doesn't get up if a person isn't there to cuddle with, but anybody is fair game to have a red dawg leaping onto them.
Now, on to agility. Beth, his breeder, IMed me to discuss his reaction on the dogwalk. She thinks it was more worried that he had done something wrong (how his mother would react). And she wanted me to try something different with the dogwalk. So hopefully I understood her directions, and I'm putting this up to see if I did it right. Beth?
Tonight is Week 4 of his Focus and Control class. He does better at it than at Rally practice in the park. I haven't figured out why yet!
Now, on to agility. Beth, his breeder, IMed me to discuss his reaction on the dogwalk. She thinks it was more worried that he had done something wrong (how his mother would react). And she wanted me to try something different with the dogwalk. So hopefully I understood her directions, and I'm putting this up to see if I did it right. Beth?
Tonight is Week 4 of his Focus and Control class. He does better at it than at Rally practice in the park. I haven't figured out why yet!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Nosework update
Today we went to the park for rally practice. We got there early and Zane did 2 box searches, then I had him search two benches. He likes this work. He likes finding his cookies.
I've noticed that he's entered a phase where he is very unfocused. He's having problems with heeling as he just can't maintain attention on me. Some is concern about other things; some is just ADD - adolescent dog disorder. So my new goal is to build more drive for heel.
I did this with Travis with hot dog heeling. So Zane started today. I hold a hot dog in my left hand. My hand is wrapped around it and he can only nibble the very bottom of the hot dog. And to nibble, he has to be pushing up into that hand. So he gets a nice heads up position, he is driving into heel, and his focus stays on me.
I learned that right now he doesn't have a lot of drive to stay in heel. It took a bit for him to realize that he could control how much hot dog he got. He went through the whole rally course shoving his nose into that hot dog hand. I'll just do this for a couple of months and see what we have.
I really need to figure out how to get him working in drive more often. He can do it and has done it. We just need it more consistent in new places.
He still loves agility. Today I let him do the A-frame for the first time. He ran right over and hit his contact like a champ. I'm also working more circles of jumps. One set had 4 jumps set in an arc. They were spaced so he would bounce through them. He doesn't quite have the spacing down yet. He could bounce the first three, then needed a stride for the 4th. Nice baby work to teach him how to read the spaces between the jumps.
I've noticed that he's entered a phase where he is very unfocused. He's having problems with heeling as he just can't maintain attention on me. Some is concern about other things; some is just ADD - adolescent dog disorder. So my new goal is to build more drive for heel.
I did this with Travis with hot dog heeling. So Zane started today. I hold a hot dog in my left hand. My hand is wrapped around it and he can only nibble the very bottom of the hot dog. And to nibble, he has to be pushing up into that hand. So he gets a nice heads up position, he is driving into heel, and his focus stays on me.
I learned that right now he doesn't have a lot of drive to stay in heel. It took a bit for him to realize that he could control how much hot dog he got. He went through the whole rally course shoving his nose into that hot dog hand. I'll just do this for a couple of months and see what we have.
I really need to figure out how to get him working in drive more often. He can do it and has done it. We just need it more consistent in new places.
He still loves agility. Today I let him do the A-frame for the first time. He ran right over and hit his contact like a champ. I'm also working more circles of jumps. One set had 4 jumps set in an arc. They were spaced so he would bounce through them. He doesn't quite have the spacing down yet. He could bounce the first three, then needed a stride for the 4th. Nice baby work to teach him how to read the spaces between the jumps.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Catching up
It's been an insane two weeks, but I'm still getting some training in. Working on the same old stuff. Nothing new and exciting going on here!
We did go to a friend's house and did nosework in her garage for someplace new.
Oh, and he passed his CGC test on Tuesday. It was more a test of my skills to manage him than his skills to pass. Sad, but true. There was a dog there that scared him very much. He could not concentrate because of that dog. (That dog did snap at another dog, so he probably had legitimate concerns.) I used a lot of hand touches to get him back with me through several tests. And for the petting and exams, I used a chin target to my hand to give him something to focus on besides being touched.
So, while I'm proud of him for passing, I also wonder how far training is going to take him. Will he ever be able to handle an obedience ring with strange dogs and people? Will he be able to do a stand-for-exam with somebody dressed funny or wearing a hat (one of his bugaboos)? Will his stays be solid, or will he break for something that scares him? I'm not giving up on him, I will continue to train, but I do wonder how far I'll be able to get him.
We did go to a friend's house and did nosework in her garage for someplace new.
Oh, and he passed his CGC test on Tuesday. It was more a test of my skills to manage him than his skills to pass. Sad, but true. There was a dog there that scared him very much. He could not concentrate because of that dog. (That dog did snap at another dog, so he probably had legitimate concerns.) I used a lot of hand touches to get him back with me through several tests. And for the petting and exams, I used a chin target to my hand to give him something to focus on besides being touched.
So, while I'm proud of him for passing, I also wonder how far training is going to take him. Will he ever be able to handle an obedience ring with strange dogs and people? Will he be able to do a stand-for-exam with somebody dressed funny or wearing a hat (one of his bugaboos)? Will his stays be solid, or will he break for something that scares him? I'm not giving up on him, I will continue to train, but I do wonder how far I'll be able to get him.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Poor Zane
Tonight Zane was standing by the family room door. The door was in that halfway position - not open, not closed - just halfway. I tossed a cheeseball to him. He missed and it rolled under the door to the other side. He kept sniffing it under teh door, trying to figure out how to reach it. He never, ever walked to the other side of the door.
I asked him, "Where is it?" That's his cue for nosework. Bella heard that and ran over to hunt. She started on his side of the door, and within 2 seconds was on the other side of the door getting his cheeseball.
Poor doofus Zane! I think he needs to work on those kinds of puzzles in nosework!
I asked him, "Where is it?" That's his cue for nosework. Bella heard that and ran over to hunt. She started on his side of the door, and within 2 seconds was on the other side of the door getting his cheeseball.
Poor doofus Zane! I think he needs to work on those kinds of puzzles in nosework!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Using back to increase distance
Today we worked more on getting sit-back and sit-back-sit and down-back-down. This chain helps them sit or drop faster and to learn to sit or down while farther away. Zane has a long way to go with it, but here's a start.
Friday, February 18, 2011
My little funny boy
We don't get a lot of visitors out here. We're out in the country and a lot of people don't want to drive the dirt roads. We get quite a few teens and preteens in and out of the house, but not many adults. A friend who Zane hasn't met came over today. Zane just stood way back and barked at her for like 10 minutes. I finally grabbed him, pulled him over to her and fed him chicken by her. "Oh, I get chicken by her! Cool! Hi, pet me!" He just didn't know who she was and was expressing his distrust and fear.
He did 2 nosework searches today - one this morning and one for my friend. He still does some shaping type stuff on occasion, but he also gets down to work and sniffs. You can see the whiplash turns as he zeroes in on the scent.
When doing drop-on-recalls and go-out-and-sits, I like to use a backup to get them to hang back. So for the DOR, I call, drop them, tell them to back up and drop them again. It's really helped Bella learn to drop fast and not creep forward. I was trying the same thing with Zane's go-out and sit today, using the backup after the sit, but his back isn't solid enough yet, so we worked on just backing up instead. Interestingly, he hasn't done his little grumbling thing while training in a while, but he did it while having to back up.
He did 2 nosework searches today - one this morning and one for my friend. He still does some shaping type stuff on occasion, but he also gets down to work and sniffs. You can see the whiplash turns as he zeroes in on the scent.
When doing drop-on-recalls and go-out-and-sits, I like to use a backup to get them to hang back. So for the DOR, I call, drop them, tell them to back up and drop them again. It's really helped Bella learn to drop fast and not creep forward. I was trying the same thing with Zane's go-out and sit today, using the backup after the sit, but his back isn't solid enough yet, so we worked on just backing up instead. Interestingly, he hasn't done his little grumbling thing while training in a while, but he did it while having to back up.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Zane's Obedience Practice
Here's a video of Zane's obedience practice at the park this morning. It is way too long, but I wanted to show exactly what we do - good and bad and funny.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Agility practice
Here's a video of Zane's agility practice from last week. We obviously need to work to make him comfortable on the dogwalk. I would have thought this things like perching on the stool would have helped (learning to keep all those feet in a small space), but he is very uncomfortable having to stand or sit on the dogwalk.
Forgot the most important part
I was so tired when posting yesterday, I forgot the most important part! There are things we know, but don't always remember, and we have to learn them again or in new circumstances.
With the work on Zane going out to touch and then sit. . . at first he kept wanting to walk back to me before sitting. But where was I rewarding him? From my hand! No wonder he wanted to walk back to me. So I started placing his reward behind the target, and gee, he started staying out there to sit. Where you place your rewards is vital!
Of course, when we did the exercise this morning, I had to relearn that again. Sometimes I'm a little slower than the dog.
I learned that Zane's sister also boings out to the dumbbell. I think Beth slipped some kangaroo or jack rabbit genes into this litter. That has to be why they're so boingy.
We also worked signals this morning. I didn't move any farther than 6 feet away as he's not ready for more distance. And I have to watch those sits. From the down to the sit, I want those front feet pushing back, not the back feet coming forward. I will also accept something else he does - popping straight up so all feet move in to the middle. It's almost like he jumps straight up from a down. But the movement of the back feet coming forward tends to make dogs move forward on the sit, and I do not want that. Move back and maintain your distance is what I'm looking for.
With the work on Zane going out to touch and then sit. . . at first he kept wanting to walk back to me before sitting. But where was I rewarding him? From my hand! No wonder he wanted to walk back to me. So I started placing his reward behind the target, and gee, he started staying out there to sit. Where you place your rewards is vital!
Of course, when we did the exercise this morning, I had to relearn that again. Sometimes I'm a little slower than the dog.
I learned that Zane's sister also boings out to the dumbbell. I think Beth slipped some kangaroo or jack rabbit genes into this litter. That has to be why they're so boingy.
We also worked signals this morning. I didn't move any farther than 6 feet away as he's not ready for more distance. And I have to watch those sits. From the down to the sit, I want those front feet pushing back, not the back feet coming forward. I will also accept something else he does - popping straight up so all feet move in to the middle. It's almost like he jumps straight up from a down. But the movement of the back feet coming forward tends to make dogs move forward on the sit, and I do not want that. Move back and maintain your distance is what I'm looking for.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
So much going on!
It's hard to even remember everything we've been doing.
On Sunday Zane went to an agility trial with me. He did beautifully. He actually wanted to go visit some dogs, he was excited and goofy the whole time, and no signs of fear. There was some hesitation at times, but no outright fear. My oldest daughter came to watch and she walked him around. He didn't want to go with her at first, but a handful of treats convinced him.
In Nosework, he's gone from just working boxes to working various objects. The first time I took him into the room with the objects, he thought we were shaping. He went to every object and said, "Look! I can touch it with my nose. I can whack it with my paw. I can do paws up. I can do two-on-two-off. I can stand on it. I can sit on it. What do you want?" He finally figured out there was food hidden and got searching. He's done two more searches since then and went right to using his nose.
This morning we worked on some foundation work for go-outs. I had a target that I would send him to. Then I started building a small chain by sending him to the target, and when I would usually click, I gave him the cue to sit. That way the cue acts as a reinforcer to the previous behavior. It took him a couple of tries to figure out how to sit way out there away from mama, but he got it. Now to start adding more distance.
On Sunday Zane went to an agility trial with me. He did beautifully. He actually wanted to go visit some dogs, he was excited and goofy the whole time, and no signs of fear. There was some hesitation at times, but no outright fear. My oldest daughter came to watch and she walked him around. He didn't want to go with her at first, but a handful of treats convinced him.
In Nosework, he's gone from just working boxes to working various objects. The first time I took him into the room with the objects, he thought we were shaping. He went to every object and said, "Look! I can touch it with my nose. I can whack it with my paw. I can do paws up. I can do two-on-two-off. I can stand on it. I can sit on it. What do you want?" He finally figured out there was food hidden and got searching. He's done two more searches since then and went right to using his nose.
This morning we worked on some foundation work for go-outs. I had a target that I would send him to. Then I started building a small chain by sending him to the target, and when I would usually click, I gave him the cue to sit. That way the cue acts as a reinforcer to the previous behavior. It took him a couple of tries to figure out how to sit way out there away from mama, but he got it. Now to start adding more distance.
Friday, February 11, 2011
He loves his agility
For breakfast, Zane worked on his stand and "get in". His get in is a bit sloppy, so I pulled out the cone and worked on fine-tuning exactly where I want it. No, having your butt way out there isn't it.
For his dinner, we went out to the agility field. I walked up to a jump and was going to set him up, and he starts boinging back and forth over the jump. He just wanted to work! Forget setting up! I finally got him back and we did a bit of the Mecklenberg foundation work.
Then we played with baby serpentines and pinwheels. For each, we first just did the first two jumps in each until he could read that, then we added the third jump. Not perfect, but he's really starting to read it all very nicely.
Then we did the teeter. He's been needing some babysitting on the teeter. It is lowered, but he wasn't liking the movement and the bang. But today he just went right over it with no problem. He's learned how to handle it.
Then tunnels and tables. He is getting a very fast down on the table. Nice!
On to the dogwalk. He flew across it and slid right through his contact. He tried to get back on, but that's no longer allowed. Stick it or nothing. So we did it two more times and he stuck it like a champ.
That was a lot of work, but he didn't want to stop. He was ready to play some more!
For his dinner, we went out to the agility field. I walked up to a jump and was going to set him up, and he starts boinging back and forth over the jump. He just wanted to work! Forget setting up! I finally got him back and we did a bit of the Mecklenberg foundation work.
Then we played with baby serpentines and pinwheels. For each, we first just did the first two jumps in each until he could read that, then we added the third jump. Not perfect, but he's really starting to read it all very nicely.
Then we did the teeter. He's been needing some babysitting on the teeter. It is lowered, but he wasn't liking the movement and the bang. But today he just went right over it with no problem. He's learned how to handle it.
Then tunnels and tables. He is getting a very fast down on the table. Nice!
On to the dogwalk. He flew across it and slid right through his contact. He tried to get back on, but that's no longer allowed. Stick it or nothing. So we did it two more times and he stuck it like a champ.
That was a lot of work, but he didn't want to stop. He was ready to play some more!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Focus & Control
Last night I started a Focus & Control class (a lot of Control Unleashed work). Since I'm teaching, I can't handle a dog in it, so Jill handled Zane in it. He did very well. The first night is just setting up the basic behaviors. He knows all the basics, so she just worked them to higher levels. We haven't worked on going to the mat for quite a while, but he was sending 10-12 feet to it. There is one dog in class he doesn't like - that dog has gone after him before. I just have them on opposite sides of the class. That dog went after another dog in class, so I'll have to keep a close eye on him.
This morning we went to a new park to train. His heeling is so enthusiastic. I really have to watch him as he'll start forging badly.
He did full dumbbell retrieves, but I was laughing at him because he didn't run or trot to the dumbbell; he boinged to the dumbbell. I really wish I had my camera! When I would say "take it", he would go boing-boing-boing and pick it up. On short retrieves, I don't get mouthing of the dumbbell, but on the longer retrieves I did. Now I have to figure out how to stop that mouthing. Thinking cap on!
We worked on stand-for-exam with somebody who has never done them on him. We have to take it very, very slowly. His first reaction is to move away. When I insist that he stay, he ducks his head or pulls it away. So at first we did:
hand out - treat (repeat several times) - her hand didn't touch it - just reached out toward him.
Then we did hand touch to head and treat. This is all classical conditioning. I want him to think, "Hand coming to me and touching me? Yay!"
After several reps, he had two in a row where he didn't duck, so we stopped right there. He will need a lot of time and work to get solid on this, but it is doable.
The other fun thing we did was with the dumbbell. I was holding it and asking him to take it in various positions. He loves to leap up and take the dumbbell when I hold it up high. That was very reinforcing for him.
We also worked with food distractions. I had a little plate on the ground beside me. I put food on it, then asked him to sit. He had to think about it and get a second cue to do it. Then we did a down. Then I asked for a front. When he successfully did the behavior I asked for, he was released to get the treat.
Another thing I found is that we are going to have to do some work with pressure. When heeling, I will sometimes play a game with Bella where I push her out of heel position and she has to get back in. She will fight to stay in heel position while I push on her. She loves this game and it will rev her up. Zane does not like this game. "OMG. You pushed me away. I'm going to go pout over there." So I will have to condition this game and get him enjoying it.
This morning we went to a new park to train. His heeling is so enthusiastic. I really have to watch him as he'll start forging badly.
He did full dumbbell retrieves, but I was laughing at him because he didn't run or trot to the dumbbell; he boinged to the dumbbell. I really wish I had my camera! When I would say "take it", he would go boing-boing-boing and pick it up. On short retrieves, I don't get mouthing of the dumbbell, but on the longer retrieves I did. Now I have to figure out how to stop that mouthing. Thinking cap on!
We worked on stand-for-exam with somebody who has never done them on him. We have to take it very, very slowly. His first reaction is to move away. When I insist that he stay, he ducks his head or pulls it away. So at first we did:
hand out - treat (repeat several times) - her hand didn't touch it - just reached out toward him.
Then we did hand touch to head and treat. This is all classical conditioning. I want him to think, "Hand coming to me and touching me? Yay!"
After several reps, he had two in a row where he didn't duck, so we stopped right there. He will need a lot of time and work to get solid on this, but it is doable.
The other fun thing we did was with the dumbbell. I was holding it and asking him to take it in various positions. He loves to leap up and take the dumbbell when I hold it up high. That was very reinforcing for him.
We also worked with food distractions. I had a little plate on the ground beside me. I put food on it, then asked him to sit. He had to think about it and get a second cue to do it. Then we did a down. Then I asked for a front. When he successfully did the behavior I asked for, he was released to get the treat.
Another thing I found is that we are going to have to do some work with pressure. When heeling, I will sometimes play a game with Bella where I push her out of heel position and she has to get back in. She will fight to stay in heel position while I push on her. She loves this game and it will rev her up. Zane does not like this game. "OMG. You pushed me away. I'm going to go pout over there." So I will have to condition this game and get him enjoying it.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Nosework
This past weekend I went to California for a Nosework seminar. And I was dogless! I don't do that very often.
So Zane has started learning the box work for Nosework. Just playing with it a couple of times away.
Meal times have just been a conglomeration of various things he already knows. I'm too tired to be creative right now!
So Zane has started learning the box work for Nosework. Just playing with it a couple of times away.
Meal times have just been a conglomeration of various things he already knows. I'm too tired to be creative right now!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Stacking Bowls
This morning I saw a Youtube video of a woman teaching a dog to stack food bowls. What fun! I had to try it! (Doing it a little different of course. . .) Here's hers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zK-8OtJxso
And ours. . . .
We had a couple of little short sessions on hold and stand today. The stand is just standing and doing nothing. I'm applying light pressure to his sides and pressure on his legs - he has to lock his legs and not lift them.
And ours. . . .
We had a couple of little short sessions on hold and stand today. The stand is just standing and doing nothing. I'm applying light pressure to his sides and pressure on his legs - he has to lock his legs and not lift them.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
A little resource guarding?
This morning Zane worked on "stand" for his breakfast. Not getting in a stand. Just standing. Still. Without any foot movement. It's something I need to remember to build up with him.
Mid-morning we went out and he did a novice run-through minus the off-lead heeling and the down-stay. He did a minute and a half sit-stay. When I said "around" for his finish, he did a "get in" instead. I did the whole thing with no food - just him and me and us working and playing together. He did pretty darn good! Just the few bobbles.
For dinner, it's his second day of working on "hold". He's getting in the habit on the informal retrieves of just bringing the object to me and kind of tossing it at me. Uh, no. It's time to tighten up that bring and hold. I'm using an M&M tube and found a funny side-effect to it. When he bites down on it, the lid pops and scares him. He drops it, then he wants to avoid it. No go buddy.
When he realized I was going to make him hold it, he decided to just not get it at all. After asking him a couple of times, I put him outside (I still had his dinner) and brought Bella in and trained her. Then he got to come back in and try again. He picked it up a couple of times, had to work on the hold, then decided he didn't want to anymore. Travis had just finished his dinner, so I asked Travis to take it. Zane growled and grabbed it out of his mouth. Yes, he does do some resource guarding against the other dogs. And he didn't want Travis getting his training time and his food. Of course he didn't bring it to me either.
So we did several reps of that - sometimes he dropped it at me feet. Sometimes he wouldn't come to front. But we ended on a good note - he picked it up, brought it to front, sat, and held it until I asked him to release.
Mid-morning we went out and he did a novice run-through minus the off-lead heeling and the down-stay. He did a minute and a half sit-stay. When I said "around" for his finish, he did a "get in" instead. I did the whole thing with no food - just him and me and us working and playing together. He did pretty darn good! Just the few bobbles.
For dinner, it's his second day of working on "hold". He's getting in the habit on the informal retrieves of just bringing the object to me and kind of tossing it at me. Uh, no. It's time to tighten up that bring and hold. I'm using an M&M tube and found a funny side-effect to it. When he bites down on it, the lid pops and scares him. He drops it, then he wants to avoid it. No go buddy.
When he realized I was going to make him hold it, he decided to just not get it at all. After asking him a couple of times, I put him outside (I still had his dinner) and brought Bella in and trained her. Then he got to come back in and try again. He picked it up a couple of times, had to work on the hold, then decided he didn't want to anymore. Travis had just finished his dinner, so I asked Travis to take it. Zane growled and grabbed it out of his mouth. Yes, he does do some resource guarding against the other dogs. And he didn't want Travis getting his training time and his food. Of course he didn't bring it to me either.
So we did several reps of that - sometimes he dropped it at me feet. Sometimes he wouldn't come to front. But we ended on a good note - he picked it up, brought it to front, sat, and held it until I asked him to release.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Who's bigger and badder?
Yesterday evening I had Zane out on the agility field working on obedience. While working, my husband went to the back porch to start the grill. Zane kept watching him. He's so concerned about everything and worried that somebody is going to do something scary over there that he forgets where he should be focusing.
Some trainers would say to make yourself bigger and badder and scarier than whatever has the dog's attention so your dog won't worry about that thing over there. They're more worried about what you're going to do.
Instead, I turned myself into more fun. If he looked over at my husband, I tagged him and took off running. When he caught up with me, we played. Soon, his eyes were all on me and no longer worried about what was happening on the porch.
This morning at Bella's agility lesson he did the dogwalk several times (since starting the teeter here at home, he's a bit worried about the dogwalk - "It might move!") He practice TOTO on the A-frame, but didn't go over it (too high). He did tables and tunnels. And after class he got to do the chute (wind was blowing it almost open, so easy).
He saw Rusty's owner and just fell all over himself trying to get to her. I think he loves her because she is Rusty's person. Or maybe it's because she is just such a sweet, kind, caring person. He has good taste!
Some trainers would say to make yourself bigger and badder and scarier than whatever has the dog's attention so your dog won't worry about that thing over there. They're more worried about what you're going to do.
Instead, I turned myself into more fun. If he looked over at my husband, I tagged him and took off running. When he caught up with me, we played. Soon, his eyes were all on me and no longer worried about what was happening on the porch.
This morning at Bella's agility lesson he did the dogwalk several times (since starting the teeter here at home, he's a bit worried about the dogwalk - "It might move!") He practice TOTO on the A-frame, but didn't go over it (too high). He did tables and tunnels. And after class he got to do the chute (wind was blowing it almost open, so easy).
He saw Rusty's owner and just fell all over himself trying to get to her. I think he loves her because she is Rusty's person. Or maybe it's because she is just such a sweet, kind, caring person. He has good taste!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Silly boy
This morning, Zane just couldn't get his head around working. "I'm hungry!" When he's like that, he can be a little too enthusiastic. He'll get in heel, then immediately bounce out. When we stop on our heel, he can't sit - he bounces to front. These are all good opportunities to build more self-control in him. He did settle down and work - that's the fastest way to get the food after all.
After working heeling a bit, I switched to having him paw target my foot. Eventually I'll turn this into a trick with the cue, "Who's the boss." But I started playing with it today in a different way. I sat on the couch. I'd lift one foot and have him paw target with his paw on that side. Then I'd lift the other foot and have him paw target with the paw on that side. At first he had trouble switching paws, but then got the hang of it. I can turn this into the marching in place in tandem. I can picture him doing it in front, or while doing it while between my legs.
A bit later I pulled out the hoop. I had it a little higher and wanted to see if he'd put some effort into it. He still only wants to jump from left to right - need to work on the other way. Bella was the star of the hoop jumping - she was leaping high and jumping clean. Baby Dog Zane will get there. He's full of enthusiasm - he just needs to figure out how his body works at times. The funniest was when Bella jumped through and landed on him. They're such clowns.
After working heeling a bit, I switched to having him paw target my foot. Eventually I'll turn this into a trick with the cue, "Who's the boss." But I started playing with it today in a different way. I sat on the couch. I'd lift one foot and have him paw target with his paw on that side. Then I'd lift the other foot and have him paw target with the paw on that side. At first he had trouble switching paws, but then got the hang of it. I can turn this into the marching in place in tandem. I can picture him doing it in front, or while doing it while between my legs.
A bit later I pulled out the hoop. I had it a little higher and wanted to see if he'd put some effort into it. He still only wants to jump from left to right - need to work on the other way. Bella was the star of the hoop jumping - she was leaping high and jumping clean. Baby Dog Zane will get there. He's full of enthusiasm - he just needs to figure out how his body works at times. The funniest was when Bella jumped through and landed on him. They're such clowns.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Sheepies
Yesterday Zane got to meet the sheep. Sheep are vewy, vewy scawy. When I went in with him, he did better, but was still hesitant. We'll continue to expose him to sheep until he realizes what he's supposed to do with them. The instructor did note when he realized that *he* could make the sheep move. He liked that!
This morning we continued working on getting paper out of the mailbox. Now the key is that he has to bring it to me, sit, and hold it until I take it. He can be very impatient about that. He also worked on "pull" some more. He is pulling with lots and lots of gusto! I'm getting it under stimulus control. And now I have to get him to push on the drawer to shut it. . . . when all he wants to do is pull.
We also went to the park for a bit. He did figure 8's and then we worked on the exams. For the sit for exam, he jumped away from my friend. Then he finally held it. For the stand, we started with her just walking by, then walking to him and touching him on the back. It's going to take a lot of work to get him solid on the stands. He'd rather move away from the person.
This evening we went out and tried to get some videos of his movement. His front movement is off right now - he's high-stepping as his pace increases. He also over-reaches, but we knew that. He has a lot of drive in the rear. The herding instructor said his shoulders are a bit too straight, so with the high drive in the rear and less drive in the front from straight shoulders, he's trying to figure out how to get those front feet out of the way.
This morning we continued working on getting paper out of the mailbox. Now the key is that he has to bring it to me, sit, and hold it until I take it. He can be very impatient about that. He also worked on "pull" some more. He is pulling with lots and lots of gusto! I'm getting it under stimulus control. And now I have to get him to push on the drawer to shut it. . . . when all he wants to do is pull.
We also went to the park for a bit. He did figure 8's and then we worked on the exams. For the sit for exam, he jumped away from my friend. Then he finally held it. For the stand, we started with her just walking by, then walking to him and touching him on the back. It's going to take a lot of work to get him solid on the stands. He'd rather move away from the person.
This evening we went out and tried to get some videos of his movement. His front movement is off right now - he's high-stepping as his pace increases. He also over-reaches, but we knew that. He has a lot of drive in the rear. The herding instructor said his shoulders are a bit too straight, so with the high drive in the rear and less drive in the front from straight shoulders, he's trying to figure out how to get those front feet out of the way.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
More distance and more food bowl distractions
We continued our distance work with more work on "go" - meaning keep going straight ahead. I set up a straight sequence of jump-tunnel-jump-table. We started with the table. Run to the table and find the cookies on it. When he was confident with that, he did jump-table to get the cookies while I stayed by the jump. And I added in the down after he got his cookies. He's getting good distance on his down too!
Then he did tunnel-jump-table. No more turning back after the tunnel! He just kept going. Awesome. Then he did the whole sequence while I stayed back at the beginning.
Then we worked a bit on out. I had four jumps set in an arc. I could only take a straight line from the first to the last jump - no curving in. He had to move away from me to take the jumps. No problem! He has learned to look for the jump ahead.
Then we walked to the teeter. I lowered it and had him go over it. He decided he didn't like that bang and wanted to bail. I supported him through several times and put a line of cookies on it. He's not real confident yet, so I'll continue a lot of support on the teeter.
For his dinner, I put the food bowl on the ground and continued our work on heeling around the bowl. But I also added pivots around the bowl. Very, very little loss of focus. He's getting better!
Then he did tunnel-jump-table. No more turning back after the tunnel! He just kept going. Awesome. Then he did the whole sequence while I stayed back at the beginning.
Then we worked a bit on out. I had four jumps set in an arc. I could only take a straight line from the first to the last jump - no curving in. He had to move away from me to take the jumps. No problem! He has learned to look for the jump ahead.
Then we walked to the teeter. I lowered it and had him go over it. He decided he didn't like that bang and wanted to bail. I supported him through several times and put a line of cookies on it. He's not real confident yet, so I'll continue a lot of support on the teeter.
For his dinner, I put the food bowl on the ground and continued our work on heeling around the bowl. But I also added pivots around the bowl. Very, very little loss of focus. He's getting better!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Distance Work
Today we started some distance work in agility. The first distance command I'm teaching is "Go" which means continue on straight ahead.
I loaded a target with a piece of food. We both started behind the jump and I sent him over to the target. I stayed back at the start line. Then he had to go two jumps. Then three jumps.
At that point I put a tunnel in front of the two jumps. So we did the two jumps, then tunnel-jump-jump. He had a little trouble coming out of the tunnel and going straight ahead. He wanted to turn back and see where I was. But he figured it out, so we were able to do jump-tunnel-jump-jump.
This is going to be a slow process. There is no hurry, he's still young, and I don't want to push him too much right now. Jumps are only 8" and each obstacle is only 8 feet or so apart. I'm just building concepts.
I loaded a target with a piece of food. We both started behind the jump and I sent him over to the target. I stayed back at the start line. Then he had to go two jumps. Then three jumps.
At that point I put a tunnel in front of the two jumps. So we did the two jumps, then tunnel-jump-jump. He had a little trouble coming out of the tunnel and going straight ahead. He wanted to turn back and see where I was. But he figured it out, so we were able to do jump-tunnel-jump-jump.
This is going to be a slow process. There is no hurry, he's still young, and I don't want to push him too much right now. Jumps are only 8" and each obstacle is only 8 feet or so apart. I'm just building concepts.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Push and Pull
Tonight Zane started working on Push and Pull. He is pulling a drawer open and pushing a door shut.
This morning I did a couple of reps of getting the newspaper out of the mailbox. All the dogs were in the house and he and Bella had a team effort going. She would open the door, he'd get the paper. He's more paw oriented; she's more nose oriented. So she grabs the rope to pull the door open, whereas he paws the door open.
This morning I did a couple of reps of getting the newspaper out of the mailbox. All the dogs were in the house and he and Bella had a team effort going. She would open the door, he'd get the paper. He's more paw oriented; she's more nose oriented. So she grabs the rope to pull the door open, whereas he paws the door open.
*Don't* get the paper
When I went out to feed this morning, I took the camera with me. I wanted to video either Travis or Zane getting the paper for me. Well, that was a big bust. One got the paper, dropped it long before they got to me, then they kept running back and forth right over the paper. When Travis did finally pick it up, Zane took it, then Travis took it back, etc, etc. I'm lucky I had a paper in the end!
So here you get to see Zane being Zane, no training, just having fun. He is getting kind of pushy with Travis - he thinks he wants to be top dog. Ha!
The past couple of days I have really tortured Zane. At meal time I take his food outside, put it on the ground and put him on leash. I make him heel past and around the food. If he pulls forward or loses attention on me, we go back to the beginning and start over. It's torture!! But he does get it. And what a great proofing exercise.
So here you get to see Zane being Zane, no training, just having fun. He is getting kind of pushy with Travis - he thinks he wants to be top dog. Ha!
The past couple of days I have really tortured Zane. At meal time I take his food outside, put it on the ground and put him on leash. I make him heel past and around the food. If he pulls forward or loses attention on me, we go back to the beginning and start over. It's torture!! But he does get it. And what a great proofing exercise.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Contacts
I took some video today of Zane working on his contacts.
First is a picture. He's saying, "Hey, I'm here! Toss my cookie!"
First is a picture. He's saying, "Hey, I'm here! Toss my cookie!"
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Agility
Yesterday as I was sitting here at my computer working, Zane brought a tug toy over, held it while resting his chin on my leg, his eyes giving me a pleading look. Ok! Break time! We went out and played with some agility.
I had four jumps set up - three in a pinwheel and the fourth set up like the start of another pinwheel. So we did the pinwheel then a rear cross to the fourth jump. The first two times, I got a spin on the rear cross. Then after that, he had it! No more spins. And he's actively looking for the jumps now rather than looking back for the tug toy and missing the jumps.
This morning we went out and worked contacts on a-frame, dogwalk, and teeter. He sees me heading for one, and he runs and gets into two-on-two-off. So after working the contact a bit, I asked him to get in it while I stayed behind him. He can do it on the dogwalk, but has more trouble on the a-frame. He tends to go off and turn back to me. He does eventually get it, but it needs more work. I think lowering the a-frame will help too. I need help for that though.
I did ask him to walk over the whole dogwalk today. That was very, very scary. He would get halfway up the ramp and want to bail. So I just held his collar and supported him across. He did it twice. He definitely needs some confidence work on it!
After doing contacts, we did a couple of jumps. I would send him over a jump, have him wrap it, then front cross to another jump. No problem.
I had four jumps set up - three in a pinwheel and the fourth set up like the start of another pinwheel. So we did the pinwheel then a rear cross to the fourth jump. The first two times, I got a spin on the rear cross. Then after that, he had it! No more spins. And he's actively looking for the jumps now rather than looking back for the tug toy and missing the jumps.
This morning we went out and worked contacts on a-frame, dogwalk, and teeter. He sees me heading for one, and he runs and gets into two-on-two-off. So after working the contact a bit, I asked him to get in it while I stayed behind him. He can do it on the dogwalk, but has more trouble on the a-frame. He tends to go off and turn back to me. He does eventually get it, but it needs more work. I think lowering the a-frame will help too. I need help for that though.
I did ask him to walk over the whole dogwalk today. That was very, very scary. He would get halfway up the ramp and want to bail. So I just held his collar and supported him across. He did it twice. He definitely needs some confidence work on it!
After doing contacts, we did a couple of jumps. I would send him over a jump, have him wrap it, then front cross to another jump. No problem.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
NTD
It's official! Zane is listed on the website for earning his Novice Trick Dog Title!
Look under Novice, then under Australian Shepherds.
Do More With Your Dog
Look under Novice, then under Australian Shepherds.
Do More With Your Dog
A different "Get the paper"
Part of our morning routine is that when it is light enough, I head out and feed the horses and the chickens. As I leave the pasture, Travis runs ahead to our front gate, gets the paper and brings it to me. (He's such a good boy - I don't even tell him too - he figured this out all on his own, and it's a good 300 feet from the pasture to the front gate - that's a good outrun!)
This morning I gave all the dogs bones, so when I fed the horses, none of the dogs came with me. They were busy. As I left the pasture, Zane left his bone and came up to join me. I walked to the paper, and as I approached it, Zane picked it up and brought it to me. What a sweet boy!
Of course, one morning I had shaped him to pick up the paper, but that was awhile back and since, he's only tried to take the paper from Travis's mouth as he runs to me. This was a pretty big step for a young dog.
This morning I gave all the dogs bones, so when I fed the horses, none of the dogs came with me. They were busy. As I left the pasture, Zane left his bone and came up to join me. I walked to the paper, and as I approached it, Zane picked it up and brought it to me. What a sweet boy!
Of course, one morning I had shaped him to pick up the paper, but that was awhile back and since, he's only tried to take the paper from Travis's mouth as he runs to me. This was a pretty big step for a young dog.
Jump into my arms. . .
Zane and I are working on getting him to jump into my arms. Bella will do it, but it came about accidentally from another game she plays. Zane doesn't play the same game, so I have to figure out how to get him to do it.
I started off sitting in a chair and asked him to jump into my lap. Of course he can do that! He loves it! Then I put a pillow in the chair so I was sitting a little more upright and asked him to jump. Little by little, I've added another pillow and another pillow, pushing me more and more into a standing position.
I'm not all the way standing yet, and I find he does better if I have my legs offset, but he is starting to get the idea.
The main problem with doing this? His claws on my neck! He jumps up and grabs on, and my neck is showing the result of those claws digging in! I think as he gets more comfortable with this, he'll trust me to catch him without having to catch himself.
Next trick to work: teaching him to jump on my back!
I started off sitting in a chair and asked him to jump into my lap. Of course he can do that! He loves it! Then I put a pillow in the chair so I was sitting a little more upright and asked him to jump. Little by little, I've added another pillow and another pillow, pushing me more and more into a standing position.
I'm not all the way standing yet, and I find he does better if I have my legs offset, but he is starting to get the idea.
The main problem with doing this? His claws on my neck! He jumps up and grabs on, and my neck is showing the result of those claws digging in! I think as he gets more comfortable with this, he'll trust me to catch him without having to catch himself.
Next trick to work: teaching him to jump on my back!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Morning Session
I was watching Bella and Zane play this morning. They are so different. Bella is so quick and light - she's like a little wood sprite flitting around. Zane is. . . . not. It's hard to come up with the right description for him. My first thought was a rhino or hippo. But he's not short and fat. But he does kind of plow through things. Then I thought of a high school basketball player. But he's not that long-legged overgrown type. But he is kind of "galumphy" like they are. He's definitely not graceful at this point.
Here's Zane's training session this morning. We started with "get the paper", moved on to "wipe", and then finished up with jump through a hoop. He has "get the paper" down now. Wipe needs more work. And he is getting jump through a hoop.
I've had some questions on why I'm shaping the hoop. Too many times when a dog has been lured through the hoop, they won't do it unless they have that hand motion. I need a nice, independent hoop. Several later tricks need him able to do it on a verbal cue only. By shaping it, there is no hand lure to fade. He is also learning exactly what is required for this - he will have spent enough time experimenting with different behaviors that he will know exactly what *is* required. I'll do the same thing with the broad jump.
Here's Zane's training session this morning. We started with "get the paper", moved on to "wipe", and then finished up with jump through a hoop. He has "get the paper" down now. Wipe needs more work. And he is getting jump through a hoop.
I've had some questions on why I'm shaping the hoop. Too many times when a dog has been lured through the hoop, they won't do it unless they have that hand motion. I need a nice, independent hoop. Several later tricks need him able to do it on a verbal cue only. By shaping it, there is no hand lure to fade. He is also learning exactly what is required for this - he will have spent enough time experimenting with different behaviors that he will know exactly what *is* required. I'll do the same thing with the broad jump.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Mailbox
Another trick we started working on is getting the mail. He can't get it out of our real mailbox as it's one of those centralized units, and I don't think he can operate the key. (That's a joke.) But. . . he can do a Little Tikes mailbox.
Today we just worked on opening the door. You see a nice extinction burst and recovery, then finally extinction. He wants that butterfly. Even after he gives up and works on the door, he goes back to the butterfly and tries again. So we extinguished the butterfly, it came back, and then extinguished again. Just remember, if you're trying to use extinction on a behavior, if you ever, ever, ever reward it, you just made it stronger because you've got it on a variable reinforcement schedule.
Tomorrow we'll work on getting something out of the mailbox. Then we'll put the two behaviors together. Here's a video of tonight's work.
Today we just worked on opening the door. You see a nice extinction burst and recovery, then finally extinction. He wants that butterfly. Even after he gives up and works on the door, he goes back to the butterfly and tries again. So we extinguished the butterfly, it came back, and then extinguished again. Just remember, if you're trying to use extinction on a behavior, if you ever, ever, ever reward it, you just made it stronger because you've got it on a variable reinforcement schedule.
Tomorrow we'll work on getting something out of the mailbox. Then we'll put the two behaviors together. Here's a video of tonight's work.
Smorgasbord
It's been a smorgasbord of training today. We just did lots of short little sessions of many different things.
Let's see. We worked on:
Carry my purse (by the handle please Zane)
Jump into my arms (right now I'm doing it while I sitting and gradually working my way to standing)
Leg Weave (He can do 3 or 4 weaves, but it's not fast or fluent yet. We need speed and enthusiasm.)
Paws on my arm
Jump through a hoop (Completely shaping this. Oddly, he's decided that he only jumps it one way. He walks around it and jumps from the other side. And he went through the whole gamut of nose touch, paw touch, bite it, under it, around it, etc.)
I looked for a bike horn today. Can't find one.
This evening a plastic storage container fell and made a loud noise. He went running. Ok, learning opportunity. I dropped it and tossed a treat to him. Dropped it, tossed a treat. Gradually got the treat closer and closer. Finally I would drop and put the treat on top. He would start to run, then turn back for it. I think I'll start dropping things before every meal.
Let's see. We worked on:
Carry my purse (by the handle please Zane)
Jump into my arms (right now I'm doing it while I sitting and gradually working my way to standing)
Leg Weave (He can do 3 or 4 weaves, but it's not fast or fluent yet. We need speed and enthusiasm.)
Paws on my arm
Jump through a hoop (Completely shaping this. Oddly, he's decided that he only jumps it one way. He walks around it and jumps from the other side. And he went through the whole gamut of nose touch, paw touch, bite it, under it, around it, etc.)
I looked for a bike horn today. Can't find one.
This evening a plastic storage container fell and made a loud noise. He went running. Ok, learning opportunity. I dropped it and tossed a treat to him. Dropped it, tossed a treat. Gradually got the treat closer and closer. Finally I would drop and put the treat on top. He would start to run, then turn back for it. I think I'll start dropping things before every meal.
Tricks and Wipe
Here is Zane meeting the requirements for his Novice Trick Dog title.
Here is Zane's second session of shaping "wipe your paws".
And for contrast, here is Bella's. Bella doesn't wipe - she dabs. But I don't think I'm going to get wipe out of it. That's ok, I may get something even cooler!
See how two different dogs will have such different shaping sessions for the same behavior? That's why shaping is an art as well as a science.
Here is Zane's second session of shaping "wipe your paws".
And for contrast, here is Bella's. Bella doesn't wipe - she dabs. But I don't think I'm going to get wipe out of it. That's ok, I may get something even cooler!
See how two different dogs will have such different shaping sessions for the same behavior? That's why shaping is an art as well as a science.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Wipe Your Paws
Since Zane finished his Novice Trick Dog requirements, I was looking at the Intermediate tricks. He has to do 12. He can do 9 right now, so I have to decide which ones to train him to do. I decided the first one is "wipe your paws". I've never taught this behavior before, so it will be new for both of us.
I started with a nice, soft, rubbery frisbee type thing. It really doesn't matter what it is - I just wanted something for him to target. I first clicked for paw targeting it. When that was reliable, I waited. He would either pull his foot backward (wiping motion!) which I clicked, or he would put his other paw on (I clicked that too). I think it will quickly turn into a wiping motion.
Hmmm, if I'm good, I'll get the camera out and tape it tonight!
I started with a nice, soft, rubbery frisbee type thing. It really doesn't matter what it is - I just wanted something for him to target. I first clicked for paw targeting it. When that was reliable, I waited. He would either pull his foot backward (wiping motion!) which I clicked, or he would put his other paw on (I clicked that too). I think it will quickly turn into a wiping motion.
Hmmm, if I'm good, I'll get the camera out and tape it tonight!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Catching up for the week
I can't believe I haven't posted since Monday! Let's see if I can get it all caught up.
Tuesday morning we went to Rally practice. Zane got to do the course. It was an excellent level course, but I kept him on-leash and didn't do the jumps. He's at that stage where he's forgotten things, so I'm back to retraining. All dog learn, forget, learn it again, then know it. One of the things he's forgotten is his rear pivot. Huh? He was awesome at that. So the pot is back out and we're working it again. He did the honor and held it although his BC buddy, Rusty, was on the course.
Wednesday we worked contacts on the "big" equipment. He's not going over the equipment, I'm simply putting him in position and rewarding him for staying there while I move around.
Thursday we went to obedience practice. We worked on a lot of heeling. That morning for his breakfast, he did NOT want to get into heel position and sit there. He kept getting on the fireplace mantle and getting in two-on-two-off. "Look, I can do that! I don't wanna' do that." At the park, he would get into heel position with no problem. No, I don't know why. I'm starting to push him away and have him fight to get back into heel. He thinks it's great fun. We did some recalls - we've only done "front" from close, so that was a new experience for him. I need to work on this, slowly getting farther away. He seemed a little lost.
Friday we were back at the park. A friend was the witness as he met the requirements for his Novice Trick Dog Title! Woohoo! It's been sent in, so soon he'll be official.
There's the chihuahua at practice that he likes. Today he held his stay while she went running past him. It was hard. . . but he did it.
Tuesday morning we went to Rally practice. Zane got to do the course. It was an excellent level course, but I kept him on-leash and didn't do the jumps. He's at that stage where he's forgotten things, so I'm back to retraining. All dog learn, forget, learn it again, then know it. One of the things he's forgotten is his rear pivot. Huh? He was awesome at that. So the pot is back out and we're working it again. He did the honor and held it although his BC buddy, Rusty, was on the course.
Wednesday we worked contacts on the "big" equipment. He's not going over the equipment, I'm simply putting him in position and rewarding him for staying there while I move around.
Thursday we went to obedience practice. We worked on a lot of heeling. That morning for his breakfast, he did NOT want to get into heel position and sit there. He kept getting on the fireplace mantle and getting in two-on-two-off. "Look, I can do that! I don't wanna' do that." At the park, he would get into heel position with no problem. No, I don't know why. I'm starting to push him away and have him fight to get back into heel. He thinks it's great fun. We did some recalls - we've only done "front" from close, so that was a new experience for him. I need to work on this, slowly getting farther away. He seemed a little lost.
Friday we were back at the park. A friend was the witness as he met the requirements for his Novice Trick Dog Title! Woohoo! It's been sent in, so soon he'll be official.
There's the chihuahua at practice that he likes. Today he held his stay while she went running past him. It was hard. . . but he did it.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Agility
This morning we headed to Bella's agility lesson. Before class, Zane got to get on the table a couple of times, through the tunnel a couple of times, and I put him in 2o2o and rewarded that.
During class he was in his crate with my chair in front of it. When the Australian Terrier finished his run, his handler threw his ball. The terrier brought the ball to me (I was sitting in my chair). He was growling and rumbling - all in play - it's how he plays with is ball. But Zane did not like that and growled back. Hmmmm. Something else to work on.
This afternoon I did the exercises from the Human Agility Training dvd. Zane watched very intently, wondering why I was acting so weird. He finally just feel asleep. I must be weird often enough that it gets boring after awhile. ;-)
During class he was in his crate with my chair in front of it. When the Australian Terrier finished his run, his handler threw his ball. The terrier brought the ball to me (I was sitting in my chair). He was growling and rumbling - all in play - it's how he plays with is ball. But Zane did not like that and growled back. Hmmmm. Something else to work on.
This afternoon I did the exercises from the Human Agility Training dvd. Zane watched very intently, wondering why I was acting so weird. He finally just feel asleep. I must be weird often enough that it gets boring after awhile. ;-)
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Home Depot
Today, Zane's big event was a trip to Home Depot. He used to go a lot when he was younger, but hasn't been in a while. I wanted to pick up some paint, so I took him along. I put him on a waist leash so I'd have both hands free and we picked out paint colors, paint, and wandered around picking up stuff.
He did very, very well. He wasn't 100% comfortable, but he wasn't unduly stressed either. He wanted to sniff a few things, pulled a couple of times to go sniff people, but was better behaved than the majority of dogs in the community. He sat when asked and held the sit until released. Overall, a very good visit.
He did very, very well. He wasn't 100% comfortable, but he wasn't unduly stressed either. He wanted to sniff a few things, pulled a couple of times to go sniff people, but was better behaved than the majority of dogs in the community. He sat when asked and held the sit until released. Overall, a very good visit.
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Temperament Evaluation
Today I took Zane to Tucson. I have a trainer friend there who does temperament evaluations. She works for a service dog organization that does these evaluations, and she's an expert at reading canine body language. She and I traded services: she did a temp eval on Zane, and I gave her a rally lesson.
She used the temp eval from Sarah Kalnajs. Here are some of the things I remember. She'll give me a full written eval once she watches the video she took of the testing.
The first test was how he would react to her. She took the leash, and I left. He did look for me and try to get to me, then she started petting him. She was watching to see if he would ask for more petting, interact with her, ignore her, focus on the environment, etc. He did look for me a lot but did circle back to her for some pets too. He wasn't really into her but didn't react negatively either. Overall, I thought it was ok for an Aussie who is supposed to be reserved with strangers. He did work wonderfully with her later in the test, so I think it was natural reserve.
Some of the tests were reactions to novel items: sight and sound. She opened an umbrella in his direction. He immediately ran to the end of the line he was on, hid behind the holder, and was barking madly. He would not approach it, even for food. He even reacted when it was put farther away, then when a breeze made it move a little.
Then she pulled out "robo-rat" - a remote controlled rat. He's seen many, many remote-controlled toys here, and I even have a similar rat (although he hasn't seen it in a couple of months because the batteries are dead). He reacted like he did to the umbrella. He would not go near it and did not recover, even after several minutes, not even after she played the look-at-that game with it. She had to cover it with a coat to get it out of his sight.
Then she dropped a metal food bowl on the concrete. Again, instant reaction - hiding, running to the end of the line, barking. She did get him to approach it when she put food in it, but he was very conflicted - reaching forward but leaning back.
One test was her giving him a hard stare. Some dogs will immediately go on defense, muzzle punch, and react badly. At first he looked intently into her eyes, "Oh, eye contact, I know this!" Then the pressure of her stare hit him and he immediately dropped to the ground and curled away from her. She gave him positive attention to get him up and interacting, then gave another hard stare. He immediately looked away. Then, she started to turn toward him, he thought she was going to hard stare again, and before she even had eye contact, he was looking away.
Testing for resource guarding. Bowl full of kibble and canned food. She had an assess-a-hand (a fake hand on a fake arm so the real hand/arm don't get bit) and started off by petting his back with it while he ate. He just continued to eat. She put the hand in the bowl. No problem. She pulled the bowl away. No problem. She commented that he didn't even give whale eye (common, mild stress reaction). She did the test again, and he did give some whale eye the second time, but no guarding or aggression. She ended up just reaching down with her hand to get the bowl because it was obvious he wasn't going to react.
Then he was given his choice of a bully stick or a rolled cow cheek. He chose the cheek. We gave him time to get involved in it and enjoying it. Then she went over with the assess-a-hand. Stroke the back - no problem. Hand on the chewie - he looked up at her. She wiggled the chewie - he put his paw on it! No mouthing, no grabbing it, no punching or biting the hand. He continued to look up at her, just put his paw on it. She repeated test a couple of times and the same reaction every time - he just plops his paw on it. He would let her take it away, but he was using his paw to say "Mine." Interestingly, the evaluation doesn't talk about the paws on this part of the test - only the mouth. The paw was a definite reaction, but he wasn't seriously trying to keep her from it.
The last test was reaction to another dog. She took Zane and had her husband bring one of her dogs. At first it was Zane just standing while the other dog walked around. He did show some interest and moved toward her, then went back to Crystal. Then she started walking him around while the other dog stood still. She noted that he immediately went into training mode. He didn't offer his natural behaviors - he offered what he's been trained for around other dogs. He kept his focus on Crystal, only occasionally looking at the other dog, then right back at her. It was great to see him working with her so nicely. Then they took the dogs on a parallel walk then gradually moved Zane closer to the other dog. Crystal saw a little tightness in his mouth, but no negative reaction at all. They never got closer than 5 feet away, but Zane stayed focused on her - kind of the "If I don't see that other dog, it's not really there." But she was very impressed with how well he is responding to the training I've done to get him able to be around other dogs.
I can't wait for the full written eval. It was neat to watch, and even I was surprised at how intense his reaction was to novel objects. I know he doesn't like new things or things that are different, but he's seen umbrellas and moving toys here. And I know we drop stuff. But he definitely reacted and it wasn't mild and there was not quick recovery.
She used the temp eval from Sarah Kalnajs. Here are some of the things I remember. She'll give me a full written eval once she watches the video she took of the testing.
The first test was how he would react to her. She took the leash, and I left. He did look for me and try to get to me, then she started petting him. She was watching to see if he would ask for more petting, interact with her, ignore her, focus on the environment, etc. He did look for me a lot but did circle back to her for some pets too. He wasn't really into her but didn't react negatively either. Overall, I thought it was ok for an Aussie who is supposed to be reserved with strangers. He did work wonderfully with her later in the test, so I think it was natural reserve.
Some of the tests were reactions to novel items: sight and sound. She opened an umbrella in his direction. He immediately ran to the end of the line he was on, hid behind the holder, and was barking madly. He would not approach it, even for food. He even reacted when it was put farther away, then when a breeze made it move a little.
Then she pulled out "robo-rat" - a remote controlled rat. He's seen many, many remote-controlled toys here, and I even have a similar rat (although he hasn't seen it in a couple of months because the batteries are dead). He reacted like he did to the umbrella. He would not go near it and did not recover, even after several minutes, not even after she played the look-at-that game with it. She had to cover it with a coat to get it out of his sight.
Then she dropped a metal food bowl on the concrete. Again, instant reaction - hiding, running to the end of the line, barking. She did get him to approach it when she put food in it, but he was very conflicted - reaching forward but leaning back.
One test was her giving him a hard stare. Some dogs will immediately go on defense, muzzle punch, and react badly. At first he looked intently into her eyes, "Oh, eye contact, I know this!" Then the pressure of her stare hit him and he immediately dropped to the ground and curled away from her. She gave him positive attention to get him up and interacting, then gave another hard stare. He immediately looked away. Then, she started to turn toward him, he thought she was going to hard stare again, and before she even had eye contact, he was looking away.
Testing for resource guarding. Bowl full of kibble and canned food. She had an assess-a-hand (a fake hand on a fake arm so the real hand/arm don't get bit) and started off by petting his back with it while he ate. He just continued to eat. She put the hand in the bowl. No problem. She pulled the bowl away. No problem. She commented that he didn't even give whale eye (common, mild stress reaction). She did the test again, and he did give some whale eye the second time, but no guarding or aggression. She ended up just reaching down with her hand to get the bowl because it was obvious he wasn't going to react.
Then he was given his choice of a bully stick or a rolled cow cheek. He chose the cheek. We gave him time to get involved in it and enjoying it. Then she went over with the assess-a-hand. Stroke the back - no problem. Hand on the chewie - he looked up at her. She wiggled the chewie - he put his paw on it! No mouthing, no grabbing it, no punching or biting the hand. He continued to look up at her, just put his paw on it. She repeated test a couple of times and the same reaction every time - he just plops his paw on it. He would let her take it away, but he was using his paw to say "Mine." Interestingly, the evaluation doesn't talk about the paws on this part of the test - only the mouth. The paw was a definite reaction, but he wasn't seriously trying to keep her from it.
The last test was reaction to another dog. She took Zane and had her husband bring one of her dogs. At first it was Zane just standing while the other dog walked around. He did show some interest and moved toward her, then went back to Crystal. Then she started walking him around while the other dog stood still. She noted that he immediately went into training mode. He didn't offer his natural behaviors - he offered what he's been trained for around other dogs. He kept his focus on Crystal, only occasionally looking at the other dog, then right back at her. It was great to see him working with her so nicely. Then they took the dogs on a parallel walk then gradually moved Zane closer to the other dog. Crystal saw a little tightness in his mouth, but no negative reaction at all. They never got closer than 5 feet away, but Zane stayed focused on her - kind of the "If I don't see that other dog, it's not really there." But she was very impressed with how well he is responding to the training I've done to get him able to be around other dogs.
I can't wait for the full written eval. It was neat to watch, and even I was surprised at how intense his reaction was to novel objects. I know he doesn't like new things or things that are different, but he's seen umbrellas and moving toys here. And I know we drop stuff. But he definitely reacted and it wasn't mild and there was not quick recovery.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Scent Work
I've been discussing scent work with some friends. I learned a new method at the Laura Romanik seminar, and I've been playing with it. To help others, I made this video using three of my dogs in various stages of training.
Em has never done this work. Zane has been doing it and has been choosing between 2 items. Bella chooses among several items and does some pretty good room searches.
Warning: This vid is 10 minutes long! Way too long in my opinion, but there are a lot of steps along the way.
Em has never done this work. Zane has been doing it and has been choosing between 2 items. Bella chooses among several items and does some pretty good room searches.
Warning: This vid is 10 minutes long! Way too long in my opinion, but there are a lot of steps along the way.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Training at the park
This morning's training started with working on sit/down/stand while I sat on the couch. It's like Susan Garrett's Green Eggs and Ham training. Can you sit while I sit on the couch? Can you down while I sit on the couch? (Can you eat it in a box? Can you eat it with a fox?) Tomorrow morning I'll work on those cues while I sit on the ground. I *know* that one will be harder for him.
This morning we also met a friend at the park for training. Zane greeted her Chihuahua and Australian Terrier very appropriately. The Chi, who reads dogs very well and will not approach a dog she doesn't feel she can trust, was trying to get him to play with her! And he wanted to! Big break-through for him. At one point he got a little pushy into her space and she told him off. And he didn't take offense or act scared or worried! Woohoo! When approaching the terrier, he was appropriate, didn't lunge at him, didn't growl in fear, acted nice and submissive and didn't push him at all. Whew!
He did some light heeling at the park. We played with the retrieve. First just a casual toss and bring it back to front. Then offering food and dumbbell and asking him to "take it" and he had to take the dumbbell. He could do it. We had to work hold a little bit as he tried to spit it at me a couple of times. But overall, very nicely done.
And he did stays! It was his first time to do stays in a line-up (the line-up was the terrier, Bella, and Zane, but it was a line-up!) They did a 2 minute sit-stay and a 4 minute down-stay. I have never, ever, ever asked him to stay that long, but he had no problem. I did go reward the sit once in the middle. And I rewarded the down a couple of times when I was throwing major distractions out there and he held his stays. Nice job Zane!
His sit-stay. He sits so upright!
The down-stay line-up.
And close-up of Zane on his stay. He always looks so regal and proud!
Yesterday we went tracking again and here he is following the track to the glove:
And this is what happens to poor doggies who live with young teenage girls who like to torture them.
This morning we also met a friend at the park for training. Zane greeted her Chihuahua and Australian Terrier very appropriately. The Chi, who reads dogs very well and will not approach a dog she doesn't feel she can trust, was trying to get him to play with her! And he wanted to! Big break-through for him. At one point he got a little pushy into her space and she told him off. And he didn't take offense or act scared or worried! Woohoo! When approaching the terrier, he was appropriate, didn't lunge at him, didn't growl in fear, acted nice and submissive and didn't push him at all. Whew!
He did some light heeling at the park. We played with the retrieve. First just a casual toss and bring it back to front. Then offering food and dumbbell and asking him to "take it" and he had to take the dumbbell. He could do it. We had to work hold a little bit as he tried to spit it at me a couple of times. But overall, very nicely done.
And he did stays! It was his first time to do stays in a line-up (the line-up was the terrier, Bella, and Zane, but it was a line-up!) They did a 2 minute sit-stay and a 4 minute down-stay. I have never, ever, ever asked him to stay that long, but he had no problem. I did go reward the sit once in the middle. And I rewarded the down a couple of times when I was throwing major distractions out there and he held his stays. Nice job Zane!
His sit-stay. He sits so upright!
The down-stay line-up.
And close-up of Zane on his stay. He always looks so regal and proud!
Yesterday we went tracking again and here he is following the track to the glove:
And this is what happens to poor doggies who live with young teenage girls who like to torture them.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Back to Basics
The past two mornings, Zane has simply done sits, downs, and stands in random orders. And I'm trying to gradually increase distance. He doesn't have stand on a verbal only yet - he still needs the hand signal - so that one is still close. But I want him to only change position when I tell him and from wherever I am without him moving forward. Every once in a while he will sit when I say down or down when I say sit. Of course, there have been times when I've done puppy push-ups with all of my dogs, and somebody will get out of rhythm and sit and down opposite the rest of the crew. They aren't really listening to the command, they're figuring what I want next and doing it.
Zane had a big change in his life yesterday. I switched him to a raw diet. His eyes are always red and watery. I haven't found a food I'm totally thrilled with (I opened one bag and it smelled rancid. Ewwww!) So he's on raw. Yesterday was the first day, and his eyes are already looking better. And no, I don't feed kibble with corn, so I know that wasn't the problem. Let's just say he's loving his new food.
And yes, I can still use meals for training with raw. I just have a spoon or fork in the bowl of food, and feed him pieces with the utensil. He has no problem with that!
Zane had a big change in his life yesterday. I switched him to a raw diet. His eyes are always red and watery. I haven't found a food I'm totally thrilled with (I opened one bag and it smelled rancid. Ewwww!) So he's on raw. Yesterday was the first day, and his eyes are already looking better. And no, I don't feed kibble with corn, so I know that wasn't the problem. Let's just say he's loving his new food.
And yes, I can still use meals for training with raw. I just have a spoon or fork in the bowl of food, and feed him pieces with the utensil. He has no problem with that!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Zane goofing around
This is a picture I've been meaning to get for a while. Zane has loved this toy since he was a little puppy. No, it's not a dog toy, but he adores it.
A couple of months ago Zane decided that one of his jobs was to lay down on top of me if I lay down on the couch. It's morphed into laying on the back of the couch when anybody gets on it. This morning, he cuddled with his daddy.
This evening, he almost cuddled with Jill.
And here's a video of Zane playing with his new babble ball.
A couple of months ago Zane decided that one of his jobs was to lay down on top of me if I lay down on the couch. It's morphed into laying on the back of the couch when anybody gets on it. This morning, he cuddled with his daddy.
This evening, he almost cuddled with Jill.
And here's a video of Zane playing with his new babble ball.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Little sessions
I just did little random training sessions throughout the day today.
I learned that if I drop a treat and ask him to touch my right hand, he can. But if I drop a treat and ask him to touch my left hand, he just stares at the treat. His right side always needs more training than his left side.
We played with take it like we did with the touch with distraction. One open hand with treats, the other hand with the dumbbell. I told him to take it, and he took the dumbbell. I also held the dumbbell in different places - by my side, up high, down low, behind me - and asked him to take it. He had to think on the one that was high.
We played tug games with the new rules from Foundation Fundamentals.
I worked on distance sits and downs. He can do down from 6 feet away, but has trouble with sit. So that's an area that needs work.
I put him on the exercise egg and did some work on it. He jumps right on and isn't worried at all. He does have to work to maintain his balance while turning, but that's what we're working on with the egg.
And I bought him a ball that talks to him. It says things like, "Hot diggity dog!" "Come here puppy!" "Yeah baby!" "Oh no!" "I'm gonna' get you!" "Ouch, don't do that!" He likes that ball, and likes to make it talk. . . all the time.
I also bought some new tug toys, but he doesn't get those until I'm ready to play with them.
I learned that if I drop a treat and ask him to touch my right hand, he can. But if I drop a treat and ask him to touch my left hand, he just stares at the treat. His right side always needs more training than his left side.
We played with take it like we did with the touch with distraction. One open hand with treats, the other hand with the dumbbell. I told him to take it, and he took the dumbbell. I also held the dumbbell in different places - by my side, up high, down low, behind me - and asked him to take it. He had to think on the one that was high.
We played tug games with the new rules from Foundation Fundamentals.
I worked on distance sits and downs. He can do down from 6 feet away, but has trouble with sit. So that's an area that needs work.
I put him on the exercise egg and did some work on it. He jumps right on and isn't worried at all. He does have to work to maintain his balance while turning, but that's what we're working on with the egg.
And I bought him a ball that talks to him. It says things like, "Hot diggity dog!" "Come here puppy!" "Yeah baby!" "Oh no!" "I'm gonna' get you!" "Ouch, don't do that!" He likes that ball, and likes to make it talk. . . all the time.
I also bought some new tug toys, but he doesn't get those until I'm ready to play with them.
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