Archive for the ‘Training Tip’ Category

If We Can Teach A Whale To Pee In A Cup…

Published on January 21, 2013 in Cats, Dogs, Training Tip and We Like. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

WhalePee

I LOVE Lili Chin’s work over at Doggie Drawing!  She does neato pet portraits and donates a portion of the proceeds to Boston Buddies rescue for Boston Terriers or to the rescue group of your choice.  Sweet!  Lili has illustrated books by very well- respected dog trainers & animal behaviorists, like Sophia Yin.  Equally awesome are her educational posters on dog body language, training, how to pet dogs, etc.

I particularly like this poster on what different wild & domesticated animals have been taught without resorting to force, intimidation, or pain.  If we can teach a whale to pee in a cup, can’t we train our dogs without force, intimidation, or pain?

LiliChinCorgiLiliChinCatLiliChin2dogs

Training Tips: Fearful Dogs Part III

Published on August 9, 2012 in Dogs and Training Tip. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

This is the 3rd part of a series on fearful dogs, which I started after seeing a bunch of different fearful dogs with clueless humans.  These are real-life examples with detailed suggestions on better ways to handle the anxious dog involved.  Don’t miss Part I & Part II. (Note: These are fearful with a strong flight instinct rather than a fight instinct.  I don’t feel qualified to write about such a complex issue as severely reactive dogs, but I recommend: 

  • Feisty Fido: Help For the Leash Reactive Dog, 2nd Edition by Patricia McConnell & Karen London
  • Scaredy Dog!: Understanding and Rehabilitating Your Reactive Dog, Revised Edition by Ali Brown
  •  Behavior Adjustment Training: BAT For Fear, Frustration, and Aggression In Dogs by Grisha Stewart

As many of you know, our dog Saffron is a fearful dog.  I had to learn a lot about fearful dogs so I could help her become a well-adjusted, happy dog.  I have a particular soft spot for anxious dogs.   Sometimes their people know how to help them.  Lots of times they don’t.  Sometimes they don’t even know their dog is afraid.

In this 3rd case, the fearful dog I encountered was a physically mature, but young, Golden Retriever being walked by a man and a woman.  Our timing was such that we both approached a residential intersection at the same time, with them at one corner and me & Saffron at the other corner facing them.

Right away I saw the dog was anxious and submissive.  Why did I think that?  Because she balked at stepping off the curb, turned her head to the side facing away from her person so she wasn’t facing them, the street, or us across the street.  She also crouched some and licked her lips.  She did not want to cross the street and I wasn’t sure if it was the street or if it was me & Saffron.

While I was judging if it was a good idea to cross towards this fearful dog, her person was trying to pull her into the street saying “Come on.”  She wouldn’t budge and continued giving stressed & submissive signals.  I decided it might help the other dog if Saffron & I crossed and she got to meet Saffron on their corner instead of in the street.  I knew Saffron was very gentle and friendly with fearful, submissive dogs.  But, before we could get to the other side, her person had hauled her into the street.  As she cautiously, but bravely walked past us, I automatically gave her a heartfelt “Good girl!” even though she wasn’t my dog.  Her people probably though I was a loon.  Too bad!

This case wasn’t as serious as the two previous posts’ examples, but it could have been handled better.  So what went wrong?

  1. I’m pretty sure this dog was afraid of both the street and by Saffron, so she was being asked to do too much by having to deal with both at the same time.
  2. Her people shouldn’t have pulled her into the street by her collar.
  3. And, finally, when she did what they wanted her to do, they failed to praise her.  Poop!

What would I recommend instead that would have been better for their dog and ultimately for them too?

1. Get her a tight t-shirt or a Thundershirt to help calm her.

2. Use a no-pull harness like the Halti Dog Harness, Freedom Harness, Easy Walk Harness, or Walk Your Dog With Love Harness.  Your dog will never be pulled by her neck and she won’t slip loose if she panics.

3. Avoid asking her to do something that is so stressful she balks.  Instead, continue around the block or cross to a different corner.  Or ask me to cross first and let their dog meet mine.  When you have a fearful dog, it’s up to you to be their advocate.  Ask if other dogs are friendly before you let them meet your fearful dog.

4. Work on her fear of crossing streets.

  • Start small on a quiet street with no traffic.
  • Use what you need to to get her to cross the street.  Lure her with treats.  If she likes playfulness, put on your imaginary clown shoes.  As you approach the corner, start happy talking & being silly and continue it as you get her to cross the street.  Have one of her people stand on the opposite corner so the dog (& her other person) can cross over towards someone the dog loves.
  • Repeat this in short training sessions over several days and gradually remove the lures of food, play, or the other familiar person.
  • Then try a more challenging street—wider, busier, or maybe just unfamiliar.  You may need to reintroduce the lures.  Continue until she can cross any street.

5. Work on her fear of meeting other dogs.

  • Find a laid back dog who likes other dogs and has good manners for your dog to meet.
  • Try to have them meet on neutral territory—not your house.  Pick a place where your dog will feel the least stress.  Some dogs prefer meeting outside where they don’t feel trapped.  Another dog might feel too exposed outside and would do better inside.
  •  Go slowly.
  • Monitor the introduction.  If your dog starts getting overwhelmed, give her some space by leading (or calling, if off-leash) the other dog away.
  • Stop the introduction before your dog gets too stressed.
  • Continue by having them meet every few days.  If you know another good dog for your fearful dog to meet, repeat the process with that dog.
  • Check out this excellent video on introducing an anxious dog to another dog.

In the meantime, you’ll undoubtedly be encountering dogs on your walks.  Before your dogs get close enough to meet, ask the other person if their dog is friendly and if it’s okay for them to meet.  If it’s okay, let them meet briefly and then walk on.  If they hit it off, you can let them linger, but you want to move on before your dog gets stressed.

6. PRAISE HER!! (See my post on Praising the Good for more information.)  As she starts crossing the street, praise her.  When she gets to the other side have a praise party—”Woohoo!  Good girl!  You’re so brave!”  Anytime your dog interacts with another dog, praise her.

7. Stay calm and don’t broadcast your own anxiety to your dog.  Don’t pull her away from what scares her, such as another dog.  Don’t hold your breath or stiffen up.  Try to relax.  This was hard when I was with Saffron.  I so wanted her interactions with dogs and people to go well, I had to work at not broadcasting my concern.

7. Know that it’s okay to calmly reassure your dog.  It won’t reinforce her fears.

Introducing An Anxious Dog To Another Dog

Published on August 9, 2012 in Dogs and Training Tip. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Here’s a good video with very helpful commentary showing a low stress way to introduce an anxious dog to another dog.  This was one long session with careful monitoring.  Be sure to watch your dog and don’t push her to where she’s overwhelmed.  Multiple shorter sessions might work better with some dogs.

Podcast Episode 112: Bart & Sadie

Published on June 20, 2012 in Dogs, Podcast and Training Tip. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

This podcast was actually recorded last year, so I’ll be doing an update on Bart and Sadie soon.  They’re doing great!  Happily we all were wrong about how big they’d be and it looks like they’ll stay under 50 lbs.  A much more easily managed size when there are 2 of them!  Here’s what Bart & Sadie  looked like at New Years.

Click below to play.

Episode 112 - Bart & Sadie [ 37:20 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (181)

You can listen to it here and or on iTunes.  We also have an RSS feed you can subscribe to if you use an RSS reader.

 

Be sure to check out these topics mentioned in the podcast:

 

Training Tip: Don’t Yammer! Don’t Yell!

Published on April 25, 2012 in Dogs and Training Tip. 2 Comments Tags: , , .

My first goal when I began teaching our dog Saffron commands was to keep her safe, so it was really important that she paid attention to me when I talked to her.  I knew someday it might save her life.  So first, I trained myself to not do anything that would cause her to not pay attention to me.

Tip #1   Don’t repeat!

This is an easy mistake to make and I see it all the time.  The person tells their dog to “sit” and when the pup doesn’t, the person keeps repeating “sit”—all the while, getting more and more frustrated.  Unfortunately, what they’re teaching their dog is that the command isn’t “sit”, it’s “sit-sit-sit” or even “sit-sit-sit-sit-Rover-sit-sit”.  So stop flapping those gums and just give the command once.

If Saffron doesn’t do what I ask, I give her a cue that she missed it.  (We use “whoops!”.)  And I wait.  If she still doesn’t do what I asked, I get her to refocus either by getting her to move or by moving myself.  For instance, I wanted her to sit before we ever crossed a street because when we first got her, she would walk right into the street if I wasn’t paying attention.  We would approach a corner, I’d stop & say “sit” and I’d wait.  If she didn’t sit, I’d say “whoops!” and I’d wait.  If she still didn’t sit, I’d get her focused again by turning us away from the street, walking in a small circle, and then approaching the corner again and say “sit”.  You can also move into your dog’s line of sight to get their attention.  Don’t jerk them or grab their face to get them to look at you.

Tip #2   Don’t babble!  

When you’re at the dog park or out walking your dog, don’t keep blathering on to your dog about everything, about how cute they are, about how you want them to behave, blah, blah, blah.  I certainly don’t mean don’t speak to your dog.  I mean put a cork in the verbal diarrhea.  If you just yammer on and on, your dog will start tuning you out, because she’ll quickly catch on that you aren’t saying anything of importance and anyway, that tree smells really interesting and that squirrel looks tasty, etc.  This especially goes for repeating your dog’s name over and over again.  You want your dog’s name to have a lot of power and meaning to your dog.  If you say your dog’s name with urgency, you want your dog’s attention to snap to you immediately.

Tip #3   Turn down the volume!  

This is one that came easily to me.  I tend to be a quiet person out in public and don’t like to draw attention to myself.  In the beginning when I was out with Saffron, I was self-conscious because I had a dog that was obviously terrified of everything.  I felt like we were already a spectacle, so the last thing I wanted to do was draw more attention to us by firing commands at her.  So I whispered to her.  We’d get to a corner and I’d whisper “sit”.  The result is she has to pay closer attention to me than if I’d been loud.  It also means that if I do shout, she knows it’s serious.  If I shout “leave it!” when she’s running towards a fight at the dog park, she puts the brakes on.  I can count on her to pay attention because I’ve avoided giving her any reasons not to.

Remember to think before you speak!

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