revamp Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Hi everyone! My first greyhound, Rocky, has been with us just shy of 2 weeks now. I didn't want to rush into trying to teach him things right away, since I know he needs to acclimate and get to know and trust me. But now, we're at 2 weeks and I think it's time to at least have a start at learning a common language, other than me talking to him and him continuing to do whatever and occasionally looking at me and blinking. The good: He's housebroken, he walks well on a lead, currently has no bad habits that require correction. The bad. I've never seen him sit (I know, not at all uncommon), and he only will lie down on a dog bed. A couple trips in the car (backseat of a civic w/ a seat hammock) resulted in him swaying and sliding, scrambling, and flopping around because he refused to lie down. I have owned plenty of dogs and have taken three different dogs through formal obedience training in the past. My current dog does the whole cutesy repertoire of sit, down, wait, treat on nose, give left paw, give right paw, "touch" (had him flipping a light switch at one time), roll over, "speak", etc. But here is *my* problem. Of any dog I have EVER trained, the foundation was always "sit". And rocky doesn't sit. In the past it was easy to either lure my dog to a sit, then reward...or mark the behavior then reward, or even force a sit and reward. From there I could lure down on the ground to encourage the dog into a "down" and so on a so forth. So...Rocky doesn't sit. He only lies down on his bed. I don't want to force him to do anything unless it's for his safety, so how do I change my way of thinking to work with him? I don't care if he sits or never sits, but I want to be able to put him in a down, and to teach "wait" and work on recalls and releases Quote ~Amanda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 The best website: http://neversaynevergreyhounds.net/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Training Levels by Sue Ailsby Start here: http://sue-eh.ca/page24/page26/page10/ Read it even though it is long & don't worry about all the references to competition & other breeds. It's still the best way to train my Greys that I've ever found. From there start on Level One: http://sue-eh.ca/page24/page26/styled/ [Link to next section is at bottom of prior level] If you have questions you can join the YahooGroup started for people using Training Levels. Sue Ailsby (aka Sue Eh?) often posts & will answer. http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/traininglevels/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddgirl Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 I would start with something way WAY easier than sit or down. Most greyhounds I've met need to start with 'basics' like "This is a treat. Treats are tasty. You get a treat for being good." We started with 'touch' - touch my palm, get a treat. Once they figure out "treats are tasty," luring into sits and downs is a lot easier. Greyhounds will always prefer to sit/down on softer surfaces, but that doesn't mean they won't ever learn to do it on concrete. Quote Batman (racing name CTW Battle Plan) adopted May 2011, passed away July 2017 Buffy (racing name CTW Bathsheba) adopted Oct 2012, passed away March 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 I would start with something way WAY easier than sit or down. Most greyhounds I've met need to start with 'basics' like "This is a treat. Treats are tasty. You get a treat for being good." We started with 'touch' - touch my palm, get a treat. Once they figure out "treats are tasty," luring into sits and downs is a lot easier. Greyhounds will always prefer to sit/down on softer surfaces, but that doesn't mean they won't ever learn to do it on concrete. Excellent advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 You've got good advice on the training so I won't go there. Took two thru obedience (one at Petsmart that was much better than the greyhound only one with a celebrated trainer) and sit was not one of the first lessons in either. As far as the car it takes them some time for them to "get sea legs". I don't know if the hammock makes it harder as I've never used one. Mine have always figured it out in a couple of weeks. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest verthib Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Just try stand/stay. I won't train mine to sit as it really isn't comfortable for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Just try stand/stay. I won't train mine to sit as it really isn't comfortable for them. Depends on the dog. Buck used to sit in the yard all the time of his own accord. He didn't do the Sphinx position but rather rested back on his rump with his back legs forward outside his front legs. He was such a goober. He'd just sit like that watching the world go by like an old man in a rocking chair...only his back legs looked like the front of the rocker. Have seen several greys sit comfortably on one hip and both back legs on one side as doxies are prone to do. Used to have a therapy dog book with an older picture of about 20 greyhounds sitting in a row. Agree start with stay. Much more useful. All greys CAN sit and it is not uncomfortable for all of them. Just choose your battles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krissy Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Before I ever started to "formally" train Summit in anything he learned "easy" every day things. I made him wait at doors and for his dinner. Then I taught him to make eye contact. Then I taught him to down which was the first command that had required luring. Down took several attempts to really get. Once he did though making it stick was no problem. And it made teaching him to sit MUCH easier. He understood that me moving the treat around was my way of telling him what I wanted him to do, as opposed to me just being a beach and refusing to give it to him. Now he does that "cutesy" repetoire. Sit, down, around finish, heel, wait, drop at a distance, paw, other paw, touch, retrieve, spin, crawl, roll onto one side, back up, bow, COME (reliably and quickly). It takes time but it'll come. Quote Kristie and the Apex Agility Greyhounds: Kili (ATChC AgMCh Lakilanni Where Eagles Fly RN IP MSCDC MTRDC ExS Bronze ExJ Bronze ) and Kenna (Lakilanni Kiss The Sky RN MADC MJDC AGDC AGEx AGExJ). Waiting at the Bridge: Retired racer Summit (Bbf Dropout) May 5, 2005-Jan 30, 2019 Like us on Facebook! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 I started with sit. If George can learn to sit, ANY dog can learn to sit! And i used the exact same "ols fashioned" tuck and fold method that I have always used. Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stacy6344 Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 Tripp and I have been going to obedience classes at Petsmart. We have finished beginning classes and have one week intermediate. He learned to sit pretty easily. We have learned sit, down, leave it, drop it, stay, sit for a petting, u-turn, come, and we are now working on stay with distractions. I think it has given us both more confidence! We love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetcitywoman Posted February 1, 2012 Share Posted February 1, 2012 (edited) I started with down for both my dogs. It was something they did naturally umpteen times a day, so was easy to catch and reward and easy for them to guess what I wanted (which at first is part of learning). One thing I wanted to mention from the OP: don't assume it's time to train based on time. You mention you've had him for two weeks so it's "time" to start training. In my opinion, it's time to start training when the dog is beginning to build a connection with you. By that I mean if you reach for the treat bag and he gives you 100% attention. I started trying to train Ajax after we'd had him a couple months and he was just scatter-brained and I thought - stupid. Several months LATER, when I reached for the treat bag, I noticed that he slapped himself into a down position with eyes and ears fully engaged on me, waiting to see what I would do next. Since that point, he's been easy to train and yes - he's NOT stupid! He's actually the rare greyhound who is motivated by making me happy! He simply hadn't finished his bonding/learning to trust phase with me when I first tried to train him. Edited February 1, 2012 by jetcitywoman Quote Sharon, Loki, Freyja, Capri (bridge angel and most beloved heart dog), Ajax (bridge angel) and Sweetie Pie (cat) Visit Hound-Safe.com by Something Special Pet Supplies for muzzles and other dog safety products Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirinaaronsmom Posted February 3, 2012 Share Posted February 3, 2012 I'm not sure if you're anywhere nearby, but there is a greyhound-only class being offered in March in Waukesha. It's a good 'basics' class and won't have the distractions of other breeds. Carol is knowledgeable and very-grey-savvy and it's fun to get to know other grey owners in the area. Here's the link for more info if you're interested. http://www.gpawisconsin.org/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9900 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revamp Posted February 3, 2012 Author Share Posted February 3, 2012 I'm not sure if you're anywhere nearby, but there is a greyhound-only class being offered in March in Waukesha. It's a good 'basics' class and won't have the distractions of other breeds. Carol is knowledgeable and very-grey-savvy and it's fun to get to know other grey owners in the area. Here's the link for more info if you're interested. http://www.gpawiscon...opic.php?t=9900 I've heard about that class, but in looking at the information it seems that they are covering quite a lot of the "basics of dog and greyhound ownership" which is, frankly, a little below my level. If I were a little closer I might give it a shot anyways just for the social aspect (the dogs and for me), but it would be probably a 45-min drive for me and I would have childcare issues, too. I'm really liking the "training levels' information, which makes perfect sense to me (one of those, "It's so simple and commonsense, why didn't I think of that?" Quote ~Amanda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fruitycake Posted February 4, 2012 Share Posted February 4, 2012 The Never say never greyhounds link that kennelmom linked out to is a GREAT resource. She shows you stages of training for different things, with different dogs, and at different learning stages. All positive training, so no greyhound freezing because you said "no" or anything, just no reward for it either. If a dog is hungry enough, they'll figure things out pretty darned fast! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kudzu Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 I'm really liking the "training levels' information, which makes perfect sense to me (one of those, "It's so simple and commonsense, why didn't I think of that?" it is written out so clearly & thoroughly that it's hard to go wrong. She has all the trouble shooting most folks need. Her sense of humor & "no big deal" attitude to all the little mistakes or various dog's quirks also helps me remember that though training is important it doesn't need to be done in such a serious way. When I start rraining sessions the dogs all beg to be the next ones to play with me. They don't want to leave the training area when it's the next dogs turn. And if you do the "home work" & take things on the road even a few times you can see the difference. I just LOVE Training Levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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