What Are You Working On?

[krissy]

I know we had a thread a fairly long time back... "what classes are you taking now?" or something along those lines, but darned if I can't find it. So I figured we'd start a new one!

 

It's exactly what the title says. What are you working on with your dog right now? Let's share some videos and stories. Are you working on a new trick? Are you working on a problem behaviour? Are you taking a new class with your dog or trying a new sport? Please share whatever it is that you are working on. Maybe we can give one another new ideas, advice, suggestions. Training is fun, but it's even more fun with friends.

 

Kili is doing well in agility. One thing we have been working on is contacts and really knowing her 2-on-2-off behaviour no matter what. Proofing that end position has been the focus of a lot of our training sessions the past week or so, and you can see the huge difference in agility class between last week (beginning of the video) and this week (end clips in the video). Very happy so far and we will continue to make the distractions harder and harder so that she really understands her job.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6NurP_iAhA&feature=youtu.be

[Brandiandwe]

I'm always impressed by your dogs! Right now we're working on leash reactivity and general socialisation with Paige and Brandi. Baby steps are being taken, but we're beginning to meet and walk with other dog owners in our neighbourhood. Today, we had the usual of Paige rushing and bullying a couple of cute little whippets, and Brandi redirecting aggression onto Paige, while Hermon gave a few benign sniffs and spent the time snuggling with the whippets owner. Fortunately, I've met some fabulous dog owners who get what's going on and are prepared to work with me.

 

So, we're starting by lots of treats and going for a walk together, gradually coming closer and closer. Every time there's a reaction from either girl, we back off and keep walking. Today, after 20 minutes, the owner and I were standing together on the footpath with all five dogs standing around completely chilled.

 

I'd feel happy if it weren't for the fact that I'll need to start over next time we see them! But the girls, and Paige especially, are improving and she really tries so hard to overcome instincts and her basic personality to make me happy that training is very rewarding.

[greyhounds1234]

If there is a Mensa group for dogs.......your dogs should be members!

[Moonsmom]

Now that I'm FINALLY in the house...and almost settled... and Miss Kimmie Pickle is loving having all the space and windows and fenced yard it's time to start brancing out! Her brother, (my DD's grey) Kasey Cane, just got his Therapy Dog certification last month and she may follow in his pawprints and do the same. She's so mellow and sweet.

[Guest june]

Nova is new to the house. She is 1.5 and a bit timid so right now I'm just simply making every time she gets near me a very pleasant experience. She will now walk up to her food dish and eat while I am standing next to it. Very basic baby steps.

[GeorgeofNE]

Hahahahahahah!!!

 

Congratulations to you, but it took George 18 months to figure out he could TURN AROUND in the house instead of walking backwards out of a room he had entered.

 

We aren't working on anything. I'm just happy he finally stopped peeing in the house.

[AnneGTS]

Impressive!

 

I'm currently working on teaching Spriet how to walk backwards. Now she walks a few meters but then stops.. So I have to find a way so she will walk even further backwards.

 

A video of her turn, sit, walking backwards and giving paw:

[krissy]

lol. Thanks guys. My dogs are far from Mensa members, I assure you! Kili is a total goofy dumbass most days, and Summit won't step over cords on the ground in case they jump up and bite him. But they do enjoy training.

 

And kudos to everyone working with timid or reactive dogs! That's really tough. I personally probably don't have the patience required to work with an overly shy dog. Summit has some mild reactivity issues (mostly towards huskies... which isn't all that mild actually) that we have worked on a lot ever since we got him, but neither of my dogs is timid.

 

Spriet! I love her tricks. She's so dignified about them. Summit is such a spaz. He gets SO excited when training. His turn is 2 huge bounces. And watch out when you ask for a paw because he's liable to smack you with his foot. hee hee.

[krissy]

Alright, maybe Kili is a mensa genius.

 

We are taking an online course through Agility University (www.agility-u.com) and our instructor just commented that she was shocked that Kili is only 15 months old. She thought Kili was older since she looks so physically mature, but my last video that I posted for her was titled "Kili agility 15 months". She said she is doing very well for only 15 months old and might even be further along than some of her dogs were at that age. My little heart is about to burst with pride. My baby dog is turning heads.

 

We've still got a LONG way and lots of work though. But it's so nice to get little comments like that from well known, successful trainers. Seriously... my heart actually hurts a little I'm so proud of my crazy little girl.

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Kili is smart and adorable! Dudley is a little hard to work with. He is so food motivated, that he becomes obsessive and excited when he knows he is getting something, it makes him have a hard time focusing, but we have been working on it. We kind of do everything backwards. I am slowing trying to get him to jump up and get things/flip switches and such, so right now we are working on him putting up two paws at the same time. Once he does it, we will start contacts. I have found it was easier to teach him to do the sit/paws stuff first, because it makes it easier for me to lead him into touch and other commands. Here is a short clip. I wish he was as mature as Kili!!!

 

I was able to watch the vid on my phone, but am having difficulty watching it on the pc. Weird. Sorry

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGvw2KNqSxQ

 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gGvw2KNqSxQ?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Edited December 2, 2013 by Clawsandpaws

[Guest lunasmom]

I just started Luna in a beginner obedience class. I had already taught her about half of what is covered in the class but the extra practice is helping already . So far we have only been to one class so the commands we are working on this week are "sit" and "watch me".

[Xan]

How fun to see you working with the agility stuff, and the little steps you use to build up to the spectacular stuff!

 

Dudley doesn't look too out of control to me ... but maybe I'm comparing it to Pogo (aptly named!)

 

My two remaining pups each have their challenges, and training in our homestyle way has really made a big difference for both of them. Pogo is the most tightly wound greyhound I've met, reactive to just about everything either by freaking out or becoming dog-aggressive. He's now 8 years old, and we've worked through almost all of his dog aggression issues, on- and off-leash, but it's something we still reward and maintain for. Along the way, he's learned a nice little repertoire of commands which he performs with muscle-bound alacrity. If I were a more social person myself, I'm sure we could have done really well together with rally-o or agility or coursing or all of the above and dog ballet to boot!

 

Katie is a borzoi, a rescue from S. Korea, who came to us pretty spooky, particularly of men, and unable to think at all in spook mode. With lots of rewards put in the hands of strangers we met on our walks, she now pulls TOWARDS strange men! Once she figured out that tricks-for-treats was a real thing, she quickly learned everything I had taught Pogo over the years, and is always ready to try something new. Where she puts it in that narrow little head, I have NO idea! Maybe she stores it in all the hair strands. I'll have to get some video of some of the routines we've learned.

[krissy]

Kili is smart and adorable! Dudley is a little hard to work with. He is so food motivated, that he becomes obsessive and excited when he knows he is getting something, it makes him have a hard time focusing, but we have been working on it. We kind of do everything backwards. I am slowing trying to get him to jump up and get things/flip switches and such, so right now we are working on him putting up two paws at the same time. Once he does it, we will start contacts. I have found it was easier to teach him to do the sit/paws stuff first, because it makes it easier for me to lead him into touch and other commands. Here is a short clip. I wish he was as mature as Kili!!!

 

I was able to watch the vid on my phone, but am having difficulty watching it on the pc. Weird. Sorry

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGvw2KNqSxQ

 

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/gGvw2KNqSxQ?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

He looks great! I'm assuming this is his most controlled? Because otherwise, that is nothing. Seriously, you've seen my clip of Summit working on spins and leg weaves right? The popcorn dog that bounces up and down he's so enthusiastic?

[Guest Waterdog66]

Cool thread:

 

Audrey and I just had a huge breakthrough yesterday

 

When she first came home she has been very unsure of other dogs and in any case very impatient with poor dog manners. She usually just growls at the offenders and if they don't get it they get a much sharper snark. We quickly learned to read her body language and figure out when she was feeling uncomfortable. (Raised back hair, Forward Leaning Stiff Stance, Tail Up but not wagging etc.)

We also quickly learned that walking in parallel was an awesome way to introduce her to another dog without triggering a response. Approaching from opposite direction was sure to cause much grief.

What We did:

When we recognized that she started to get uncomfortable we stood to the side of the path where she felt more safe and let her watch the other dog walk by. We also gave a name to the behavior "LOOK". IF she was interested in either following behind the other dog after they passed or just stop and sniff where they were, we happily did this.

The idea was to calmly sit and relax and watch the dog walk by and observe. (LOOK)

We also got her into lots of situations where there were lots of other folks walking dogs around both from the same direction and from opposite directions. We focused on setting her up for success by NOT going anyplace where we might find off leash dogs. Off Leash dogs are not necessarily an issue but if they don't have any manners, there is no way to control the other dog short of getting between the two dogs. (Something I have had to do a few times to avoid a bigger confrontation)

We walk the boardwalk at the beach a lot and give out tons of praise when a dog walks by and she does not react. (IE. She remains calm and not alerted by the other dog)

We are working on "WATCH ME" training but I don't think that has much to do with it so far. This training will be much more important later as we continue to work on socialization.

BREAKTHROUGH: Yesterday we walked the boardwalk (About 4 miles total) and saw very many other dogs (Thanks to the awesome weather and beautiful sunset) and she made it the whole way without reacting once. (Either inwardly or outwardly) It was clear that more than a few dogs felt more uncomfortable around her and it was cool to be able to read the other dog and give them some space before things escalated.

Clearly her circle of discomfort is getting much smaller as time goes on. Methinks part of it is that her trust in us as travel mates is growing every time we go out. Her reaction to rude dogs has even become less intense over time. Rude being:

 

1). Dogs Running up and Shoving their nose directly in Audrey's Face
2). Dogs that Stare straight at Audrey in an aggressive way even when she is throwing calming signals

3). Dogs that take way more "liberty" when coming up from behind to sniff

I also think as she gets exposed to more dogs of different breeds, she will be much less unsure about it all. She was 5 when she came to us and probably had not seen too many other dogs that were NOT a greyhound. They might smell like a dog, but they sure did not look like a dog. (From her way of thinking)

Still much more work to do but we are encouraged.

I'm always impressed by your dogs! Right now we're working on leash reactivity and general socialisation with Paige and Brandi. Baby steps are being taken, but we're beginning to meet and walk with other dog owners in our neighbourhood. Today, we had the usual of Paige rushing and bullying a couple of cute little whippets, and Brandi redirecting aggression onto Paige, while Hermon gave a few benign sniffs and spent the time snuggling with the whippets owner. Fortunately, I've met some fabulous dog owners who get what's going on and are prepared to work with me.

 

So, we're starting by lots of treats and going for a walk together, gradually coming closer and closer. Every time there's a reaction from either girl, we back off and keep walking. Today, after 20 minutes, the owner and I were standing together on the footpath with all five dogs standing around completely chilled.

 

I'd feel happy if it weren't for the fact that I'll need to start over next time we see them! But the girls, and Paige especially, are improving and she really tries so hard to overcome instincts and her basic personality to make me happy that training is very rewarding.

 

Going through the same sort of stuff as well and I am very grateful to other more experienced dog owners that get what we are going through when we are working on introductions.

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

 

He looks great! I'm assuming this is his most controlled? Because otherwise, that is nothing. Seriously, you've seen my clip of Summit working on spins and leg weaves right? The popcorn dog that bounces up and down he's so enthusiastic?

He looks controlled because this is literally the only thing we did (just the 34 seconds of clip for this thread) If I try to much longer, he gets frustrated easily and just keeps trying to eat the treating hand. He's a brat!! I wish I had an agility ring nearby, I think Dudley could do so much better with that.

 

I love Summits bounces!!!!

[RedHead]

Love the videos Kili looks great, I haven't seen her in action on the agility course, she has really come a long way Spriet is so cute doing those tricks too!

 

Teague is not nearly so food loving, so he is really hard to motivate. We have been working a lot with targeting (because he WON'T lure to food) and I am amazed that he is actually getting things now and is learning much faster. It just took a loooong time. We are working on little tricks like spin, kiss, paw, etc. but nothing serious, just fun clicker training to entertain him in the evenings.

 

Right now he is afraid of these weave panels. So...I am just getting him to walk through them with the target stick. The eventual goal will be to have them in a straight line where he can weave through.

 

These are scary mom! (if this pic is sideways, blame photobucket!)

 

Targeting to encourage him to get closer (he walked through them tonight!)

 

 

 

Goal number 2 is more self-control in the bunny room. He's actually doing really well with this too.

I's bein' good mom, even when 'da white one runs!

 

[krissy]

Love that cage! I'm jealous. BF keeps saying he's going to build me bunny condos but that's kind of hard without a good motorized saw. [sigh] I will keep dreaming.

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Love that cage! I'm jealous. BF keeps saying he's going to build me bunny condos but that's kind of hard without a good motorized saw. [sigh] I will keep dreaming.

Well, Christmas is around the corner... Get him a saw

[Guest jetska]

Mouse & I just finished our L1 basic manners course. On the last day the trainer threw us a curve ball.

 

"OK now, teach your dog a new trick"

 

So I decided on 'shake' because Mouse tends to be pretty mouthy, it would be better if she offered her paw instead. I did this by putting a high value treat in my hand, waiting for her to paw at it, marking that behaviour with 'GOOD!' since I had no clicker. It worked well, and she offered 'shake' with both paws, much more ambidextrous than Barbie.

 

Now I can get her to do it 95% of the time with no 'lure' - this was in 3 days of a few 5 min training sessions. She is very quick to pick things up.

 

Obedience wise we are working on her 'stays' and next will be 'leave it' as well as 'thank-you, take-it' combo.... and as always working on recalls, heeling, turning.... foundation type stuff before we start perhaps going to agility classes next year.

[KickReturn]

 

 

Audrey and I just had a huge breakthrough yesterday

 

When she first came home she has been very unsure of other dogs and in any case very impatient with poor dog manners. She usually just growls at the offenders and if they don't get it they get a much sharper snark. We quickly learned to read her body language and figure out when she was feeling uncomfortable. (Raised back hair, Forward Leaning Stiff Stance, Tail Up but not wagging etc.)

 

We also got her into lots of situations where there were lots of other folks walking dogs around both from the same direction and from opposite directions. We focused on setting her up for success by NOT going anyplace where we might find off leash dogs. Off Leash dogs are not necessarily an issue but if they don't have any manners, there is no way to control the other dog short of getting between the two dogs. (Something I have had to do a few times to avoid a bigger confrontation)

 

Clearly her circle of discomfort is getting much smaller as time goes on. Methinks part of it is that her trust in us as travel mates is growing every time we go out. Her reaction to rude dogs has even become less intense over time.

 

This is great and things are certain to get better still.

 

I went through nearly an identical situation but with even more intense reactions with a dog that scared the absolute daylights out of other dogs. It was steady progress for two years and now our boy is perfectly relaxed in nearly all situations. The other day a poodle tried to mount him and he didn't kill it (seriously he barely mustered a growl). It seemed that with each dog encounter, he began to learn that nothing bad ever happened and that it wasn't necessary to go on "offense" if an approaching dog didn't follow his rules.

 

Remember that it is always difficult for dogs to control their body language when they are on leash, so this make things more challenging. If you have the opportunity to go for walks where there are many off leash dogs and where Audrey can also be off leash you will probably see even faster improvement.

[Guest Giselle]

I am grey-less and don't have a dog I can compete with right now. The Dobermutt is too high-risk to let her compete off-leash around other dogs, so we just train and watch our peers and my students compete. That said, there is an ENDLESS list of things I'm always trying to perfect. We are currently working on precision heeling and Fronts that won't get us laughed off a competitive obedience ring. The heeling is coming along so beautifully. It gives me chills. I need to take a video! Our Fronts are really difficult to perfect because the Dobermutt was taught a 2o2o + nose-touch w/ target plate, so I'm having a hard time teaching her a precise Front without the use of a target plate. She keeps thinking the target is a cue for 2o2o + nose touch.

 

That said, if anyone in the Ithaca area wants me to come and train their dogs to compete, I'd be more than happy to Really wish I could get another dog to compete with, but it's not going to work with my current living situation. Sigh.

[Guest jetska]

Mouse and I are still pretty new to each other, but I made a little clip of her 'shake' which she has perfected in 3 days, and her spin. I think we will be doing a lot of trick training because it seems to tire her out a little. She's a very active hound.

 

http://youtu.be/8etgEFVKLYQ

[Guest LunaTheGreyt]

Luna knows sit, shake, lay down, go to your bed, and wait. She has some definite issues with resource guarding, so right now we are working on "leave it" when playing with her favorite toy. I've tried for months to lessen her food guarding but nothing has helped, so I'm focusing on toys for now.

[Brandiandwe]

How are you training leave it? I had to start mine off with a face washer that they had no interest in with awesome treats as a reward for leaving it.

[krissy]

Wow, I'm really impressed with all the responses! Keep up the good work everyone! I hope you will all keep popping back in to update us on progress or let us know what new thing you're working on.

 

Kili and I have just started working on weave poles now that she's old enough. Going well so far. Baby, baby, baby steps. I'm getting video along the way so once we've gotten somewhere visible I'll put together a compilation video of teaching those.

 

Summit and I are going to work on some "back up" tricks. He does know back up, but only in the context of me standing in front of him and asking him to back up a few steps. I want to expand this so that he will

1. Just keep backing up so long as I tell him, without me having to move towards him at any point

2. Back up with me backing up behind him or in front of him (for heelwork routines)

3. Backwards leg weaves

 

Number 3 will have to wait until he's got forward leg weaves down as well as some of the more difficult backing up tricks. And he's so long that I'm honestly not sure if he'll be able to do backward leg weaves! But we'll find out!