Need Exercise Help/ideas

[fionasmom]

Milo has an Outward Hound harness but even with a lot of adjusting it's a slightly loose fit, and he's slightly more barrel-chested than a full-blood greyhound. Also, the only loop for the leash is in the middle of his back, so it's a good thing he's not a puller because you have no control when the leash connects there. But having said that, it's time for us to go to the farmer's market so I can fill up those saddlebags on him.

I do not attach the leash to the back pack/harness. The leash is attached to the martingale collar as though she were not wearing the back pack.

[EllenEveBaz]

The leash is attached to the martingale collar as though she were not wearing the back pack

I truly would not have thought of this on my own. See D-ring, attach leash.

 

If you could teach her the come and stay commands (doesn't have to be with a down), then you open up the world of games such as indoor hide-and-go-seek, indoor hurdles over paper sacks, and race-up-the-stairs-when-called. I think you said she's not a social butterfly, but would she mind being walked in a location where she would get lots of attention? That always exhausts my dogs. While it's still warm there -- big box hardware store, big box pet store? Urban location where there's lots of pedestrians, such as one of the college campuses? New Garden Friends Meeting, on the corner of Friendly and New Garden, didn't used to mind people parking in its lot and walking around the cemetery if she'd prefer someplace quieter with no traffic. I'm just brainstorming -- no need to reply to these ideas.

[Fruitycake]

We did hiding kibbles under plastic cups or yogurt containers for fun, and we played hide-and-seek (easier with multiple people so you can also play 'catch' with the dog). We also did training with a box, where you put a box (any size or type) and have a target behavior that you try to shape the dog's actions to get progressively closer to by rewarding and 'marking' (clicker training doesn't need to be a clicker, as someone else mentioned!) a behavior and rewarding as the dog gets a little closer to what you want. For a fresh grey, it can be as simple as touching the box with a nose at first. I think I got that from Sophia Yin...but it could have been Karen Pryor or another one of the reward-based training experts. Really, training can be very cheap and instead of a clicker use a word or other easy and unscary noise instead.

[Roo]

Those are great ideas! I'll have to try the box thing. She's so nervous about new things that it could be a great opportunity to reward inquisitiveness and hopefully crack that shell a bit.

 

I don't think she would enjoy going out and about in most places, but a pet store might be okay. The ones around here tend to be pretty quiet! We're doing a M&G at an event next Saturday and I'm hopeful that being around other hounds while receiving pets from people will help with some of the nerves. She does really well when she's around other houndies. I've thought about getting her a sibling but I can't afford it yet. I'm keeping my eye out for a "permanent foster" situation should one arise (PRH will occasionally get super senior returns who just need a place to crash for however long they have left), but monetarily I just can't swing owning two pups right now.

[Roo]

Tried the box thing - she was not at all impressed

 

But we've been casually working on "Tessa, come here!" (because she seems to think that whenever I say "Tessa, come here" it's to do something she won't like, which it isn't, and never has been - "Tessa come here" also often precedes meal time and loving and walkies ). We did a bit in the house two days ago and a bit on our walk yesterday - I'd randomly stop and go "Tessa, come here!!" really happily and towards the end she was coming over more quickly. Baby steps! It feels like I'm teaching her how to learn. "Oh, you mean when you say these words and I actually do something, I get treats? Words and actions equal treats??? I like this!"

 

That brings me to my next question, though. What are some really awesome rewards that are also portable? Yesterday I used small chunks of cheese which worked quite well, but they got kind of gross and squishy after a while. She didn't mind, but reaching into a bag of slightly smushy cheese isn't pleasant for the human What are some good training treats that don't get unpleasant, either human food or actual doggie training treats?

[dante2zoe]

Over nuked hot dog bits were the go-to treat for my boys when training. Costco also sells these steak bite treats that the girls only get after pills, so they think those are the ultimate. They break into little smidges of treat, which is the way I like to treat them. Tiny bits but lots. Mine are about the number of treats, not the size! You could also try letting the cheese dry out - mine love cheese rinds, so that may work, too.

 

Good luck!

[EllenEveBaz]

Nuked hot dog slices and liver treats are the ultimates, but both kind of mushy. Zuke's Minis are about the size of chocolate chips, come in a variety of flavors, do not turn into mush, and are very well received here. Of course, anything remotely edible is very well received here. Another style of treat that doesn't go to mush is jerky for dogs.

 

https://www.chewy.com/s?rh=brand_facet%3AZuke%27s%2Cc%3A288&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Zuke's&utm_term=%2Bzuke's%20%2Bmini%20%2Bdog%20%2Btreats&utm_content=Zuke's%20Dog%20Treats

[Roo]

The Zuke's minis are a hit! I bought one of the liver flavors and she's very happy. We also walked to the store and back for a total of 2.5 miles, so that helped too.

 

I also found the clicker I thought I lost, so I'm going to see if I can get her used to the clicker noise. I tried training with another marker and it didn't seem to mean anything (and I'm fairly certain I wasn't totally committed and that's half the problem ).

Edited October 30, 2017 by Roo