watch me V leave it

[Ellen]

Hi,

I have been training Ally "leave it " with some success ( now and again)

He appears to have quite a high prey drive esp. squirrels  and certain small dogs so it's trying to distract him when he spots one, can't use food treats when out as he's muzzled.

Reading some passed posts people recommend "watch me" signal, is there much difference  or benefit ?

[greysmom]

Yes.  There are, in fact, asking for opposite behaviors.

Leave It - you want him to completely ignore something of his own volition.

Watch Me - you are asking him to focus his attention on you for a purpose.

If you need some direction regarding teaching him get the book/ebook "Fearful Fido: Help for the Leash Reactive Dog."  Your boy isn't truly leash reactive, but the focusing techniques will be very similar.

[BatterseaBrindl]

This is an excellent booklet !

Ally should know both of those 'commands'.

'Wait' is the first thing I teach a new dog, followed by the Leave it and Watch Me.

Edited October 13, 2020 by BatterseaBrindl

[Feefee147]

On 10/13/2020 at 10:32 AM, Ellen said:

Hi,

I have been training Ally "leave it " with some success ( now and again)

He appears to have quite a high prey drive esp. squirrels  and certain small dogs so it's trying to distract him when he spots one, can't use food treats when out as he's muzzled.

Reading some passed posts people recommend "watch me" signal, is there much difference  or benefit ?

It's hard to reinforce the good behaviour without a tasty treat. 

We use a standard cage type muzzle - 

 https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/300893899860?chn=ps&var=600226490813&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=710-134428-41853-0&mkcid=2&itemid=600226490813_300893899860&targetid=938486033460&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=9045957&campaignid=10199638297&mkgroupid=101938342477&rlsatarget=pla-938486033460&abcId=1145987&merchantid=119360265&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8rT8BRCbARIsALWiOvSYNxVj3uNZGcluQZq0_bTqPg06PasKdsCJd6Js34ljQN9mCDQu-GcaAl_YEALw_wcB

I've found it took a bit of practice but actually its very easy to get a small treat in the gaps - although it did take a week of us both constantly rummaging around on the floor trying to pick up a treat before I mastered it :-)

 

[Ellen]

Hi, thanks' for replying. I must admit we were both getting  frustrated trying to get treats through his muzzle and I gave up.Will need to practice more

 I was looking at "Gentle Muzzle Guard for Dogs"  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gentle-Muzzle-Guard-Dogs-Prevents/dp/B07KPJVR31/ref=bmx_7?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07KPJVR31&pd_rd_r=6de6e106-2a94-44de

Has anyone had any experience  of these ?

[Feefee147]

6 minutes ago, Ellen said:

Hi, thanks' for replying. I must admit we were both getting  frustrated trying to get treats through his muzzle and I gave up.Will need to practice more

 I was looking at "Gentle Muzzle Guard for Dogs"  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gentle-Muzzle-Guard-Dogs-Prevents/dp/B07KPJVR31/ref=bmx_7?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07KPJVR31&pd_rd_r=6de6e106-2a94-44de

Has anyone had any experience  of these ?

Yes - I much prefer the full muzzle, mainly because my boy is reactive with small dogs and can get a nip in with the gentle muzzle guard (assuming it's not so tight it's clamping their mouth shut). I also tried a different full muzzle which is less rigid with bigger gaps...again, he could nip through it if he wanted. 

My OH gets frustrated with treats through the muzzle, but I've cracked it now - tell him a treats coming and pop it through one of the top holes. He usually manages to grab it :-)

[MerseyGrey]

Use long thin treats. You can hold them until your dog grabs them. Have a second one ready for the inevitable occasional fail. I’ve no experience of the muzzle you linked, but it looks a bit like it might slip off a greyhound’s tiny head. No one references a greyhound in the reviews (you can do a search just above the ‘questions’ section) so I would stick with the basket muzzle unless you want to be a pioneer!

[Ellen]

Cheers, I wasn't sure about the soft muzzle as Ally is very reactive to certain small dogs, and luckily the ones we have met so far have been on the leash so he hasn't managed to get a nip in, but I would be concerned if one rushed up he would try and bite it.

I think it's practice , practice , practice with the treats  through his basket muzzle