A break in transmission

Gosh, where did the last few weeks go? I can't believe Christmas is nearly upon us. Grey doesn't know anything about Christmas, so there's a blessing! He'll not be disappointed with another usual walk and a usual breakfast!

We had a sad even befall us. Grey shared our house with Rock. Our four and a half year old maine coon cat. He had only recently bee diagnosed with the heart condition HCM and was doing really well on the meds. He died suddenly at home two weeks ago while Grey and I were out having his dental plate looked at in Hastings. We're so sad as Rock was such a wonderful cat and companion.

A few days after Rock's passing we were notified of two littermate maine coon boys who were up for rehoming due to bereivement. So Ollie and Jay now came to live with us. They've been here five days and have started to settle in fine. They're lovely soft cats. They're being introduced to grey slowly and so the baby gates have gone back up. So far so good. Just mixing up the scents at the moment and getting them used to the sound of the other.

We also had flu hit the house. So much of last week, Grey's walk was a real struggle. I ended up climbing back to bed along with Grey for the afternoon and evening.

Lead training has been going well. Still tiny steps and it all depends on how excited he is. But slowly and surely he is starting to show signs of how it will be to have a dog that walks nicely beside me. We had a nice session out on Minnis today. His recalls are good again. I sat out on the sea wall and called him back on the whistle leaving him a nice little prize of hotdog sausage on the wall beside me, then releasing him back. I did it about 10 times, and no fail. Did some loose lead on the sea wall which was really surprising. I also added in some sharp right turns and about turns at the end. I was given this tip from a gundog trainer I've been talking to. Right turns keep them closer wheras the left turn (also a methiod oft used by gundog trainers) pushes through the dig, but away. So I'm working Turid's method for loose lead walking and then I'm adding in a tighter 'heel' where he has to follow me more closely.

Training / Loose Lead / Turid / session 3

An even better session tonight. Went out in the dark again, which makes it even more hard distraction wise. I hardly had to do any changes in direction. We walked all around the block, more of less on a loose lead reinforcing now and again with chicken. When he did start to stray forwards, I would slow and stop, gently get his attention, make the clicking sound with my mouth and go in the opposite direction. So proud of him. First glimpse of what it will be like to be able to take him everywhere with me on the normal collar and lead. Just lovely. Thank you Turid!

Training / Loose Lead / Turid / Session 2

Had a great session with Grey today. We'd been out for a huge run to Pegwell and a saunter round Sandwich on the Gencon. When we got home I worked the technique round the back yard and he did that fine. Then came the next test of in front of the house, which is much busier. He did it really well without pulling for about five minutes. I put the success down to him understanding what the sound means from the extra indoor and back yard practice plus my timing was better. I was also not stressed and had great treats. Roast chicken and some homemade liver cake. So hopefully more of that again tomorrow.

Training / Food Guarding

We followed the step by step guide in Jean Donaldson's book for food guarding. The sequence we ran through:

Level 1: Empty Food Bowl

1. Approach dog and the empty bowl from 6ft away, drop treats in bowl, walk away. Repeat. Change angles.
2. Approach from 10ft, drop treats in empty bowl, walk away. Approach from different angles.
3. Approach from 20ft away, drop treats in empty bowl, walk away.
4. Approach from 10ft, bend 1/2 distance to the bowl as if to pick it up, drop treats in, walk away.
5. Approach from 10ft, bend all the way to bowl as if to pick it up, stop with treat hand an inch from the bowl, drop in treats, walk away.
6. Approach from 10ft, bend over as if to pick up bowl, pause 2 seconds, drop treats in, walk away.
7. Proof random distances, angles, with 2 sec pause and treat drop.
8. Approach from 10ft, reach toward bowl, but do not pick up, drop treats in bowl with opposite hand.
9. Approach from 10ft, reach toward bowl, touch it for 1 sec, add treats with opposite hand.
10. Approach from 10ft, touch bowl for 3 secs, add treats with opposite hand.
11. Approach and touch for 5 secs before adding treats with opposite hand.
12. Approach and touch for 10 secs before adding treats with opposite hand.
13. Approach and touch for 20 secs before adding treats with opposite hand.
14. Approach and touch for 30 secs before adding treats with opposite hand.
15. Proof random distances and angles with 30 sec bowl touch prior to treat drop with opposite hand.
16. Approach, grasp and move bowl for 2 secs, then add treats with opposite hand.
17. Approach, grasp and move bowl for 5 secs, then add treats with opposite hand.
18. Approach, grasp and move bowl for 10 secs, then add treats with opposite hand.
19. Approach, lift empty bowl to waist height, add treats and return.
20. Approach, take empty bowl to counter or table and add treats and return.
21. Approach, pat dog's back for 1 sec, add treats to bowl.
22. Approach, pat dog's back for 3 sec, add treats to bowl.
23. Approach, pat dog's back for 5 sec, add treats to bowl.
24. Approach, pat dog's back for 1-2 secs, take bowl away, add treats, return bowl.
25. Proof random distances and angles.

It went really well. I was working with a high value food: raw mined lamb. You could see it got him thinking. He seemed pretty comfortable with all of it. I think I saw a slight flinch when we started the patting him sequence. But basically he was fine with it.

Not sure what to do the next level up as supposed to train with kibble. Hmm. will have to work that one out.

Training / Off

I worked through a series of 'up ups' and 'offs' in the living room on the sofa. This was advised by Jean Donaldson in her book 'Mine!' as a way of getting them off objects like beds, cars, whatever without them becoming collar shy by having to be pulled off. Grey does have a tendency to mouth, not hard, but mouth if I went to pull him off something by the collar. So I always end up having to push him off.

I'd already been using 'up up' to get into the car and onto the bed or sofa, but I haven't really trained a proper 'off' to get down from somewhere. Jean uses a simple hand target to get the dog up and then off. Grey already knows a simple hand target, my open palm with the cue 'touch'. It's always a fun and fast warm up behaviour to get him in the game of a training session. We had a nice five minutes of quite fast up and off the sofa. He seemed to get it, so we'll run through it again over the next few days.

Training / Loose Lead

I watched a few more details on Turid's DVD again and then ran through some practice round the house. It had already gone dark and was raining outside, so it seemed an ideal opportunity for some indoor training. I think it will be good for him to build up positive experience of associating the word with the treats and the right position on the lead.

Around and about

Had a busy day of things today. Went out to the top of Botany Bay and walked in stange patterns and directions on the open rough grass there. I'd let him over shoot and then I would go through the longer grass to the other side calling him 'this way!' and up he came running. He had loads of energy today. When we started the walk we had to stand for ages after getting out of the car for him to stop being so excited. Waited for a nice sit and then undid the lead. Off zooming in big circles.

When we came down to the beach there were people at the bottom of the hill with older dogs on leads. Grey had already shot down to say hello, before I managed to get him back. Up I ran back up the hill calling him. Ended up hiding near the public toilets so he'd come looking for me, which he did. We then waited nicely until the group came up the hill and passed us.

The tide was out, so we went all the way round to Kingsgate. I stood in the middle of the beach quite still. Eventually he started to get bored of going round and round and looked liked he'd be into the idea of coming back to me. So I did quite a few reps of getting him to come to me and sit for some garlic sausage.

We also played the two ball game with two tennis balls like I'd done in the house the day before. This worked a little but less well. So when he started to muck around and run off with the ball and drop it far from me, I packed up the balls for another day.

The sun was out and amazing. Beautiful clear day. There was a quad bike on the beach in the distance which Grey looked at but didn't bark or chase it. Good boy!

Back home for lunch (me not him) and then off into town on the GenCon. He did really well. Was still pulling into it alot. But not struggling as much. We went for coffee in a bar. He sat on his blanket and ate a dried turkey neck. Only got off the blanket once and was put back on it nicely. he stood outside a shop with L while I was inside with no shouting and crying.

Sad news

Grey shared our house with Rock, who was a four and a half year old Maine Coon cat. Sadly Rock was recently diagnosed with feline HCM and passed away suddenly on Weds morning at home. I got a call just as Grey and I were getting in the car after his dental visit to adjust his plate in Hastings. Rock was very patient with Grey and his bouncy antics. Grey never did fully understand that his big brother was much smaller than him and not up for the same kind of games. Although we did share some nice quiet moments, all sat down together sharing chicken tidbits.

Night night Rock. Sleep tight.

teeth update

His teeth have come on really nicely. One of the lower canines is already in the right position. That was just after one and a half weeks. He'll go back in tomorrow and maybe have a side of the plate built out so it can work on the other side. I have to say, apart from the horrid trip for him to the vets that he doesn't like and has to be carried in like Scooby Do then it's not been too bad. He doesn't seem to be bothered by it. If it works it seems like a much better solution than having adult canine teeth out.

Ch_ch_changes!

I'm about onto day five of instigating some changes in handling Grey. I took advice from friends that perhaps I need to step in more when he's being naughty and frankly a bit out of order and not let him get away with things. So changes are: more time outs. If he's playing rough or hassling Rock the cat, he gets interupted and excluded from the room for a couple of minutes. He gets put out of the room that we and the cat are in. He's then invited back in, asked to sit and we make up and see if he's better behaved. If he's being milder with the cat but still a pain, he's told to 'leave it' which nine times out of ten he does otherwise he goes out again. Also, because he's done amazingly well learning 'leave it' under other circumstances. He left a piece of roast beef on the floor when M told him to on Saturday. For a whole 20 secs.

The same goes for jumping up roughly. He started doing this a couple of weeks ago particularly when we're about to go out. He gets told it's rude, made to sit and then we make up. I've also used the 'leave it' cue for the barking at the front window. In fact, I now intervene more and don't let him hang around in front of the window at all. Basically I want nice calm behaviour. If I don't get it, he's taken for a time out and then invited back in. Exclusion from the family really works with him and we've seen a huge difference.

L is also under strict instructions: no more dog wrestling! It must be a man thing? Anyway, we're currently sticking to 'find L' as the game of the month.

I also now employ the same rules outside. I'm now not embarrassed to stand and wait for him to be calm and re-engage. I have to remind myself to be more concentrated and not give in because of the situtation. Which brings me to the so called slovak character. I had always read that they were biddable and lovely temperaments. I think he's a lovely dog and does have a lovely temperament, but I'm now finding out from my more experienced dog friends that Grey is a monkey, isn't a sensitive dog, is strong willed and defintiely not for the feinthearted. One friend said that by the time I've trained Grey I might be as grey as him!

The photo is him all wrapped up after a swift warm water wash down in the yard after getting caked in mud on our walk today.

Training / The Retrieve / Session 1

I've started Shirley Chong's retrieve tonight. We did it with his evening meal of raw mince. I fed him a teaspoon of mince for each treat. I had been wondering how to get round clicker training and him beig BARF fed. This seemed to work really nicely. He was being really careful with his taking of the meat. Another nice touch is that it hasn't been a freebie meal. Each bit of that 445g of meat was hand fed and he was really into doing the training too as it's a high level food.

He quickly moved on from looking, nose bumping to teeth touching and then by the end or taking the bit of his blue chew toy in his mouth. He never chews that toy anyway, so might as well get some use out of it! I don't have a dumbell for him yet, but the chewtoy I'm using is kind of dumbell shaped.

I want to teach him the formal retrieve as he's a little monkey when we're outside and never brings objects back. He claims ownership and runs around with them. I've been advised to stop this and so now have moved on to teaching a formal retrieve. Plan is to do another session late tonight or perhaps in the morning with me holding it in my hand again before hopefully moving on to placing the object on the floor.

The retrieve is also recommended by Jean Donaldson in her excellent book on resource guarding, Mine! I'm going to do more little structured sessions at home now the nights have drawn in. We've moved on to one big walk late morning/lunchtime. Then home for snoozing. So I reckon a nice session in the early morning will fit nicely with this. Seems like not enough hours in the day to fit everything in with walking, snoozing, playing and eating!

Poor poopy's teeth

Well, the next chapter of helping Grey with his teeth problem came upon us. He went in for his op at the specialist dentists on Weds. Poor pupster was really scared when he arrived at the vets and really didn't want to go in. Had to be carried in. He ended up having to have an upper adult canine out because it was obstructing where we want one of the lower canines to grow once they're pushed forward by the plate. The plate is glued to his upper teeth and will be in for at least a month. He had a course of anti-biotics and we have to apply a gel to his gums after each meal.

He was back to his old self the next day. We're supposed to stop him chewing hard stuff, which is er, kind of hard. He's a puppy after all. He sounds a bit like he has false teeth in when he's cleaning himself.

Blowing hot and cold

Friday the weather was bright and lovely, so was Saturday. Then today it was hardly light at all.
Today's walk down Minnis was wet, very windy and really grey. But no matter. We had great run.


We ran through more silky leash training in the house before breakfast. Then again outside in the back garden. All good. I then opened the garde gate so the pavement was accessible. We drifted in and out the gate and the yard a few times, clicking and treating. He did really well. Plan is to be able to build up to going the full length of the street. We tried some more at the car park at the start of the walk which was less good. So it's clear we just have to build up gradually.

Today's training

I tried out a little session in the bathroom of the silky leash method this morning. Went nicely. He had fun, got it and had some bits of hotdog. So all good. Went out to Bekesbourne for a walk. The sun was really out, so a lovely autumn day. Went a slightly different route and so he had to go on the gencon head collar for a stretch of the walk. He got really stressed by this as L kept walking slightly ahead. This really frustrates Grey. We stopped off at the vets, got him weighed: 27.75KG. Walked back to the car across the fields.

At home we ran through more of the silky leash method in the house which again went well. He was then hand fed his dinner as per the RRR DVD.

This evening we've played fetch with two balls to see if that encourages him to give one up any easier. He then took to hiding potatoes from the sack into his bed.

New stuff to try out: He got a large big dog sized nylabone. Also a front fastening harness from Halti.

Turid Rugaas - My Dog Pulls DVD

Interesting that Turid makes a sound to get the dogs attention and to get him to come to you. The previous method, Shirley's seems to teach the dog to follow the direction of any pressure on the lead. I've ordered Turid's DVD from Sheila Harper's online shop anyway.

Silky Leash

Another interesting video of LLW training. This particular method seems to be Shirley Chong's method. Which teaches the dog to move in the direction of a very light lead pressure.

Laid back pupster

Picked Grey up from the boarding kennels yesterday morning. Was really funny to have not seen him for three days. It was like really seeing him for his shape and colour rather than just being used to him, if that makes sense. He was very happy to see me and in a lovely happy mood. He seemed really content trotting around there and he'd made friend's with D's lovely dog, Daisy the SBT. They were all running up and down the runs in a happy go lucky stylee. What made me laugh was D said Grey was contented and very laid back! I suppose he is once he's inside the house, so he must see the kennels as the same thing. I'm really glad I was recommended to try him there. He really likes it and is well looked after.

We went straight to Minnis for a nice walk. I've started going down there as I can park the car near to where I let him off the lead. It's got a mixture of terrain: grass short and long, rough paths, hard tarmac, sand and shingle. Managed to do a spot of LLW too. He slept for the rest of the afternoon. L and I played the name game with him as recommended in the Really Reliable Recall DVD. I also started the programme of hand feeding him to build on the relationship as advised.

Mmm... new stuff!

Two new things arrived in the post today. A scrummy new collar from Lupine, the Combo collar in a nice camo pattern called Bone Hunter. His leather martingale had pinched his fur out on his lower neck. The nice thing about it is that it has two D rings, so it can be put on as a standard collar, or attached in the martingale function. Lupine also guarantee the collar so if it breaks or gets chewed they'll replace it. Not had chance to try it on him yet as he's gone into kennels for a few days. He was really happy to see the guys at kennels again, so that was great. Still hard leaving him there though.

Second thing to drop through the door is the DVD by Leslie Nelson called 'Really Reliable Recall' bought from Canine Concepts. Great delivery service btw! I've heard great things about it, so will give that some viewing tonight. One thing I miss from not being in class anymore is seeing how other people do stuff timing wise.

Woohoo! A Great Day!

Very excited and happy with how today went. I tried out the technique of delivering the treat behind my heel directly on the floor. Placing it on the floor, not dropping it. This placed me slightly ahead of him and I was able to encourage him to follow me and click him when he was at my side. if he forged ahead I changed direction gently and clicked him when he was heading back to me, the treat again on the floor behind my left heel.

I think a huge part of the success of today was incorporating Ian Dunbar's method of getting out the house by waiting for a series of sits and working the hallway to the outside with the front door open. So in general, excitement levels were lower by the time we were outside and if things got too much again, we just stood and waited. I guess I often forgot the rule that you can't train if the dog's not in the game. I was struggling how to get him in the game at all.

So we just went up and down in front of the house. Going nowhere was a relief too. No pressure to get to the park for a run. We just came back into the house for a while before then going out in the car for a really fun walk on the beach. He had a play with a collie pup a bit older than him, got filthy muddy in the grassy boggy bits and then the sun came out. I wasn't stressed about his recall because of the terrain and I managed to get hold of him nicely or distract him from cyclists and on lead dogs. The other great thing was that the beach was right next to the parking space. I even managed to do some LLW training in the car park which is a real challenge for him as it's probably his most exciting place evah!

I was very proud of him today. Love that pup.

When I'm calling you!

Grey's recall has now gone to pot. We're definitely in the realm of the teenager.

This morning in the park he wouldn't come back when I tried to call him off going up to an old lady and a yorkshire terrier on a flexi. Grey was very very very friendly and decided it was ok to try to squeeze through the lady's legs. This is the first time he wouldn't come back when called off another dog and me running in the opposite direction.

So this calls for more stringent management of free running. I got the long line out for the next park visit this evening. Was a bit of a shock for him but was a good move. He came back without having to be reeled in on the line. Have to watch out for friction burns and that I don't break a finger if he decides to run off. I'm thinking of getting this dvd. Leslie Nelson's Really Reliable Recall.

Behind the heel treat delivery during LLW

Neat little video on delivering treats during LLW.

It seems to work nicely in the house at least. It keeps him slightly behind. Not sure if it would work for us outside, as Grey is almost too excited for treats LLW outside. But, with bringing Ian Dunbar's pause and the count to 10 method from The Clicker Gun Dog, I did get a lot more focus and less yo-yo the last two days. I should try and get myself on video to track our progress.

Ian Dunbar's guide to leash walking

In case it disappears from the web page I found it on:

Forging ahead is the biggest problem when walking adolescent dogs on-leash. Dogs pull on leash for a variety of reasons. Many adolescent dogs pull on-leash, because they were allowed to pull as puppies. Once the leash is tightened, your dog no longer has to pay attention to you, since it has a taut telegraph wire through which it may sense your every move and even your very intentions, thus freeing its nose, ears and eyes to 'scope the 'hood. Also, it would appear that pulling on leash is intrinsically enjoyable and self-reinforcing for many dogs. It is as if most dogs view a trip to post a letter at Shattuck and Vine as a work-out for the Iditarod. Whatever the reason, leash-pulling is usually unacceptable and often dangerous. Once the leash is tightened, you can no longer control your dog - a principle of elementary physics.

It is considerably easier and smarter to first practice all of these exercises with the young puppy on-leash indoors. Also, to have a simple rule that no one, that is NO ONE, is allowed to walk the pup on-leash outdoors, not even a single step, unless they can walk the puppydog without it pulling. It is utterly unfair to let a puppy develop a leash-pulling habit, knowing full well it will be punished for the same habit as an adolescent. It is so much easier to establish an acceptable status quo from the outset. Just bear in mind, the dog weight-pulling record is in the region of 10,000lbs, i.e., in just a few months time, your average dog will have the power to pull the entire Cowboys' defensive line backwards. From the getgo, NEVER permit leash-pulling to get going.

Using a leash to walk the puppy is necessary as a safety precaution, and leashing the dog is mandatory when leash laws are in effect. However, once a novice owner and an adolescent dog are connected with a leash, the dog will pull. And to stop the dog from pulling, usually (but not always) the owner pulls back, i.e., the owner jerks the leash. Most owners find this unpleasant. And it is not much fun for dogs either. Since we do not want the dog to associate walking and heeling with numerous physical leash corrections, we must first make sure the dog can stand calmly on-leash before further exciting the dog by moving.

Training game: Red light - green light

Firstly, before even considering leash training, make sure that you can get your pup to follow you around the house and garden and that it will happily sit-stay in front of you for a good 30 seconds. Surely you would want to check to see that your puppy feels good about following and staying close before you physically restrain its activity with a leash. After all, leash-pulling does advertise the fact your dog wants to get away from you. So, give your dog a reason to stick around. Lighten up, brighten up and maybe offer the dog an occasional kind word, pat or treat.

Secondly, before going anywhere, let's make sure that your dog knows how to stand around on-leash without pulling. Initially, let's practice indoors because: 1) you may start training well before your pup has completed its shots, 2) there are fewer distractions and 3) it avoids the embarrassment of making a spectacle of oneself on the street.

Put your pup on leash. Firmly grasp the end loop with both hands held close to your body. Stand perfectly still, and pay absolute attention to your pup, but ignore all antics at the other end of the leash. Eventually, your pup will sit or lie down. Yes, it will. Just be patient and wait and see. When it does so, immediately say "Good dog," offer a treat, say "Let's Go," take one step forwards and then stand still again. Be prepared; taking a single step will energize your pup, and it will lunge with vengeance. Again, ignore the puppy's antics, and wait until it sits once more. Then, reward your dog, take another step and stand still again. With successive trials, have your dog sit for progressively longer periods before praising it and taking another step. Once it is possible to alternate single steps with standstills without the pup pulling, try taking two steps at a time before standing still. Then try three steps, four steps and so on. As with off-leash heeling, think of it in short sequences. Once the sequences have expanded to six or seven steps, you are now walking your pup on-leash without it pulling, and it will sit automatically by your side whenever you stop. If your puppy ever tightens the leash when you are walking, immediately stand still and wait for it to sit again before moving on.

Basically, this technique is a variation of 'red light - green light,' and as with all effective training methods, you have duped your puppy into believing that it is training you. Perhaps your canine companion muses, "My owners are so easy to train. Just barely tighten the leash, and they stand stay. Sit down, and they move ahead." Your dog's happy, and so are you.

Walking sequences

Practice walking your pup on-leash around the house and garden, interspersed with many stops. Say "Rover, Let's Go" or "Come Along" each time before you walk (again, the precise words do not matter - you choose), and instruct the pup to "Sit" each time you stop. When your puppy is old enough to walk on the sidewalks, first try walking in the hallway with the front door open, then practice leaving and entering the house. Dogs commonly tend to lunge at doorways, and so this is worth a little extra special practice. Leave and return several times in a row, and soon your pup will be picture perfect. Have your puppy sit both before and after going through the door. Then, walk back and forth in front of the house. Walk and standstill in sequences, and keep repeating the sequences over and over. Remember, it is always the hardest the first time you try. If the dog pulls, say "Steady" and stand still. Once the pup sits, go back and repeat the sequence. It will be much easier the next time.

Now, you are ready for several laps round the block. Much like horses, dogs will tend to forge when leaving home but lag when coming back. If the puppy pulls on the way out, say "Steady," about turn, and frog-march the pup back home and start again.

The first trip around the block may take a long time, but the second and third laps are progressively easier, and thereafter, it's a breeze.

Basically, dogs pull because: 1) pulling is enjoyable, 2) the owner lets the dog pull and 3) the owner follows. The same basic principles for teaching dogs to follow off-leash may be used to teach a dog to walk on-leash. Hold the leash with both hands close to the left side of your body, so as to give the puppy just a couple of inches of slack, then start walking and keep walking. Whatever the puppy does to improvise on your intended direction, do the opposite. If the puppy lunges ahead, just do a smooth right-about turn and head off in the opposite direction. If the puppy pulls left, turn right. If the puppy drifts right behind you, turn left. If the puppy drifts right in front of you, speed up to cut-off the pup, and then turn left in front of it. If the puppy slows down to sniff or pee, that's fine - this is usually the reason we are walking the dog - slow down and wait for the pup. Of course, if you want your pup to come along, say "Come Along" and/or "Hustle," and off you go. This method works well when practiced at home with young puppies or in the park with older puppies, adolescent and adult dogs.

Pulling on command

Some owners might consider allowing the dog to pull when convenient. Look, if the dog has got a bee in its bonnet about pulling, if pulling on-leash is such a thrill, why be a killjoy? Why not let the draught doggie pull at acceptable times? Only of course, when given the OK by the owner - "Rover, Pull," "Mush," "Hike" or whatever. Personally, I appreciate Phoenix's tractor beam up the Rose Walk steps and the "Pull" command is a boon when we harness her to our sled in the Sierra: "Phoenie, Pull!" Whoooshhhhh. Yea! Way to go!

Excerpted from How to Teach a New Dog Old Tricks, by Ian Dunbar.

Ian Dunbar is a veterinarian and animal behaviorist, founder of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, and the author and star of numerous books and videos on dog behavior and training. He lives in Berkeley, California with his wife, trainer Kelly Dunbar, and their three dogs. The Dunbars are contributing editors to DogTime.

A week's a long time in puppy world

I've not been updating on daily Grey the last week. Bad of me, as he's been up to quite a lot! But I did go back to work a couple of days this week, leaving him with his favourite person, L.

Some things sort of slipped me, which reminds me to remember that some things are not to panic about and just a phase that he went through. One instance is barking. He went through about five weeks of barking at night, barking at things that spooked him. So for the last week, we've managed to get through the night without him reacting to every single noise he hears outside the house by rushing round barking. I'm glad we more or less just ignored him throughout this. It's thankfully a lot quieter now.

Other news is that he's now on a strict regime of LLW training. That's loose lead walking. We don't go on walks anymore where he's allowed to pull. If we have to go from A to B he's on the Gencon. But mostly I try not to take him anywhere except training. It still feels like an unending uphill struggle and that the little monkey relly won't ever get it. Two days ago I was reminded to return to one of the first books I bought: Ian Dunbar's Before and After You Get Your Puppy. There was quite a nice process for getting out of the house. Ian recommends showing the pup the lead, cue excitement, wait and wait for pup to quiet and sit on his own. Strictly no asking him to sit. Then clip on the lead, cue excitement, wait for a sit, then take a step to the door, wait for a sit and so on. Get out the house, wait for a sit. Go back in and repeat, until you have a calm process for this. He then uses this approach for the walk. Only trouble I have with this is that when I take a step forwards, Grey does too. We really didn't get past the one step forward and stop. But it was an interesting couple of sessions. Lots of whining and crying from Grey out of sheer frustration at not getting what he wanted. It was a milestone I think.

Then the next day, my copy of Helen Philips' Clicker Gundog arrived. Her LLW method is to stop dead when the dog hits the end of the lead and lean backwards. Click for dog looking back and feed at the side. Then a crucial difference. She says the walk has ended and so count to ten, then regather yourself and start again. This is to stop the yo-yo action of the dog boinging forwards after taking the treat. I tried this method. I did see a little improvement, but by today, I've still got a dog who shoots forward after my first step. Will he ever learn?

15 secs is a long time for a puppy and a cracker

I was sat on the sofa eating a cracker, as you do. Grey was clearly interested so I put him a corner of the cracker on the cushion and asked him to 'leave it'. He easily lasted 15 secs, which is a huge thing for him I think. Also because I didn't have my hand near the cracker to protect it if he decided to go for it. I think this might mean he's passed L2 zen.

Today I did more of the run away from him training and hiding. He was even closer and even starting to turn it into a game of chase me. I made sure we had our last walk well before it went dark today as I don't want to risk encountering fireworks or kids in masks for halloween. Quite a few kids came to the house and there were fireworks on and off during the evening. Quite a bit of barking, but nothing too bad.

A good day

We had a brilliant couple of sessions trying out the about turn walking yesterday. I must have looked mad in the park and it's certainly going to keep me fit! I kept it up for about an hour the first time. I just kept walking in the exact opposite direction from him as soon as he came past me. He started to range shorter and shorter distance and got the idea that he had to keep an eye on me. It really tapped into the thing that he really likes to be 10m ahead of me. We finished off the session with a game of hide and seek round the big trees. Then the best bit, we walked home on the flat collar and lead and more or less made it home with no pulling. Yay!

So will do more of the same today. I think I have to come up with a range of activities where I'm more fun and interesting than what he can get up to on his own devices. Popping out with L this morning with him to do the come game that we used to play when he was little. It's so easy to forget to do this stuff once you've got used to them.

The about turn walk

Interesting method via the Gundog Club forum that I think will work with to turn around Grey's recall. I have sort of developed this myself with him over the last month as one of the ways to get him back is to change direction. But I often call him. So this method means doing lots of about turns away from the dog without calling him.

Grey is a fatty

No way to put this politely. Grey is carrying a bit of surplus weight. Ok, ok, he's a fatty. He might have slowed down in his growth recently and so some of the portions of lamb might have piled on the hips a little. So he's going on a diet again.

New collar new day

I knew I was speaking of success before I should have done regarding the halti and the new walking technique. After two days, Grey started struggling against the Halti for the whole walk. He would lean into it and made snuffling sounds with his breathing, so generally a struggle and it was uncomfortable on my arm. That and much throwing himself on the floor in a toddler protest and trying to rub it off on my trousers. He really hated it and would run and hide in his bed when I got it out, even if it meant going for a walk and was offered with a piece of sausage.

So over the weekend it was suggested I look at two more collars. The first the Gencon headcollar, which works by contracting the whole head and at the back of the head, similar to the TTouch calming bands. My friend kindly lent me hers so we did a swapsie and I gave the Halti back. He struggled a bit when it was put on like a pony with a new bridle. But after his initial protests he settled into it and really responded. I need to manage him more proactively as well, by lifting his head from scenting and stopping him lying on the floor. So we managed a while walking round the park and then through the high street with a well behaved more with me Grey that wasn't fighting the collar. It also doesn't ride up in his eyes. We'll see how he goes from here on if it continues.

We also bumped into Obi four times on the walk. Which was lovely and interesting because I got to see how different they are. Ok there's a big age gap with Obi being six weeks younger. But even at that age, Grey was a more determined to do his own thing on the lead character than Obi seems to be. Still so strange to see another one at the same time as Grey!


The other headcollar I had been recommended was the Dogmatic. It works like the Halti, but it doesn't ride up in the eyes and is good for large strong dogs. Hopefully we won't need it if training goes ok on the Gencon. If I do get one, I've been advised to get either the synthetic leather or the cotton one because the original leather versions need a lot of softening up.

We met Obi!

Swoon, feel bad now that I didn't get a piccie, but we were so excited to meet Obi, the new slovak on the block. He's six weeks younger than Grey and lovely. Funny to see his head pop over the wall as we were on the beach yesterday. Like Grey, a hairy one, but younger. So like seeing how much Grey has changed in the last month or so. I have a feeling that Obi is better behaved than Grey!

They had a good play together, so the first meet went really well. It bodes well for the future.

We had a nice weekend of meeting other dogs. Bumped into the spinone pup that we'd met six weeks ago. He's come along beautifully. Hope to see him again.

I think the sand definitely is behind Grey's gunky eyes. If we've been on the beach he'll always have gunky bits the next morning. I wiped his eyes with a used tea bag to see if that settles it.

Slovak tums

I wonder if sensitive digestion is prevalent in slovaks? Grey was very poorly when we first got him. It turned out after battling with a runny bum for the first 5 weeks with us, despite being on cooked chicken and rice, and him nearly fading away with a raging temp at 9 weeks, that he had two nasty infections: Campylobacter and Giardia. Both infectious to humans and possibly fatal to young pups. We ran fecal tests after he just didn't get any better for weeks on end. It was really hard work keeping up with a puppy with the runs.

As soon as he had had the correct course of medication his digestion improved and became stable. He was then moved to a BARF diet, which is raw feeding. I order in a variety of meat and meaty bones from a specialist supplier. It works out cheaper than a complete food and he's doing really well on it. It also gives him something natural to do rather than just woof down a bowl of biscuits.

I've since spoken to other slovak pup owners and while they've had theirs tested for the same infections as Grey and have come back clear, a few seem to still have sensitive digestions with runny bums. So it makes me wonder if slovaks have sensitve tummys.

A new leash of life

We had a great training session with J today. We tried out a few bits of equipment to see how he got on. The anti-pull harness worked to stop him pulling, but he was still sniffing. This meant he was still very boingy and not with me. The slip lead, he just pulled and pulled and he's clearly not ready for that yet till he walks nicely. The chain we didn't bother. What really made a difference was changing the tactic on the halti head collar. Instead of carrying on with the steering him back on it, he was on a short lead on the head collar end which restricted him from scenting the ground and kept him close to my legs. He seemed to relax into it and it enabled us to walk at a fast pace, which I think he prefers anyway. All in all a much better experience and I felt I had control. Grey was much more focused with his head up. He still got his run off lead, just that on it, he has to be in the game. I can now start taking him everywhere again with me.

I tried it out again this eve on my own and it was still much better. I then had a little go of just training on the flat collar and that was good too. So the pla would be to build up practise of walking in the correct position on the head collar, then to switch to the flat collar eventually.

No more free lunches

From Monday, Grey has not had a feed at lunchtime. He's now on the two meals per day. He's still on the same amount of food, just divided across two meals instead of three. He doesn't seem to mind the change. There have been no protests or meaningful stares. He's also started with the big boy food of chicken carcasses and backs. His teeth have come through enough now for him to start chewing bone again. He's looking good on his natural raw diet. He's on about 1KG of food per day, split into raw meaty bones (RMB) like the chicken backs, lamb breast and ribs. The rest he has minced meat with bone in it and then some offal like kidney, liver, heart. Occaisionally fish like pilchards, an egg including the shell.

Six months old

This weekend Grey turned six months old. He now does his famous drive-by sweep instead of his neat little zoom and sit that he did from being little. But then teenages don't really like to hang out with their mums, do they? It was a big weekend for Grey. He had a first one night stay at the boarding kennels. They thought he was a lovely pup, very calm and sweet! Calm? When I went to pick him up the expression on his face was priceless. He did a double take and realised it was me. I had come back and he didn't live there now! First time for me too. I went to pick up my dog. MY dog!

We had a great walk today in Bekesbourne. We had a run in with a chocolate lab who charged up with a roar and ran Grey over. Nothing hurt except a bit had the stuffing knocked out of him briefly. Before that I managed to get some video of one of his regular drive-bys that are his recent answer to recalls:



Big news is that he had a little swim. There was a river and the bed sloped. So for all of three seconds when his feet left the bottom, the boy was swimming. Here's a video of him paddling:

Gratuitous puppy photos

I started this blog after Grey was already a little grown up. So I've not posted any of his little pupster photos from the beginning. Here's some unashamed puppy love.

More on his teeth

We had a trip to the vets yesterday, which he gets all very excited about. They're lovely with him which is great. We had a look at his teeth and the lower adult canines are coming through and already are impacting on his upper palette. The vet is going to get in touch with the canine dental specialist to see what's to be done next. The removal of adult canines would be a major op and quite serious as they form part of the jaw. I'm unsure if the acrylic plate will manage the job on the other hand, because his jaw is misaligned rather than just the position of the teeth. So would it manage to push the canines forwards enough to clear the upper front teeth? We'll hopefully hear more this week. Something has to be done though, the adult teeth are much longer and they could pierce the upper palette in a much more serious way than previously.

Other than that we came away with ear drops for a mildly irritated ear. And he weighed in at 24KG. So now he's 25 weeks old he's had a lull in weight gain and dropped down a kilo in ratio to his age in weeks.

We went for a walk in the nearby countryside to the vets. Grey met cows for the first time. He was cool with them until they all drifted up to say hello. He was on the lead so after a quick bark at them he was keen to make a swift exit. I lost my balance and was pulled down a grassy bank through a cow pat. The joy of having a big dog that pulls.

A start to handstripping

I hadn't really realised I would have to deal with Grey's coat other than the odd brush down with the zoom groom. But last week he was starting to look really hairy and I'd read that the old dead hair needed to be removed to promote a healthy coat that would be waterproof. So I had a go at handstripping and an amazing amount of hair came off. He still looked a bit partchy though, so next advice is to try hand stripping with rubber gloves on, but to watch out as it's quite addictive and I might end up with a weimaraner! I had a run over him today with a comb with a rubber band wrapped round it. He took to it really well and let me do him all over with no bother. Even his paws. By the end though he was looking at me asif to say 'are you finished yet?'


I need to look into whether his beard needs a bit of a trim or not and also to have a go at cutting his nails.

The teenager is arriving

I've noticed the last few days that Grey has started to change when out and about in the outside. From what I've heard, it could be the start of adolescence. His recall has suddenly developed into over shooting and running just out of reach. So we've gone back to working it so he comes back in reach so I can touch his collar. I'm not going to ask for a sit when he gets to me. Need to lower the bar, so that he does come back when I call him. He does react very well on the whistle for recall, it's the arriving at me that's now iffy. So when we're playing fetch with his tuggy toy, I'm blowing the recall whistle as soon as he's reached it. He doesn't have time to think and heads quickly back. If I then back up and change direction if I think he's not going to come back to me fully, we can more or less negotiate that he does get back to me. He's keener to keep up with me than to chase away on his own.

The other hard work is still loose leash walking. It's a constant battle of reinforcement when out on the street. I've switched him back to trying out the halti rather than the Gentle Leader. he seemed quite unhappy in the Gentle Leader. The halti he seems to mind less. Yesterday we tried heelwork round the house and garden and he managed it fine. Nice and close and good attention. So he can do it. It's out on the street that the outside is more exciting than me. But today, we managed to loose leash walk down the street to the park and back with the aid of sausage and liver cake. Hardly any of his eat the treat and boing forwards activities of the last week. So we hopefully have something to work on.

New toys

Very excited appreciation of the lovely shakeable Petstages Toss and Shake:
Damn! I paid too much for that at Pets at Home. Oh well.

And the Orka Tube:

Windshack cafe, Minnis Bay

This morning we took a walk down the opposite end of the coast we normally go to. We walked from Minnis Bay along the grassy path, which gives Grey lots to scent and is more his natural habitat than the beach and tarmac. I though he could do with a good run after the funday yesterday and the long car journey. The tide was out so on the way back we did the beach route and ended up at the Windshack cafe. Which to our pleasant surprise is super dog friendly, with other dog walkers there enjoying a breezy windswept coffee and the dogs get a biscuit from the owner Dougle (who knows all the dogs' names!). Definitely a recommended dog friendly place.

This reminded me to register a group on Flickr for dog friendly UK places.

Back from the Slovak fun day

Had a fab day at the Slovakian Rough Haired Pointer Club fun day in Aughton near York. Grey was really good on the 6 hour journey up north. He slept for all of it. Was great to meet lots of other slovaks in one place. Grey even won a prize! Amazingly, he came first in the scurry and he was the only pup. Bless him, he jumped over bales of hay to get the stuffed toy and bring it back to hand. Not sure that he meant to bring it back to hand, but rather misjudged his usual drive by swoop.

We had an intro to ground scenting (not sure if that's what it's called) by Denise who owns the lovely Fuzy (Ansona Brigadier). Grey managed to follow the trail of food out into the field to then find and pick up an object. So, I think he'd really enjoy doing more of this kind of activity in the future.

Unfortunately, I only managed to take a few pics as most of the time I was handling a very sociable Grey on his lead and then I was too distracted to take more.

I think we got kind of an idea what kind of adult Grey will turn into. Ian and Lynne Ware's Ted, seems to be the nearest in type and build. Ted is lovely. All the dogs seemed to show that the slovak temperament is really good. No disagreements all day.

Pics from the day:

Ted

Ian and his bird. Sorry, Ian, I can't remember the name or breed!

Freya (Stormdancer pup 10 days older than Grey)

A weim getting an intro to working trials with Denise

Wee wee wee!

Grey stood on his hind legs, propped himself up on the chaise with his front paws and had a wee on the corner of it while looking at the cat. Huh? And I thought toilet training was going better the last week.

In other news, we took a trip to the vets again. He's had a bit of a cough and I wanted to have them look at his new teeth. The cough is nothing to worry about and is probably caused by his op to have his teeth out. We're supposed to give him Benylin. His teeth are still not through enough to comment on or plan what to do next. The vet suggested we cut his eye lashes down to see if that helps clear up his sometimes gunky eyes. He does have ridiculously long eye lashes.

Nothing else hugely eventful other than to report he now weighs 22.6KG!

This evening we walked in the opposite direction along the seafront to normal as L took the car. A jack russell had a little snap at him from a safe distance. How rude!

New kid coming to town

Just heard that another slovak will be coming to town. He's a month younger than Grey and by the looks of it is a lovely handsome boy. We'd met his then prospective owner outside the chip shop a month ago and had a long chat about Grey and the breed. Very much looking forward to meeting him in person. So, C, if you read this, some and visit soon!

Gummy chops

Grey's lost most of his baby teeth now. He's ever so gummy, bless him. No idea where they've all gone to, perhaps he's eaten them! Now we need to monitor how the adult teeth come through and see if any further action needs to be taken.

We went to puppy class last night and we got a 'well done!' card and I got a chocolate. Grey got an extra bit of sausage. He did the down stay while I lay on the floor which was fun practicing this week in the park. He was much calmer in class in general and mostly sat or lay watching me rather than the other dogs. He managed to 'leave' of sausage on the floor for 15 secs and also a down stay of 20 secs in class too. So amazingly well done for a young pup.

I had been thinking of starting him with puppy gundog training, but might think again on it, as some friends have said they think he's too young for all that yet. They're right, there's a whole life of time for that kind of training and we can just carry on working on the basics and enjoying him being a pup.

He's also been much much better on the lead the last few days. I think having the back up of the gentle leader head collar has been brilliant. Just to get through those explosive 5 minutes where not even roast chicken can stop him from dragging me down the street. After he'd calmed down and got used to the idea of not being way up front, I took it off and just did the usual leash training on his flat collar. Not had to go back to the Gentle Leader in days.

Grey meets Gunner

I'd tracked down one the owner of one of Grey's litter mates. His brother, Gunner. Who it turns out is even bigger than Grey! Now there's a first. He lives about an hour from where we live which is brilliant. It was so very strange to see two slovaks together. Two youngsters the same age expecially. I'm so used to being the only slovak in the village. I suppose if the breed takes off then this might happen more often, but it's still rare. I don't even come across many HPR (hunt point and retrieve) breeds at all. In the last few months I've seen about three weims, one viszla, one spinone pup and that's it.

Anyway, Gunner is lovely. Less hairy than Grey, but then Grey is possibly too hairy at this stage. He's taller than Grey. Both have lovely temperaments, which is great to see. I'd love to know if there is some kind of residual recognition from when they were pups. They only lived together until they were seven weeks. They had a lovely play on the beach and for once I managed to get some great pictures.

Gunner is going to start gun dog level one training soon. I've begun enquiries about finding an HPR course for Grey too. I think half his leash issues are from him naturally quartering. Certainly don't have a problem sending him away from me to hunt. It's getting him to walk by my side that's a pain.

Here are some more pics from the big get together:

Back to basics leash training

After being pulled down the street by a 21kg crazy hound dog in Hythe on the weekend, it seems like time to go up the ante on leash training. Just in time, the Kumfi Juster training lead arrived in the post. So up and down the hallway we went. CT for loose leash which he does really nice inside. So it seems to be when he's out and about that the crazy hound sniffer dog appears.


Tonight it's puppy class again. Not had much time to work on wait because of the extra leash training I've been doing. No prizes for guessing who's going to be pulled into the hall with the most distracted dog in the group.

Naughty moment of the day was when he decided to pull the dog bed across the floor with the cat sat on it. Cat wasn't amused.

Sue Ailsby Levels videos

A selection of videos based on Sue Ailsby's levels.

Growing up

Grey cocked his leg for the first time today. The event was all the less momentous for the fact that he'd first started to pee while in the basement of the house chatting to a friend. So quick rush to the outside after stopping him mid-flow and there it was, like the monolith in Kubrik's 2001. The leg was well and truly cocked. Thankfully, he's back to the girlie squat since then. While I'm happy for the boy to grow up, I was kind of hoping he might turn out to be one of those dogs that never gets the whole leg cocking business.

Noticed also yesterday that his adult lower canines are peeping through. Will have to keep an eye on them from now on to see how they come through in relation to his upper jaw. Fingers crossed.

Had a lovely walk with Nelly yesterday evening. Funny how different they are together when there are no other dogs around whipping it all up. Nelly swims a lot. So far, Grey hasn't caught on to the idea. He paddles out halfway and waits for her to come back with the ball.

End of a long day at the office

Busy day yesterday. Training in the park, visit to the shopping centre for the mission XXL dog bed, romp on the beach with Nel, zoom to puppy class, home to dinner and trying out the new duvet with Seal.

Crazy that things for humans are so much cheaper than things for pets. The duvet is from Tesco at £8. If that had been in a pet shop it would be well over £20. Now just to get the actual bed. Probably better to get him his own 1 bed flat looking at the size of his paws.

Puppy class was funny. I was a baaaaaad handler. Grey very distracted about the other dogs. Not in a barky way, but in a 'what? you want me to walk up and down here? There are dogs over there! Are you mad?' He did manage a lovely sit and wait while crowded round with other dogs. There was only one humping incident.

Adventures in a hatchback

We had our first mini-camping trip on Saturday. I took L to the airport for his kickboxing trip and brought Grey along with me. We drove to London and arrived in Hackney, where we have just moved from, at 6am. It was really funny to be there, the place where I lived for ten years and no dog, to suddenly have a glimpse of what my life would be like there with Grey. We had a misty run round London Fields park in the early morning. Just me, him and the birds. Back to the car for a sleep. I parked up in the old industrial estate. Grey and I both crashed out till 9. I reckon if everything went belly up, we could camp out in the car!

Then off to have breakfast with M before returning home to the seaside.

We are family

Had some exciting news the other day. I've been in touch with one of Grey's litter mates. His brother. And even more exciting is that he lives not too far from us so we shall soon have a get together. So excited not only to see another slovak dog, but same age and his brother. So I nearly chose him! I had 3 to choose from. One was big and hairy (Grey), one was little and the other was big and not so hairy (this fella). No idea which of these pups is the one we'll meet. Grey was the puppy on top of the pile. Typical Grey. If in doubt, sit on it.

Little steps forwards

After the last session of capturing went all weird in the bathroom, a few people advised trying him in an environment he's more used to and for me to try to be more normal rather than still and silent. So we went back to the kitchen. You know that tiled waterproof place where Grey has never ever ever had a wee or a poo?

Well, the same thing happened again when I tried waiting for him to offer a sit or a down so I could click and treat him. He went into slow and staring mode, like he thought this was a challenge to do the world's longest watch while standing. So after a while and the poor pup was drooling waiting for a treat, I switched to teaching 'target' getting him to gently bop my hand with the end of his nose. This cheered him up and we were back to happy eager training pup again. So I will carry on with that one and see if I can sharpen up his down without retraining it as a capture. His 'touch' was up to about 2 metres away, so good boy!

Couple of pictures from a nice walk in Bekesbourne. Grey still won't go in the little stream. Shame because it looks perfect for dogs.

Little steps backwards

I thought I would re-teach Grey the cues 'sit' and 'down'. When I first taught his at 7.5 weeks, I lured him into position before click treating. I have always had a doubt that he doesn't fully get 'down' as he often needed repeat cues. I'd since had advice that it might be better to teach 'sit' and 'down' through capturing, i.e. CT when the pup does the action all by himself rather than luring with food which would then mean having to fade the treat.

So off into the smallest room in the house, the bathroom. Here I was told that a puppy might do all manner of things, but eventually will either sit or lie down. And at that point you can CT and the game begins. No verbalising or signalling anything. Just let the pup work it out for himself and when he does the action again, food rains from the sky. How cool is that?

I expected Grey to get this quickly. He's been clicker trained since little, so he knows that click = food/toy/belly rub etc. What was surprising is his energy levels went really low and he took to just staring at me. He did work through a series of say ten 'downs' but he didn't seem happy. He kept looking at me like I was crazy! i.e. 'what are we doing here in this room?'

Ah, well. Might have just been an off day.

Did I mention he had lost some baby teeth all on his own? He's growing up. Oh and he weighed in at 20.2kg!!! At 19 weeks he's now 1kg over his previous progress. He was always the same kg in weight in as many weeks.

Dog walks near motorways

What looks to be a really nice website Driving with Dogs lists walks near motorway exits and carparks. Really useful when traveling long distance and need to have a break on the way. Much more interesting than a mooch round the carpark.

Invited to the slovak funday!

Just opened an invitation to the Slovak funday on September 28th. Think we'll go. It'll be really cool to see a load of Slovaks all together. It's up in Aughton, so it'll be a bit of an adventure for the two of us. More info from the breed club.

Treat Bags

One of the issues of clicker training is the need to wander around with accessible, often greasy tidbits. I've been wandering around with a horrible blue plastic bum bag on for the last three months. I resisted buying a bespoke dog treat bag as invariably they came complete with pictures of dogs on them. When I first got Grey I was poking around an outdoor sports shop, tentatively checking out winter coats for this winter's inevitable freezing beach walks in driving rain. They had a selection of chalk bags for climbers and it dawned on me these might be ideal. Delivering treats needs to be fast and so what's needed is a bag that keeps the treats off your clothes and pockets, but that enables you to get your hand in and out quickly. Treats in pockets or plastic bags in handbags don't work. So when someone on a dog training forum mentioned chalk bags, I've come back to the idea. The bum bag has to go. So I've ordered a patterned bag from homemadeclimbingstuff.com.

At last a breakthrough!

Grey has made huge progress this week on lead walking this week. Ok, well, perhaps it's also me being more consistent. It's so easy to let him pull on the odd trip out and then expect him to go back to training on another. So, I've changed approach. I've started trying not to go out with him and allowing him to pull. We have a park at the end of the road, and we've managed to loose leash walk along the route. I've been reinforcing him every few paces at first with my trusty long armed treat i.e. a tube of Primula Cheese spread! (Surprisingly little rubbish in it and only have to give him a lick of it). Saves the ends of my fingers, can be delivered easily when still in motion and means I don't have to bend down so far. Started off click treating every couple of paces, then five, then six, eight, ten, twelve. He's definitely pulling less and when I say his name he slows. If the lead does go tight, i.e. if the clasp isn't hanging down vertically, I stop and wait for it to hang down. Then I click and move forwards again.

The method is a cobbled together mixture of the method introduced in class which is the CT every few paces with puppy in the right position. But this is some degree of luring. I might go back to basics and move on to Sue Ailsby's method, which would mean no walks on the lead until he's got it. So I would be better to drive to the park or beach and let him exercise with no sloppy leash walking getting learned in. I always remember one of Sue's statements about this. Something like "you want to walk the dog more than you want him not to pull" if you walk on lead with a pulling dog.

So let's lighten the mood

Grey's fine. He had a nice relaxing time at home. Woofed (pardon the pun) down his lunch. So not down in the dumps. We were back in action for his evening walk on the beach with his new best friend, Nelly the springer spaniel. The two of them have a general love in going on. There's also Ivy the greyhound, Cassie the saluki mix and Bo the bouncy bodacious poodle. But it's 11 month old Nelly that's the apple of his eye at the moment and they're a lovely even match.

I'll try and get pictures soon. I've had a few camera malfunctions with a ruined new digital camera and a lost phone on the weekend. Boo!

Week two of puppy training class

Lots of training this week. Tuesday day we met up with K and worked through stuff on a 1-2-1. We were doing exercises on 'down' and 'wait'. He did really well, despite it being really windy.

Tuesday night we went to the puppy class. This week it was working on 'down' and more loose leash walking. They teach the 'down' without luring. Grey was pulled out to demonstrate the teaching of the down by asking him for a 'sit' not giving a treat and waiting to see what he did next. Grey knows 'down' and because he's been clicker trained since little, he quickly offered a 'down' on his own. It seems clicker trained dogs know to offer different behaviours because they're used to having to work out how to get the reward. He seems to have come along in leaps and bounds because 'down' was always very hit and miss with him. His leash walking was great too. Not that that translates to walking around town though. He had to be distracted loads through the class with treats in his toy box, and he did seem to be the only puppy who dry humped a few times. Hmm, hopefully this isn't going to be a thing of his.

This morning we had a bit of an unfortunate run in. We were in the park with a someone we've met before and his dog. Grey has met him a couple of times before. And while it's not been a big love in, things were ok. We were in the park for ages and had come to the end of the walk and out of nowhere the dog attacked Grey and had to be pulled off. Grey ran around yelping like I'd not seen him do before and he has a swollen and scratched eyelid. I feel terrible as I'd always aimed to shield him from really bad experinences while he's young and still learning. Not that I want him to ever have bad experiences, but I think that never ever is a bit of an impossibility. Hope that Grey's good nature can shine through and that he doesn't become nervous of other dogs. He's now sleeping and I'll keep an eye on his eye.

Grey's teeth problems

We got the call today that Grey will have to have his lower canine teeth removed on Friday by a specialist canine dentist. He has an overshot upper jaw which has resulted in his lower canines sitting behind his upper teeth and puncturing holes in his upper palette. It's hoped that removing his canines like this that the adult teeth that follow will be able to be pushed in front. He may need to wear an acrylic plate, like a brace for dogs!

The slovaks are known for getting their teeth late. One thing I feel is imperative for such a new breed with such a small gene pool, is that where problems have been identified that those pairings are filtered out. Having to have him put under and having his teeth pulled isn't a nice thing. And this is just the start. Sorry Grey! Bo show career for you!

Here are pics of Grey's bite:

New harness

Wow! That has to be the fastest delivery of a quality item I've had in a while. Ordered a brown fleecy harness from Dog Games in size 4 one afternoon and it arrives the next day. It's lovely soft fleece and I really like the fact it unclips on both sides, so need to thread paws through, which makes getting it on a wriggling puppy much easier. So far, on the two outings we've had in it, it seems to have improved the pulling. At least he's not half strangling himself to death enroute to wherever he thinks it's reeeeeeeeeally important we get to NOW!

People have often commented on his collar and lead when we're out. They're from Accolade Leathercraft. I got the platted 3/4" flat lead and a 1" plain flat collar, both in brown leather. They've worn in really well and the colour is lovely. I'm not getting Grey a correction collar or harness and am aiming to try to train him not to pull rather than use equipment that would restrict his movement.