Sunny day in Blean Woods

We headed out to Blean today after I'd finished work at home. Sun was shining and it was positively spring like. Better not speak too soon! We had a great walk just mooching through the woods. I played hide and seek with him to keep him from running off too far. He generally roamed about 5 metres to the side, but mostly about 20 metres to 50 ahead. Stopping on every bend. He was mostly out of sight for just a couple of seconds.

Here's who we came across:
A lady with a young entire male lab. Bouncy greeting, some chasing of each other and we went our way. Grey was really muddy by this time and the labs owner spied this!

Loan man bird watching. Did a slow wide berth of us and we did the same. No tension from Grey, which was great.

Lone man wood cutting. Grey had a look but didn't go over.

Couple eating picnic on tree stump. Alert! Alert! But was fine. Grey didn't go over when I told him this way. Sandwiches were safe!

Here are a couple of pics and videos:

Whistle Recall:





General mooching about:

Lounging

Snow came to the lido

Snow has come

Finally snow has come. Tonight it has snowed big fat flakes that land on your tongue and melt on your eyelashes as you walk. I hope it lasts until the morning when we can get out into it, have fun and take photographs. But mostly run about like loons.

Today in the morning there was only a light dusting while the rest of the country has ground to a halt. Grey and I went out to Botany Bay at about 10am. It was peaceful weather. No wind, very still and not really too cold. But then, I'm a northerner and perhaps hardier!

I waited for Grey to stop barking as I do every day. I opened the boot and waited for him to sit down before opening the crate door. You can see the anticipation in his eyes. He's so waiting for this. The chance to run. We head off to the left of the top field and across to cliff edge side. There was a small brown poodle who ran up to us. Grey was really sweet and play bowed and the usual chase me routine started. Grey came away and we moved towards our sandy slope down. We did three turns of the wait and run game and then carried on the top field. I acted silly for him and chased him and got him to chase me. I recalled him back up the main slope to the beach too which he did Dave with Ivy and Kass on the beach. Grey was really good with them.

New year's resolutions

Destressing my life with Grey. We're on to day two of this and so far we're having a great time. I decided after chatting with friends, to take a step back with Grey's lead walking training. We've gone back to just going out for his runs in the car and working offlead together for a good hour. He's been much more relaxed and so have I. Just having a little breather from the daily stress of hanging on to the lead as he pulls around on it and is generally too switched on.

He's been much much better anyway in his behaviour towards greeting other dogs. Has been more attentive and has come away from quite a few onlead dogs that he had spotted and was on his way over already to say hello to.

I've been talking to someone about Grey's early life before I got him. The importance of early puppy stimulation and socialisation from when their eyes and ears are open at 3 weeks old. It's no secret that you should choose your puppy carefully and ideally, they will have been exposed to many experiences of normal family life. Perhaps Grey's reactiveness coupled with his early illnesses and prolonged dental treatment have come together to explain why he's a very sensitive and reactive dog to outside stimuli.

Muted Pack Theory

I really like this post on dominance and pack theory from Angela at Fun4Fido.co.uk. I especially like the section on muted pack theory. It struck a chord with me, as over the last 18 months I tried to find a trainer who provided what they advertised, that is positive training. Every time they revealed themselves to not truly believe in a positive reward based ideology and usually sent me home with a programme to ignore Grey when I come home, not to look at him, not to allow him through doors first, not to eat first etc.

SATS - wots all that about, then?

A friend has tried SATS on their dog and is really pleased with it as a methodology. I must admit I'm quite confused as to the science of how it works compared to clicker training. There is more talk, more explaining does this mean more anthropomorphising during training?

I'm not switching or trying anything yet. Just having a look and posting the info.

I found these links of what it sounds like and some videos on the site.

Sunday 3rd January 2010

Had an easy breakfast service today at the B&B. Took Grey out for a quick wee first and then into he goes into the bedroom with a stuffed kong while we do breakfast. He still cries and whines after the kong is finished. he has to stay out of the kitchen during breakfast and it's funny that this is the only time he cries if on his own. If we leave him in the dining kitchen when we go out or if are upstairs he's fine. He also sleeps with us in the bedroom. The difference is that he's not yet used to being confined on his own in the bedroom and can hear us going up and down the stairs with the breakfasts. Plus the smell of bacon! So, I've ordered him another kong and also the dog pyramid which should hopefully keep him busy. He doesn't bother with the tug-a-jug if he's locked in like this.

We then went out up to Botany Bay as the first snowflakes were falling in an otherwise sunny sky. I've started implementing more sits and eye contact with me into the process of going out. So now there is a sit for lead on, door to open, outside the door, top of the stairs at the gate, outside the gate.

I still find it quite difficult to manage the stopping as soon as he pulls mechanism (despite having stuck to this for what seems like months and years!) because he's so switched on and then immediately just strains round sniffing the ground wildly or going up on his hind legs against the lead like a kangaroo. It makes me wonder if this really is just a matter of training or if Grey is nuts and so reactive/anxious that I need some outside help on this one. He can do heelwork, but that's not loose lead walking.

He barked at a cocker and JRT on the way to the car while he was on the lead. I think he is just in this heightened state of arousal in this situation. If I could calm him down then we may get somewhere.

Up on the field I did lots of recalls on the whistle. Lots of blind retrieves and one retrieve where I put him in a sit stay and threw it down, made him wait and then sent him in.

Ready, Ready, Gooooooooooooo!

New game at the top of the cliff slope at Botany. Only if the beach is empty though! Get him to wait at the top and then tell him 'Go!' Off down the sandy slope he zooms right down the beach and into the sea. Then whistle him straight back up for scatted treats when he gets back. Grey thinks this is the best game ever as he loves running fast down this slope and into the shallows. You can see him love the run back up as well. So it's pairing the whistle with the adrenalin rush of running fast down to his favourite place and back up again for the treats. We didn't do it today because there was a man doing running training up and down the slope. I'm sure he was glad that I didn't send the 30KG dog down. So I used the opportunity to let Grey go up to the edge, look over and then stay with me to do something else. So lots of 'this way' sitting and waiting before moving on.

Working with Grey's distances when he's offlead is like him being on a boingy piece of elastic. It's hard to keep him exactly by my side, but I can sort of control the direction. I intersperse bits of close 'with me' moments by getting him to sit on the whistle and do stays and then a couple of paces of 'with me'. All building up I guess.