Thanks to Dogmantics for her useful clicker videos. I ran through some more of her stay training with Grey.
Dogmantics video:
It picks up on the sit with release that I have started teaching him after checking out Fanny Gott's vid about 6 months ago. I've been practising at home and also a bit in the fields. He's pretty good and so far we have a nice sit or down while I throw food as a distraction and move around him. I'll try and video some of it soon. For the moment, he's snoozing big time under the table.
Showing posts with label down stay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label down stay. Show all posts
Sunday, 22 November 2009
Saturday, 7 February 2009
Big changes in Grey's world
Something clearly wasn't working with Grey's training on walks and on the gencon. After much consultation with my dog guardian angels (thanks guys!) it was decided to make some radical changes for the next week or two. So Grey is now on day 2 of no off lead walks. And further that we don't go anywhere and he pulls. I'm not taking him out in the car either. I don't go anywhere unless he's calm. If he's not calm in the house, the lead doesn't go on and we don't go through the door. Yesterday we passed the day by doing the following:
Getting him used to the gencon by CT him for touching, looking, approaching the headcollar on the floor and in my hands. I left it around (supervised) so it's not just seen as the instrument of torture!
We sat out on the top of the front door steps on his blanket and CT for calm for each passing lorry, van, motorbike, people with push bikes, prams, kids, disabled people in wheelchairs. We live on one busy corner! We did 4 sessions like this of a couple of minutes. A couple of people came up and asked if they could stroke him. Grey obliged by wriggling lots!
We ventured out onto the pavement a couple of times and just worked up and down in front of the house. he had one barking freak out where we retreated to the safety zone of the steps and then CT for calm again.
Inside we passed the day with training on downs and started work on distance by going round the waste paper bin. I also got the crate back out because I'm going to get a new car soon and want him to be crate trained for that. Also it will be useful if he is able to be self controlled enough and calm if confined ever at the vets. He surprised me and got straight into the crate and lay down. I had thought he hated it as he had to be confined in it last month at a friend's flat and he didn't like it.
Other stuff I've done is stash kibble in the living room and I've generally been more proactive in getting him off the sofa and looking out the window at passersby. He's been generally very into training. So over this week or so his training is much more intensive. I had thought he would be really different if he didn't get his big run of the day, but he's been just as tired from the training and thinking about things. One huge difference I think will be is his focus on me. Everything good comes through me. I'm hand feeding him. I've portioned up his food and it's all used as training. Walks are no longer a means to an end. i.e. a free ride to the beach! So he will get used to the walk itself not as it being a route to being let off for a run.
I'm keeping sessions really short. I can see he can't cope with much and he starts to lose focus after a few minutes.
Today we've done some outside the house walking. Some round the bin distance work, and lots of downs where I've aso started to walk around and away from him while he's in the down.
On top of this we've got games and stuffed toys in his open crate.
Getting him used to the gencon by CT him for touching, looking, approaching the headcollar on the floor and in my hands. I left it around (supervised) so it's not just seen as the instrument of torture!
We sat out on the top of the front door steps on his blanket and CT for calm for each passing lorry, van, motorbike, people with push bikes, prams, kids, disabled people in wheelchairs. We live on one busy corner! We did 4 sessions like this of a couple of minutes. A couple of people came up and asked if they could stroke him. Grey obliged by wriggling lots!
We ventured out onto the pavement a couple of times and just worked up and down in front of the house. he had one barking freak out where we retreated to the safety zone of the steps and then CT for calm again.
Inside we passed the day with training on downs and started work on distance by going round the waste paper bin. I also got the crate back out because I'm going to get a new car soon and want him to be crate trained for that. Also it will be useful if he is able to be self controlled enough and calm if confined ever at the vets. He surprised me and got straight into the crate and lay down. I had thought he hated it as he had to be confined in it last month at a friend's flat and he didn't like it.
Other stuff I've done is stash kibble in the living room and I've generally been more proactive in getting him off the sofa and looking out the window at passersby. He's been generally very into training. So over this week or so his training is much more intensive. I had thought he would be really different if he didn't get his big run of the day, but he's been just as tired from the training and thinking about things. One huge difference I think will be is his focus on me. Everything good comes through me. I'm hand feeding him. I've portioned up his food and it's all used as training. Walks are no longer a means to an end. i.e. a free ride to the beach! So he will get used to the walk itself not as it being a route to being let off for a run.
I'm keeping sessions really short. I can see he can't cope with much and he starts to lose focus after a few minutes.
Today we've done some outside the house walking. Some round the bin distance work, and lots of downs where I've aso started to walk around and away from him while he's in the down.
On top of this we've got games and stuffed toys in his open crate.
Wednesday, 24 September 2008
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.
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.
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