tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52229177423439852002024-03-13T02:10:26.498-06:00Cheetah's Dog Training BlogMy training blog for all things dogCheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-33310711640586175512012-03-31T01:44:00.003-06:002012-03-31T02:32:08.504-06:00Puppy Training Basics: Sit & Down<span><span style="font-size: 100%;">Along with potty/house training, "sit" and "down" are two really great things to start teaching your puppy. I'm going to describe in as much detail as I can the methods that worked for me, using a clicker.</span></span><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal; font-weight: normal; "><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal; "><b>Sit</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal; ">This is probably the easiest of the two. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal; "><ul><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Hold your clicker in one hand, (and behind your back/in your pocket if it distracts your puppy) and hold a very valuable treat inside your other hand, such as a tiny piece of hot dog, or chicken. (ball it in your fist if your puppy is crafty and good at snatching it).</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Show your hand holding the treat to your puppy, and slowly move it back over his head, and slightly up. His nose should follow, as he's looking for the treat, and this movement should naturally entice him into sitting.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Once his butt hits the floor, click and treat.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Repeat the above steps. You should notice that each time, he'll start sitting faster, until he figures out that sitting is what gets him the reward, and then he'll do it right away. At this point, you connect a word with the action of sitting.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Next time you lure him into the sit, as he's in the action of sitting (not before, and not after), say "sit" (or whatever you feel like calling it), then click and treat.</span></li><li><span style="font-size: 100%; ">* Repeat! After lots of repetition of this in many 5-minute training sessions, you'll have an awesome sitting puppy!</span></li></ul><div><b>Down</b><img src="http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif" alt="Bold" border="0" class="gl_bold" style="font-size: 100%; " /></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; line-height: normal; ">Down can be a little more difficult, because the act of lying down puts a dog in a vulnerable position. Some dogs can be nervous or scared of this, so keep that in mind while training. If they don't start downing right away, it's not out of stubbornness, but more likely out of nervousness.</div><div><ul><li><span>* It's easiest to start off by putting your puppy in a sit.</span></li><li><span>* With your clicker in one hand and the treat balled in the other, show your puppy your treat hand, and slowly move that hand down and between his front legs. His nose should follow while he tries to get the treat. He may not lie down right away.</span></li><li><span>* Try moving your treat hand slowly forward from between his front paws by a few inches. This may lure him into a down, but some puppies still aren't convinced.</span></li><li><span>* Hold the treat, balled in your fist, down on the ground, either a few inches in front of your puppy's front paws, or just between them, and wait. </span></li><li><span>* If he gets up from his sit, put him back in the sit and simply repeat the above steps. </span></li><li><span>* Most puppies will naturally lie down and start trying to work out a way to get that treat out of your hand, which is what you want. This may take several seconds, or a few minutes. It's important to be patient. If he gets distracted just lure him back and start over. As soon as he goes into lying down to work on getting the treat out of your hand, click and treat. Repeat!</span></li><li><span>* As you did above with sit, once he knows what you want, connect a word to this action, by saying something like "down" or "lay down" as he is in the process of lying down (not before or after, as above). And repeat!</span></li></ul><div><span>These methods are easy, humane and help your dog learn to work out problems, so I hope they will work for you as well as they did for me! =)</span></div></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-68067497178399988882009-05-28T13:54:00.003-06:002012-03-31T02:36:16.649-06:00Knowing Your Vet's Methods!Today, I was reading on one of the dog forums I visit, and somebody brought up a really good point. It is very important that you know your vet's and their techs' methods for handling struggling, scared dogs, because while most of them are well-versed in the medical aspect of pets, it doesn't mean they know ANYTHING about behavior or training. This lack of knowledge can result in your pet being abused if they think he is "misbehaving" or "being dominant."<div><br /></div><div>I used to work as a tech assistant at a vet clinic, and I brought Shippo in to have blood drawn. Well, he struggled and yelped, and he had NEVER reacted like this at the vet before, but they tensed up while holding him and scared him really bad. Since they were restraining his head, his airway got cut off when he pulled back, so it caused him to snort as he tried to breathe.<div><br /></div><div>Early on while I was working there, I got a feeling the techs there were all extremely dominance and punishment-based because they would actually STRIKE a dog they thought was misbehaving. It's a good thing I was in the room, because the tech who was working on my dog told the person restraining him to "punish him NOW because he's GROWLING at me!"</div><div><br /></div><div>I had to ARGUE with her about it, because I'd had Shippo for TWO YEARS at this point and could tell by now when he was growling or snorting (he snorts frequently like a little piggy if he's stressed or excited), and this lady was trying to tell ME that I didn't know my OWN DOG. Thankfully, she backed down and I was able to prevent him from being wrongfully punished, but WOW! This got me thinking to my self, "Boy, I wonder how many vet employees have abused my dogs when I wasn't around to stop it."</div><div><br /></div><div>From now on, I will be very cautious about who I let handle my pets behind closed doors. I will ask them about their handling methods first, and ask if they might allow me to restrain my own pet (though I ONLY recommend this to people who are experienced at restraint). It's important that your dog is getting as positive an experience as possible while at the vet, because it can effect other aspects of their training.</div></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-43903177014971620832009-03-01T12:56:00.007-07:002009-05-26T19:59:15.560-06:00Mistaking Resistance and Distraction for "Dominance"So many times, I've seen pet owners struggling with a dog or puppy, because they've misread the dog's signals. When simple resistance is confused with dominance, it can be harmful to a dog's training and the relationship between dog and owner. One of the most common behaviors that get misread is while training "sit" or "lie down" using force (ie. pushing down on the dog's butt or back). Another is the dog "ignoring" the owner because he's being trained around too many distractions.<div><br /></div><div>If you push down on most dogs, they have a natural instinct to resist the pressure. Pushing on them makes them feel vulnerable and threatened, so they push back. It doesn't mean your dog is trying to be "dominant" or rebel against you, and he shouldn't be corrected or punished for this. I am of the opinion that if you can train a dog to do something without being physical, then more power to you! Dogs learn to think more when they are given the opportunity to figure out how to do things on their own, rather than being pushed into doing it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Instead of push your dog down, a better method is to lure him into the position with a treat, and reward him as soon as his little belly hits the floor. Once he's doing it consistently, then you would start saying "down" as he performs the action. This connects the command "down" to the now reliable action of him lying down. So far, I have not been given a reason to push a dog into the position I want him to be in. Sometimes you may have to just out-wait them till they realize which action gets them the treat, but they're all going to get it eventually!</div><div><br /></div><div>Once the dog learns how to sit or down reliably in the home, often owners try to rush things, and they take him to the pet store, the dog park, or a friend's house, where he suddenly won't listen, and would rather sniff and play than even look at the owner. This can be frustrating I know, but your dog is not ignoring you or being dominant, and it's unfair to him to punish him for giving in to distraction when he doesn't know any better. </div><div><br /></div><div>When a dog is suddenly put in a new environment with all kinds of interesting new smells and things to discover, he is overwhelmed and most likely will not sit when you tell him to, because although you taught him "sit" inside the house, you haven't yet taught him to sit with all these new people and bikes and other dogs around. This is simply the next step in training. After a dog has learned a behavior in his home, he needs to be slowly moved up to performing the behavior around lots of distractions.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>If you always keep in mind that your dog is not always trying to "one-up" you, training becomes a lot easier. I never did have any luck pushing dogs down like my parents told me to. My outlook on training has changed a LOT since I was a kid, and I remember that my relationship with my dogs wasn't that great back then. Once I embraced the view that my dog is not constantly trying to overthrow me by instinctually resisting me here and there, the training just fell into place, and I had happier, better behaved dogs is a result.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-6961984249100262032008-08-23T13:55:00.006-06:002012-03-31T02:26:45.939-06:00Stop the Pulling!Of all the bad doggy behaviors out there, I think most owners will agree that pulling on the leash is one of the most annoying. That is why I want to do my part to help as many owners as I can to teach their dogs how to walk politely on the leash. It's really very easy in most cases to literally turn your dog's behavior around. Here are two simple methods I have used for my dogs during training, and for an ex boyfriend's unruly adolescent 8-month-old American Bulldog who pulled like a freight train.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Tree Method</span><br />With this method, you literally stand your ground like a tree. While you are walking your dog, and he begins pulling, you stop walking and don't budge at all, no matter how much he's pulling to go forward. Eventually, since he's not getting anywhere, your dog should stop and look back at you to see what's up. The moment he looks back at you, praise and treat, and continue walking. If you repeat this exercise a few times, your dog will stop pulling and turn his attention to you progressively quicker. Begin rewarding him for not only looking at you, but for leaving some slack on the leash, and then for walking closer to you instead of way out in front.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Turn-Around Method</span><br />If the above method doesn't work for you, there is this one, which involves just turning around and walking in the other direction. Just like in the above scenario, you will walk at a normal pace until your dog starts pulling, but this time, instead of stopping, you will simply turn straight around and walk in the other direction for several steps. If your dog rushes ahead and starts pulling again, you will turn and go in another direction without warning. Eventually, your dog figures out that if he wants to get somewhere and not get pulled in the other direction, he should be paying attention to where you are going. He will begin to look at you, and at this point, you will praise and treat, and continue walking.<br />_______________________<br />Both of these methods work so well, alone or in conjunction with one another, because your dog wants so badly to move forward during the walk and explore his surroundings. Many owners make the mistake of rewarding the pulling dog by giving him exactly what he wants - the act of moving forward. If we take that away and give it only when he is walking politely without pulling, then he will very quickly learn that when he walks politely, he gets to continue enjoying the walk.<br /><br />As with all my other training methods, I only practice these on a regular flat buckle or martingale collar, especially since this training involves your dog's delicate neck. No choke collars!<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-60153385554009073652008-08-22T12:40:00.004-06:002009-05-26T19:47:08.885-06:00The Crate - A Positive How-ToOut of all the training tools you can provide for your dog, I believe the crate is one of the most important. The crate, if properly introduced, provides a safe haven for your dog, and prevention from accidents and getting into things during house training. Dogs are naturally denning animals, and most take to the crate in a matter of days with no problems. You should begin crate training as soon as you bring a new puppy home (provided that the pup is the proper age of 8-12 weeks).<br /><br />Selecting a crate is very simple. Most crates have a size and weight limit on their tag at the store, which provides a guideline. A crate should be only large enough for the dog to stand up, turn around, and lie down in. If you have a puppy, you can buy adult-size crates that have dividers, so you can adjust your pup's space as he grows. There are two types of crates for training - an airline crate, which is the plastic, enclosed crate with the metal door, or a wire crate which is simply made of metal wire. Certain people and certain dogs tend to prefer one over the other.<br /><br />Introducing your dog to the crate is an important step. You want your dog to associate the crate with positive things, so that he sees it as his den - his safe place. Set your crate up in a place in your house where you spend a lot of time, that way your dog still feels like he's part of the family/pack. Leave the door open for a period of time, get your dog's attention, and begin tossing treats inside (make sure they are extra tasty treats, like pieces of hot dog or chicken!). Usually, a dog will venture into the crate for the treats. If, after a while, he does not, you can try guiding him in gently by his collar, or putting him in, for short amounts of time with the door open. Continue with the treats.<br /><br />Once your dog appears to be comfortable being in the crate with the door open, try closing it for a VERY short period of time (1-5 seconds). Praise and treat, and open the door back up before the dog has a chance to become uncomfortable and make noise. Slowly increase the time that the crate door is closed (5 seconds, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, 30 seconds, etc). This may take several sessions a day, over the course of a couple of days. The time taken usually depends on your individual dog.<br /><br />When the dog has become comfortable with the crate door closed, you can begin feeding him and giving him special toys, such as food-stuffed Kongs, only in his crate. At night, you might put an old article of your clothing that smells like you in with him. During the day, you might play soothing music or leave the TV on for him while he is in the crate. All this helps to make the crate a positive place to be.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Remember:</span> <br />NEVER use a crate as punishment. Your dog's crate is his safe place.<br />ALWAYS wait until your dog is quiet to let him out of the crate. This reinforces the calm behavior that you want.<br /><br />If you are also using the crate in conjunction with potty training, please refer to my <a href="http://cheetahswift.blogspot.com/2007/07/potty-training-article.html">Potty Training Article</a>.<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-79902552122432711462008-07-14T20:01:00.004-06:002009-05-26T19:46:18.244-06:00Emergency Homecooked ConcoctionsSince my last blog, many things have changed in my life, one of which was the recent loss of my job. During this time, about a week ago, I ran completely out of dog food and had no money to get more. Luckily, I had several things in my kitchen that I was able to mix together into a concoction - my first ever attempt at home cooking for my pets. It was very successful, and got the OK from a few people I know, who also know their food stuff, so I figured I'd post it for my next emergency, and to help others out who might run out of kibble and need an emergency meal for their dogs.<br /><br />1-2 cups rice (white or brown)<br />6 turkey necks<br />1 cup whole chicken hearts and gizzards<br />2-3 eggs<br />Fish or Canola oil<br />Vitamin E (If available)<br /><br />Put rice in rice cooker, or boil on stove until done. Put turkey necks and whole chicken gizzards and hearts on a baking pan, and cook in the oven at 250-300. Check often. Remove gizzards and hearts when done and leave turkey necks to bake until cooked through. Chop gizzards and hearts into cubes, and strip meat off the turkey necks. Set aside the turkey bones. Grind up the eggs, shell and all, in a blender and cook in a pan until done. Break into little pieces. Add the turkey meat, organs, and eggs to the rice and put desired amount in food bowls. Add about 1/2 tablespoon of canola oil and some vitamin E to each food bowl, mix it up, and serve. Be sure to read the measurements on the vitamin E container before dosing.<br /><br />If your dog carefully chews up any bones you give him, you may give him a turkey neck bone. However, if he gulps his food and any chew toys, throw away the turkey bones when you are done taking the meat off them.<br /><br />This recipe was meant to feed both a 40 lb dog and a 27 lb dog for 2-3 days, so the amount of food it will make for your individual dog will vary, and you may need to cook more. It was eaten by both my dogs with great success, and no stomach upset, and is great for emergencies. Enjoy!<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-40353684199838694512007-11-01T22:51:00.001-06:002009-05-26T19:42:53.653-06:00Uncivilized Behavior - Who's Really the Animal Here?Having owned dogs my whole life, and learning so much about their behavior, I was bound to notice that there are people who truely do not understand how a dog is feeling by its behavior. I've seen people scare the life out of their dogs, and all the while, the dog is performing appeasement gestures left and right out of fear, all of which are completely ignored by said owner. There have been times when I've told people, "The dog is scared," and they've denied it, because they were completely unaware of the signs.<br /><br />The most recent instance of uncivilized behavior toward dogs has been toward my own dogs, which finally inspired this article. A person close to me has lately been acting unpredictably toward my dogs, which finally made me uncomfortable enough to let them know - probably not in the best way - by snapping at them, "Don't DO that!" They don't seem to understand that dogs do NOT like having random objects mock-thrown or swung at them out of jest. Dogs do NOT like being randomly jumped at or barked loudly at, and especially not a combination of the two! They do NOT like being randomly tapped roughly on the hindquarters when they're not expecting it, even if it was meant to be playful. Do these things to the wrong dog, and you're likely to have your face bitten off. In order to put this into perspective, I am going to offer a scenario, from my corgi's point of view:<br /><br />You are a dog and you're a foot tall, and have grown up with giant, two-legged creatures who speak a gibberish you cannot comprehend. You are staying at a strange house with some giants you don't know very well. Suddenly, one of those giants starts swinging objects at you, tapping you roughly on your hindquarters (which to you is one of your most vulnerable spots), or jumping at you, making loud noises that you don't understand. This giant gives you NO WARNING what is about to happen. You see this as an attack. Frightened out of your mind, you run and hide under the coffee table so the giant will stop attacking you. <br /><br />For the rest of the day, you are very cautious around this particular giant, walking low to the floor, holding your ears down, and giving appeasement gestures (turning your head to look away, yawning, licking your nose) in an attempt to calm this giant so maybe they will not attack you again. Suddenly, one of the times you have to walk past this giant, they randomly throw a huge shoe at you! Frightened, you duck out of the way and immediately run to hide under the coffee table, since that thwarted this giant during the last attack.<br /><br />Today, at this strange giant's house, you have learned that the giant who lives here is completely unpredictable, that you should be extremely cautious at all times at this house, and that you should hide from and avoid this giant any time you can. Since your guard has been raised at this house from the stress of being attacked constantly, if you cannot escape the next attack, biting might be your best option.<br /><br />If you were a dog, with such a different language and behavior setup, wouldn't you be scared to be around that particular giant if you never knew how they'd act toward you next? I sure would be! So I am writing this article in an attempt to get people to understand better that dogs view the world differently than we do. What we may think is funny or playful toward each other might scare the daylights out of a dog. <br /><br />Dogs are scared by things that fly unexpectedly toward them, sudden loud noises, or people or other animals who are seemingly lunging toward them. The best way to handle a dog is GENTLY, using a normal voice. If you are holding something in your hand, it is best to refrain from suddenly swinging it toward the dog, as this scares many dogs. Even if you are playing, the dog may not think so. Suddenly tapping a dog roughly on the hindquarters is not only rude and unacceptable from the dog's point of view, but it can also be dangerous when done to a dog with a low bite threshold. It's best to call the dog to you and pet it GENTLY, when the dog is expecting it, rather than be unpredictable.<br /><br />I know many people simply don't realize how rough they are being, so I hope others will read this and pass it on, for the sake of all the dogs who are being inadvertently treated in an uncivilized manner.<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-90262342724653558272007-09-03T22:05:00.001-06:002009-05-26T19:41:15.593-06:00Teaching "Take It" the Fun Way!I keep watching and reading about the "ear pinch" method of teaching a dog to retrieve, or to hold something in their mouths, and what I've read and seen, and the pain caused to the dog just makes my jaw drop! There are much better and more fun methods to teach something like that. I am trying out one of them right now with Shippo. Here is how it goes:<br /><br />Take a nice sturdy toy, like a rope toy or plushie, and tempt the dog to mouth it. When he puts his mouth on the toy, click and treat. Shippo got this after the first click! He tilted his head, as if to say, "You mean all I have to do is put my mouth on my favorite toy, and you feed me?! Cool deal!" We repeated this several times in a 5 minute session.<br /><br />Next, when the dog knows he's supposed to put his mouth on the toy, you'll connect a cue to it, like "Take," "Take it," "Hold," etc. Repeat. Then you would start rewarding longer and longer instances of the dog having his mouth on the toy, and eventually, progress to letting go of the toy.<br /><br />I will be editing this into a real article with more detail once I am done teaching Shippo "Take It."<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'trebuchet ms'; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; ">All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</span><br /></div>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-12148267668717125732007-08-19T13:52:00.000-06:002007-08-20T23:25:05.991-06:00He Passed!<a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/Shippo/ShippoPortrait2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/Shippo/ShippoPortrait2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Well, today was the big day - the CGC Test. Shippo PASSED! He's now a Canine Good Citizen! I'm so proud of him. Next will be a therapy dog test. But for now, we're both pooped, so I think we'll go take a nap!<br /><br /><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/Shippo/ShippoPassedOut.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/Shippo/ShippoPassedOut.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-44522345791083374082007-08-11T00:13:00.000-06:002007-08-11T00:40:13.161-06:00Nice Experience at the ParkTonight, I decided to take Shippo to the park before it got dark... I had already taken Eevee earlier today, and it was his turn now. When we got there, it was PACKED, so we weren't able to play fetch, because both baseball fields were occupied. So instead, I got him out of the car and prepared for a little training around the park. I didn't get 20 feet before a girl ran up and asked to pet him. But this time, I decided to try out a new tactic (people ALWAYS interrupt when we're in the middle of training). I simply said "No, sorry, but we're training right now." She was disappointed, but accepted that and went away.<br /><br />We walked around the park and did random training. There were food wrappers etc. lying on the ground, and he ignored them on command like a good boy. There were crowds gawking and pointing at him, and he ignored them. He even ignored the guy on the skateboard who came right by us a couple times, which was great! We found a secluded part of the park and I did some trick training (currently, we're working on "sit pretty" although I'm not going to call it that), and I had people walking by watching him sit up and talking amongst themselves.<br /><br />When I got back to the beginning of the park, the girl returned and asked again to pet Shippo. This time, I gave in, but had to be strict with her, as she nearly approached him the wrong way - by running up to him. I told her, "No, no, don't approach him like that, it scares him." She was slightly confused, but listened to me when I told her to squat down a short distance away and let him approach her (he automatically waddles over for petting if you squat down). I told her about the traumatic experience he had with a little kid as a puppy, and she understood why I am so strict about the way people approach my dogs.<br /><br />After that, we ran into a couple who had seen me training him, and he got lots of attention from them as well, and I got complimented on how well behaved he is (Yay!). They let their two kids approach and pet him as well, and these kids also listened to me when I told them how (three in one day is an amazing record for me, they usually don't listen)! After that, I was being eaten alive by bugs, so we came home. Shippo is now passed out next to me. He must have had fun too!<br /><br />I think he is ready for the big test...Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-27668913751440768242007-08-04T00:47:00.000-06:002007-08-04T01:19:02.863-06:00Teaching Calm AttentionBefore you teach your dog any basic commands, such as "sit," it's very useful to teach your dog how to calmly focus on you. Some dogs are unable to learn anything before this step, because they are too busy jumping all over the place to focus on what you're saying. Luckily, calm attention is very easy to teach!<br /><br />Begin by grabbing a pocketful of treats and calling your dog over. Without saying a word, show your dog a treat. If the dog becomes excited, simply ignore and wait until he calms down. Eventually, the dog will stop acting so excited, and just look up at you. This is what you are waiting for. Once the dog is calmly standing there, looking up at you, praise and treat. The first few tries may take a while, but it should only take a few times before your dog catches on and starts breezing through the exercise!<br /><br />If you want to go a bit further, you can also teach the dog to associate a word with focusing on you. Just say something like "Watch me," right as your dog begins focusing on you, and then praise and treat. After many repetitions, start hiding the treat while you give the command. If your dog focuses after you've given the "watch me" command, praise and treat. If not, he doesn't yet know what the command means, so simply go back one step to giving the command <i>while</i> he is focusing on you.<br /><br />The calm attention exercise will open up many training doors for you and your dog. Once your dog has consistently learned to focus on you, you're ready to start teaching commands, and training will be much easier!<br /><br /><i>All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</i>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-64883302455045960022007-07-30T19:15:00.000-06:002007-07-30T20:34:47.219-06:00Early Prevention of Bad BehaviorsThere are several different dog behaviors that are considered "rude" in the human world that can be prevented easily at an early age. I just wanted to share some methods that I have used.<br /><br /><b>-Jumping Up</b><br />One of the easiest and most effective ways to prevent a dog from learning to jump up is simply to ignore from the beginning. If the dog jumps up, pretend he doesn't exist. Take your hands away, and look somewhere else. Stand up if you have to. What the dog is looking for is attention, so don't give in. Even telling the dog "NO" is attention.<br /><br />As soon as the dog puts all four feet back on the ground, give lots of praise. He will quickly learn that jumping up gets absolutely no reaction from you, and isn't worth trying, but if he has all four feet on the ground, he gets all kinds of love and attention! Teaching the dog not to jump up can take weeks to months from puppyhood if you are consistent.<br /><br /><b>-Chewing Inappropriate Objects</b><br />Two great methods for preventing chewing from becoming a bad habit is confining the dog when he's not being supervised, and catching him in the act of chewing so that you can trade the the wrong object for the right one.<br /><br />Crating is a great way to prevent your dog from getting into things he shouldn't when you're not around. It can also prevent him from getting into dangerous situations, such as being tangled in wires, eating toxic things, and many other dangerous things young, untrained dogs tend to do when they're alone.<br /><br />When the dog is out, and you catch him chewing on something he shouldn't, you can get his attention with a sharp "Ah, Ah!" or something similar. Try to get him to trade for the right object, such as a chew toy, by holding it up for him so that he stops chewing the inappropriate object and goes for the toy. When he lets go of the inappropriate object, you can also say "Trade ya!" before you let him have his toy. This exercise can also teach another valuable tool - trading for another object - which can help to prevent resource guarding in the future.<br /><br />One other thing I must mention is that you should ALWAYS have lots of things for the dog to chew on, no matter what age he is! Dogs never just grow up and stop chewing. They need to chew throughout their lives.<br /><br />Teaching a dog to chew on the RIGHT things can take a lot of time and consistency, but don't give up!<br /><br /><b>-Getting Into Trash</b><br />There is a VERY simple solution for this, and I don't understand why people refuse to do it - Get a covered trash can, or put your trash in a cabinet, or behind a gate or door where your dog cannot access it! Out of sight, out of mind!<br /><br /><b>-Excessive Barking</b><br />Play sessions are a great way to help prevent unwanted barking. While you are playing with your dog, be it tug or fetch, or whatever his favorite game is, pay attention to how loud he's being. If he starts barking, you can immediately get up, put the toy out of reach, and end the play session for a few minutes. This is a very quick and humane way to teach the dog that if he starts barking, it causes you to quit playing with him. It really does help to curb a lot of unnecessary barking in the long run.<br /><br /><i>All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</i>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-4752425573135962392007-07-30T17:09:00.001-06:002007-07-30T20:37:47.946-06:00Potty TrainingBefore other training is covered, the dog should be potty trained or in the process of being potty trained. You can do this while you train other things, but it must be done, or your house will be a mess! I'm listing several different methods that are used to potty train, with a description of each. Some I recommend. Others I recommend avoiding, but I will include them here anyway to explain why I dislike them.<br /><br /><b>Contents</b><br />~~~~~~~~~~~ <br />*Crate Training <br />*Tethering <br />*Just Plain Supervision <br />*Paper/Puppy Pad Training <br />*Follow-up on Potty Training<br /><hr><br /><br /><b>-Crate Training</b><br />There are several suggested methods of potty training, but I find that the most effective is crate training. Crate training is a method where you confine the dog to a crate/kennel when it's not being supervised so that it does not have a chance to have an accident on the floor. Using this method, the dog will quickly learn that outside is the place to go.<br /><br />First off, you will need a crate for the dog. A crate should be the appropriate size for the dog (only big enough for the dog to stand up, turn around, and lie down). It's easiest to get the dog used to the crate before confining it. Put treats or toys in the crate and encourage the dog to go into it without closing the door. Show your dog that the crate is a good place to be. While you're introducing the crate, you will want to supervise the dog a lot since it's not actually being confined.<br /><br />When you finally close the door, put in a toy like a Kong or favorite chew toy to keep the dog busy. You can also feed the dog its meals in the crate. Only keep the door closed for 5-10 minutes and praise profusely while the dog is in the crate. Repeat this many times, and gradually leave the door closed for longer periods of time. Introducing the crate shouldn't take more than a day or so. Remember to put distractions in the crate! It makes it easier. NEVER give a dog attention for crying/whining in the crate. This means even telling the dog to be quiet, giving up and letting the dog out, etc.<br /><br />Once the dog is used to being confined, the real training starts. Any time the dog is not being closely supervised, it should be crated. As soon as it's let out of the crate, it should be taken straight outside to potty. No eating, drinking, or playing till the dog goes potty! When the dog does its business outside, praise PROFUSELY (as a friend of mine said once, if you don't look totally insane to all passers-by while praising, you're not doing it right). Then it is okay to play inside or out and eat/drink for the next half hour or so. Once play is done, crate the dog again. If the dog ate or drank while it was out, maybe take it outside to potty once more before it's crated.<br /><br />Dogs are actually very clean creatures, and a dog will learn very quickly that it does not want to soil where it sleeps/lies. Once you are sure that there won't be any accidents in the crate, you can put some soft bedding down like a blanket or crate mat. Always crate the dog when you are not home, but remember not to leave it crated for more than a few hours (puppies for even less). You might want to give a friend or family member a spare house key so that if you are gone for too long, they can let the dog out to potty while you are away.<br /><br />In several weeks to a few months (depending on the dog), times between crating the dog should increase until you really shouldn't have to crate them at all unless you leave the house. After the dog is fully potty trained using this method, it's up to you whether or not you continue to crate them when you leave the house. Some people continue to do it just for the dog's safety.<br /><br /><b>-Tethering</b><br />Tethering is a method in which you tie the dog to yourself, so it can't stray off someplace and have an accident. The dog will have to follow you around the house and stay with you, and thus, can't sneak off. Most people loop the lead around an arm or leg, or buy a special lead that hooks to a belt. This method also involves keeping a close eye on the dog and watching for signs that the dog needs to go out, such as pacing, turning in circles, sniffing the floor more than usual, etc. If you spot these signs, immediately carry or lead the dog outside where it can do its business. When the dog goes, praise him profusely.<br /><br />Using this method alone, you'll have to watch the dog like a hawk to prevent any accidents. Remember, if the dog doesn't have any chances to have accidents, it will not become accustomed to going in the house.<br /><br /><b>-Just Plain Supervision</b><br />This method is just as the title sounds. Basically, the dog is not crated or made to be near you. It might be locked out of certain areas of the house, but it's not really confined. You have to watch the dog constantly, like a hawk, to make sure there are no accidents. If the dog shows signs of having to potty (pacing, turning in circles, sniffing around more than usual), immediately carry or lead it outside to do its business. Once it goes, praise profusely. This method requires the MOST supervision when used alone, and is very difficult for the vast majority of people, because we are only human, and can become distracted and forget we are watching the dog. Distractions are the cause of most potty accidents in the house. Therefore, I do not recommend the use of this method alone. It is best used in conjunction with crate training or tethering.<br /><br /><b>-Paper/Puppy Pad Training</b><br />In the world of dog training, there are great methods of training, and then there are horrible methods. I'm listing this method as the worst, least-effective potty training method I know of.<br /><br />Basically, you teach the dog to potty on newspaper or specially-made puppy pads. Usually, the dog is confined to a certain area, like the kitchen or bathroom, and newspapers are spread throughout the whole area, or a puppy pad is put down (most have pheromones in them which attract the dog). The dog is encouraged to potty on these and is praised when it does, and quickly learns that it's supposed to potty on the paper or pad in the room. Once it has learned this, it is confined less and a pad or newspaper is kept down in certain parts of the house, which is where the dog goes.<br /><br />Owners will sometimes continue putting down paper in the house throughout the dog's life (perhaps if they live in a small apartment), and I've also seen owners put puppy pads inside crates and allow the dog to go on it INSIDE the crate (NO! BAD owner *slaps with paper*) but ideally, when the dog has fully learned to go on the paper/pad, the owner will start to slowly move the paper/pad toward the door each day. Eventually, the paper/pad will be outside, so the dog will have to go outside to go on it. After this, the paper/pad is removed, and the dog will start going in the grass instead.<br /><br />...Or this is how it's SUPPOSED to work. I strongly dislike this method, and here is why: <br />It teaches the dog that it is okay to potty inside the house <br /> Once you move the paper/pad outside, you change the rules and the dog is no longer allowed to potty in the house. This confuses the heck out of the dog, resulting in accidents.<br />A large percentage of the time, the dog just doesn't catch on, either because the owner wasn't doing it right or the dog is just confused.<br />I find paper/puppy pad training to be a majorly outdated method of training, and I recommend that dog owners avoid it at all costs. However, SOMETIMES it works, and it's a common method still, so I did include it on the list.<br /><br /><b>Follow-up on Potty Training<br />~~~~~~~~~~~<br />-What To Do if There IS an Accident</b><br />If the dog does happen to have an accident inside, avoid any harsh punishments (hitting or ANY kind, screaming, scruffing, etc). Either give it no reaction when it goes inside, or choose a phrase to mark that the dog has made a mistake ("Nah uh! This goes outside!" etc.). Then quickly carry or lead the dog outside to finish. Praise it if it goes the rest of the way outside ("GOOOOOD potty!"). Harshly punishing a dog for accidents in the house can result in hard-to-fix psychological disorders such as coprophagy (the instance in which a dog eats its own excrement, in this case, out of the fear of punishment). It also doesn't teach the dog much else except that it's wrong to potty in front of you, and so instead, the dog will sneak off and potty where you're not watching.<br /><br /><b>Do's and Don'ts of Potty Training</b><br /> <br />NEVER crate a dog as punishment for ANYTHING, including potty accidents.<br />ALWAYS give loads of praise when the dog goes outside.<br />NEVER harshly punish a dog for accidents.<br />ALWAYS watch the dog closely if it's not confined.<br />NEVER put puppy pads in a crate.<br />ALWAYS let a dog out of a crate every few hours for attention.<br />ALWAYS take a dog potty after it eats/drinks/plays/sleeps/leaves the crate.<br /><br /><i>All articles on this blog are written by Victoria Steen unless otherwise stated. They are NOT to be redistributed.</i>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-29397173074663939232007-07-27T14:32:00.001-06:002007-07-27T14:33:33.308-06:00The Search is On!Well, Shippo did fine being left with a stranger for 3 minutes! I'm so proud of him. Also, he impressed the heck out of the trainer at work with his coat and temperament. *Gloat* Now it's time to find a CGC Evaluator and take the test!! Wish me luck.Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-85178572735581232682007-07-24T11:35:00.000-06:002007-07-24T12:04:00.123-06:00A Hike + More Work Towards CGC<a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/GOTG3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/GOTG3.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />On friday, I took Shippo for a nice hike at The Garden of the Gods, which ended up being FILLED with tourists. This ended up being a good opportunity to practice walking through a crowd of people, to see how he'd react. He did awesome! He stayed with me the whole time, no pulling or anything, and we were able to walk up to a few people who asked to pet him! We seemed to turn heads the whole time we were there, because I kept hearing people telling each other what a gorgeous dog he was lmao.<br /><br /><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/ShippoGotg2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/ShippoGotg2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/ShippoGotg1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/GOTG/ShippoGotg1.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />Then we got lost, because the maps there suck, so we walked around aimlessly till we found the exit again. When we were exiting the park, I heard somebody telling his group of people how he "potty trained" dogs by rubbing their noses in it, hitting the dog, and throwing it outside. It's hard to imagine that people are still using such outdated methods.<br /><br />In other news, a co-worker of mine is a trainer, and she said to stop by Friday, so we can test Shippo and see how he reacts to being without me for 3 minutes - another crucial part of the CGC test. I couldn't imagine him reacting badly, but you never know I guess. More on that later...Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5222917742343985200.post-70074140443914169492007-07-06T16:02:00.000-06:002007-07-06T17:20:26.217-06:00Intro<font size=3>Ok, it's time to start my dog training blog (great idea, Tebbs)! With this blog, I can record my training progress with my two dogs. First things first, here is a little info about me:<br /><br /><font color="#000000">Name:</font> Vicki (preferred name online is Cheetah)<br /><font color="#000000">Occupation:</font> Crap job at Petsmart<br /><font color="#000000">Interests:</font> Dog training, canine nutrition, photography<br /><font color="#000000">Favorite Trainers:</font> Victoria Stilwell, Pat Miller<br /><font color="#000000">Dogs Sports/Activities Interested In:</font> Agility, Flyball, Therapy, maybe Herding<br /><center>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</center><br /><br /><font color="#000000"><b>My Dogs:</b></font><br /><br /><center>Shippo, Male, 1.5-year-old Pembroke Welsh Corgi</center><br /><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/ShippoWaveFourth.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/ShippoWaveFourth.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Shippo came to me from a show breeder in Canada, whose bitch threw two fluffies in her litter. Fluffies are pet quality, but they sure are gorgeous, and I can still do everything else with him except conformation. I plan on doing agility, therapy work, and possibly flyball with Shippo.<br /><center>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</center><br /><br /><center>Eevee, Female, 7-year-old Border Collie Mix</center><br /><a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/EeveePoseBW.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/ShroudedCheetah/EeveePoseBW.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br>Eevee came from the local Humane Society when she was 8 months old. She was dumped there because her previous owners were moving, and apparently didn't bother to find a place that allowed dogs. But that's okay, because otherwise I never would have found my heart dog! Eevee and I have been through a lot together.<br /><center>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</center><br /><br /></font>Cheetahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13506230368392886457noreply@blogger.com3