More puppy training tips

Tango and Booker

• Train one dog at a time! Put the other dog away for a few minutes (in his crate or in another room) - he'll be fine.
• Let him watch, if possible. Jealousy is a powerful training motivator.
• But, keep the training times about equivalent, and as short as 5 minutes per session.
• Review yesterday's lesson. And review it again tomorrow.
• Bring the best treats to class, to try to maintain your puppy's attention. Use the next best for daily training sessions. - Fran

10 Things to Remember when Training a Puppy

Booker at 10 weeks old.

1. Keep your session short.
2. Have several sessions each day.
3. Review your last session briefly.
4. Smile!!!
5. He's a puppy! Limited attention span!
6. Work on one or two things per session.
7. Put on your happy voice!
8. No corrections - he's a puppy and doesn't know anything!
9. Be consistent!
10. Use super-yummy treats to keep his focus on you. - Fran

Booker's first class!

Booker is about 18 weeks old now, perfect for starting puppy class with North Shore Dog Training Club! The main focus of the first class was focus and attention. Very difficult for a puppy who just wants to play with everyone! Fortunately, I had yummy treats, and after Booker tried to go over to the Viszla puppy, then the Boxer puppy, then the Chihuahua puppy, he came back to me and we had a party! The idea is for me to be more fun and more rewarding than the other puppies and people who don't have anything for Booker. (Interaction between puppies is discouraged in this class - people can find places for their dogs to play with other dogs on their own. Class time is for instruction.) The goal is for the people to build a strong bond with their dogs - both for work and play. So, we had a good first class - yesterday we took a walk in the neighborhood, even though winter is hanging on and it was below freezing! Booker is starting to walk quite nicely on  lead. - Fran

Cat people

A friend visited me in the shop today, to buy a few toys for a senior's little dog for the holidays. This friend loves dogs, but she's a cat person. Tango was not very nice to her at first. There was a stranger invading his space! Of course, a few cookies changed his mind about that. She asked Tango to sit, sit, sit, which of course he ignored and kept mugging her for the cookies. I told her to stop caving to his cute bearded face, and tell him to do what she wanted. With a more commanding tone, my friend told him, "Sit?!" Tango looked at me, I looked back but didn't say anything, and he sat! My friend was very impressed! I guess cats are different. - Fran

Training really can be fun

Last weekend Tango and I were at an agility trial and Tango qualifed in his first Standard run of the weekend! Woohoo! I was so happy. Not just that we qualified, but because he ran fairly well all weekend. It's been a hard road since March, the last time that he qualified in anything. Constant training, fun matches and more training. I've found that Tango responds best to clicker training. Our favorite clicker is Karen Pryor's iClick - http://www.gollygear.com/iclick.htm - it fits well in the hand, is easy to click, and it's not too loud. Patience is so hard, but it's crucial in training Tango. I can't be angry, or get frustrated. He's very operant, so I have to wait, and wait, and when I see a behavior I like, I click and give him a cookie. Hopefully he'll come back to that behavior and offer more! And more, and more ... And while one qualifying run out of four is not a superlative showing, it's better than none! More training and fun matches are needed! - Fran

Hard work and patience pays off

On many two lane roads, in no-passing zones, there are signs that tell you when a passing zone is coming up: "Patience Pays; Passing Zone in 3 Minutes." No matter how annoying that slow-poke is in front of you, you know that pretty soon you'll be able to get by him. So, you possess your soul in patience and look for a better radio station. And soon enough you're in front of him and singing along with your favorite song.

So it is with dog training. You see a problem, work at it, and little by little, you've put that problem behind you. Tango has had issues with other people and dogs. A few months ago we couldn't walk into our Agility class building without him firing up at whoever (or whatever) was walking around. But last night we not only walked into the building with confidence, but he was able to stay at the start line of our sequences, leash off!, with a big dog not 2 feet away from him, and pay attention to me. He started when I told him to, and he stayed with me. What a good boy!!!

Of course, that's not to say that our work is done. It never will be. I'll remain vigilant of the people and dogs around us. We'll keep training our start-line stays. But patience really does pay!
-Fran