Training

[zxs107020]

How do you manage to stay on top of your dogs training? I literally train my dog for HOURS a day, but it doesnt put a dent in her energy. More importantly, I think training and play time are beginning to get a little boring for both of us. I dont want to become complacent or let up on the training at all, but theres only so much you can do with balls, frisbees, tugs, and flirt poles- not to mention all the basic obedience. Im about to go get some boxes for hiding food and getting her to search. We are also getting into tracking and hopefully IPO soon too, but meanwhile- I am looking for ways to make training and play time more fun and interesting for us both. What are some functional behaviors you have taught your dogs to do, and how? (Not silly little tricks) How do you proof your dogs obedience once they are sufficiently reliable with the basic commands? (for example, now that sit by my side and down anywhere are set....I want to start having her sit between my legs while standing and under my chair while sitting).

As I type, she is LITERALLY running around my room in circles and bouncing off the walls....this is after 15 minutes of tracking, 15 minutes of fetch, a bone, and a stuffed kong....lol. I cant even get mad at her for being a tornado because its my fault that she has too much energy left.

[Steve Gossmeyer]

Honestly lol I train Yoda 3-5 days a week in ipo (tracking obedience and protection) and some days just obedience... other than at night when I go to bed he's in a 10x10 dog pen in the back yard.... he comes in and goes in his crate at night

[zxs107020]

Honestly lol I train Yoda 3-5 days a week in ipo (tracking obedience and protection) and some days just obedience... other than at night when I go to bed he's in a 10x10 dog pen in the back yard.... he comes in and goes in his crate at night

I would let Cleo roam around the backyard when she gets hyper but right now shes small enough that she could escape through the gate She finally settled down after 3 hours including a long trip to home depot and petsmart lol.

[Dutchringgirl]

I used to train Thalie at least an hour a day. I was lucky to be 10 minutes from my trainers place and he let me use the field any time, so I was always there. then we used to take the kids for a walk, throw the ball. then I used to take her mountain biking with me and we were out for 3-4 hours a few days a week. You have to find mental stimulation as well. My girls always had free access to go outside so they were never cooped up. Sadie though, Since she has bad hips, I cant work her enough to satisfy her so many times she will bark at me to play. I run her, but then an hour later she is ready to go again.

[Tennessee3]

This is coming from a GSD owner not a DS owner, so take it with a grain of salt, but..

Place command: it's easy for you and hard work for her. The mental discipline required to sit quiet and still in one spot when they're amped up is extensive and exhausting.

Fetch in a body of water: swimming is more exhausting than running and easier on the joints.

Proofing: distractions and an ecollar. Petsmart, dogparks (not inside the fence but outside), ballgames, etc etc anything that pulls her attention away from you is what you're looking for. It requires focus and energy to pay attention and do as you're told when you'd rather be doing something else.
Ecollar - no idea what age your dog is, so don't start too early, but off leash with distractions is the ultimate test. But you still need a means of control if necessary, talk with an experienced trainer and do some serious research before you slap it on, it's easy to screw a dog up if you go at it incorrectly.

[zxs107020]

This is coming from a GSD owner not a DS owner, so take it with a grain of salt, but..

Place command: it's easy for you and hard work for her. The mental discipline required to sit quiet and still in one spot when they're amped up is extensive and exhausting.

Fetch in a body of water: swimming is more exhausting than running and easier on the joints.

Proofing: distractions and an ecollar. Petsmart, dogparks (not inside the fence but outside), ballgames, etc etc anything that pulls her attention away from you is what you're looking for. It requires focus and energy to pay attention and do as you're told when you'd rather be doing something else.
Ecollar - no idea what age your dog is, so don't start too early, but off leash with distractions is the ultimate test. But you still need a means of control if necessary, talk with an experienced trainer and do some serious research before you slap it on, it's easy to screw a dog up if you go at it incorrectly.

Shes 6-mo old so it may be too soon for the ecollar. At what age do they usually start dogs on them?

Place: done

Distractions: I have been steadily trying to increase distractions during every training session. In the house, shes perfect- even with 2 cats and 3 humans actively trying to distract her. I have to stop being lazy and start taking her out to more public places for practice.

Off-leash: Shes actually more well-behaved off-leash than on it. Probably because I have been taking her to the park twice a day and dropping the leash almost since I got her- and just working on focus, engagement, and play. On-leash she still pulls and tries to run all over the place. I might just have to deal with it until shes old enough for some corrections because positive reinforcement hasnt really done a lick of good for her on-leash manners. I had a head collar that I used for a couple weeks, which works well, but I dont want to become reliant on the training aide which is really just a control mechanism. She clearly hasnt "learned" because when it comes off, the behavior is the same. (Im not too worried about this rn, I think I will win with time and patience). Im really tempted to start removing the leash entirely during these sessions, but I want to be sure she is 100% and she still gets distracted by dogs, so yea...

I really like your body of water suggestion. We have a pool. She hasnt gone in yet though, I think I will have to get in myself ( I hate pools) in order to entice her to try swimming- which is why it hasnt happened yet.

[Dutchringgirl]

do not get an e collar until you are working with a trainer, you both need to be trained on how to use them and to teach the dog what it means. they can really wreck the dog if used improperly.

Take her out daily to town, parks where ever there are people and things. find a place far enough away to be safe from others but close enough to distract her and work on the sit/look a thousand times.

most are better off leash then on.

if she still pulls on leash then that means you need to do more ob work on leash. there is no "dealing with it' its training. dealing with it will just allow her to continue. this is why you need to be working with a trainer.

You can have two leashes on her, a long one and your regular leash, so when you take it off, you still have control but she wont know that

also, do some de sensitizing work of just clicking the snap to the leash, just click , click click, until it does not mean anything.

a stream works well too,

[DaHawaiianDS]

The dual leash tip and the advice about the ecollar is wonderful info. Kapena only pulls heading out the door so we've been working on just sit stay in front and opening, closing, rewarding for no reaction. My husband keeps bringing up ecollar but I am very hesitant. He doesn't really have any issues where I think the solution should be that severe, I don't want to make him fearful of the world around him either. He is already worried about new things and I think use in the wrong way would make him a batcase. Do you recommend working with it when they are younger? What age is best? Any trainer reccomendations near Fort Mill, SC?

[DaHawaiianDS]

(we are looking to pay for a pro to come evaluate in home and work with us. He is making great progress but it would still be nice to have a professional trainer involved as we'd like to get him into Sport / Agility training soon.).

[zxs107020]

if she still pulls on leash then that means you need to do more ob work on leash. there is no "dealing with it' its training. dealing with it will just allow her to continue. this is why you need to be working with a trainer.

lol- the trainer's solution was a head collar. My solutions work better. She only pulls at the dog park and new places. This will end as she develops more exposure to both. I control my dog not vice versa, when she pulls it is because I allow her too. I allow her too because I want her to be independent and strong-willed, but she knows that there are times and places where she dare not pull on the leash (and she doesnt). An example is inside buildings. My only point in mentioning it was to say that positive reinforcement alone will not be enough- because when the level of stimulation passes a threshold, she doesnt care about getting treats for heeling. I dont plan on introducing corrections until she is older. Also, I hold my dog to an extremely high standard so when I say something like "she pulls" it should be taken with an extremely large grain of salt. As I have said numerous times, if it were serious or a safety issue- I wouldnt be discussing it informally in a forum.

[Dutchringgirl]

The dual leash tip and the advice about the ecollar is wonderful info. Kapena only pulls heading out the door so we've been working on just sit stay in front and opening, closing, rewarding for no reaction. My husband keeps bringing up ecollar but I am very hesitant. He doesn't really have any issues where I think the solution should be that severe, I don't want to make him fearful of the world around him either. He is already worried about new things and I think use in the wrong way would make him a batcase. Do you recommend working with it when they are younger? What age is best? Any trainer reccomendations near Fort Mill, SC?

I only used the ecollar in ring training for the " out" off of the decoy. Other wise just good solid training will do.

Just be very very consistent about making him sit and wait. teach "look" that is so very handy. Sadie sits and looks at me while I hold the door open. she cant go out until I say she can.

[Tennessee3]

This is coming from a GSD owner not a DS owner, so take it with a grain of salt, but..

Place command: it's easy for you and hard work for her. The mental discipline required to sit quiet and still in one spot when they're amped up is extensive and exhausting.

Fetch in a body of water: swimming is more exhausting than running and easier on the joints.

Proofing: distractions and an ecollar. Petsmart, dogparks (not inside the fence but outside), ballgames, etc etc anything that pulls her attention away from you is what you're looking for. It requires focus and energy to pay attention and do as you're told when you'd rather be doing something else.
Ecollar - no idea what age your dog is, so don't start too early, but off leash with distractions is the ultimate test. But you still need a means of control if necessary, talk with an experienced trainer and do some serious research before you slap it on, it's easy to screw a dog up if you go at it incorrectly.

Shes 6-mo old so it may be too soon for the ecollar. At what age do they usually start dogs on them?

Place: done

Distractions: I have been steadily trying to increase distractions during every training session. In the house, shes perfect- even with 2 cats and 3 humans actively trying to distract her. I have to stop being lazy and start taking her out to more public places for practice.

Off-leash: Shes actually more well-behaved off-leash than on it. Probably because I have been taking her to the park twice a day and dropping the leash almost since I got her- and just working on focus, engagement, and play. On-leash she still pulls and tries to run all over the place. I might just have to deal with it until shes old enough for some corrections because positive reinforcement hasnt really done a lick of good for her on-leash manners. I had a head collar that I used for a couple weeks, which works well, but I dont want to become reliant on the training aide which is really just a control mechanism. She clearly hasnt "learned" because when it comes off, the behavior is the same. (Im not too worried about this rn, I think I will win with time and patience). Im really tempted to start removing the leash entirely during these sessions, but I want to be sure she is 100% and she still gets distracted by dogs, so yea...

I really like your body of water suggestion. We have a pool. She hasnt gone in yet though, I think I will have to get in myself ( I hate pools) in order to entice her to try swimming- which is why it hasnt happened yet.

I replied to this but it seems to have disappeared some how , anyways if it shows up somewhere else or later thats why LOL.

Dutchringgirl is 100% correct on ecollars it's too early.

Ditch the head collar and get a Herm Springer prong if you need leash control, have her wear it every time she leaves your property so she doesn't get collar sensitive. This guy explains why head collars are terrible

Basically prong's aint that painful and they don't do permanent damage, from a personal perspective as someone with a martial art's background BJJ & Muay Thai. Gentle leaders make my skin crawl, if you've never had someone control your head and neck and jerk you around it's a terrible experience. It's painful, demoralizing, and dangerous. And I'm not anti-correction by any means.

[zxs107020]

Ditch the head collar and get a Herm Springer prong if you need leash control, have her wear it every time she leaves your property so she doesn't get collar sensitive. This guy explains why head collars are terrible https://www.nitrocanine.co ... explained/

Basically prong's aint that painful and they don't do permanent damage, from a personal perspective as someone with a martial art's background BJJ & Muay Thai. Gentle leaders make my skin crawl, if you've never had someone control your head and neck and jerk you around it's a terrible experience. It's painful, demoralizing, and dangerous. And I'm not anti-correction by any means.

Nice to meet someone with a solid MMA background. I did Muay Thai with Saekson Janjira for 5 years (look him up if you havent heard of him, 6 time Lumpinee stadium and world champ)

I totally agree with you about the head collar, and yes I did ditch it after trying it for two weeks. My instincts told me no from the beginning, but I was trying to keep an open mind and listen to the "professionals". I think its absolutely ridiculous- my dog HATED it and they literally just called her a brat at the training facility because of her attitude while working on it. Right now I use the dead ring on a curogan fur-saver. I had the prongs on my last DS too. Ill probably put them on her once shes a little bigger. Even though theyre adjustable I think shes just too small for it at the moment. Right now, Im trying to go the way of absolutely no corrections (at least until shes more fully grown and mentally mature). Ill introduce the prongs in a few months if she still doesnt seem to get the message, but like I said elsewhere- Cleo is pretty good, I just hold her to a ridiculously high standard especially as a service dog and potential competitor.

[Tennessee3]

Ditch the head collar and get a Herm Springer prong if you need leash control, have her wear it every time she leaves your property so she doesn't get collar sensitive. This guy explains why head collars are terrible https://www.nitrocanine.co ... explained/

Basically prong's aint that painful and they don't do permanent damage, from a personal perspective as someone with a martial art's background BJJ & Muay Thai. Gentle leaders make my skin crawl, if you've never had someone control your head and neck and jerk you around it's a terrible experience. It's painful, demoralizing, and dangerous. And I'm not anti-correction by any means.

Nice to meet someone with a solid MMA background. I did Muay Thai with Saekson Janjira for 5 years (look him up if you havent heard of him, 6 time Lumpinee stadium and world champ)

I totally agree with you about the head collar, and yes I did ditch it after trying it for two weeks. My instincts told me no from the beginning, but I was trying to keep an open mind and listen to the "professionals". I think its absolutely ridiculous- my dog HATED it and they literally just called her a brat at the training facility because of her attitude while working on it. Right now I use the dead ring on a curogan fur-saver. I had the prongs on my last DS too. Ill probably put them on her once shes a little bigger. Even though theyre adjustable I think shes just too small for it at the moment. Right now, Im trying to go the way of absolutely no corrections (at least until shes more fully grown and mentally mature). Ill introduce the prongs in a few months if she still doesnt seem to get the message, but like I said elsewhere- Cleo is pretty good, I just hold her to a ridiculously high standard especially as a service dog and potential competitor.

Duuude, that timing, kicks, aggression, fluid stance switches. I've gonna watch some of his full fights while I work, that's awesome. I did 10 years mostly under a local guy, he did karate & boxing when he was young then was an MP in the Army then a SWAT team member and switched over to MT & traveled to Thailand multiple times to train /compete and Vegas to get certified under Master Toddy. I liked it alot cause it was a blended style that translated well to MMA, and we did alot of Krav Maga as well cause he had the background in self defense and compliance from police work.

What a bunch of morons, you've had some crap luck with trainers. No wonder you're cynical!

Get out of my head man, that's not cool

[zxs107020]

What a bunch of morons, you've had some crap luck with trainers. No wonder you're cynical!

Get out of my head man, that's not cool

Right on and yea tell me about it. Side note- if youre on youtube, find the videos on Saekson edited by James Blair. His videos are the best. They have a ton of UFC/Pro fighters at that gym, plus police officers and others. Krav Maga is awesome, Ive always wanted to do it. Muay Thai is cool, but at the end of the day its a blood sport. Krav Maga is good as functional self-defense.

But yea, lol, positive training whoot! Its hard though man, sometimes I want to smack the daylights out of her. Instead I and redirect....As Tolstoy said, "the two most powerful warriors are patience and time."

[zxs107020]

Well, Cleo seems to be doing well with tracking. All I have done for now is create scent pads and lay down some food. Often, I forget where these are by the time I get back to the dog to release her. She finds them anyway, it seems like she has been naturally following my trail from the beginning (I walk directly to the spot then make a wide arc on my way back to the dog). Also, I got a bunch of cardboard boxes and I hide her food bowl underneath one and tell her to find it. After the first try, she realized that I have to pick up the box for her so now she naturally downs in front of the appropriate box. I never thought I would be one of those "proud" (annoying) dads who likes to brag about how great his dog is- but I am very impressed with this progress.