Go ahead and admit it; you’ve never seen such a cute little dog in your entire life:).
Here we are working on some heeling, fronts, and the very beginnings of sit in heel position. He is just beginning to hand me the metal scent article; separately he has learned the basic concept of scent discrimination (not shown here).Play,
We’re adding touch (to the stanchion), the beginnings of positions (sit, down and stand), 4″ jumps, and continuing with general play skills.
He’s got a bit of terrier attitude, so we’re working on some “bring it on” behavior that surfaces here and there.
I love working with him. He leaps and bounces and makes me laugh. Can’t ask for much more than that.
Take a look:
He is the cutest dog in the world. You must still be in California.
Thanks for sharing this cute dog working with you.
You and this little guy are gonna KNOCK THE SOCKS off the competition when he gets out there in the Novice ring for the first time. Because we all know, of course, that terriers are stubborn and there must be consequences when they ignore the handler … love the way “stubborn” can be translated into persistence and “working with you” is more fun than going off to do their own thing.
And as I’ve watched you and Brito progressing, it occurs to me that one of the most difficult things about the techniques you use is nothing technical at all: it’s the willingness to be SILLY, to let go of our adult inhibitions and learn how to be fun! We all seem to be comfortable with silliness while playing with a puppy, but somewhere along the line we turn training into work, when in fact there’s a great deal of puppiness even in adult dogs. So if WE treat training like play — when WE continue to see the fun in the interaction — well, so will the dog, and OH MY what a difference that makes! Hmmm … I feel like I’ve just had a wee revelation! (Not that you haven’t said all this a zillion times before — somehow, it just this minute sank down to my gut. Wow. What a nice way to start the year!)