Brito – Finding Fronts

Brito is learning to “find” fronts – first on his own and then with a dumbbell. He’s wearing a leash to prevent him from running off to pee on the bushes.  He is very fond of peeing on things lately. Note that I no longer click for retrieving...

Brito – more shaped retrieve and beginning proofing

I have introduced Brito to a few more retrieve concepts. I’m now (gently!) pushing him away before starting the retrieve – this encourages Brito to move in a forward direction after he puts his mouth on the bar.  If you don’t do this step, many dogs...

Brito – taking the dumbbell

I’m working on Brito’s retrieve. Until now, criteria has included interacting with the dumbbell without stepping on it (I extinguished that), any nose or mouth touching, front teeth, front teeth and nibbling, and slightly more than front teeth. Most of the...

Brito five months general training

Here is an eleven minute training session of Brito from this morning.  You can see a variety of things. Shaping with a dumbbell.  I normally hold it because he tends to put his feet on objects sitting on the floor.  That is not a habit that I want to encourage. (...

Happy 2nd Birthday Lyra!

Lyra turned two years old yesterday, so it seemed fitting to post a video of our training.  I took this video for a class I’ll be teaching in October, but it can serve two purposes. Here’s a five minute clip, start to finish, of our morning training....

Obility – Teaching the Retrieve over High Jump (ROH)

Here’s a simple video showing how I’m working on Lyra’s retrieve over high jump. She knows how to fetch.  She knows how to jump.  She knows how to stay.  She has a reasonable clue about fetching over a jump in the outbound direction, but definitely...

Holding an Object

Lyra has a pretty good retrieve – she’s fast and enthusiastic.   A few weeks ago I began adding the behavior of “sit in front and wait” If you think about it for a second, the “hold in front” is not an integral part of the retrieve...

Happy Birthday Lyra!

It’s Lyra’s birthday! In honor of Lyra, this is not a training blog; it is simply a training session to show where were at in terms of skills, play and drive when she trains at home. There are five videos here; they start as I take her out of the yard to...

Lyra – 9.5 months – Increase Speed in Retrieve

Lyra was taught to retrieve a dumbbell as a very small puppy.  At that time, the emphasis was on taking it correctly; in the center and with a quiet grip.  I did not teach a “hold” or a front, and indeed, she still has neither of these things.  Her job is...

Lyra 9 months – Learning “for fun”

Not all learning requires cookies or toys; there is value in teaching your dog just for fun.  When dogs learn without classic rewards, they tend to operate in a calmer manner, because learning for learning’s sake does not generate drive.  It does, however, force...

Lyra 6 months – distraction training

I do not consider distraction training to be a unique stage of training; it is part of the overall process.  Distraction training starts from the day I bring a puppy home, whether I wish to work on distractions or not. Regardless, there are periods in training where I...

Lyra – Blending Behaviors at 12 weeks 6 days

When Lyra showed some proficiency at a series of small behaviors, I wanted to string a few together.  I am starting by teaching her to pick the dumbbell up from the floor, climb on the platform, and return the dumbbell to me. Lyra has a pretty good understanding of...

Lyra and Structured Shaping

I’m a competition obedience trainer.  Someday I might play in agility as well.  As far as I can tell, there are certainly no more than a couple hundred tiny behaviors that I need my dog to master, and many fewer that I’ll actually name or consider an “end” behavior. ...

Lyra – Week 1, Day 4

Sleep is improving by the hour!  I still have to get up every few hours to let her potty, but the screaming is minimal now. Today she visited my son’s school.  We went early in the morning, so there were very few kids around.  After 10 minutes I took her home....

Puppy Gaetz

I’m jealous; here’s my student’s new puppy getting started.  I still have to wait a few weeks before mine arrives.  Here’s the kind of stuff I’ll do early on in the puppy’s career: This puppy’s lesson is split between tug,...