OliveVeryFearfulMixAdult

  Engagement in dog training is the ability to create a relationship with your dog where you are the reward. Engagement done well will have your dog insisting on continuing the activity with their owner. In other methods of training, there are some elements of this as well, but the engagement that I am talking about is much more. Engagement in dog training is more about play with their owner or handler to create that very strong bond and work ethic. As with anything, it can have it's pluses and minuses. I really enjoy this method, because I get to play with my dog and train. The thing that motivates me in this method, is seeing my dog have fun while we are doing it. Why do I also use other methods other than Engagement and Motivational methods? One reason is this is a bit slower process than some other methods in the shorter term.   Sometimes if you really need to stop your dog from jumping on your elderly relatives, while including them in your family activities, you mig...

  Leon loved fetching as a wee young thing. We both learned about this skill together, and had a lot of fun doing it. What do I mean by your dog's "bliss"? The activity or item that eventually or immediately drives your dog to do it more or want to engage with you more. ​ This is something the dog is going to eventually be clear about. You can experiment with to find it and start the process, but ultimately you need to pay attention to whether it is truly motivating your dog OR do you just expect it would motivate your dog. How do you find your dog's bliss? Experiment with your dog.  Have fun and see what they like.  Do they chase the ball?   (I warn you this may not be immediate)  Do they like to tug on stuff with you?   Do they love to chase the flirt pole object?   Do they bring things back to you? Observe your dog in their free time, what are they drawn too.  Do they love to chase, pull, steal stuff? Notice what your dog gets yo...

A common mistake that a lot of dog owners make, is to wait until a situation is out of control before seeking to control it.   Signals and signs are not recognized or ignored for far too long.   This can makes situations that were easy to solve and prevent in the present, instead become big behavioral problems in the future. To me being a reactive human dog owner is one that has missed opportunities to calmly and gently get potential problems under control in the past.   Because the owner has not been leading the way and allowing their dog to feel safe, the dog starts to make some decisions and actions that us, humans, won't be totally happy with.   When the opportunity to correct this has been missed in the past, it appears to force the humans into a reactive role.   To your dog this does not command respect or obedience, because the human appears unbalanced or terribly inconsistent in their rules and communication.  Remember ...

  The approaches to training dogs, including behavioral modification, are almost endless.   Which ones are wrong?  Well nothing is wrong per say, as they all have different strengths and weaknesses.   Perhaps the only bad thing you could do is to use only one approach, when more than one is necessary to your dog.  On the other hand, everyone has to begin somewhere.     The more you understand what these approaches are, the more understanding you will have when working with a dog trainer or by yourself with your dog.   There is a lot to learn in dog training, which is why there is no complete definitive book on the whole scope of dog training.  There can't be as it is always training and evolving as people learn more about dogs and how they learn or change perception. ​   As individuals, dogs have different perceptions, experiences, and personal preferences.   As dog owners and trainers, we are all interested...

  Today I am going to go over the very commonly used practices of treat training used with luring to train your dog.   Most of this training falls under the category of positive reinforcement.  That is the practice of adding something to increase the likely hood of a behavior.   In this case, we are talking about food rewards.   CONSIDERATIONS WHEN TRAINING WITH FOOD:   Most puppy training starts with food training.   Puppies are maturing, and do not have the focus of an adult dog.   They are discovering the world with their paws, nose, eyes, and mouth.   Therefore, humans need a good reward method to catch their attention for any period of time.     Adult dogs will have more maturity and focus (usually).  Therefore, the first section does not necessarily apply to them.   Although, these are things you may want to consider, especially if your adult dog seems at all flat when training....

  In dog training, there is no one size fits all.   How you go about training your dog should be based on many factors and judgements.   Here are just a few things to think about: Your dog's general temperament which will encompass many things.   Think of whether you have learned that your dog is fearful, confident, shy, bold, friendly, leery, reactive, mellow, and so on.   Think of the specific situations (or general situations) you may see these things play out. Do you or your dog have any food allergies or other allergies that may interfere with some forms of training? Is your dog pretty easy in most everyday situations or are there some situations that are cause for concern? How old is your dog or puppy?   Puppy training is almost always much different than training a more mature adult dog. How healthy is your dog?  Do they have any physical disabilities or problems that may interfere with some methods of training? How healthy are you, the dog owne...

Motion memory refers to those things that your body has become habituated to movement and/or action to the point it can override how you are trying to change movement and/or action. As an example, often I click my mouse twice over things on my computer even as I realize I don't need to do that anymore. In fact, it usually makes a whole bunch of useless windows open up that I don't need, and slows downs processes on my computer. My habit of motion is overriding what I already know that I need to do.  Where do these things show up in dog training? · When a handler wraps the leash around their hands or puts their whole hand through the handle loop. The correct way to hold the leash, which takes awhile and practice to set into the conscience of the handler, is to put your thumb through the loop of the leash, and then wrap your fingers around the whole handle. · During the training of the heel, when the leash hand floats into the air. I don’t know why this ...

  Dog owners tend to wince at the suggestion of using a correction.   So many dog owners associate the word "correction" in dog training with punishment or treating their dog harshly.  This is not what is meant by most dog trainers or dog sports enthusiasts. My definition of a dog training correction is to further advance a position, speed, or behavior through communication the dog understands to mean what they had just done is not what was wanted and therefore offers another option or stops something. Some examples of corrections are verbal markers, spatial pressure, and the use of some training equipment.   Please note that corrections should not be used, generally speaking, until the dog has started and advanced through the f irst stages of dog training , which is teaching.    Once a performance can be reliably predicted to a standard, then you are ready to correct errors or non performance. NOTE: CORRECTIONS ARE NOT USUALLY USED IN DOG TRAININ...