datachie, Author at Smart Dog University

In the Moment

July 13, 2009

Multi-tasking. It sounds good, doesn't it? And I guess maybe sometimes it is. But when it comes to time with my dogs, multi-tasking just doesn't cut it.

I work at the computer a lot. The dogs venture over every now and then to say Hey. I absent-mindedly scratch their ears, say a few nice things, and then it's back to the computer. Sometimes, I don't even stop what I'm doing. I type with one hand and scratch with the other.

Then I stopped to think about that for a minute. Doesn't it drive me crazy if I'm talking with someone and they're checking their Blackberry? If I'm deep in conversation, how much do I like when my friend checks her watch? Or looks over my shoulder? Or intermittently drops in a "yeah, uh-huh?"

I hate it.

So why should I do that to my dogs? Can't I just take five minutes out of my schedule to stop and really visit with the dogs? It's good for me, it's good for them.

When they're gone from this earth, wouldn't I really rather look back and say "Wow, we had fun together," rather than "I wish I would have spent more time with them."

Don't shortchange your dogs or yourself – take the time – make the time – to enjoy your dogs. You won't be sorry.

One Step at a Time

July 10, 2009

Talos learned about stairs today. In an effort to expose him to as many things as possible, it's critical that he see not just one type of steps, but as many as we can find. So today, we dressed him in his service dog vest and took him to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, where my husband works. It's a fantastic place to socialize a dog: there are rolling carts, long, shiny hallways, cafeterias filled with lots of people, noise, and dropped food, and stairs. Lots of stairs.

Today Talos saw regular old plain-jane stairs, spiral stairs, stairs without risers, and glass stairs. He was only a bit tentative about going up stairs, it was going down those stairs that presented the problem. With a little bit of patience and a lot of cheerleading, Talos successfully managed to go up and down each type of stair to which we introduced him. And actually looked quite proud of himself by the end!

Realizing that not many people have the same degree of access that we do because Talos is a service pup in training, you can still find ways to expose your dog to all kinds of novel experiences. Many eateries allow dogs on the patio, outdoors. Find a nice little bistro near your home and bring your pup along with you. You'll want to bring a little pad on which he can rest, a chew toy or two, and water for your pup. Don't plan to stay long, just maybe have a sandwhich and then move along. It's unreasonable to ask a pup to sit quietly for too long…

Summertime affords so many opportunities to expose your dog to novel situations. Go to your local park and find a nice spot – just sit and watch the world go by with your pup. Your goal is to have the pup see so much stuff that it all becomes routine after awhile. Nothing is super-duper exciting, it's just normal. You want your dog to develop a "been there, done that" attitude toward just about everything. It's that kind of dog you can take just about anywhere with you.

Another idea: take a nice comfy chair, some treats, that handy-dandy dog mat and sit near your local big-box store (WalMart, Home Depot, grocery store, etc.). You're bound to get lots and lots of attention! Hand the dog treats to the people, tell them to bend down (not lean over), offer the treat to your pup, and scratch him on his chest (not on his head – most pups don't like that). Lather, rinse, repeat!

Whatever you do, DO NOT force your pup to meet someone he doesn't want to meet. This is for the dog, go at his pace. Be ready to tell people exactly how to greet, and when to back away. If your dog looks stressed (ears hanging, tail very low, trembling, excessive panting, or clinging to you), just take your pup home. Remember, this should be fun for your pup, not stressful!

The Clock is Ticking

July 10, 2009

Talos is 15 weeks old – his socialization window is closing as I type this. Socialization window? What the heck is that?

We've spent the past six weeks or so introducing Talos to new things (places, people, sights, sounds, surfaces, dogs, experiences) so he won't find those things scary later in life.

Dogs who don't "see the world" in their first 12 – 16 weeks can be severely handicapped (socially) as they mature. Many undersocialized dogs develop fear, anxiety, and phobias, when not properly exposed to the sights and sounds of the world.

Many of my clients have fearful dogs. Fearful dogs who would rather bite someone (or some dog) than make friends. They bite because they're scared, not because they're bad or mean.

It's your responsibility as a dog owner to get that puppy out there and expose him (safely!) to the world around him. You can't accomplish this by taking your dog to obedience class once a week. You need to take your dog out every day to a new location so he can see new sights, new people, have new experiences.

It's not good enough that he sees the same 10 people – he needs to experience new people every day. It's not good enough that he plays with the neighborhood dogs – he needs to meet new (friendly and appropriate!) dogs daily.

I've been able to get Talos out to new places every day, but was having a very difficult time finding him new doggie friends to meet. So we signed up for doggie daycare. In doggie daycare (a well-run one, at least) dogs are screened to ensure they're nice, appropriate dogs. (We think Coventry School for Dogs in Columbia, MD is fantastic, by the way. They group puppies according to play-styles, ensure that pups get enough rest, and aren't over stimulated. It's fantastic!)

I've noticed a marked improvement in Talos' doggie social skills since he's been going to daycare a few days a week. Before he started attending daycare, he'd freeze when other dogs would come near. Knowing that's a sign of fear/anxiety, and also knowing that Talos will weigh about 150 pounds as an adult, I knew I had work to do — and it had to be done quickly! Believe me, you don't want a 150 pound fearful dog – the consequences could be dire.

Don't think you have time to socialize your dog? You don't have time NOT to socialize your dog. Spend a few hours each week now and you'll save yourself hundreds of hours (and hundreds [if you're lucky] of dollars) later trying to rehabilitate a fear-aggressive dog who won't let people into the house or who you can't take anywhere with you.

Talos Couch Surfs

June 29, 2009

Great Dane Pup Gets Caught Talking on Couch from Laurie Luck on Vimeo.

Our Great Dane pup (being raised as an assistance dog) loves to talk on the couch. I happened to catch him on video…

Talos is the most talkative puppy I've ever had. He sings himself to sleep, he moans when he's sleepy, he barks at a toy that's just out of reach, he howls if he wakes up and is all alone. I'd call him a Drama Queen, but, well, he's a boy. So maybe he's a Drama King.

Either way, I like it. I love talkative dogs. Not barky dogs, mind you. But talkative ones. The video captured just a tiny slice of Talos' talkative side.

Fat Boy

June 27, 2009

I know fat when I see it. I'm not one of those dog owners that says "It's muscle!" I'm fanatic about keeping all my dogs on the light side of the normal weight ranges. Especially Tango because he's got a bad shoulder. The less weight he carries, the better it is for his shoulder.

I knew he'd picked up some weight over the winter. Don't we all? But imagine my shock when he tipped the scales at 70.1 pounds on Friday!

He's now got the nickname "Fat Boy" in this house.

It's my fault. I can't blame anyone but me. I'm the one that feeds him. A few months ago, I noticed he was a bit, shall we say, rounder. So I cut him way back on his food. Clearly, I didn't cut him back enough. (For the record, he was getting 1/4 cup of food for breakfast, and 1/2 cup food for dinner. When I noticed the absence of his ribs, I cut his morning feeding down to just a few pieces of food and cut his dinner to 1/4 cup. Clearly, that wasn't enough, Mr. 70-Pound Labrador.) We feed them "Taste of the Wild" a grain-free food that is high in protein, as well as fat. Well, not anymore, we don't.

I went immediately to the food store and picked up a new food: Innova Low Fat Food for Adult Dogs. I hope that next month at this time, I can report a weight loss for Fat Boy.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, almost 40
percent of US dogs (17 million) are considered overweight. If your dog is on the heavy side, buckle down and slim that dog down! It's better for them, better for you.

Back to Basics

June 23, 2009

With the addition of the new puppy, Talos, our training has sorta gone out the window. Not anymore. We're back on track. Get ready, dogs, school is back in session.

Nemo's toenails are ridiculously long. Scary long. Rip you wide open long. I've not Dremeled them in a long, long time. So today, we got started back on nail trims. I used super good wet puppy food for the reinforcer and it went smoothly. I worked on three or four nails today – only a total of about 8 minutes or so. Short and sweet, that's how we do training around here

Tango's nails are pretty long, too, but I haven't accustomed him to the Dremel yet. So we went way back and just worked on getting him comfortable just having his feet handled. He's a lot less go-with-the-flow than Nemie, so our progress will be slower, but steady nonetheless. Same yummy wet puppy food as the reinforcer. It's amazing what a high-value reinforcer will do for training! Lots of succes when the reinforcer is magnificent!

Lily puts on her best what-about-me pout if I don't work with her, so I had her doing some simple, remedial work. She just loves to train, period. I could ask her to take out the trash and she'd relish the opportunity to work.

Talos is learning a LOT of new things. One of the most important things he's learning is self control. He's going to be a huge dog – manners and self control are going to be of paramount importance. He's got to learn that good things come to those who wait, that he doesn't need to charge forward or barge in to get something good; that waiting is what brings those things to him.

To help him learn this, I started teaching him eye contact a while ago. If he looks at me, I click and deliver a goody. He got that simply looking at me was a pretty good thing. Nice. Once he was pretty good at that, I kept the reinforcer (the goodie) in sight. At first, he tried to bust in and just take it. It's easy enough to pull the goodie behind my back and make it inaccessible to him. He tried only a few times to muscle me out of the goodie, then he just sat. Click! Awesome job, buddy.

Once his default response to seeing the treat was to sit, I held out for eye contact. It's not good enough that he doesn't go for it, I need him to look at me first. It took a few seconds for him to look at me, and I resisted calling his name or otherwise "helping" him out. The instant his eyes met mine, CLICK! And he got the goodie delivered to him. Excellent work.

It's fun to watch all the dogs learn.

Finally, it's Slumber Party Copper! She's here for the week while my parents are in Vegas, living it up. She's quite the handful (there will be a blog post about her shortly). She's a neat little Rottie my parents rescued from the shelter about 10 months ago. Absolutely no training whatsoever. My parents have chosen to ignore the fact that their daughter is a professional dog trainer, and repeatedly tell Copper "No!," complain that she won't come when called (I ask "Have you taught her what "come" means?"), and call her stubborn and hard headed. She's a bundle of energy, but she's not stubborn or hard headed, she's just never been taught how to do anything.

So today, she got her first clicker lesson. She's never heard a click before in her life. She has no idea that her actions could be so beneficial (i.e. that her actions could cause me to click and deliver her a goodie). My mom has been trying to teach Copper to shake for a few months. Nothing doing, says Copper. Again, the label of hard headed is thrown around. Ha. Hard headed my foot.

In less than 5 minutes, I had Copper offering me her paw. I was even able to add the cue "paw." She's on a roll! More training tomorrow for all the dogs, Copper included.

A side benefit to training: it works their brains. Every dog is fast asleep!

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