Service Dog Archives - Page 14 of 34

Teaching Caysun “Mat” and “Kennel” (Video)

October 20, 2011

I've been videotaping a lot of Caysun's training, but haven't put very much of it up. Alas, travel and business make it hard to get something edited and posted…But I've finally gotten some video of some early training.

You'll see Caysun learning to listen to what I'm saying (to my cues). Teaching a dog to listen to what you need them to do (1) saves you some time, (2) saves the dog from guessing, and (3) makes it really easy for the dog to figure out how exactly to earn the reinforcement. In plain language: it makes it easier on your dog to figure out what you want him to do!

Apologies for the sound quality; it's hard to train, click, treat, AND video at the same time. Ah, the life of an entrepreneur!

Talos Goes Above and Beyond

September 30, 2011

This is the good part of raising service dogs. Hearing how well they're doing in their forever homes with their forever partners. (For a look at the ugly side of raising a service dog, read my turn-in post…)

I talked to Talos' forever person, Kathy, today about the possibility of us dog-sitting for Big T while she takes care of some medical appointments. (Yeah, never a problem for us to dog-sit that big lug. We're here for him (and her) anytime, no question!)

What I heard about Big T and what he and Kathy are accomplishing made my heart sing.

Talos was trained to be a balance dog. He helps Kathy stay on her feet. You can see the video of their very first meeting and just how he helps her keep her balance here. (It's really something to see!)

Anyway, Kathy said Talos has expanded his job description, all of his own doing. He goes and gets family members when Kathy needs some help — he'll seek out people, one at a time, until someone can come and help her. He also alerts Kathy when it's time to change different medical equipment. Neither of these (monumental) tasks were trained by the service dog agency, these are things that Talos has picked up all by himself.

These minute changes — untrained, mind you — speak to a deep bond between the dog and his person. These are things that Talos just picked up over time, as a result of spending a lot of good, quality time together as partners with Kathy.

Ahhh, after all the heartache and the second-guessing that happens after raising a service dog, it's nice to hear how well the match was made and just how valuable each part of the team is to one another.

A Preview of Life Without Ikey

September 27, 2011

Ike's gotten a little lost in the shuffle between my travel schedule and with the addition of Caysun. It's easy to forget about dogs when they're being good, isn't it? And Ikey's been a whole lotta good, especially lately. Especially with the addition of the little spitfire we call Caysun.

We're getting a taste of what "Life Without Ike" will be like. And we don't like it at all, especially Caysun!

Yesterday began a three-day trek for Ike. He's being put into service as a representative for Hero Dogs at their many fundraisers and public appearances. Yesterday, Ike and I went to a local country club to join Hero Dogs and all the other puppy raisers (and pups!) for a golf tournament to benefit Hero Dogs. I had to leave Ike behind because they needed him the next day (today) to head to a Federal office building to represent Hero Dogs at the local Combined Federal Campaign (CFC).

Ike is Caysun's go-to guy for fun and entertainment. I didn't realize just how much we (the people) depended on Ike to run interference, to puppy sit, and to pretty much keep the puppy out of trouble — until he wasn't here for a few days, that is.

Thankfully, the big dummy will be back here with us tomorrow.

But: in only a month (give or take) Ike will be returning to Hero Dogs for good. No more coming back home.

Ikey, you will be missed in more ways than one! You're going to get lots of hugs and kisses when you come back tomorrow because now we know just how much we rely on you here at home.

Housetraining: There’s Light at the End of the Tunnel

September 23, 2011

Caysun is 11 weeks old and has been with us for two weeks now. I've been keeping a housetraining journal here on the Smart Dog Blog. You've seen how the crate helps with housetraining a pup, you've seen a typical housetraining schedule.

Finally, after two weeks, I'm seeing progress!

Late yesterday evening, Caysun was gated in my office with me. She walked over to the gate and started to paw at it and whine a little bit. It was a delayed reaction, but I finally got with the program: Caysun had to go to the bathroom and she was trying to get to the back door! Yahoo!

I jumped out of my desk chair, ran to the gate, and then ran outside with her. The instant her little paws hit the grass, she was peeing. I slathered on the praise and told her what a good girl she was. She seemed proud, I think. Or maybe that was just relief, who knows.

Later that evening, when we were in the family room where she had direct access to the "bathroom door" (the door she always goes out to get to the outside), she went to the door and scratched. If I hadn't been in the room with her, I wouldn't have known she was scratching at the door – she has the tiniest paws – but that rule of "don't ever let the pup out of your sight" served me well here. Again, I jumped up and ran outside with her, another party was had after she did her business.

Whew. It's quite a chore, housetraining a pup. But, MAN!, is it worth it. And it's comforting to know that all this scheduling, crating, and watching is beginning to pay off! We're not done, not by a long shot. We've got at least a month of watching-her-like-a-hawk and 100% management ahead of us. But I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

And that's comforting for this bleary-eyed puppy raiser.

Crate Love: Loving the Crate ALL the Time

September 21, 2011

Caysun's Crate Love is coming along nicely. She's running to the crate at meal time. She definitely knows where the goodies are delivered. We're making good progress. After she finishes her meal, she lays quietly, waiting to taken outside to do her bathroom business. She's doing so well, it's time to up the criteria a little bit.

Our latest lesson includes her being crated at other times (other than mealtime or bedtime). This is a little harder – the other dogs are moving about, I'm in the room and then back out of the room, and all she can do is watch. It's definitely a tougher job than just going in the crate when nothing else is going on.

To make the task a little easier, I pair it with a known Crate Love activity: meals. So today, I fed her lunch in the crate, closed the door and went about my business. When I move from room to room, every dog in the house follows me. (If you don't have a Labrador, you might not know this about them – they LOVE to be wherever you are. Even the bathroom. I'm not kidding. I wish I was, actually.) I digress (again). So, this time, after Caysun's done her meal, I didn't let her out right away.

There was whining. There was a bark or two. I ignored her, kept doing my chores, and the dogs, of course, dutifully followed me around. She made noise for about five minutes, nothing more than a whine here, a bark there, but finally realized she was there to stay. Bored with barking, she fell right to sleep.

Quick note: Usually, I advise you to get your pup out right after eating. The reason I raised the bar for Caysun's crate love today was that (1) she was ready for it and more importantly, (2) she had just peed and pooped outside before her meal. I have an hour or two on my side. The instant she wakes up, though, I'm going to carry her outside to let her do her business.

As Caysun gets accustomed to staying in her crate after a meal while the other dogs are out and about, I will start crating her at times other than mealtime and bedtime. I want her to be used to crating whenver and wherever. We've got a long way to go, but we're moving along at a nice pace — keeping things fun for Caysun.

Stay tuned, I'll keep you updated on everything puppy that we go through!

Teaching Caysun “Crate Love”

September 14, 2011

Caysun's learning to love the crate. It's important for any dog to accept crating, but especially important for a service pup in training. When Caysun returns to Service Dogs of Virginia, she'll need to be crated frequently while the other service dogs in training are rotated in to their training sessions. She'll also need to be crated after she's spayed or if she's injured and the vet orders crate rest.

Here's how I start the "Crate Love" process:

All meals are fed to Caysun in the crate. That means that at least three times a day, good things are associated with that area.
When it's time for a nap, I put Caysun and a Kong filled with a little peanut butter in the crate. As she's licking the peanut butter out (a pleasant experience), she usually falls asleep (another pleasant experience for her).
When I have a treat for her, I deliver it into the crate.
I move the crate from room to room, so there's no "right" spot for the crate to be. The crate is good no matter what room, what view, what surroundings. The crate is what makes it "right" to be there.

Just today, 4 days into the "Crate Love" program, she dragged a toy into her crate to play with it. Sweet success! I want Caysun to think of her crate as her space, a spot where she can relax, where good things always happen.

I haven't yet put crating on cue. I'll work on that after I've developed Crate Love a bit more. I can put the behavior on cue any time, but it's crucial that I have good feelings associated with crating first.

As I type, she's fast asleep in the crate, dreaming happy puppy dreams…

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