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Siena: Officially Released + Looking for A Home

October 10, 2012

It’s official. Sweet Siena is going to be a pet! This is good news, really. As service work just wasn’t a good fit for her. She’s a homebody. She doesn’t like a lot of change. I’m helping spread the word because I think the more people who know about her, the better our chances of finding her the perfect home. Here’s a taste of who Siena is…

I’m not responsible for selecting the home. I’m really just the lady who reaps the benefits of having a Dane puppy in the house until a great home is found. [And the one who will be boo-hooing when said home is selected and it’s Siena-transfer time, of course.] Service Dogs of Virginia purchased Siena and are the rightful owners. It will be their decision to find and select Siena’s permanent home.

Here are all the particulars about this sweet girl.

Born: June 4, 2012
Breed: European Great Dane (AKC papers)
Color: Merle (grey, black speckled with white)

Siena’s a great dog who wouldn’t be comfortable working in public in ever-changing conditions and locations. She’s more of a homebody.

Siena is current on her vaccinations, has started basic manners training and is doing very well in K9 Nose Work™ classes.

She gets along very nicely with other dogs and lives in harmony with a cat.

Siena is very snuggly and definitely enjoys a nice long nap on the couch. She’s fantastic in her crate andruns to it when asked.

She is just finishing up her house training and can go to the bathroom outside on cue (a very handy thing!).

She’s a very soft and sensitive dog, so her new family will agree to use only clicker training with her (no prong, choke, or shock collars). No underground electronic fences.

Reason Released: Siena doesn’t handle change very well. She’s happiest in her comfortable home, not out in the grocery store or mall. She’s very happy going places — she enjoys trips to the farmer’s market, local park, neighborhood walks — she just didn’t transition well into public places that a service dog would have to frequent (stores, doctor offices, restaurants, etc.).

Training: Puppy Charm School (will continue until she’s 18 weeks), K9 Building Blocks (good manners training (will start at 18 weeks). Siena very much enjoys K9 Nose Work class and we’ve noticed that this class, not surprisingly, is building her confidence level and expanding her horizons. And she’s quite good at it, too!

She’s Good At: walking politely on a leash, going to and staying in her crate, cohabitating with our kitty, playing with other dogs, snuggling, leaning, car rides (provided you don’t drive like a maniac).

Price: $1500. If you’re interested in Siena, contact Service Dogs of Virginia:
Info@servicedogsva.org or
(434) 295-9503

If you want more information about Siena’s personality and training, contact me:
laurie@smartdoguniversity.com

Dog Training Diary: Sometimes I Don’t Feel Like Training My Dog

October 9, 2012

I’ve got a confession. I haven’t worked with my dogs at all this week. Nothing. Not even sit.

I haven’t been in the right mood for training. And if you’re not in the right mood, no training is better than forcing it. If you’re going to work with your dog, you’ve got to be ready to concentrate on your dog, ready to be flexible with your goals, and ready to have fun.

So there. I said it. The dog trainer has not worked with her dogs. And we’re better for it. Because the results aren’t pretty if you train ugly.

Dog Training: Teach Your Dog to Give Up Stuff

October 3, 2012

Have you ever chased your dog when he has something of yours?
Has your dog ever gulped something down to avoid giving it up to you?
Does your dog think it’s fun to grab stuff and then play keep-away from you?

If any of those sound familiar, you’re going to like this month’s newsletter. It’s all about teaching your dog to give stuff up politely and easily. We’ll go over the reasons dog steal, the most common mistakes people make with their dog, give you some strategies to prevent the stealing in the first place, and give you step-by-step instruction on how to teach your dog to reliably offer up what’s in his mouth when asked.

Why Do Dogs Steal Stuff?
Sometimes the dogs aren’t stealing, per se, they’re just exploring the world the only way they can – with their mouth. Our reaction to this exploration sets the stage for what happens next. A gasp and sudden reach toward the dog is sometimes enjoyable for the dog – they like our reaction to their exploration! And then, when they skitter out of reach, you get up and chase them. Holy moly, that’s even more fun! In just one quick instant, your dog has learned that stealing stuff is valuable in more way than one: (1) they get something they wouldn’t usually get and (2) they get you to play with them. From their perspective, this couldn’t get any better! They aren’t stealing to spite you, be stubborn, or annoying. It simply works out well for them more often than not.

Avoid These Pitfalls

From this day forward, thou shalt not:

Chase the dog when he has something you want. Unless, of course, you want him to learn how to get your attention quickly and predictably.
Yell at the dog for having it. Yell at yourself for leaving it where the dog could get it, if you must yell at someone.
Punish the dog after you get the item back.
Leave stuff where the dog is able to steal it. (Would you really be mad at someone who took the $100 bill you left on the seat of your car with the window down? Or would you berate yourself for being so careless?)

Smart No-Stealing Strategies

From the moment a new dog or puppy comes into our house, I manage his environment so it’s really hard to get in trouble. The harder it is for that dog to get in trouble, the less trouble he’ll be in. Make sure your house is dog-proofed. Close the doors to bedrooms and bathrooms. Pick your clothes up off the floor. Put your shoes in the closet. Never (ever) leave food on the counter – your dog WILL steal it, I promise!

Plan what you’re going to do before your dog steals something. Even with the best dog-proofing and planning, your dog will eventually get something you don’t want him to have, it’s just a fact of life. In my house, I do nothing when I see the puppy with something she shouldn’t have. I keep my poker face and calmly call her to me. Or I might grab a toy and start playing with it. She bounds over to me, dropping whatever she has along the way.

Teaching Your Dog to Give Up Stuff

You now know how to avoid the pitfalls, and you know how to implement the strategies. Now it’s time to teach your dog what to do in the event he steals something. You’re going to need a toilet paper cardboard core (or paper towel core will do, too) as well as some pea-sized pieces of chicken or other delectable human food. Why toilet paper rolls? Here’s why: (1) they’re free, (2) they won’t hurt your dog if he steals or eats them and (3) most dogs like cardboard, but will willingly give it up for something better.

Before you start, choose a word or phrase to use when you want your dog to give you whatever he’s got. If you’ve had less than pleasant interactions with your dog and his “treasures” in the past, choose a completely new word. You can choose any word or phrase you’d like; here are a few suggestions: give, drop, thank you, please, out, yuck, whatcha got.

You want to initiate this game with your dog, meaning you want to actually give him the thing first, then ask him to give it up.

Step 1: Show your dog the empty paper towel roll. While holding onto one end, offer the cardboard core to your dog. You may need to wiggle it around to make it more enticing.

Step 2: Once your dog has the cardboard core in his mouth (and you still have hold of it, too), put that really yummy treat directly in front of your dog’s nose, even touching the treat to his nose if you need to.

Step 3: At the same time, say your word (I’ll use “give” in this article, but your word can be different) in a pleasant voice. Don’t tug on the cardboard core.

Step 4: Hold the treat at your dog’s nose until he spits the core out and takes the treat.

Step 5: As you are delivering the treat, reach down and pick up the paper towel roll.

Step 6: After your dog has finished the treat, offer the paper towel roll again in an excited voice.

You’ll repeat these steps several times, always giving the dog a treat for giving up the paper towel roll and also giving him the paper towel roll back.
The dog is learning that giving up stuff is pretty fun – he gets a tasty goodie and gets the “thing” back, too! It’s a win-win! The key to this exercise is that you initiate it. If you only pay attention to the dog and trade him when he initiates the game, you are teaching him to grab stuff so you’ll trade him.

Word of Caution

Never ever hit, scare, or threaten your dog in order to get something back from him.
If your dog growls or shows any aggression, STOP immediately. Call a positive-reinforcement training professional right away.

Conclusion
The steps outlined above will also work for the dog who won’t give up the ball when playing fetch. If your dog doesn’t drop the ball, you can’t throw it for him again. Don’t chase, beg, or plead with your dog to give the ball up. This is his game – if he won’t give the ball up, you won’t throw it again. Period. He can’t throw it for himself, so if you go and sit in a chair (instead of chasing him), he’ll learn pretty quickly that his game of keep away isn’t much fun at all.

This is an easy skill to teach your dog. It shouldn’t take more than a week or two to teach your dog that giving up things is a really fun and rewarding thing to do!

Dog Training: Ask the Trainer – How to Teach Your Dog Without the Word “No”

September 12, 2012

Siena is our 13th service dog we’ve had a hand in raising. And she’s the 13th dog that doesn’t know what the word “no” means. How can that be, I hear you saying. She must be a monster if you don’t say “no.” She, like the other dogs we’ve raised, are very well behaved and don’t find any valuable information in the word “no.”

I don’t use that word in my training. I don’t need it and here’s why:

“No” doesn’t give the dog any information whatsoever as to what he should be doing. Here’s the thing — unless your dog is dead, he’s always doing something. He’s sleeping. He’s barking. He’s sitting. He’s chewing a bone. He’s running. He’s laying down. He’s doing something all the time.

A living thing can’t exist without doing something. So, the smart dog owner says to herself “What can I teach my dog to do that’s acceptable to me?” [Hint: what the smart owner does not say is: how can I get my dog to stop doing x.]

It’s 100 times easier to teach your dog what to do than it is to get him to STOP doing something. Because in order to get your dog to STOP doing something, you’ve got to insert something ELSE — remember, only dead dogs do nothing.

Here’s my hint to you: it’s a whole lot easier to simply teach your dog what to do than to waste time thinking about how to STOP something.

An example may help illustrate this idea. Let’s say your dog jumps when people come to your house. Almost everyone says “how can I get my dog to stop jumping” and all they do is work on getting rid of the jumping. It’s frustrating — to you, to the dog, and to your guest. Because trying to stop the jumping the hardest solution to a very simple problem.

If you’re a smart dog owner, you’re thinking: what else can my dog do so he won’t jump on people. Forget about stopping the jumping. Focus on what your dog can do — that you can reward — that will get you to your solution. There are so many things your dog can do instead of jump. Here’s a partial list:

sit
lay down
go to a specific spot (his bed or crate, for instance)
run to his toy box to grab a toy
go belly up for tummy scritches
perform a cute trick like dancing or begging
touch the guest’s hand with his nose
the list is endless.

So instead of saying “No!” repeatedly, you can simply teach your dog to do any one of these behaviors, reward him heartily, then sit back and wait for your guests to tell you how well-behaved your dog is!

Great Dane, Siena, has learned how to put her front paws up on the counter. This is not a good thing. She’s not very tall now, but she can still reach the countertops! Give her a few more months and she won’t have to get on her hind legs to reach, she’ll be able to simply stand on all four feet with her chin on the counter. Instead of saying “NO!” everytime her paws hit the counter — which would be such a downer — I’m either ignoring her and then praising her like crazy when she finds nothing and gets down on her own or I’m redirecting her to put her feet on the floor (then adding in that praise). In addition, I’m reinforcing her for sitting while I’m doing food prep. Amazingly [from her perspective] food jumps off the counter and onto the floor only when she’s sitting. She can actually make food jump into her mouth if — and only if — she sits politely when I’m prepping for dinner.

Voila! I’ve got a dog who lays down quietly while dinner is being prepped. It really is that easy!

Siena’s our 13th dog and I’ve not used “no” yet. I challenge you to think of something else for your dog to do instead of saying the word “no.” It’s a crutch you don’t need. I promise.

Depressed Dogs – Vacation’s Over

August 20, 2012

Yes, it happens to dogs, too. My guys are sad it's Monday. Specifically, they're sad they're not on vacation anymore.

Here's some of the fun we had last week:

Lily enjoying her "fishing time."

Our view most days….

It's nice to just get away and leave your worries in the dust. Or in the wake. Or whatever. It was good.

Tango is never without his bumper.

This dog LOVES his bumper. He's never without it at the lake.

Vacations…nothin' better.

We had our own private island. Except that it wasn't ours. And it wasn't private. But it might as well have been — we had it all to ourselves every day for vacation.

Sleepy Nemo

Even Nemo was worn out and had to take a power nap in the boat between swimming holes.

Well, it's back to reality today. But it sure was nice to spend our vacation with the dogs. At least we're all feeling a little sluggish and mumpy-grumpy together today.

Coming Right Up!

January 18, 2008

Does your dog come when you call? Or does he run the opposite direction? Want to know how to teach your dog to come when called?

Coming when called (or more accurately, not coming when called) is one of the most common behavior problems I get asked about. Let's take a look.

First, stop doing these things:

scolding your dog for coming too late
starting something not-so-fun (putting Fido in the crate and leaving)
stopping something really fun (ending playtime in the yard)
"lying" to your dog (saying "lets go for a walk," to get your dog to come and then not following through)
calling your dog when you know he's not likely to come (when he's barking at the fence at the neighbor's dog, when he's chasing a squirrel, etc.). Instead, just go out and get him.

Start doing these things:

giving your dog a really yummy treat when he comes – even if it's 5 minutes after you've called him.(make sure it's a treat he doesn't normally get, so it really sticks out in his mind how good coming to you really is)
playing your dog's favorite game when he comes
releasing him to go back and do whatever it was he was doing before you called him (if he was playing with another dog, for example, let him go back out to play)
praising, playing, and petting him for at least 20 seconds (time yourself!) when he comes
going out and getting him if he's not likely to respond to your request (if he's engrossed in a smell, barking at a squirrel, engaged in raucous playtime, etc.)
playing hide and seek and catch-me-if-you-can – make yourself really fun and exciting in your dog's eyes. The more fun you are, the more likely your dog will come running when you call.

Remember: coming when called is something you need to teach your dog – he isn't born knowing how to leave something really exciting and return to you. Especially if he just gets in trouble when he gets to you (or if all the fun ends when he gets to you). It takes practice and patience on your part. The more you practice, the better your dog's skills will become.

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