lab Archives - Smart Dog University

Service Dog Training: The Things A Dog Trainer Learns from Her Dogs

October 25, 2013

One of the reasons I love dogs is because they’re all different. We’re on service pup #15, Schooner, and oh, the things he’s teaching me!

One might think that dog training consists of the dog trainer teaching the dog. And yes, that’s true for the most part. My job is to help the dog learn. Opening up to learning from the dog, though, is when things get really cool. That’s where I am with Schooner in our training journey.

He’s teaching me. And he’s a pretty darn good teacher.

I’m learning:

to keep training sessions short
that training sessions better be fun
the dog can (and will) quit a training session if it isn’t fun
that not all dogs find chicken delightful and to keep searching and trying new treats until a I find one for which Schooner goes nutty
when I deliver a treat matters — slow is not acceptable (even when my click is perfectly timed)
dog brains develop on their own schedule and I need to modify my training schedule to match the dog’s schedule
keep training, even if it seems like the dog isn’t getting it
don’t be afraid to take a break from training for a few days, though if things feel like they’re not fun anymore
if you’re not smiling when you’re training, definitely take a break
some dogs are bottomless pits, while others walk away when they’re full — and that’s ok
clicker training conquers just about any training issue you throw at it AND the dog loves the solution

Schooner is 10-months old and he’s just now starting to really learn. I won’t lie: I was panicked for a couple of months because his progress was s o s l o w. The Labradors I’ve trained have always been ahead of me in the training game — I couldn’t teach them new things fast enough! Schooner, on the other hand, had a decidedly different path. He’s a “stop and smell the roses” kinda dog when it comes to learning.

His message in a nutshell: Don’t rush him, be patient, and his brains will eventually kick in. When I surrendered my need for progress, progress, progress, and let the dog dictate the pace, I was happily surprised with progress!

That, to me, is what dog training is all about. It’s a journey taken together with a little bit of give-and-take. It’s listening to one another, striving to create the opportunity for learning so that when the dog is ready to learn, I’m ready to teach.

Dog training is not about “making the dog” do anything. It’s not about shutting off behavior (jumping, barking, pulling etc.), it’s about getting lots more behavior and then rewarding only the good stuff that you want to see more of (sitting, chewing a toy, walking politely, etc.). If you hear someone say “just make him do it!” walk away. Quickly. That ain’t what dog training’s about. Not at all.

In the end, Schooner will have learned how to be a top-notch dog who can provide his human partner with the help she needs to get through life every single day. He’ll do it happily. He’ll do it eagerly. And together they’ll be a terrific working team, and — better still — a terrific team…period.

Your turn: What have you learned from your dog? Is your dog a good teacher? Are you a good learner? Let us know and leave a comment below!

How to Teach Your Dog to Drop It [Video]

September 19, 2013

Dogs have a way of stealing things, then running off with them. They especially enjoy your pursuit of them through the house, while they almost let you catch them before sprinting off again. Or even more dastardly, they wind up under the sofa or bed, holding your item hostage.

We raise a lot of puppies here — usually one a year. I’ve gotten really good at teaching the dogs to happily give up their latest treasure. The video below will give you the first steps to teaching a rock-solid “drop it” to your dog.

First, you’ve got to get good at feigning indifference when you’re forgetful and leave something valuable within the dog’s reach. If it’s available to them, then in their minds, it’s theirs. So set your dog up for success and keep your good stuff way up high or in a cabinet or closet.

Then, teach your dog how good it is that they play with their own stuff. How? Simple: everytime you see them playing with one of their own toys, go play with them! Praise them! Make a big deal about it!

At the same time, you’re also going to teach them how to give stuff up. The video covers all that ground. This is the first of a series of Drop It videos, and it’ll get you started on the road of No More Stolen Stuff.

Your Turn: What’s the most valuable thing (or the most dangerous thing) you’ve gotten back from your dog? Leave a comment below and let us know.

We’re God Parents!

July 29, 2013

I’ve never yearned to be a god parent. I don’t have brothers or sisters, so the chance of me being one was slim to none anyway, but I’m just not the kind of person to be voted god parent.

I mean, I guess I could do it if the kid was like 17 years old, gainfully employed, and going off to college in the fall. Other than that, I’m not god parent material.

At least to a kid.

But I’m not a kid’s god parent. I’m a dog’s god parent! Technically, my husband and I are the god parents to this particular dog, but this is my blog and my story. So we’ll leave him out of it for the purposes of this post.

Go ahead, laugh if you will. And then leave. Because this blog’s not for you, for I am very serious about my excitement and seriousness of god parenthood for dogs.

I think everyone should have plans in place for their dog if the inevitable happens and your dog is left people-less. Ideally, this will be put in a legal document like a will or a living trust or some other official document. I’m not an attorney, so don’t rely on me for advice on how to do this — consult your favorite legal eagle, I’m a dead end in that department.

Back to the real story — god parenthood. We were asked to be god parents to a dog we’ve helped raise. Quite a few pups have come through our house (we’re on #15 to be exact), and this is the first time we’ve been tapped to be the alternative if the worst should happen.

When we were asked, the asker said “take your time, talk it over with Dana, and get back to us. No pressure.” I was at the airport picking up my luggage from a recent trip and immediately wrote back on my phone “Yes.”

I didn’t have to think about it. I didn’t have to talk it over with Dana. The answer is YES. Thinking about it would only confirm my answer, and talking about it with my husband would only confirm his answer: YES.

This is what’s known as a no-brainer. Of course we’ll be god parents. There’s no way we wouldn’t be god parents. My life is now complete. I am a god parent.

It’s funny how something you never ever thought about and never expected can make you feel so good.

Your Turn: Are you a god parent to a dog? Do you have provisions made for your pets — just in case? Please leave a comment and let us know!

Train Your Dog Like You Love Him

June 28, 2013

I’ve loved dogs since I was a little girl. I’ve always had dogs. I chose to make dogs my profession. Not because it’s lucrative (it isn’t) or because it’s easy (it isn’t that either). But because I want dogs to have the most fantastic life possible.

Dogs don’t get to choose where they live or how they’re treated. They don’t get any say in how — or even if — they’re taught how to behave.

Their entire life is in the hands of their owner.

Think about that for a moment. Their entire life. Every decision. Every consequence. Not up to them.

I started my training career using old-fashioned methods: I used a choke chain, I scolded, I corrected. I would also use praise, too, but relied most heavily on “fixing” what the dog was doing wrong.

I earned my M.A. in psychology and in doing so was immersed in the laws of behavior and learning. With this knowledge, I realized every living being with a brain learns the exact same way:

We repeat what works for us. This changed the way I looked at my dogs.

I quit looking for (and correcting) what my dogs were doing wrong. And oh! Did I start having a much better time with my dogs! I began catching my dogs when they were doing things I liked. Turns out, they very often did things that were good, but because I was so busy looking for the bad things, I didn’t even notice all the good.

I’ve sent silent apologies to all the dogs with whom I’ve crossed paths for the way I treated them back then. For the times when I didn’t understand how to teach them what they needed to know. For the countless times I used corrections instead of instruction. For all the confusion they experienced because of my lack of knowledge.

Back then, I didn’t know there was a better way. I was doing the best I could. That’s what fuels me now. When we know better, we do better. My mission is to reach as many dog owners as I can and show them how they can love their four-legged best friend and have a great life together. And it’s all about training.

So while I wouldn’t trade this job for any other, when I see dog owners asking their friends for advice to fix their dog’s problems and read answers like “squirt him with water,” or “the electronic collar worked wonders,” it makes my heart hurt. The dog isn’t “being bad” on purpose. He’s not trying to push the owner’s buttons. There’s almost always a reason for the behavior. Dealing with that bad behavior using corrections isn’t fair.

The simple solution almost always involves teaching the dog to do what you want him to do. And very rarely is the solution to punish, correct, scold, or discipline.

Here’s what I know: you love your dog. You don’t want to do mean things to your dog, you probably just don’t know what to do. In the absence of any other information, people resort to the one thing they do know: get rid of the bad behavior.

I’m here to tell you there is a better way. A way that will teach your dog what you want him to do. That in the very doing, will get rid of the bad stuff. You love your dog — train him like you love him.

This blog is full of easy, fun, and effective solutions to problem behaviors. Take a look around. Leave a comment on a post if you have a question. I want to help you love your dog even more than you do already. A little training goes a long way.

Dog Safety: Mirrors Break Easily

June 25, 2013

Mirror, mirror on the wall, why did you have to fall?

The best lessons are learned the hard way. This lesson could have been a lot harder to learn and I’m thankful no dogs were injured.

I’ve got a full-length mirror on the back of my bedroom door. It’s a recent addition — it’s only been up about six months. I didn’t give a second thought to the placement of the mirror; it made perfect sense to put it on the back of the bedroom door (or so I thought).

What I didn’t consider are the dogs. The bedroom has been their “crate” now that the Dane is too big for his actual crate and he can’t be trusted with very much freedom. I failed to consider that the dogs might play together while their “crated” in the bedroom. Or that maybe, in their exuberance, they might jump on the door when they hear me return home.

I understand my thinking: all of our dogs are aging — ours are 11, 10, and almost 8 years old. I failed to consider the adolescent Dane. He’s big. He’s clumsy. And when he gets wound up, he can almost take down a wall. Hindsight shows me clearly that the mirror stood very little chance of survival.

Then, add another adolescent Great Dane to the mix. We’re watching the sweet Siena (now Gracie) — which is just heaven (another blog post coming on that). Those two dogs are like wrecking balls on four legs!

The Danes were apparently goofing off — wrestling, chasing, body slamming. It happens frequently, and I’ve never given it a second thought. Until the mirror broke.

Panic!

Don’t move, dogs. Don’t move.

The shards were swept and vacuumed and are safely wrapped in newspaper and in the garbage now. But the vision of shredded paws, veins sliced open, and blood everywhere literally haunts me. What if one of them (or all of them) had gotten cut? Or a piece of glass stuck? My god, the nightmares…

The moral of the story: look at everything in your house with a fresh eye and answer the question “Could this hurt my dog(s) if it got broken?” If your dogs have access to kitchen and pantry areas, ask yourself “What would happen if my dog got into the cabinets or the pantry?” There are A LOT of things that could hurt your dog if they get into them. Glass shards are but one of the many things.

I’m thankful that I learned a lesson and the only cost was a full-length mirror. I’m not sure where it’s replacement will go, but I know it won’t go on the back of my bedroom door again.

What’s your biggest a-ha moment or “crisis averted” story? Please share your lessons learned, I think we can all learn from one another!

Dogs in Public: Lessons Learned by Doing

November 20, 2012

If you want your dog to behave in public, you have to teach him in public. Teaching your dog at home or at obedience class is a good start, but if you expect that teaching to carry over to “real life,” you’re going to have to work in that situation.

Because public work is a necessity for service dogs, we start our public training very early. Last week, I attended a day-long meeting and it was the perfect opportunity to introduce Monti to public life. The picture above shows her (finally) taking a nap during the meeting. That relaxed behavior doesn’t happen naturally — especially not in public with so many interesting sights, smells, people and goings on — so I dedicated this meeting time to teaching Monti that she could, indeed, take a nap even in public.

I went very well armed: I had her breakfast and lunch with me, able to dole it out in small bits throughout the morning to reward good (quiet, calm, focused) behavior. In addition, I also brought chew toys (that didn’t squeak, much to my meeting-mates relief), and rawhide chews to occupy Little Miss Social during the meeting. As you can see in the picture above, I also had a portable water bowl, as well as a little soft bed so she could get really comfortable.

Monti’s training thus far has been active training — she’s always been reinforced for doing something. Maybe it was sitting, touching my hand, laying down, going into her kennel, whatever. But this little girl knows that doing gets reinforced. So imagine her confusion when I asked her to down, reinforced her, then ignored her (I had to pay attention to the presentations, it was a business meeting afterall!).

I started to spread out my rewards — if she was quiet for five minutes, then eight, maybe three, then twelve — so we got longer periods of inactivity from squirm-worm Monti. She quickly caught on and began to put her head down on the blanket. Bingo! Now, that was the only way she’d earn a goody. Head down = reward!

I then lengthened the amount of time her head had to be down. Before she knew it, she was asleep! Ahhh, the joys of a sleeping puppy.

It didn’t take long for her to learn that relaxing was the key to it all. Is my job done? Heck, no! It’ll take several more of those one-day meetings to help this feisty little Labrador figure out that public time = time to sneak in a nap. But we’ll get there. Every outing will be easier for her (and me) — the more experience she gets, the better service dog she’ll be for her partner.

You can do the same training with your dog that I’m doing with service pup in-training Monti. Find public places that allow dogs. And frequent them. A lot! Remember, if you want your dog to behave in public, you have to teach them in public.

Do you have a favorite place you like to take your dog to teach him in public? What do you like so much about it? Please leave a comment!

Menu

lab

Your turn: What have you learned from your dog? Is your dog a good teacher? Are you a good learner? Let us know and leave a comment below!

Subscribe to Email Updates

What People Are Saying