Smart Dog University Archives - Page 3 of 4

Puppy Training Questions & Answers

June 4, 2010

Q:

When should I start training my puppy?

A: Right away! Puppies retain what they learn starting at five weeks. You won't get your pup until eight weeks, so get ready to start teaching as soon as you bring your pup home!

Q: What should I teach my puppy?

A: Puppies need to learn everything: house training, crate training, polite greeting, leash walking, basic manners such as sit, down, and settle. If you're not teaching your puppy what to do, she'll figure something out on her own. Unfortunately, the behavior the puppy chooses isn't usually something we approve of! Most importantly, your pup needs to learn self control, often called impulse control.

Q. How can I teach self control to my puppy?

A: I take the "life training" approach. I teach self control precisely when the pup is showing no self control! For instance, if the pup jumps up to get to the food bowl in my hand, I won't lower the food bowl until the puppy is sitting. I don't yell at the puppy, I don't push her into a sit, I let her figure it out. When she figures it out, voila!, she gets her dinner. But not until then.

Another way I like to teach self control is to moderate my energy level when I'm playing with the pup. I don't let the puppy get out of control. I'll gently ramp her up to a moderate level, and then I'll stop playing and hold completely still. When the puppy matches my energy level, I'll start to play again. This stop-and-start play helps the puppy learn to ramp her energy level up and down.

Q: What about socialization? I keep hearing a lot about it, but I don't really know what it is.

A: Socialization makes the difference between a confident, happy, and friendly dog or a scared, fearful, and shy dog. Keep in mind that sometimes "fearful" takes the shape of a barking, lunging, and often scary-looking dog. Socialization is the process by which you introduce your puppy – a puppy is classified as younger than 20 weeks – to new things, places, people, surfaces, and sounds in a controlled and pleasant manner.

Until the age of 20 weeks, your puppy is like a sponge, soaking in all the different experiences. Around 16 – 20 weeks, though, the "socialization window" begins to close, and the pup starts to see things through a different set of lenses. In its first weeks at home, the pup is open to lots of new experiences, but when the window starts to close, the pup begins to look at new things a little differently. If you've done a great job socializing your puppy, you probably won't even notice this transition because your pup got accustomed to lots of different things early on. If your pup didn't get out, didn't experience the world, you'll really see this transition. Your puppy will be wary of new things, even harmless objects such as fluttering plastic bags, well-meaning but rambunctious kids, even inanimate objects such as trash cans or mailboxes.

Q: I need some ideas to help me socialize my puppy – what should I be looking to expose my puppy to?

A: Good socialization requires a little planning. You'll need to have some really delicious food treats (I like chicken chopped into pea-sized pieces) before you take your puppy out. And you'll need patience, lots of patience. When you're socializing your puppy, that's all you're doing – you can do errands, too, but if the pup becomes overwhelmed, you've got to be able to take the puppy out of the situation immediately. In other words, if you're at your kids' soccer game and the puppy is scared by the whistles and the motion, you've got to be able to move the dog further away, even if it means returning to your car with the pup.

You've also got to be ready to tell people how to pet your puppy and how not to pet your puppy. You have to be ready to tell kids that they can't pet your puppy if she's looking scared or hesitant. Remember: socialization is for the puppy, not for the public. It's ok to say "no" to requests to pet your dog if it's better for the puppy.

Think about the things your puppy will see throughout her life. If you've got kids, your pup is likely to see skateboarders, bicycles, kids running and screaming, etc. Expose your pup early to those things she'll be seeing throughout her life. Think about the different seasons, too. For instance, if your pup was born in the spring, the first time she'll see hoodies and snow pants won't be for another eight months! Get your kids to put their snow pants on and wear them at the dinner table a few nights. Have them walk around with their hoods over their heads. Believe me, if your pup doesn't see someone in a hoodie until she's 8 months old, there's going to be some barking! It's best to expose her now to those things, even briefly, so at least by the time winter arrives, she'll have seen these things.

You also want your puppy to meet lots of different people and different dogs. It's not good enough if your pup gets along great with your other dog or your kids. You want your pup seeing different dogs and different people every day. Old people, short people, people with facial hair, young people, tall people, people in uniform, people who walk funny, babies, people on crutches, people in wheelchairs, people who dress differently, etc. You want your dog to see big dogs, black dogs, barking dogs, sleeping dogs, lazy dogs, playful dogs, energetic dogs, dismissive dogs. The more people and dogs your pup is exposed to, the better adjusted (read: easier to handle) she'll be both as a puppy and later in life.

There's no shortcuts when training or socializing puppies. You just have to get out there and do it. I think it's kind of fun and I love trying to think of new things and places to take my pup. Just make sure the pup's having fun and get them out into the world!

MINE! How to Deal With A Selfish Dog

May 5, 2010

It happened in a flash. Tango was trying to go from the kitchen into the dining room. I didn’t know it, but Talos was hiding a rawhide in there and he bit Tango before I knew what happened. All I heard was a big growl, a surprised yipe, and then I yelled “Hey!” (That’s my standard interrupter for disagreements.)

I could tell there was damage, I just didn’t know how much or how severe. A quick check revealed a big hole in Tango’s ear. And lots of blood. All’s well now, Tango’s ear will have a notch missing, but he’ll be fine. This month’s newsletter will look at resource guarding (RG): what it is, how to recognize it, and things you can do to help reduce it.

Talos’ behavior is classic example of RG. Talos guards things he classifies as “high value:” a rawhide or a meaty bone. RG is a normal behavior, but it’s rarely appropriate behavior. What’s the difference, you ask? Well, it’s normal because it’s what dogs had to do throughout the course of time to survive. If a dog came across a deer carcass, he had to guard it from other predators or else he’d go hungry. That’s normal and appropriate. If the dog didn’t guard the carcass, he’d lose it. RG is inappropriate when there’s no real threat of losing something or when the resource isn’t valuable to the other party (be it person or dog).

A guarder usually hunkers down over his object, gives a hard stare to anyone who looks at or comes toward the object, he’ll growl, he might bare his teeth, and he may lunge and/or bite. If the dog is guarding a location, say the couch or the bed, he may lower his head, stiffen, growl, and then, if those other warning signals are ignored, bite.

Most people do the wrong things when they notice a RG problem. While it may make sense to tell the dog “No!” when he growls, that’s the worst thing to do. By telling the dog not to growl, you’re merely eliminating a warning sign without addressing the real problem.

If you notice your dog developing a RG problem, the first thing to do is manage the problem. This means feeding the guarder separately if he’s guarding his food bowl. Or giving him a rawhide in his crate or in a different room (and blocking access to that room). Or by just eliminating rawhides or other high value items from your RG dog. You’re preventing the guarder from practicing his inappropriate guarding, and that keeps the behavior from becoming a habit.

If the dog guards space, don’t allow the dog into that space. If he guards the couch, then he’s no longer allowed on the couch. For safety, let the dog drag a leash when you’re home so you can remove the dog from the couch without putting your hands on the dog.

Avoid physical confrontation at all costs. Physical force or intimidation is never a good strategy when working with resource guarding (or any problem!) and this can make the problem worse.

Management is often the optimal tool for food, rawhide, and toy guarders – it’s usually much easier to simply separate the dogs when eating or enjoying a rawhide. If the dog is also aggressive toward people in the presence of food or rawhides, then feeding in the crate is the only safe way for the dog to eat or enjoy rawhides. A qualified positive reinforcement trainer or veterinary behaviorist is necessary in cases of aggressive RG.

If the dog guards space, simply teaching the dog a “touch” or targeting behavior can be enough to diffuse the situation. Teaching the dog to touch his nose to your hand is called targeting and comes in handy for space guarders: If the dog is on the couch, it’s very simple to give the “touch” cue and the dog will then jump off the sofa to touch your hand. A click and a treat is all that’s necessary, the dog is now safely on the floor, and you can enjoy the sofa.

Puppy owners can do a few things to ensure their dog doesn’t become a RG. First: don’t take the dog’s bowl away “just to show him you can.” That’s a great way for the pup to learn that when you approach, his food disappears – you can actually create a guarding dog this way. Instead, sit with the pup while he’s eating and drop a pea-sized piece of chicken into his bowl every few seconds. Make sure everyone in the house participates, even children. Be sure to supervise closely the interactions between the child and the dog during this training. They shouldn’t play in the food bowl or pet the dog. Simply drop the chicken in and wait a few seconds before dropping another piece in.

As the pup learns that good things happen when hands approach his food bowl, begin to walk up to the food bowl to drop the chicken in. After you drop the chicken in, take a few steps past the bowl, turn around, approach again and drop another piece of chicken in. When the pup is wagging his tail expectantly every time you approach is food bowl, you can then pick up the food bowl, put the chicken in, and give the food bowl immediately back to the pup. Never tease the pup with the food bowl.

It’s important to teach your dog to nicely give up items he has in his mouth. Too often, resource guarding is created when owners only approach the dog to take away something the dog has. The dog learns very quickly to dread the owner’s approach, particularly if he has something in his mouth.

The same protocol can be used for this as was used for the food bowl. When your dog has a toy, approach him with happy voice and offer him a pea-sized piece of chicken. He’ll probably drop his toy to take the treat. Pick up the toy while he’s eating the chicken and offer it to him immediately. Continue to exchange chicken for toy randomly throughout the day. You can start to put a name on it like “thank you,” or “give.”

It’s much easier to prevent RG than it is to treat it, so even if your dog hasn’t shown any signs of trouble, it’s easy to teach your dog that your approach is a good thing. Have fun training!

Talos Rocks D.C.’s Metro Train

April 3, 2010

A service dog needs to be comfortable in many different environments. They've got to be ok with lots of different noises, locations, people, surfaces – nothing should surprise them when they're out in the world working with their partner.

Talos and I ventured to D.C. at peak cherry blossom time. And we went on the Metro system. I was a little apprehensive. Trains were new to Talos. They make a lot of noise. The stations are dark. They're a little like riding a roller coaster, pitching left and right.

Talos went through the card-reader gate (a narrow contraption with guillotine like gates that slide shut between passengers so only one person can get through at a time) without a hitch. Didn't even look crossways at it.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

Time to board the train! We got on with a few families headed down to see the cherry blossoms. Thankfully, there were two little girls. There's nothing that Talos loves more than small children. As the train departed the station, he looked at me, his face concerned. I spoke softly, gave him a few pieces of cheese, and he decided it was not worth panicking about.

Another sigh of relief.

A few more stops and he'd completely forgotten he was on the train. The little girls, captivated by the big dog sitting right in front of them!!, decided to baby-sit Talos. For which I'll be forever grateful. Here's a picture of one of them telling Talos a story. He was paying close attention.

We had to change trains at Metro Center. For those not familiar with the Washington, D.C. Metro system, Metro Center is the station where all four Metro lines converge. It's the central hub. It's huge. It's loud. It's crazy. It's dark. I was scared because I didn't know where to go or how to catch my next train. Thank goodness for the kindness of strangers – the mom of one of the girls held my hand through the entire trip, went out of her way to find (and ride) the elevator with us (Talos can't do escalators yet), and got us on the right train. Her five-year old daughter continued to baby-sit Talos – soothing him when the loud trains whooshed past us, frightening Talos.

Finally we made it to the correct stop and I bade my new friends farewell. I think the little girl would have had just as much fun sitting with Talos as seeing the cherry blossoms! Talos was sad to see her go, as was I.

We met up with three other dogs in training from Service Dogs of Virginia. Here's their blog about the day. We saw cherry blossoms. We saw loud, exhaust spewing buses. We were crushed in crowds of people. We saw the Washington Monument (Talos was unimpressed). Here's a quick snippet of our ride down, the cherry blossoms, and the ride home:

The ride home on Metro was a crush of people. The crowds were phenomenal. At one point, I couldn't see Talos' head because there were so many people packed into the train. He didn't even notice. Or if he did, he didn't care. It was if he did this trip everyday. On the way home, I swear he was bored.

The people traveling on Metro couldn't have been kinder. Not one person complained, squealed, or shied away from riding the train with a dog. He, in return, was a gentleman, although at one point he did lay down on a man's feet. I didn't realize it until it was the guy's stop and he politely asked Talos for his feet back. Like I said, the other train riders really helped us have a fantastic experience.

Another successful socialization trip for Talos and I. I think T's got the makings of a fantastic service dog. He's steady, even-keeled, and solid as a rock. I'm as proud as a mom when her child takes it's first step.

Get Your Dog To Notice You!

March 26, 2010

Does your dog dash out the door, pulling you along behind.

If you dropped the leash, would your dog even notice?

Does your dog pay more attention to the distractions outside than you?

If you answered yes to any of those questions, you're not alone! This is one of the most common complaints I hear from owners. Their dog doesn't even know they exist once the dog is outside. Thankfully, there's an easy remedy to this situation.

You'll need:

a clicker
delish treats
6' leash (no retractable leashes!)
regular buckle collar (no prong or choke collars!)

Leash your dog, put your treats in a fanny pack and have your clicker ready. Open the door, step outside and wait for your dog to look at you. Don't move any further than just outside the door. As soon as your dog looks in your direction, click and give him the treat. You may have to reach and put the treat in his mouth if he's really distracted. Then just wait some more. Click every time your dog looks in your direction. If you're using super high-value treats, your dog will start looking at you more often than he's looking at his environment.

Here's a video of my four dogs so you can get a feel for what this exercise looks like and how to do it. Each piece is only about two minutes long.

Fear Not (Video)

December 19, 2009

We're always on the lookout for ways to expose Talos to new and unusual sights and sounds. When we were at the Christmas Tree farm we had the chance to get our Christmas tree bundled. The bundler is loud and big. And there was plenty of room to move away if Talos showed any fear or avoidance of the crazy contraption.

The key to introducing your dog to something novel is to do it incrementally, to do it systematically, and to always (and I mean always!) go at your dog's pace. If you see signs of anxiety (tucked tail, ears back, lip licking, hiding behind your legs), STOP! Move further away, speak calmly and quietly to your dog, and try to feed some extra yummy treats. If your dog isn't eating those delicious treats, you know he's still too stressed. Move even farther away. Keep moving away until the dog's body language is more relaxed and until he's able to take treats.

What NOT to do: Don't reprimand your dog, don't boss your dog, don't pull your dog closer, don't stay there and expect your dog to get used to it. That's not fair to the dog and proves to the dog that you're not on the same team.

Take a look at what a really good relationship (developed through clicker training) can get you…a dog who's a little uncertain, but who trusts that everything's ok as long as he's with you.

Crates are Great

October 23, 2009

I hated "Marley and Me" because much of the chaos could have been prevented if Marley had been crated.

In an earlier blog post, I produced evidence of the damage Talos did today while I was away from the house. If a client complained because their dog ate a book while they were gone, I would definitely suggest a crate to avoid future disasters.

Talos has been crate trained. He likes crating. Trouble is, he's too big for his crate now! We have Labrador-sized crates, not Dane-sized. Talos is here temporarily – he's not going to be a permanent member of our house (much to my disappointment). The Dane crates are too big for the Labradors, so I'm trying to avoid buying a giant Dane crate that won't be used once Talos goes "off to college" in less than a year.

I made a couple of mistakes today.

Mistake #1: I was unprepared. Normally, if I've got to be gone more than four hours, I'll set the dogs up with a Kong-Time – a machine that dispenses four filled Kongs over either a four- or eight-hour period. It keeps the dogs busy, gives them something appropriate to chew. However, I didn't have 20 Kongs stuffed this morning, so I ran out the door and gave the dogs just one Kong each.

Mistake #2: I didn't dog-proof the room Talos was in. He's not normally a chewer or ripper-upper. I saw the books on the coffee table, but I pooh-poohed the idea that he'd bother them. In the past, he's always eaten the stuffed Kong, then taken a nice, long nap.

I know it was my fault the books got chewed. I take full responsibilty and Talos did not bear the brunt of my mistake. His destructiveness is not the norm, however if it becomes a problem, I'll go get a giant crate to ensure the house – and Talos – remain safe!

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