Mat training for travelling

Teaching your dog to go to their mat, stay on their mat and have calm positive associations with their mat makes going away from home an easier transition!




Early training to love going to the mat!



Advanced training to go to the mat from a distance and stay on it until released:



In our training classes we teach active and passive mat exercises. Mat training is also a good way to proof distractions and get longer stays.
Join our next set of classes!
http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

Mat Enthusiasm

I was recently helping a family with their dog "Roxie", a Yorkie cross that barks intolerably at the doorbell.
Part of the solution was to train their dog to love Mat Games! This is a short video of Roxie's very first time playing the mat game:
***coming soon***

This foundation skill can be used in helping solve many behaviour problems and also as a way of teaching stay, leave it and ignoring distractions.

See our training workshop information on the next class to teach your dog this and some other useful life skills!
http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

WUFF WUFF! Gather Around! A Helicopter!

Time for some Anthropomorphizing !

We were out for a wonderful walkies today. Maren calls them "field trips". Dogs appreciate beautiful autumn days too! We were full of zoom! We were happy to run and play and explore the forest trails. Maren always seems to get her camera out on days like this so we stayed nice and close so we could have a chance of getting our picture taken!



Whenever Maren stops along the trail we know there is a pretty good chance of something good happening. Positive reinforcement works wonders! Kinda like gambling ... if there is even a slight chance of getting a jackpot (the good treats from the left pocket this time?!?) then it is worthwhile to keep trying it out. Lots more stories about that ... but back to today...

So Maren seems to always have us in the corner of her eye at all times. Whenever one of us checks in and looks at her she acknowledges us and then VOILA she says "Yes" and we get some kind of reinforcement ... sometimes a treat, sometimes praise, sometimes a scritchy scratchy, maybe a stick or a chance to run alongside her or play hide and seek in the brush or ... ooops, getting carried away ... it's just good to check in with Maren 'cause she finds fun and interesting and tasty things when we do that!

Our names are also important and worthwhile responding to! Same thing ... never know what kind of fun or good stuff happens after we hear our name. After a while Rocky doesn't bother responding to the name Trixie, or Baxter doesn't both responding to the name Opal, but if thier name is spoken ... instant HEAD FLICK!

Sometimes Maren calls the whole group to come with a whistle. I think there is video of that on the blog too ... the whistle is the BEST! It is always followed by the extra high value reinforcements (fancy dog trainer language but reinforcers can be different depending on the individual ... can't imagine why not all dogs love sticks like me but hey, I guess not all dogs love being petted either ... their reward might just be sweet talkings ...) anyway ... got carried away again talking about rewards! Maren's dog Opal turned on a dime once when a deer bounded away right in front of her ... hard to imagine but the whistle had been sooooo well reinforced and the response was so visceral and automatic that when Maren blew the whistle Opal just spun around and came! We are in awe... but our whole group turned away from a bear about a month ago too so I suppose we're awesome too!

So back to today ...
Oh, actually one more thing ...

Us dogs that have been hanging around with Maren for a while know the Gather Around Routine well. She stops. We gather around. Polite is right! Don't sit too far away but pushiness doesn't pay off either. If some dog tries to push another dog out then the other dog gets a treat. If some schmuck tries to hoard the treats then he gets pushed outta the circle (simply stepping into another dogs space works wonders). Some dogs are worried about other dogs coming close but even they soon learn that there is no threat there ... if a dog comes close then the treat rate actually goes up. Cool! I learned that one! I actually like other dogs getting into my space now! And, the longer you stay sitting, the higher your chances of more coming your way. Don't have to yell at us to stay! We like that idea! Then the ultimate reward ... give eye attention to Maren and then she leads us on the next part of the adventure!!! Arf Wuff Arrrooooooooo!

Twice today we encountered a motorcyclist. I don't know who heard the loud vroooming noise first, Maren or us dogs, but the sound of a motorcycle has become emotionally conditioned to mean good things to us. Maren moves off to the side at a wide part of the trail (the start of the Gather Around Routine that I just told you about.) Some of the dogs that have been doing field trips for a while actually turn to look at Maren at the first sound of a motorcycle ... or bicycle for that matter ... no yelling and compulsion or aversive training techniques needed to stop a bike chases ... but that's for another blog entry ...

So today ... yes, back to today again ... Dogs are sometimes said to have a sixth sense but Maren swears she didn't consciously hear the helicopter coming ... she had the camera out and was videoing us playing the "Name Game" when suddenly it was almost overhead ... and LOUD!

We had played the "Gather Around" game with the motorcycle earlier in the walk so the routine was fresh in our memory. Noise + Maren stops = Gather around and have the extra good treats from the left pocket and happy praise and take turns and make eye contact and then be released to romp and adventure some more!

Moral of the story?
"Why check out or chase or worry about a motorcycle or helicopter or whatever the case may be ... when Maren leads us confidently aside and makes it worth our while!" We trust our leader and take our cues from her!

Dog Star Daily has a lot of good advice and hey, here is that fancy word!
http://www.dogstardaily.com/blogs/what-anthropomorphism

Some of the training games that Maren uses with us are taught in her Training Workshops. Check out http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

Rescue at Sea!

We had some silly fun at the lake today ... and here is my feeble attempt at video editing...

Look at the BEAR! Playing games?

Field Trips out with the Paw In Hand doggie group are never dull!

There was a nice brown black bear waaaay across the other side of the logging clear cut ... too far for the doggies to make the effort to investigate but close enough for them to notice! My own dog Opal has played the "Look At That" training game with other distractions before but this was the first time with a bear! All these "mock" scenarios in training were a good learning tool because in real life experiences we usually have less control over the situation. A couple of the other dogs in the group that day played a good preliminary round at the LAT game. Notice a few Auto Check In eye contacts and some Name Game as well.

Good example of how trained foundation behaviours can be used in real life situations. If we encounter a bear again then they have a history of reinforcement of checking back in with me and hopefully will choose that option automatically because of all the training we've done rather than act impulsively...

Impulse control! Back to that again! My favourite training ingredient coming up again and again ...

Come to our Step One Training Workshop and see how to teach your dog impulse control!

http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

Mat Games in real life

Katherine and I took our doggies Keegan, Opal and Trixie for a swim down at the boat launch this afternoon for some fetchin' and splashin' fun!



Then we headed for the downtown park to dry off in the sun on our blankets. Putting our Mat Training Games into real life situations. The doggies noticed people and dogs go past in the distance and were calm on their mats. We got some work done! Those mat training games paid off.



But then ... an irresponsible dog owner passed by on his bicycle with his dog off leash, crashed our party and stole one of our dog's chewies. Whether the dogs was friendly or not was not the issue ... whatever breed it was wasn't the issue ... (well maybe not a major one) but the dog came up uninvited to a picnic and didn't respond quickly to the owners cues to come or to drop the chewie. Grrrr... Luckily I have benefited from anger control methods and meditation ... and our dogs have benefited from practicing the "Car Crash" or "Dog in Yer Face" games ... We do a lot of exerices from Leslie McDevitt's excellent book "Control Unleashed"

http://controlunleashed.net/index.html

See our Training Workshops and learn exercises that can help you in situations such as these.
There may even be a reactive dog class coming soon!

Yippee Yahoo ... Dried horse POOH

Katherine and I were so excited today to find some dried up horse pooh! Not toooo fresh to be overly tempting (to the dogs) -- but not so old that there was no good smell left to it either!

Why would we be so excited to find dried up equine dung? It was a great training opportunity! That's why! A chance to train our dogs to focus on something and to reinforce the "SNIFF" cue!

If a dog is sniffing then they aren't ________ (fill in the blank: eating, running away, rolling in it, etc.)

The chance to sniff something wonderful can also be used as a life reward. Wuffie come! Good come -- sniff this! Yay! If you are the finder of the good sniff substance then your dog will think they better keep a closer eye on you on the trails 'cause you are the finder of amazing discoveries. Share the experience! (well, okay -- maybe just the excitement of the experience)



Normal dog/dog greeting behaviour is usually initiated by the dogs sniffing each other. For some dogs that need help learning appropriate social skills with other dogs, reiforcing a sniff cue can help the process.



In our STEP ONE workshop we teach how to put sniff on cue. Join us at least once and give us a chance to show you how this seemingly crazy concept can help you and your dog!

http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

Berry Yummy Treats on the Trail!!!

Another opportunity to train your dog that you don't want to miss out on! No drilling obedience exercises and long work sessions ... learn how to use opportunities in daily life to train your dog.

I teach my dogs to check in with me whenever I stop on the trail. We practice this in day to day interactions. It is more a way of communicating and a game than a command. When they check in with me they are thanked or reinforced with some type of reward or game or interaction ... or in this case a chance to pick their own berries!



Through the simple fun training games that my dogs and I play together they learn to be more attentive to me. These games are useful tools to help problems such as bike chasing, rushing at other trails users, devouring yuck on the trails, etc.

Join us in a STEP ONE Training Workshop and then progress to single topic focused workshops and learn how to train your dog the day by day play way... dogs or puppies!

http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

DIG THIS!

I love nothing more than to watch dogs doing doggie things! Uninhibited sheer joy in divine canine activities!

My own dogs love to dig and I encourage them to do so ... in appropriate places mind you. Dogs need outlets to partake in natural instinctual behaviours if we want them to be well balanced companions. They don't all have to dig but they do need to have some type of seeking activity. Other games which provide outlet for natural drives are Tug-a-War, hide and seek, find it and fetch games. (Yes, it's okay to play Tug-a-War with your dog ... check back soon for a post on that!)

Children get sandboxes to play in. Dogs can have designated digging pits! If they have a special spot where they can dig and occasionally find a special treasure (that you secretly buried there), then they will be much more likely to dig in their special spot more often ... rather than under your prized peonies where the picking isn't so good.



See our Training Workshop "Fun and Games" and get your dog started on tricks and games that simulate natural outlets for your dogs' energies!
http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/play-and-games.html

For more information on digging see:
http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/digging.html

From Zen to Leave It

Warning: Subject matter may not be suitable for all family members and viewer discretion is advised ... dead squirrel :0(

I don't want to have to shout "Leave it" in threatening tones everytime my dog discovers an object of desire to eat or roll in ... I prefer my dog to have a "default" leave it behaviour.
Think children running around with hot dogs in their hands ... isn't it a given that the dog should default to leaving them alone and not having to be told?!
These exercises are some of the beginning steps:



Our workshop teaching you Zen exercises and their progressions are:
http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/step-one.html

Paw In Hand on TV!

Trixie splash and play with big stick

Training your dog equals playing with your dog. I called Trixie to "come" and rewarded her with a surprise stick and pond that I found!!! Yay! "Gotta watch mom closely 'cause she finds great things to do" says Trixie!

Our workshop "Come to me, Run to me" teaches you how to use life rewards such as this to help you get a good recall on your dog:
http://pawinhand.blogspot.com/p/you-just-call-out-my-nameand-ill-come.html