Book Review: ‘Dog Sense’ by John Bradshaw – A Dog Owner Must Read

By Maya on January 14, 2012

Dog Sense by John BradshawFour Paws Up!  This is a MUST read for all dog owners.

If you truly want to understand and develop a wonderful relationship with your dog, this book is a must read.  I’m always looking for information that can help me better understand my dogs, yet it seemed like most available literature on dog training and behavior was mostly anecdotal.  Less common are books based on scientific studies, written by a scientist.  I had not read one until this excellent book written by anthrozoologist John Bradshaw, “Dog Sense: How the New Science of Dog Behavior Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet.”

In his book, Dog Sense, John Bradshaw brings the science that sheds light on dog behavior out of the scientific journals, where the average person would never find them, into an easy-to-understand book that is full of invaluable information and insight.  Bradshaw uses science to explain to us humans how it is our dogs really perceive the things we do and why they see things in their way.  It challenges many of the anecdotal folk knowledge most of us have learned and gives the dog owner a real foundation with which to develop a wonderful relationship with their dog.

Where dog training books simply give you techniques to train your dog, Dog Sense gives you the insight to understand how your dog thinks and understands the world.  This insight helps you better understand how to communicate with you dog and correctly interpret their behaviors.  While this book does not give instruction on training methods, it does explain the reasoning behind, and effectiveness of, positive reinforcement.  It also explains the science and reasoning behind why dominating your dog doesn’t make much human or dog sense.

The book also addresses the problem that in our modern society, dogs are often not permitted to be dogs.  People expect flawless behavior from their dogs with no effort and little concern for the dogs’ needs.  Often, dogs are expected to behave much better than children and show more restraint and control than an adult human.  Even worse, they expect dogs to understand what they are saying and doing just like a human.   While we all are guilty of anthropomorphizing our dogs to some extent, many people expect their dogs to understand what is “right” or “wrong,” just because they said so.  Bradshaw discusses the many ways most people misinterpret dog behavior, thus causing them to punish and praise a dog at all the wrong times.  He explains how people assume dogs understand things that, in fact, they do not comprehend at all.  Imagine if the person you trusted and depended on suddenly punished you and you had no idea why?  As the book explains, this causes countless dogs huge confusion, anxiety, and insecurity.

Another major error Bradford covers in the book is the widely accepted belief that dogs are simply wolves in a different shape.  Science, he explains, has disproved this belief.  Dogs have been man’s best friend for so long that their behavior is no longer that of a wolf; it is absolutely unique.  While they are canine, dogs differ drastically from the wolf in many respects, and it is simply unfair to analyze their behavior from the wolf perspective.  With this foundation of knowledge, Bradford also challenges the notion that our dogs are constantly trying to dominate us in an unending struggle for pack domination.

This book truly provides information that substantially shifts your point of view in dealing with your own dog.  A shift that is certainly for the better.  I wish all dog owners would take the time to read Dog Sense, and gain the perspective that the book offers.  By failing to properly understand them, we are doing our dogs a disservice and causing them unnecessary anxiety, stress, and even pain.

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At the Fair Part II: the Agility Course

By Maya on October 31, 2011

A few weeks ago, my Papillon Riyo and I ran our first agility course in front of a small audience, and the way I performed is a perfect example of why I titled this blog “an idiot’s guide.”  My dogs are the geniuses, while I, on the other hand, often look like an idiot.

If you aren’t familiar with the Agility sport, the basic idea is that you and your dog work as a team to navigate through a course of obstacles.  In this case, a course of 18 obstacles (or was it 20?) clearly numbered with bright orange cones place next to each one.  As you move through the course, your dog follows your body language and words to know which obstacle to tackle next.

My little Papillon Riyo is so smart he makes me look like I am much more competent than I am.  He is so intensely focused on me that he responds to every move I make.  ALL I have to do is count to 18 and point at the right obstacle.  (except the weave poles, “we” (I) haven’t quite figured those out yet).  In my defense, following the course IS a little harder than it looks.

Papillon doing Agility

Riyo and me at the last jump!

Starting with obstacle No. 1, we’re off.  We get through the first 4 or 5 ok.  “Jump!” “Tunnel!”…not bad.  Then, either on 6 or 7, I hit my first hiccup.  Where is seven?  I have to clumsily stop and whirl around to figure out where to go next.  Now I’m getting more nervous and instead of saying “Jump!” I find myself counting out loud.  “Ummm….eight! Ummmm NINE!”  Ugh, NO!  I sound like an idiot!  “Jump!”  “Ummm… 11!”  Oh, this is not so good.

Despite my fumbling, Riyo is catching my drift and doing his best to figure out my clumsy and completely un-fluid progress through this course.   But, we’re still going, “Thirteen!”  I yell out, still counting out loud (oh my poor dog) — Then, as if my GPS suddenly lost power, I look around and cannot for the life of me find 14.  I’m spinning around, flustered, looking for 14 until finally the other club members have mercy on me and point at the elusive 14 and yell “tunnel!” at me.

Flustered and rather embarrassed, I look down at my little dog, and there he is still looking at me like I am the smartest, most amazing person on the planet.  He’s just waiting for me to tell him which way we’re going next!  Truly, no matter how idiotic or incompetent I am, my dog still looks at me like I am descended from Einstein.  The other thing I noticed was that he didn’t care how incompetent I was.  He was SMILING!  He was having a blast, just bouncing around and doggie laughing!

You know, he was right!  Who cares!  This IS fun!  And with that  bit of silent wisdom from my little buddy, I stopped feeling embarrassed and nervous and we finished the course.  Next time, I’ll remember that doggie lesson and just have fun!  Can’t wait to try again!

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At the Fair Part I: The Obedience Demonstration (or lack thereof)

By Maya on October 18, 2011

Recently, our dog club was invited to do a dog obedience and agility demonstration at the East Texas State Fair! I was very excited to take my two dogs to their first PUBLIC showing! I was excited despite the realization that something would go wrong. Fortunately, I have developed a very high tolerance for embarrassment, so the high probability of looking like a dope in front of an audience wasn’t dampening my enthusiasm.

I arrived a little later than I had hoped, just on time to hear the “plan.” The plan was three rounds of the “show” over three hours. About eight of us would go one after another running the agility course, then a large group of us would do a group obedience demonstration. Horror of horrors! I didn’t know the GROUP demo part. The chances of getting Lizzie to look at me in the face while heeling are slim to none when there are a group of doggie butts in close proximity to sniff. PLUS we were in the livestock arena next to two Brahman cows! Task number one: make Lizzie understand that barking ferociously at cows is not permissible. Fortunately, I was able to communicate this rule to her relatively quickly, though I did have to remind her a couple more times during the course of the evening.

I got there too late, so Riyo missed the first agility run, and I went straight into the group obedience demo. It did not go quite so well. Lizzie, as I suspected, was far too engrossed in other dogs, cows, the smells of fried everything, and just generally not interested in me. If I had just gotten there early and let her sniff everything in sight BEFORE the first demo, I’m sure things would have gone better. So ended the first demo.

Second obedience demo. Now Lizzie has had time to settle down. The heeling exercise

German Shepherd Lizzie breaking a down-stay!

Lizzie, caught in the act of breaking her down-stay

does improve and we go into the down-stay demonstration. I dropped her leash and walked across the arena with many of the other handlers. All was going well, yes, my dog is doing great!!……Then, in the blink of an eye, all was lost! My dog went from politely laying in a line of other good dogs, to charging the arena fence in full, ferocious German Shepherd fashion. And as I am chasing after her, I catch a glimpse of our nemasis….a passing BIKE! If Lizzie could speak, you would be hearing “MOOOM!!! A BIKE A BIKE A BIKE! WATCH OUT! I’LL SCARE IT AWAY! IT’S A BIKE! DON’T YOU SEE IT! LOOK I SCARED IT AWAY! YEAH! STAY OUT YOU BIG NASTY BIKE THING!”  — (see the black blur in the picture? That’s Lizzie. A club member snapped that picture just on time to catch her taking off)

 

I finally catch her. She didn’t go far, and fortunately she didn’t go through the fence. I put her in a sit to snap her out of it and take her back into line as the our Club director calmly explains to the audience about these “issues.” Yes, this is embarrassing. More so because I can hear in my head all the people wondering what I am doing with such an obviously vicious and dangerous dog at a fair. Fortunately, the club teachers are the greatest and really understand dog. Even German Shepherds. They understand she is not a vicious dog. She just has a weak spot for barking at bikes and motorcycles!

The third demo, Lizzie did great. She heeled well, she did her stays (though this

German Shepherd Lizzie in line doing down-stay

A line of good dogs!

time I stayed close with her leash laid out where I could catch it should another two-wheeled contraption appear as you can see in the picture).

Despite the loud, dramatic snaffoo of the evening, it was a great experience for both Lizzie and me. We both really enjoyed it, though we do have training planned to stop her habit of chasing bikes and motorcycles. Next step is also to train an instant “PLATZ!” This will take some work, but I MUST be able to stop her in mid-charge, for her safety and to make sure she is never labeled a dangerous dog. (which she is not!)

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Back to work and keeping the four dogs happy……..

By Maya on September 7, 2011

This is a problem I was hoping to avoid, however I once again find myself in the position that I have to leave my house to make a living.  Unfortunately sometimes being an entrepreneur just doesn’t make ends meet, so I was faced with the decision of staying with my dogs or paying for their food and care.  None of which is cheap and then multiply it by four.

 

So, here again I find myself having to leave my four dear furry friends early in the morning and not seeing them again till late in the evening.  To catch up on expenses, I had to take two contract jobs, so I am gone from 7am until sometimes as late as after 7pm.  This just started about three weeks ago and it has been a difficult adjustment.

 

The question is, how to keep four dogs happy when you are gone 12 hours a day!  The answer I find is…..

Exercise & Entertainment!

Exercise

The first thing I had to start doing is getting up at 5:30 and making a short round with the two little ones and my senior dog at a slower pace, then a longer, faster-paced jog with my German Shepherd Lizzie.  The good part about this whole thing is I am starting to lose the extra 10 pounds I had put on.  The bad part is, I HAVE TO GET UP AT 5:30am!!!  This is no joke for a habitual night owl.  But my guilt overpowers my desire to sleep, so the doggies get their walks.

 

If you don’t already do this, try!  It’s good for you and your dogs.  And the total suck starts to wear off once you start walking and it actually feels good.  If you can force yourself to get up and out the door, you’re home free.   Your dogs will LOVE you for it!  If you really can’t, try to find a good, bonded, local dog walker to take them out while you are gone.  Make sure of course to check references and be certain you are placing your precious poochies in trustworthy hands.

 

Entertainment

I also leave “entertainment” in the form of a supply of big knuckle bones to distract her with if (when) she starts getting overly obnoxious.  Do be careful what you leave as distractions.  Rawhides, for example, are not a good idea because they can cause your dog to choke and should be used under supervision.

 

Dogs are pack animals, so they hate to be alone.  Having more than one dog is built in entertainment.  The two Papillons love being together and as long as they have each other, they are ok with me going away for a while.  As a cautionary note, do not leave two dogs of greatly different sizes together unattended.  I would NEVER leave the Papillons loose with the large dogs unattended.  A large dog can kill a small dog even in play or if they get in a small disagreement.

Bonus:  A Dog Sitter

I also have the benefit of a doggie sitter in the form of my retired mother.  The downside is she is rather frail, so I do have to make sure that the Shepherd Lizzie is adequately exercised before I get out the door.  I’ve also trained an infallible “BED” command, so if necessary even my mother can secure her in the crate when necessary.  It does give me a lot of peace of mind knowing they are not alone nor do they have to stay in crates all day.

 

If you don’t have the benefit of a retired bored parent, see if you can get that trusty dog walker to come in and check on them if you will be gone too long.  Of course, if you have a secure back yard that is helpful, but not an excuse not to take them out!
I would not leave toy dogs in the yard unattended.  They are too vulnerable to everything, including predators of all kinds including birds.

 

I MISS MY DOGS!

Though these techniques keep my dogs healthy and happy, I still miss them so much.  I miss having my furry friends under my feet and on my chair.  Instead, I am now sharing an office with a human, though nice enough, is nowhere as enjoyable an office pal as my four dogs.  :-(

 

Here’s hoping and praying that things go my way soon and I can return to work at my home office where I belong!

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A fun training game to play with multiple dogs! “The Name Game”

By Maya on July 31, 2011

I found this little game to play with my dogs when I was trying to give them treats without mass chaos.  What was happening is none of them wanted to wait their turn to get a treat.  If I leaned down to give one dog a treat, the other three would rush in and try to grab it.  No, that just wasn’t going to work!  So came “the name game.”

Playing the name game is very simple.  I had all dogs “sit” the I started calling their name before giving a treat.  If another dog tried to rush in, they got a quick “no” for breaking their sit.  So in their mind, they are understanding that they are to “sit” until THEIR name is called.  So there I have four dogs, sitting, looking up very excitedly to get their treats!  Then I start making the rounds.  “Riyo!” he gets a little treat, “Darcy,” “Lizzie,”  “Carmina,” “Darcy,” “Riyo,” “Lizzie,” “Carmina,” “Lizzie,” “Darcy,” “Riyo” and so on and so on!  Mixing it up to keep them guessing!  You have to keep it fair though because they will notice if they get skipped an unfair number of times!

It is fun to do if you have multiple dogs and it helps them learn their individual names.  Sometimes when you have many dogs, their names start to blend together and they each think they have four names.  This little game really enforces which name is referring to them, and they love it!  It’s also really cute to see their excited little faces when they hear THEIR name called!  “OH! You’re talking to ME!”  :-)

ENJOY!

 

 

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Ending Food Aggression in Your Dog

By Maya on July 19, 2011

Food aggression seems to be a common problem with a lot of dog owners, but I think in most cases it can be a rather simple fix.  Maybe give these techniques a try if you aren’t AFRAID of your dog.  If you are afraid of your dog, you should probably get a trainer to help you conquer the fear otherwise you’re unlikely to have much success.

My German Shepherd Lizzie had tendencies to food aggression soon after I got her, and I am 100% sure that I had not addressed it immediately, it would have become a very dangerous situation.  The techniques I used were intuitive, but I’ve later heard them discussed by trainers and was surprised to see Cesar Millan do similar things on a couple of his shows.  I was 100% determined there was to be zero food aggression, especially toward me or one of my tiny Papillons.

I discussed in a previous post the major benefits in having a dinnertime ritual.  Well, I realized that if you haven’t established that early, it’s probably not an easy thing to implement if you have multiple dogs.  If you have multiple dogs, train them one-by-one separately until you can work on bringing them together.

Some simple tricks:

1.  MOST IMPORTANT RULE:  You can’t be lazy when feeding your dogs.  You MUST stay and supervise as your dog eats.  Don’t just put the food down and walk away!  Feeding is a hugely important time, so make sure to put aside 5 minutes while they eat.  Dogs don’t small talk during meal-times so it rarely takes long.  If you have a finicky dog that refuses to eat, just put the food up and try at the next meal time.  Dogs are just like us, if they are hungry, they will eat.

2.  HOLD THE BOWL.  If you have a dog that shows food aggression, use the dinnertime ritual to make him wait until you say “ok” to eat.  Then, don’t put the bowl down.  Hold the bowl up off the ground where your face is not near the bowl, you have complete control over the bowl, and if your dog makes the slightest sound or aggressive gesture, you can quickly remove the bowl.  I used this technique with Lizzie and her growling possessiveness over her food bowl came to a grinding halt.  She couldn’t feel possessive of a bowl she couldn’t control.  Feed this way as many times as it takes for you to see the dog let go of possessiveness.

3.  STAND CLOSE AND SUPERVISE:  Once you feel comfortable that your dog has progressed with the holding the bowl exercise, start putting the bowl down.  But do NOT go back to dropping the bowl and running or you’ll end up right where you were before.  Put your dog in a sit-stay, place the bowl in front, and only when you release may the dog go to the bowl and eat.  Again, DON’T leave.  Stay right there close to bowl.  You should be able to touch the bowl, the dog, stick your hands in the bowl, whatever.  Don’t take the food away from the dog as long as they are ok with all this.  The second you see your dog tense up and guard, use your feet and back your dog up off the bowl IMMEDIATELY.  It’s your bowl and you paid for the food, so let him know that.  If the aggression is still strong, maybe go back to holding the bowl.  Keep doing this until you trust your dog 100%.

4.  EATING AMONG OTHERS:  When eating all together, you absolutely must stay and supervise.  If you do not, whoever finishes eating first will inevitably try to go nab somebody else’s bowl whether they are still eating or not.  Each dog has THEIR bowl and the do not eat out of anybody elses bowl.  You are the referee.  If one dog starts moving into another dog’s area, YOU back them up.  If you do this consistently, your dogs will trust YOU to be the moderator and not feel the need to fight amongst themselves.

Four Dogs and their treatsFour dogs eating treats

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope those little tips are helpful.  They have worked wonderfully with my pack, big and small!

 

Any other techniques or comments are very welcome!

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Training your dog to FOCUS!

By Maya on July 3, 2011

I learned this little trick from a dog-training pro a few months ago and it absolutely works.  He also taught me one very basic rule in dog training:  ” Do not give your dog a command until he is paying attention to you!”  A simple concept I had not grasped till then.  How many of us keep saying “sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT!” as our dogs merrily look around at the flowers, butterflies, birds, and anything else they find more interesting than us.  Then, we are shocked when the dog doesn’t do what we are asking.  I changed that one habit and my training effectiveness made a drastic improvement!  Don’t tell the dog to do something until he is looking you in the face!

Now, how to get your dog to look you in the face.  Here’s a very simple yet highly effective exercise that I was taught.  Make a

German Shepherd Lizzie giving good eye contact

Get that eye contact!

gasping sound, like drawing in breath as if you are surprised by something.  The dog will most likely look right up at you too see why you are making that odd noise.  As soon as that happens, either make a clicking sound with your mouth or a clicker, bring a treat up in front of your mouth, and then give it to the dog.  Do that at random times through the day.  If the dog looks at you without the gasp, click and treat.  After probably a day or two, you will have a dog starting you in the face all the time.

The reason you bring the treat to your face is to stop the easily formed habit of the dog looking at your hands instead of your face.  If the treat goes to your face first, that is where they will focus.  It is the easiest way I have seen done!  Other people try to break the habit by hold their arms out and randomly giving the dog a treat, but doing it this way is way easier and in my experience really effective!

After a few days of that, try to work in the word “watch” or “look” to eventually take the place of the goofy sounds.  Then do this exercise in more challenging places with more distractions!

Happy training!

 

 

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10 Dog Safety Rules for Children and Adults

By Maya on June 15, 2011

I felt compelled to write this post after seeing so many people violate what should be basic rules of dog etiquette, and also hearing so many people express their opinion that dogs should basically tolerate pretty much anything short of a beating without reacting negatively. Many really do believe that they should be able to harass dogs at will without consequence. This is simply not fair to dogs and a recipe for disaster for dogs and humans.

While we claim to be a dog friendly and dog loving country, it seems like that is not quite the case. Rather it seems there are a group of people who truly care for dogs enough to understand them and incorporate them into their lives, a larger percentage that like dogs but don’t take the time to understand them, many more that are ok with dogs as long as they “stay in their place”, then those who may or may not tolerate dogs but really don’t like them.

In contrast, I spent some time living in Paris, where I did observe the ideal symbiosis between man and dog. Dogs are a fixture of Parisian life. They are in shop windows, sleeping on the floor in restaurants and bars, and hanging out in beauty salons. They stay where their owners work and are such a common sight in Paris that I never once saw anyone feel the need to go up to one and pet it. It’s like every Parisian has an understanding that you don’t go running up to a dog minding its own business and pet it anymore than you would go running up its shopkeeper owner and pat him on the head. This is the understanding I so wish people would get here. Respect their space.

Here are some basic rules, but if in doubt, if you wouldn’t do it to a strange person, don’t do it to a strange dog.

10 Dog Etiquette Rules

1. NEVER ever run up to a strange dog to pet it. Most dogs will tolerate it, but I’d say most don’t really enjoy it either. I’ve had people pop out of nowhere in front of my German Shepherd in ways that alarmed and startled me not to mention a dog. Don’t do it!

2. When you get permission to pet a dog, don’t reach your hand out OVER his head. Dogs find this intimidating and threatening. Rather, stand slightly sideways and extend your hand slowly, palm up, UNDER the dog’s chin.

3. For the love of everything holy, PLEASE never stick your face in front of any dog that you don’t have a trusting relationship with.

4. Do not blow in a dog’s face to tease it unless you really want to reshape your nose.

5. Remember to show SMALL dogs at least as much respect as you show big ones. Small dogs are cute, but they very often do not want to be petted. Small dogs tend to be too cute for their own good. Everyone wants to pet them and many of them absolutely do NOT want the attention. As with bigger dogs, the rules apply to little dogs too.

6. Ideally, don’t walk up to strange dogs at all. Let them come to you if they wish. If they don’t wish, then don’t force your company upon them.

ADDITIONAL RULES FOR CHILDREN: If you have a dog and children, you MUST teach your children to respect the dog and treat it properly. Children should always be taught how to treat dogs and should be supervised until they reach an age where they understand and can be trusted.

7. Your dog should have a kennel in a room where it can go to be left alone and rest. When the dog goes to this place, children should leave the area and let the dog have its quiet time.

8. Children must be supervised to ensure they are not playing too roughly with a dog. Make sure young children do not throw hard objects at the dog, hit the dog, etc. (I have seen it, so I’m putting it in here).

9. Teach children not to make sudden and threatening moves at a dog. This can trigger a defensive reaction and a bite.

10. Just use common sense and be observant. Watch your dog’s and other dogs’ body language. If you pay attention you can tell when a dog has really reached its limit and needs its space. Each dog is different, so learn your dog and make sure you are giving him the respect he deserves.

I really wish people would simply observe basic etiquette with dogs and respect their space. The incident of dog bites, like the one in Home Depot not too long ago would not happen. Many many people resent the presence of dogs and believe dogs should stay in the backyard “where they belong.” Many have very strong opinions that they should not have to observe any etiquette with dogs.  They feel it’s an inconvenience to them and since dogs are animals, they humans should not be forced to change any habits.  They strongly believe, and often express in less-then-friendly terms that if us dog owners would just keep our dogs where they belong (in the back yard locked up), their lives wouldn’t be disturbed by pesky dogs in public. Their answer to dog/human interactions gone wrong is to simply keep dogs away from any public locations. We, as dog owners who strongly feel that dogs deserve better than that, and who have dogs that are part of our lives, have to educate others and socialize our dogs well (meaning yes, taking them into public). Unfortunately, the more dogs are banned from public, the less socialized they become. It’s a vicious cycle.

In conclusion, take your dogs out as many place as you can to socialize them. Patronize as many dog friendly places as you can. We need dog friendly businesses to stay in business. And if your dog isn’t a big fan of the random petting, don’t lock him away, take him out but make sure he gets his space.  Protect your dog from unwanted advances.  As he gets more comfortable, let people give him a treat. Let’s work to keep dogs part of our outside society by not giving the dog haters any more ammunition and keeping it fun and safe for everybody else.

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Some dogs do not deal well with stress!

By Maya on May 9, 2011

While there are some dogs that seem to bounce around anywhere without effect, most dogs do get stressed when taken to new environments and situations.  Sometimes the only stress signs they show is the “yawn.”  Yes, the yawn.  It doesn’t always mean sleepy.  In stressful situations, dogs will yawn.  Other dogs will have much more dramatic stress reactions such as vomiting and diarrhea.

I am writing about this now because both Lizzie and Mr. Darcy had horrible stress reactions over the last two weeks.  Two weekends ago, I left Lizzie at a boarding place that a friend recommended in Houston, Texas.  Heidelberg Kennels.  I dropped her off on Thursday morning and picked her up on a Monday.  (I will discuss Heidelberg later)  Monday, I almost did not recognize her.  I even checked the little scar she has on her muzzle to make sure!  Her fur was falling out in handfuls, she looked like she had lost weight and was starving when she got home.  She also had horrible diarrhea and vomited.  This was all from STRESS!

The vet gave me medication to control the constant diarrhea and a bland diet that she was on for a week.  I had to get up every couple of hours all night to let her out before she started to recover.  It took two weeks for her coat to start to look normal again.  She also slept for three days after she got home.  The stress of staying at a strange, impersonal place was simply too much.  It was like she was willingly dying.  She was not sick from any disease, simply stressed and sad.  Talk about feeling guilty.

Then, yesterday, I took Riyo and Darcy to the agility event hosted by our wonderful local Obedience Club.  I decided to take Darcy too so he could try to get more comfortable in crazy environments.  I carried him around for a while, but he seemed to be unhappy with it, so I put him back in his crate.  Poor Darcy vomited and got instant diarrhea in his kennel.  What a total mess.  I had to leave the show early to take him home after hosing him and the crate off.  Then at home he was still so upset, he actually diarrhea’d as I was trying to blow dry him!  Fortunately, I keep medicine on hand for that and after spending a couple of hours resting in his crate, he was back to normal.

I’m sorry if this was a gross post, but I wanted to illustrate how dogs can have extreme physical reactions to stress.  This isn’t to say that you should never take your dogs anywhere, not at all.  I have to back up and start getting Darcy more comfortable with less crazy situations.  Riyo may not care for people, but I took him around so many places with me that he had a blast at the agility event.  I had his treats on the table by us and when people wanted to pet him, I’d say “he must be bribed” (which is true), and they would take a little treat, give it to him and get a little pet in.  It was fabulous.  But Riyo is obviously less sensitive to crazy locations.

Just FYI, be aware of the effects of stress on your dogs!

 

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The Doggie Dinnertime Ritual

By Maya on April 18, 2011

In my experience, the dinner time ritual that I started with my oldest dog is the most effective behavioral tool in so many ways.  It reinforces so many important dog behavior rules and training all in an exercise and it takes less than a minute a day.  Your dog learns respect for you, it reinforces your place as pack leader, prevents food aggression, promotes harmony between dogs in multiple dog households, teaches restraint, good manners, sit, look, ok release, and stay.  This is real doggie training bang for your buck.

Four dog dinner time ritual

Four dogs politely waiting to eat

I don’t remember why or when I started doing this with my first dog, Carmina, or even where I learned it.  I learned it from somewhere, but it has been so long I don’t know where.  Carmina, the mixed breed rescue dog who is now 12 years old was once what Cesar Milan famously terms a “red zone dog.”  She is the reason I started learning about dogs, simply to learn how to prevent her from knocking me off my feet while attempting to attack any dog in sight.  She was my only dog for 8 years, until I got Riyo four years ago.  Obviously, by the time I got 4.5lb  Riyo, I was comfortable knowing that I could trust Carmina.

Each dog since has been indoctrinated into the dinner time ritual.  It is much easier training one dog at a time, as you can imagine.  If you already have 4 dogs, it will be much harder to get this started.

Here’s what you do.  You have their food prepared, and your dog is all excited to start chowing down.  Usually, you put the bowl down and the dog’s head is in it before the bowl hits the floor.  Many dogs immediately become possessive of it at that point.  Instead, make the dog sit, then start to put down the bowl.  As soon as the dog starts to move in, stand up again and put the dog back into a sit.  If you have to put the dog into a sit, do it.  Don’t let that bowl hit the floor until your dog understands it is not allowed to move forward.  After the bowl is down, your dog will undoubtedly move toward it again.  Stay over the bowl like you own it and put the dog back into a sit.  You will be surprised how fast they figure this out.  Do NOT let the dog move toward the bowl until you release it with “OK!”  Most likely after a few days, they will get this ritual perfectly.

I taught each dog the same ritual as soon as they came into the house.  Since Carmina already knew the drill, I could easily focus on training Riyo because she knew the rules already.  Riyo learned within a couple of days.  The Darcy came and the same drill.  Carmina and Riyo would sit politely and wait until I explained the rule to Darcy.  He got it within a few days as well.  I also fostered a Doberman for a week that also learned the same drill within a couple of days.

Then, I added Lizzie who exhibited signs of food aggression, growling over the bowl, right off the bat.  That stopped within the first week I had her and never returned.  It was the same drill, the other three dogs waiting patiently and politely as Lizzie got schooled in dinnertime manners.

I also added the word “look” to the ritual.  Carmina I did not bother with “look” as she is old enough that seeing at all is an accomplishment.  The other three, as you can see in the picture, actually have to look me in the eye.  They also learn the release word “ok” extremely well.  You can talk, countdown, whatever, but until you say “OK!” the dogs wait.  Start with 10 seconds, but work up to where you can do at least 30 seconds to a minute with no problem.

my four dogs eating together

My four dogs eating together

As you can see, the result is four very different dogs eating right next to each other with no problems.  Considering Carmina (lower left) came to me with the caveat “she needs to be separated from other dogs,” this is a great thing.  Lizzie also could easily be an aggressive beast if left to her own decisions.

In conclusion, in less than a minute a day, this exercise helps with numerous behavior issues as well as teaches and reinforces obedience commands:  “sit,” “stay,” “look,” and “ok.”  It doesn’t get much easier and less time-consuming than that!

 

P.S.  If you noticed Lizzie has very little food in her bowl, it’s because she already ate half a bag of chicken and a raw drumstick during her tracking run.

 

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Schutzhund Tracking Step 2 – short straight track

By Maya on March 21, 2011

I posted the long detailed tracking instructions from the Ledda’s website, but I thought it would be easier if I walked through it all step-by-step as I go.  The first step, illustrated in an earlier post is the scent pad.  After a couple of weeks of the scent pad, your puppy or dog should be running toward that flag and knows that there is food in that area.  Now, it is time to start laying a track.

Start with doing a straight track of 25ft or so, putting really tasty meat in every footstep.  Put in your flag, and do a small scent pad at the beginning of the track with a few pieces of food in.  Step out, drop food IN your foot step, and repeat.  At the end of the track, bury in the dirt or hide in the grass the dog’s “jackpot”!  I use a raw chicken leg.

Find a nice open place with either live green grass or dirt. Don’t do dry grass, concrete or anything like that. Grass or dirt that you can see your footsteps in. You must always know where your track is! Also, remember to do it early in the morning around daybreak. The cooler the better, and remember to avoid the ants.

Bring your dog up to the scent pad, tell it “SUCH” (Pronounced Sook, German for search). The dog should already start at the scent pad since you’ve been doing that, then stay with your dog and pat the ground at each step to show it where the food is the first time.  Help your dog through the track till he gets to the jackpot! They get the hang of it pretty quickly and will start forging ahead on their own in no time. Just make sure they don’t start skipping steps and food like Lizzie does. I’m having to go back and fix that now.

Here is a video of an early tracker. This pup goes nice and slow, eating at each footstep, something Lizzie and I are working on. These professional people start their puppies tracking at like 8 weeks old. I didn’t have a clue about it when I got Lizzie, so I didn’t start until she was 8 months. And since I am such and amateur, it’s taking me a lot longer to get it right than these people!

Keep doing your straight track until you can get a good 75 to 100 paces without the dog lifting it’s head. Your dog will start searching off track, but that’s ok. Just stop moving until your dog finds the track again, then move on. Help him if you need to. You just want your dog to keep its head down and not quit. If your dog is quitting on you, he’s not that hungry! Next time he quits, take him straight home and wait till the morning to try again. They learn fast and your dog won’t starve, don’t worry about that! Lizzie went home early once and she never quit again.

Next step, the corners!

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Riyo flips me the tail at doggie agility graduation day…..

By Maya on March 12, 2011

This week was the last day of Riyo’s second try at beginning agility class and this time around there was no inexplicable “come-when-called-by-stranger” requirement, so he graduated!  For our class graduation, they set up a full agility course and each dog had their turn on the course just like a real competition.  I was completely confident that after Riyo’s stellar performance at the outdoor adoption event on Saturday, he was going to completely blow away the rest of the class.

The big dogs went first and one after another, the dogs went through the course, skipping a couple obstacles here and there, and at worst disappearing at cheetah speed into the field behind the course.  I was watching the performances feeling 100% cocky because Riyo was going to cruise through that course and put them all to shame pretty soon.  He’s already a pro you know.

Finally, it was our turn, very last as he is the very smallest.  Saving the best for last, of course.  So we go to the starting point and I take Riyo’s collar off, noticing, but ignoring his panting and generally weird expression.  He was going to snap out of it in just a sec and impress everyone with his agility splendor.  So, I tell him to “stay” and walk confidently past the first jump.  Look at that perfect stay! This is going to be good.  “Ok!” I say with all the enthusiasm I could squeak out, and here he comes for the first jump!…..and there he goes…skillfully avoiding the first jump altogether and running straight past me and the second jump.  WHAT?  Wait!  Riyo!  This is not impressing anybody.  Ok, let’s recover, we can do it.  “Come on Riyo!” I say in my annoyingly high pitch “I’m-going-to-convince-him-that-this-is-fun” voice.  Let’s go run across the dog walk!  It’ll be great! Ok, “Walk it!” And…….he goes through a tunnel instead and heads off toward his crate at the other end of the course, but we’re only half way through!

This is far from impressive.  As a matter of fact, I think we’re making the cheetah dog look good at this point.  I go and retrieve Riyo and skip over to the table.  Ok Riyo, you can do this.  “Table! Table! Table!” I’m really squeaking now. Whew, ok he’s on the table, never mind the down stay. Let’s go to the a-frame!  Ok, we can redeem ourselves here.  This is impressive.  Little Riyo climbing the A-frame will make everyone go “OOohhh!”  So “let’s go Riyo!  Walk it!”….and there he goes past it and me, and over the next little jump.  Train wreck.  One cool obstacle left, the ring jump before the last little jump at the finish line.  Please, can we at least do the ring? With all the squeaky excited puppy voice I can muster I make a try for it.  “Ok Riyo let’s go, ring! Jump!”  And……there he goes past me, past the ring, and straight to the last course jump at the finish line 15 feet ahead of me. He stops at the jump, hops over it, flipping me off with his tail as he went over.  “I’m done, that’s it! BYE!”

How did he graduate you ask?  It’s a no fail class.  Everyone passes.

 

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Catch-me-if-you-can! The runaway min-pin.

By Maya on March 5, 2011

Yesterday I was taking my dogs for a walk, usually I take the Papillons together, then the old lady Carmina, and then Lizzie. Not necessarily in that order. I could walk them all together, and I have before, but they all have different athletic abilities so it’s easier to take them separately, and I get extra exercise. But I digress. On my second loop yesterday with Carmina, a little Miniature Pincher came tearing across the street from seemingly nowhere. Fortunately the min-pin is a small dog, so although Carmina was far from happy and would have preferred just throwing the offending creature out of her way, we managed to get him out from underfoot and continue on our way. Half a block later, here he comes again, tearing down the road after us. He’s not aggressive, just a little unwise to rush up and try to sniff the butt of a much larger and entirely unamused dog.

As I start looking around trying to figure out who this dog belongs to before he follows us another block attached to my growling dog’s butt, a girl pull up in a little pick up truck. “Is my dawg followin’ yew?” … Um, yes. That would appear to be the case. She gets out of her truck, leaving it running and doesn’t take half a step toward the min-pin before that little package of canine lightening takes off in the opposite direction. So what does she do? Gets back in the truck and let’s the dog chase the truck all the way back down the street –as apparently the “dawg” will chase cars, but going to her was out of the question.

Thinking that that was the last I would see of the elusive min-pin, I finished the old lady’s walk and got Lizzie. 10-15 minutes later Lizzie and I make it back around to that street and as if on cue, here comes the little streak of black lightening heading directly for us. Are you kidding me?!! Here’s that same dog, in the same place, doing the same thing and no twangy girl in pajama pants anywhere in sight. Unlike Carmina, Lizzie is more interested in landing a big paw flat on the min-pin’s head, ducking and weaving thus frustrating the little dog’s attempts to sniff butt. I decide to just try to move on and jog off with Lizzie.

About a block down just when I think my plan has worked. Yes, you guessed it, again. Black lightning does strike twice. This time, he nearly goes under the tires of another passing truck before bee-lining for another shot at Lizzie butt. Now, I am truly aggravated and not just a little angry at little Miss Pajama Pants. So, I wheel around and start jogging back to what I think is the house the dog came from. As I get closer, I see the pajama pants hanging out, occupied with things other than looking for or securing her dog. This really ticks me off, so I yell in a not-so-congenial manner “HEY, COME GET YOUR DOG!” She looks over and slowly starts walking in my direction and as soon as she gets in non-yelling earshot the excuses start. He won’t come, they let him out, blah blah blah blah. I compose myself and tell her that her dog is going to get run over or something else unpleasant if she keeps letting him run loose like that. And then more excuses and, well, he has always come back and had only stayed gone a really long time a couple times.

I am fully aware that I completely wasted my time and breath, but I told her, listen, go walk him down if it takes you all afternoon. He’s got to stop sometime. So I start walking after the dog, basically in attempts to put her in the awkward position of forcing her to deal with the issue all the while trying to explain to her that she needs to try to train her dog to come. I could be wrong, but it seemed like a classic case of the dog that doesn’t come, then when he maybe did come in the past he got in trouble. Doggie translation “I go to person when called and bad things happen.” As I tried to give her some pointers it was pretty clear she wasn’t going to do anything about it, but I guess I felt I was at least trying to help the little guy. She also admitted to playing a game in the back yard where they would lunge at the dog so it would run and they’d play chase. Hmmmm….and you expect different outside the back yard?

I assume they eventually caught the dog. I went on my way after walking it down for about 15 minutes, but at least herded it back to the cul-de-sac where he came from. I suspect that nothing will change and the sad truth is that the energetic little black-lightening butt-sniffer will keep getting out and running off until one day his luck runs out. Sigh…….

Major rules I was taught for teaching come, just so your dog doesn’t do this nonsense:
1. When you say come, no matter what the dog is chewing, destroying or peeing on, if your dog COMES to you, YAY!!!! GOOD DOG!!!! Dog must understand that COME = YAY good things!!! NEVER call a dog to you to discipline it. If your dog is digging up your flowers, GO TO IT to discipline.
2. Keep treats around the house and practice saying “COME!” Every single time that dog comes to you, it gets a treat. (reinforcing COME= YAY!!!)
3. If your dog plays “catch-me-if-you-can” in your backyard (I went through this with Lizzie). DO NOT try to chase and catch her. You will lose and the dog will find it to be a fantastically fun game. Whoo hooo! In the back yard, just walk your dog down, calmly, slowly, and determined. If it takes you half and hour, do not run, do not try to catch, just systematically walk the dog down. I found that it kind of freaks them out and they give up pretty quickly. After about a month of doing this with Lizzie, she has now stopped that behavior.

It can work….Lizzie was definitely heading down the catch-me-if-you can road, so I asked for help, advice, and read books to find techniques to stop it. These major pieces of advice have done well.

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An idiots guide to dog ownership: a more accurate title

By Maya on February 28, 2011

Yesterday, I was so excited and optimistically confident in my abilities because I had gotten this wonderful training mentor and all these great tips.  I am still excited and grateful of course, but at the same time I woke up today thinking, OMG I have to DO this stuff?!  It all seemed so easy yesterday watching Mr. Ledda, this veteran expert run his dogs through all the routines and showing me all these techniques.  Today, it’s all a big jumble in my head.  That always happens.  The experts make it look so easy, then when it’s just me by myself, chaos.  For that reason, I have renamed my blog.  I decided this is truly an idiots guide and I’m the idiot.

Now I really feel the pressure.  I can’t go back to these people without showing some kind of general progress, right?  When Mr. Ledda worked with Lizzie, she looked wonderful.  She was actually in a perfect heel or “foos” without even knowing it.  Lining up just right.  I was thinking, “is that my dog?”  Today, I started trying it by myself and yeah, not the same.  Goes to show it’s not the dog that can’t figure anything out, that would be ME.  Me, I say “foos” and two steps later Lizzie’s butt is out 45 degrees and she’s practically walking sideways.  ARG!  What am I doing wrong?  I just kept straightening her out and trying again, but I’m telling you, she would be perfect in a week with Mr. Ledda.  With me, (groan) we look like a sloppy drunk Mo and Curly trying to walk in a straight line.

I have yet managed to figure out how to get any of my dogs to heel.  I will keep trying with Lizzie and Riyo.  With Riyo, I still have not figured out how to get around the fact that I’d have to be 2 ft tall to walk and hold a treat in front of his nose.  All these techniques I’ve seen at AKC and obviously with Schutzhund uses the “hold-a-treat-in-front-of-the-dog’s-nose-and-walk” method.  Have you tried doing that with a 10″ tall dog?  Try it for 5 minutes and you’ll turn into Quasimoto.

I’m going to keep trying.  I am hoping that maybe I can eventually accomplish something just out of sheer persistence and tirelessly bugging all the experts for tips.

FINAL NOTE:  Looking sloppy saying “heel” and “down” is one thing. Training in German saying “foos” and “platz,” well, you REALLY look like an idiot.  Suffice it to say, if you are going to yell “Platz” at your dog in public, be prepared to get snickered at if your dog gives you the finger.

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Dog Training Tools for Tracking

By Maya on February 27, 2011

Here are the tools you’ll need when you’re teaching your dog to track:

1.  Long line or “tracking line”.  I got one that is too narrow so it is difficult to hold properly.  You should hold the line with our fingertip and let the line gently slide through your fingers as the dog moves ahead tracking.  This one here is “1 and I plan to order this.  For now I’ll make do with my too thin one.  NOTE: run the line UNDER the dogs front leg when it’s tracking.

Tracking Line

2.  Fur saver collar.  This is on every Schutzhund dog I’ve seen and used for all parts of the training. Generally they are not at your local pet stores, you’ll have to order.  The chrome plated steel is least costly, but will eventually rust.  You can find chrome on Amazon, but the stainless you can find at Leerburg, Elite K-9, or other specialty stores.

3.  FOOD!  High value food.  Chicken, beef, livers…things the dog doesn’t usually get and loves.

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