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Training Tips |
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For Chase – Unknown ~ September 2, 2007
I am lucky enough to have been given a forum, so I am going to take advantage of it for my own personal use. That said, I am going to relay some things from my experiences with my beloved Chase, who we recently lost so quickly and tragically on September 2nd.
By all accounts, Chase was a model dog. Now why he was abandoned by his previous owner(s) is beyond universal understanding. He was loving, obedient, loyal and fit into our family however he seemed needed. He would wait for his turn for attention, never being too pushy and probably being ignored somewhat for this trait more times than I care to admit. With the addition of our twin sons, I could see how he would step aside and be content to lie quietly on the couch until the hustle and bustle calmed down and he was invited to sit beside me or my wife. |
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I’m new at this ‘writing’ business, so if you have more specific questions about your dog, please feel free to contact me directly: brian_gsprescuewi@yahoo.com
As you can see on the website, no matter how diligent or smart we are, dogs get loose, and can be gone for long periods of time.
As a rescue group, with years of experience under our belts, we try to pound recall training as being the most important aspect of adoption into all of our adopter’s heads. More than once I have run out of the house, in my skivvies (not a pretty sight, mind you) yelling for a dog, in the hopes that he WANTS to come back to me. Please notice my emphasis on the word “wants”. Our dogs have 100 years of hunting instinct, athleticism and powerful senses that drive them to seek out game, bred into them. Along with that is the domestic side of breeding which entails a cooperative mentality as well, so we need to take advantage of that. Recall training is extremely important, but with our newest charges, we have to give them a reason to want to come back! Affection, safety, and comfort are the reasons that a dog wants to be with his family. So our first priority is giving our dog an environment that entails all three. This runs parallel with our recall training. After a training session, it is good to get back to the house, have a treat and interact with your dog on non-obedience, comfort level.
Another good technique to use, along with check cord recall training, is to start getting your dog familiar with your neighborhood. When you walk them, take them along different routes up to a mile away, to get them familiar with their extended surroundings. This gives them a chance to get back home even if they do get away.
If you have adopted a known runner, no matter what age, you must be diligent at all times, because reliable recall training can take months. I advocate e-collars which when properly used, can shorten this training to hours, and many of the dogs we get have already been accustomed to being on an e-collar. If anyone is interested in an e-collar, I can help with choosing a brand and model. We can also set up a training session where I can show you how to use and train with your collar.
I remember when I was young, watching my mother walking through the neighborhood, in her bathrobe and slippers, waving a piece of bologna in the air, yelling “TREAT” to a running, young dog we had just gotten from the humane society. While not high on my recommendation list, still, a very effective tactic. That dog came running back to my mother, and never left her side again. Maybe, instead of supplying check cords with each adoptee, we should just make sure everyone all has bologna in the fridge?
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When training your dog, be nice. There is no reason to get frustrated with a being that doesn't understand what you are saying. Dogs learn behavior and language by rote so practice and repetition is the key. One key technique to use to quell undesirable behavior is the "HOLD". When dogs face off, their goal is to usually take the other dog off his feet, and grab him by the neck. This behavior is taught as a pup by the mother and teaches domination and submission. This behavior can range from harmless playing to vicious attacks, depending on the dog. With a rescue dog, you can't always be sure of their reaction, so you need to be alert. If you are going to use this technique, you have to commit. If you try this, get a negative reaction from the dog, and back off, you have lost. I'm going to use "counter surfing" (my biggest problem) as an example. Catching the dog in the act is tough, so we need to set them up. I will take a dog treat and put it on the edge of the counter, and call the dog in to the kitchen. He will no doubt catch a scent of that treat and go for it (my dogs will anyway). You have to be quick and catch them before they get it, or your training session is lost. Take them by the collar, hold them down in a standing or sitting position, using your fingertips firmly at the base of the neck. Using direct eye contact, I like to "bark" using "NO", this helps cement my domination and hold the dog for a count of five or ten. Then I will release the dog on his way. I will give the dog some time and repeat the sequence. If the dog does not go for the treat, and fixates on me, he will get the treat. Otherwise, I lather, rinse and repeat until he does. Remember, you can train a dog as much as you want to; you just can't do it forvery long. A 5 to 10 minute session for anything you want to do is sufficient, then, give the dog a break. I am currently working on this with all my dogs on counter surfing specifically, and it is working, but the HOLD works in any situation. Just use it when you have an undesirable behavior, using "NO" verbally. Eventually the "NO" will become the trigger for stopping most behavior. The "NO" should be paired with a known command, "HERE", "SIT", etc…..in order to give the opportunity for positive reinforcement. "NO" is not a command, it is a stopper for undesirable behavior. Use it wisely. Brian HillshaferVolunteer Trainer/Hunt EvaluatorWisconsin German Shorthaired Pointer Rescue, Inc.www.wgspr.com |
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Using an ecollar is more humane than scraping your dog off the street after being killed by a car, or putting him down because he wandered off and bit someone. Sorry to be so graphic, but I have a hard time swallowing the rhetoric of those who have no idea about ecollars. I use them on ALL my dogs and recommend them for everyone who has a dog who needs a lot of exercise. My sister uses one on her 14 lb Jack Russell Terrier with great results. When I pull the collars out, my guys go crazy because they know we are either going for a run or hunting. I can run my dogs at the local school while a soccer game is going on, and my dogs stay with me and never bother anyone. It is an absolutely humane and invaluable tool. Start with the check cord and pinch collar together. Make sure the pinch collar is snug, remove links if you have to. It has to be snug enough that when the link is pulled just a little, it pinches him. Get him in an open area, with as little distraction as possible, let him venture out to the end of the cord. He will figure out that the end of the cord "ends" and he will know what his boundaries are. When he seems to be at this point, give him a happy "here" command, be nice about it, nice commands get results. After the first "here" give a fairly firm tug on the check cord and give another "here" command. Make sure you reel him all the way in to a head touch (at least) better that he learns to go to heel from a "here" command. If he starts back but ventures off course, repeat the command, tug and command. This may be new to him, we don't know, but you'll probably figure it out in the first few tries what he knows. You can do this for about 15 minutes at a time, but after a training lesson, pull the pinch collar and hook to the regular collar and give him a reward of a good run or walk for a good session. This is the beginning of training for an e-collar. The ecollar recall, can be learned in less than an hour after a good base of pinch collar/check cord training is established. Once the dog is reliable on the pinch and check cord, you can substitute the ecollar for the pinch collar, it is the same stimulation. Let him venture out and give him a here command, nick him with the ecollar (start low, he may twitch, but you don't want him to yelp), and another here command (Here, Nick, Here) and reel him in if you have to. If he ventures off, repeat Here, Nick, Here until he comes straight to you. Give lots of praise. I will usually, after a half a dozen times of this technique, just drop the check cord and walk the other way. I let the dog venture off, but not too far, and give him a Here, Nick, Here, by this time he should come to you. If he doesn't, go up a notch on the power, and repeat. If he bolts, but by this time he shouldn't, go up on power and repeat Here, Nick, Here until he comes. He may be yelping by this time, but I can almost guarantee that he won't bolt with the collar on again. This is in extreme cases, and if you do your pre-collar training correctly, it won't come to this. You may find out that after this training, he may stick pretty close to you. It may take him a little bit to venture off and feel comfortable with the range you are willing to give him. Never nick the dog without using a command, they won't learn anything. If you chose an ecollar with a paging system, I use the tone setting for a here command instead of nicking the dog every time. To teach the dog to learn this, you must incorporate the tone with the nick. So your sequence would be Here, Nick, Tone, Here. It takes a little dexterity, but eventually, the dog will come when he hears the tone. I also like to mix up my sequence, Here, Tone, Nick, Here. If you get to the point where he will come to the tone, but starts to ignore it, take a step back and re-incorporate the Nick. Take your time, be systematic and your dog will come around quickly. Because my dogs are trained on the collar, they have a lot of freedom, have better manners, and they have a lot of fun that dogs on leashes just don't get. Good luck, have fun, and feel free to contact me with any more questions. |
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Dog on Dog Aggressiveness A.K.A. “It can be a dog eat dog world”
Many times when bringing a new dog into our homes and lives, some dogs get along great with our family, friends and neighbors but not with our own pets. It can be doubly hard with a rescue dog because we have no idea what that dog has gone through with possible abuse or neglect. Usually abuse manifests itself with some outward aggression and/or fear of people, but tends to set the dog lower in the pack status and not be a trigger for dog on dog aggressiveness. I am going to stick with the dog on dog for the time being.
These days, many of us are familiar with the term “pack leader” and it can be seen in many places and formats with respect to dog training. Much can be read on developing the pecking order within a multiple dog household. For example, the top dog eats first, goes outside first, etc, while the humans are the pack leader or leaders. This mentality can actually cause challenges within your pack as your top dog ages or you have a dog that is truly not an alpha status dog because of his demeanor. I do not make any one dog the top or alpha, I assume that role. My dogs are all kept on the same level. They will establish there own less obvious pecking order, but I don’t encourage it.
Bringing a new dog into a well established pack can be disturbing for a dog if he does not understand the dynamics of the pack. It is necessary to show the dog what being in this pack is all about. Otherwise, the dog may take it upon himself to establish his own dominance within the pack. This is where the problems start. The human may have never outwardly needed to be a pack leader because of the demeanor of their dogs, so now is the time to show this new dog who is in charge. The establishment of the pack dynamics will make the new dog feel more secure and less likely to impose his will.
Dog aggression begins long before the fur starts flying. Growling, posturing, rising hair, tail flicks, and even subtle looks can be the first signs of a dog trying to take his place in the pack. When these signs arise, the pack leader must immediately redirect this behavior in order to show the new dog who is the pack leader, his motives are recognized and his behavior is unacceptable. Recognizing these signs is the hard part. The majority of the time, the aggression will be seen while indoors or in close quarters. So be prepared before you even see the signs. When the dogs start coming into close contact, keep on alert. Controlled walks in close proximity can help in getting your pack used to those tight quarter situations.
There are many techniques ranging from a simple touch to redirect the dogs focus to actually biting your dog. It may seem extreme, and a little fuzzy, to bite your dog, but it is what they understand. The severity of the technique depends on the reaction of the dog. If the dog responds and changes his focus to a touch and a “hey”, that’s great, keep it up whenever there are signs. The behavior should change. If the dog does not respond to the touch, maybe a pinch on the thigh may turn his attention. If it seems to take much more to change the dogs focus, you should probably consult a pro trainer or behaviorist.
While we can never know what can trigger dog on dog aggression, we can usually assume that the behavior has been learned from an aggressive dog who has established himself as the pack leader. As owners and handlers, we have to establish ourselves as well, but we have the ability to not make it a “dog eat dog” situation.
Brian Hillshafer WGSPR Volunteer Trainer/Hunt Evaluator |
