april 13 2020

dog training 101--we have time... and no excuse....and i have a demo pup,,, jiminey.. overly cheerful... boystrusoues ...headed for a life of cheerful idiot... unless i can explain a few thigs to him. so first i must taclkle the concept of dog training.     strict obedience training is certainly better than none, but i think there is an element of " i am in command... see what i can  make this animqal do.".... i don't mean to be totally unkind, that is how i started with a cocker spaniel  and then a standard poodle...  who got nearly perfect score/ blue ribbon ...  in an AKC obedience trial.... which  caused me to go buy 100 blue ribbons for 15 cents each  and skip the " show ring" ----  finally "developing "  instead of t"raining"  service dogs. so here we are. i am now going to stick my neck out  big time....perhaps making a fool of myself, which a least will be conversational fodder in these bleak times.  at 4:45 this afternoon--- insteadof trainer talk,,,, i will attempt to teach jiminey that i am trying to communicate with him and teach him a word that i find very useful in owning a great dane. i will work to get the concept of "back"  or " back up".   then tomorrow  "wait"   ----  with the goal being by 4:45 on wednesday  i will be able to go out the front door without him knocking me over.   . all of this will happen on  camera.... well maybe  by  thursday or friday... but we will get there !!! one of the times i most enjoyed the flattery of  "what a beqautifully  trained dog"  was the time i was trying to get some half and half out of the costco  fridge... sizzle was in the way... so i just said "siz.. back"  -- she took 3 steps back and i quietly said "thank  you" to the amazement of several people around... one of which offered me her grandchildren...  none of this high  pitched back back back,, good dog good dog good dog ... heres a cookie.... routine.  i do find that once you introduce th concept of cookie... then the dog thinks more of the cookie than what you are trying to teach them.....  here is a heavy concept....i have seen so many people... well meaning people...... who stick out their fingre at a dog and say "sit"   then hold a cookie in front of thier nose for 30 seconds before they finally give it to the dog  then.....forget to tell the dog they can get up and move.   taking that one at a time...  the dog is thinking.  "sit?? why?? here we go again.  ok i sat....  so where is my reward???? why is she teasing me???  as soon as she gives me the cookie  i can get up and leave.  a cookie means  i am done."  IF a dog is trained like that, teh training is just a trick and not a useful bit of education.  tht process would be of little use in costco. again... it is certaily better than nothing..   but... thinking ahead...even  the thank you is much more socially remarklable. people expect "good dog"    which makes no difference tot eh dog. ==== most everyone tries to teach the ir dog to come ... reliably... i firmly believe our ridiculous spoon feeding is what starts that process... and you don't have to make  a huge deal of it maybe at the start you sit and spoon feed about 1/2 a can  so they get the concept... but after that .. when the dog is wanderng around,, call them-- give them 2 spoofuls and say ok... goodbye.. and let them go wander.. do that enough and the dog will come... problem is usually you are calling the dog to do something the dog does not want to do.. like put them in a crate.. or a room "out of the way"  or a leash that y ou use to "control"  whAT HE WOUL D RATHER  not DO,. better that you figure out a way to  call them to eat their dinner .  mix it up... leave it on the counter and eventually the dog might go AWAY,  into another room...  at which point you can call them.  couple things here.. carrying an open can of dog food is often not PRACTICAL//.. at which times a  NICE cookie will may e do... but that wet food does have more appeal..point being... YOU CALL THEM AND GIVE THEJM A COOKIE WITHOUT ASKING THEM TO SIT       CALL.. COOKIE... HAPPY IS  ENTIRELY DIFFERENT THAN CALL...SIT...... COOKIE    DOGS HAVE an , A TO B MINDSET    THE FIRST IS I GOT THE COOKIE FOR COMING  THE SECOND IS I GOT IT FOR SITTTING. COUPLE MORE THINGS... PURINA CANNED  FOOD  MAY BE TECHNICALLY  TEH SAME AS TEH PURINA IN THE PLASTIC CONTAINER WHICH IS SHREDDED.... --  THE CANNED IS OF A CONSISTANCY TO STAY ON THE SPOON...  details details... ALSO Hang onto the s[poon..... mayb e even positioning the spoon perpenduclar to the dogs snout... you do not want the dog to swollow teh spoon..  jimminey has a pretty good recall... i have hardly ever asked him to do something he does not want   to do...  so this afternoon....... i will  start on the back routine.   if he has any notion of what tha t means it would bebecause  it is a word i often use and he may have picked up the concept... i don't know. we will try. I WILL START WITH A ROPE AND A RING AROUND HIS NECK.... ONLY TO KEEP HIS ATTENTION IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION FOR A START... AND BEFORE ANYONE ACCUSES ME OF KICKING THE  DOG... TO GET THE CONCEPT GOING, I MIGHT MOVE MY FOOT TOWARD HIS PAW TO STR=RT HIM BACKWARDS  IF MY HAND MOVEMENTS DON'T WORK...  I WOULD PROBBLY NOT HAVE TO TOUCH HIS FOOTG... JUST SUGGEST THE TOUCH MIGHT DO. I WIL ALSO PROBABLY NOT BE ABLE TO TQLK ALOT- AS   TALKING TO THE CAMERA,....MIGHT BE CONFUSING TO T JIMINEY...   4:45 today...monday  ... unless somethgn else happens...  I GUarenttee nothing.