Homework Suggestions

FOR THOSE TAKING THE TRICKS CLASS:

Keep building that duration for your sit pretty: remember to start working on raising your rewards vertically over their heads, and brining it back down quickly, you want a fast enough pace they see no reason to drop down, then as they get stronger start a slightly longer pause between rewards. For those of you who getting a bit of duration see if you can gradually back yourself a little further away from them, still give the treats from up high.

Keep building your duration for the hold: If your dog struggles to get any duration on holds you can back up and do some shaping games to get your dog carrying the object: (see the videos below on doing that). Blending hold work and that putting an object somewhere can really help create more duration as they learn to target a spot to carry to. Remember that if you stand up or sit high, presenting the object where your dog’s head is tilting up helps create a position that makes holding that position easier.

If you want to watch this whole series of shaping Leo to fetch use the Clicks & Tricks Video Playlist link and scroll to the bottom of the list.

Keep working on your orbit and pedestal work to get those hind legs working! Once you get your full pedestal spins we can work on fading the pedestal and getting our back spins on the ground.

How is your Shy coming? Do not be discouraged if this one takes some time. It is one that is a bit more challenging to work on and takes a lot of capturing (rewarding when it happens) to get the dogs to start offering it. It is a more advanced trick so if it feels like too much, just focus on the other tricks and come back to this one later! In class I showed you a variety of ways to get some pawing action happening. This video shows you a way to use targeting combined to get the pawing happening. This trick would fall into my “for fun and advancing skills” category and not really a multi use purposeful trick. The others we have worked on are more essential tricks that I like for all the other things it gives you, this one is really more about improving your skills so don’t push it if it feels beyond what you are both ready for.

FOUNDATIONS:

Polish up the finesse of all your dog’s basic positions

• Sit

• Down

• Stand

• Middle

• Heel

• Front

My goal is that not only does my dog know how to do each of these positions, but they like to! That doing so is a way for us to connect and communicate, it’s not about compliance. I want to have these positions to be able to negotiate life with my dogs to make things easier for them.

Sit: easier for me to do things like put their leash on, a way to give them something to focus on when they want to jump up, a way to assess if they are thinking when I’m about to open a door. Down: helping a dog settle as we wait for things together. Stand: grooming, vet care, wiping off feet, etc. Middle: way to tuck in for connection and be out of the way. Heel: be beside me as we move through a crowded world. Front: a place to come to so I can connect and engage with, ease on putting on leash or having them stay with me as something goes by.

So you see, for me it is not about commands you must do for me, but rather ways we can work through things together with language and positions they understand so I don’t have to physically manhandle them through these moments.

REACTIVE DOGS:

See the blog post from Saturday 🙂