As you did so good with your first homework, you're getting some more this time 🙂 No worries if you don't manage to do everything in 2 weeks, you can always come back to those tricks. Post wherever you end up, we learn the most through problems, so you want to post those too! 🙂
1. experiment with different toys and ways to play with your dog. Tape his favourite game to give some new ideas to other participants (and me!!!)
2. instead of a plate, find something a little higher this time to give them a better feeling of where to keep their front legs, click first for front feet on an object (should be easy, you want the same thing as on a plate) and then observe hind legs and click for ANY movement (even just a weight shift) and then shape from there to more&more steps around the object. I first click both directions and once I get a quarter of a circle, start clicking one direction only and reward with a head away from me in order to get a full circle. The final goal is full circle in both directions, with you static (don't help the dog to circle with your movement!) - I think those that have my heeling video can already do that exercise, though 🙂
3. take the plate and hold it in different positions to see if the dog understands it's the same thing even when you hold it higher, under angle, to his left/right etc. Try when he is standing, sitting and lying down. If you didn't name touching an object with a paw, it's time to do it now! Also, try to change objects for this exercise, sometimes also use a hand as a paw target. Once he can do all that, you're ready for next two tricks we will get out of the paw touch:
- crossing paws: tell the puppy to down (or shape it if he doesn't know it yet), then hold the plate (or, you can use another, smaller and more convenient object, like a plastic lid or a piece of paper) close to left paw and only reward touching it with left paw. Then hold it closer and closer to right paw, still only reward left paw touches, then hold it on right paw and eventually on the other side, jackpoting the touches of left paw on a right paw now in order to eventually get rid of a target.
- sit up: tell the puppy to sit (or shape it if he doesn't know it yet), then put the plate (or just use the hand if he will recognize that as a target) low enough first that he can reach it with a paw, but then every next time, hold it a little higher - not that high that he would stand up, but high enough that the other leg leaves the ground a little bit too. Jackpot.
4. observe your puppy and try to find situations when he would back up - it usually happens when they're moving out of your way - or sometimes when you're working on ignoring the food in the hand. You can try to sit down on the floor with treats in your hand and click first step back with hind foot. Don't wait for more than one as they usually sit down then. Click&reward the first one and reward by throwing a treat towards the dog. Rewarding at distance will help you add more&more steps and more&more distance from you. At one point, switch to rewarding with a toy, it's easier to throw.
5. 2on2off - find an object big enough for the dog to go on with all 4 feet easily - maybe just put your first 4in object upside down? - Click for 2-3 legs on and then don't click the fourth one, you don't want any duration standing there! Only click again when the dog is leaving the object, try to catch him with 2 front feet on the ground and deliver the treat while he is still in this position. You want them go on an object and off immediately, stopping with front feet on the ground. Click&reward several times for a position, then say "go"/"o.k."/"free"/whatever your release word will be and throw a treat away so that he needs to leave the position to get it. Do this enough times that the dog starts to expect the thrown treat after "go", so that then you don't need to throw it in advance, but only after he leaves the position on "go". Do not help with body language that you want him to leave after "go" - if he doesn't know it yet, go back to throwing a treat and progress more slowly.
Another note: I'll be able to answer your questions this coming week with no problem, but then the week after I have seminars here, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to keep up. If not, we'll just add another week to this class.
I’m sooo far behind in this class. I was out of town a lot and it is hard to train Zip without his x pen. I have been training Sloppy the pig just for fun. He is coming along nicely. Thought some of you might like to see his progress. Sorry, it got kind of long. I only have one more after this one and it will be reel short. My goal is to have Sloppy and Zip the dog race each other. So I’m trying to train for that. I will post Zips video latter today.
No video, I will try again
I LOVE it!!! Can’t wait for race day!!!
Oh, that’s too cute! I’m just amazed at how smart and focused and fast the baby pig can be! He is doing GREAT and it’s really interesting to watch, especially as I don’t have much experience with training other animals but dogs. But hey, pigs sure look fun! How big will he get?
I’m embarrassed to show this. I haven’t worked with zip much on our homework this week. I have raised other BC pups and I could have a 5 min shaping session with them anywhere, but with zip it’s more challenging. I put some of what it’s like in the video. Maybe some of you would have some suggestions? I think if I stick in there he will be a great dog. He has lot’s of drive for Frisbees, toys which I love about him.
One of the homework was to show what He likes the most. I think it would be frisbees. He likes goats mike also. That would be my unique thing I could share. One bottle last a long time. Doesn’t’ work to good in the house. Unless your a bachelor : )
Did you try leaving if he looses focus? Simply end the session and try again later. Also, as he seems so much more toy motivated, you should really use toys more! Try to reward with a toy for every third click first! I know, it takes longer, but once you have the focus, everything will be easier and faster. Also, make sure you don’t feed him too close before a training session! -- Feed him after. Outside, with distractions, only work on playing, throw in some of his favourite tricks, but don’t ask for more as you are sure he can do it, otherwise he is learning wrong things -- that he can choose when he wants to work and when he doesn’t. It should be him, asking for more, not the other way around.
The exercises as such are actually progressing nicely, that’s already very good perch work and backing up! But for example for backing up, the toy works really well, it’s easier to throw and I think Zip likes it better in a first place. For the best tries, don’t forget to use your voice, mark it also with the excitement in your voice. In general, make training sessions more fun, shorter, but very intense, with lots of action and playing in between, I think he really needs that and will really bloom as soon as he realizes it’s all about playing.
I am having a difficult time getting my puppy (4 1/2 mo) to be interested in treats. He will stay focused for about 1 minute and take treats, then he looses focus and intrest in the trick I am trying to teach.
I have moved from outside to inside in a small “mud room” but it hasn’t helped much.
Treats that I’ve tried have been very high value: steak, chicken, liverwurst, liver and various bought treats. None hold his intrest for long.
On the other hand, he will do anything that can be rewarded with a tug toy. These tricks don’t really lend themselves to vigorous tugging.
Does anyone have experience with a similar puppy? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Dianne
Yes, John has the same problem with Zip, so maybe you can read the discussion we had with him in both this and previous lesson, I hope you can use some with your pup!
Hi Silvia, a pig will get between 350 lbs to 600 lbs They grow fast. At a pig farm they will weigh 235 lbs in six mouths. They make good pets if you have a sturdy barn to keep them in. They are vary strong and can reck things with their nose if you don’t have a good pen to keep them in. Here’s a picture of a pet pig I had. He’s about 350 lbs in the picture. But he got up to about 600 lbs. I had him on Main st. down town at Christmas time (about 20 years ago) for a parade and decided to take him in one of the stores to see santa, until he started to relieve himself in the store. I guess he wasn’t as house broken as I thought : )
Hm, o.k., maybe we’re not getting a pig afterall! 🙂
This video shows how I have taught Charm to back up. At first she kept jumping so I only clicked walking steps.
I also show our favorite toy play game which I used to teach Charm to love being rewarded by toy play. I let her tug, tug, tug, then I say “give” and when she releases the toy I ask for a behavior. In this video I ask for a down, then tug, then a stand, then tug, then a sit, then tug. I’m so pleased that she will transition from being rewarded by food to being rewarded by toy play which is not often the case with Cavaliers. I am working hard to maintain this.
Very nice! She sure looks a lot into that toy! For backing up, slowly fade your movement and have her back up on her own. Toys would work for that very well too.
First this video shows Charm’s 2o/2o with release. When do I start releasing her as soon as she gets in position without rewarding her in 2o/2o position?
Then it shows how she has learned to circle on a bowl to her right. Even though I rewarded her for going both directions at first I couldn’t get more than a quarter of a turn in either direction so I stopped rewarding her for going to her left until she could do a full 360 degree turn to the right. Now I am teaching her to go to the right and it’s very hard for me to avoid luring to help her with this.
Then this video shows her paw touch. Since I already taught her a nose touch to my hand and to a small plexi glass target first, she kept wanting to nose touch the plate and then the lid I was using. Often now she hits with both nose and paw. I don’t have her crossing her paws yet and I don’t have her sitting up and begging yet very well either because I’ve been working on getting her to understand the paw touch is not a nose touch.
Wow, that’s very good! In 2on2off, I would first start adding distractions (see new assignment list) and vary your position and only then stop rewarding in the position. Very nice perch work, that’s not too bad if you only lure the beginning of her weaker direction -- just fade it into a hand signal as fast as possible 🙂 Sit up is going well too! Great job! Love her attitude and wagging tail! 🙂
Here is where we ended up with lesson 2.
I forgot to get video of backing up but we are progressing. I’m using a chute and tossing treats between his front legs. Should I name the behavior before taking the barriers away?
The video clips are from the last couple days. The “scootch” just started happening so I started clicking it. I may have been to ambitious with the box, but I did realize that it was too slick on the deck. I also think the deck was too slippery for sitting up because he usually looks better than this. With perch work, I was able to jackpot a couple “almost” circles. The last footage is from today…he circled around, but was that cheating?
Kristin & Da Vinci
Oh, that was too funny, trying to get into that box! I think he would feel more confident about it if you put it in a bigger box he already mastered. Nice 2on2off too, time to vary your position and add distractions! To add duration to the sit up, he needs to be more vertical, he will have better balance that way -- meaning that you need to put a target closer to him. That was a little cheating to get the full circle, so fade the hand quickly as you don’t want him to get used to looking at the hand.
Here are a few games that we play. Mostly we play hide and seek and chasing/running around games, but those are hard to video tape.
Very cute! 🙂
This is a video of Leia’s back up. We started last summer between the coffee table and the couch and then moved to this longer channel type area along the side of the room. We have also been trying it outside and in other places. We’re still working on distance and staying straight. I haven’t named it yet.
Very nice! Can’t stop admiring your view though 🙂
Well you can come on over and enjoy it in person any time you like 🙂
Sounds tempting! 🙂
I love her ears!