School time for our puppies! Here is your first to-do list.
Just a short note first: there are lots of tasks waiting for you in this class as I like to keep it interesting also for those dogs who already know some of the tricks. HOWEVER, make sure you're not focusing on teaching too much as fast as possible, to the degree of trying to help/lure - but instead take the time and focus on the fun part. In order not to make you feel under pressure, I will be underlining the tasks you should focus on in each lesson. The rest you can do if the underlined exercises are going well, but we don't need those for the next lesson, so it doesn't hurt if you address those later.
1. The first task might sound a little silly for those with adult dogs, but in fact, it's never silly to make a recall even better! Call your dog at least 10 times a day to do something fun together: to play, to go out, to get a treat, something to chew on or a new exciting toy
2. put a plate (or another object, but I like to start with a plate as puppies can't chew on those too easily) on a floor and shape a puppy to touch it with a front paw: you can first click for head movement in the right direction, then one/two/three steps towards the plate, then stepping over it or close to it and finally for stepping on it
3. sit on a floor and put a fist full of treats or dog's favourite toy right in front of their nose, wait till they stop sniffing and click for anything they try other than getting directly to the food/toy or staring at it. It's very important the dog understands staring at food/toy doesn't get him anywhere as it will later on allow you to work with food/toys in your hand without distracting the dog's focus from the job at hand.
4. find a box or a drawer that is as long as your dog and not too high and shape a dog to put 1-2-3-4 legs into it. Then try with smaller&smaller objects, final goal is the dog can stand with all 4 feet in a small bowl.
5. observe your puppy and see if he sometimes stretches his legs out when in down position, puppies often do that when relaxed or playing. Name it (I call it "frog":) and reward. It's a nice stretching exercise and very easy to get it on cue if the dog does it naturally (some dogs do it as adults too, but mine didn't and it was much harder to train it as with puppy Le who was doing that naturally). If not, put a dog in a down position and reward from the floor and so far ahead that the dog needs to stretch out to get it - but not so far that he would crawl ahead. Watch the hind legs and click for moving them back OR out, but NOT for crawling step forward. It usually helps if you try to get them stretch over a pillow, like in this video:
Looking forward to see your videos! You can send them in one or more pieces, but keep the total length of the videos sent per lesson under 10min. Don't wait until you master the tricks before sending your videos, just post whatever you're working on for some feedback.
Hi Silvia, this is our first video, I have been working on the 4in trick for a while, today was our first session after a week break, I wasn´t at home for a coupe of days, I started with the box I used before the food bowl, Astro is having trouble with the box on the flor, seem he can´t find it, so I put the box on the box we used at the beggining, then I switched to a food bowl, today he seems to be bigger and to get 4 in is a little more dificult. Should I use the bigger one or continue with this one? Today I reward with pork ham and he is a little bit more crazy, Tonight I will reward with his food and videotape so you can see what is the best for him.
With the paw target I am not yet using comand, should I introduce one now? Do I have to name each paw with a name or can be just one, for me is dificult to remember wich comand is for left hand and rigt hand 😉
thanks
He sure is big now! 🙂 Your set up of the box on the box looks somewhat dangerous to me though so I think I would go to a bigger box on the floor first and then go through the whole process again, but on the floor this time. He sure is well coordinated though and is sure trying really hard! Still, try to keep the sessions shorter, with more playing in between. Very cool paw touches too! For leaving the toy, try to get him to offer something else as staring at the toy too -- but maybe it would be easier to try with food first.
I”m having difficulty with the “Frog”. I put Sammy in a down over the cushion but as soon as I try to get him to stretch forward he just pulls his back legs up under himself so that he totally on top of the cushion -- still in a down.
Not sure what I’m doing wrong?
Dawn--I had this problem with Elsa (the dog in the demo video) when we first started shaping the frog & what I found helped was to lay my hand lightly on her lower back to keep her from raising her hind end & bringing her hind legs underneath her. I then clicked for any hint of hind leg movement back. It was a slow process but we finally got there… 🙂
By the way this was a trick that I never thought possible to train Elsa. She never, ever did this naturally but now it is one of her favorite tricks!
Happy training!
Thanks, Kathy & Silvia. Both suggestions are very helpful. Will definitely persevere. Been away for the weekend, so will get back into it today!
You can try Kathy’s suggestion, it helped with some of the dogs. If it doesn’t work with Sammy, keep trying on a pillow, putting him back to get hind feet off the pillow when he pulls them up and clicking and rewarding for any slight stretch forward when leaving hind feet behind. You can also try higher cushion. Frog is very easy for some dogs and very hard for others, but I’m sure he will get it if you just keep trying and generously reward everything that is going in the right direction.
Back home ! Here are my first videos with Garlic 8 months. Silvia, what do you think about this and how can I improve ? Then I will try with a plate. Warning : sound is not synchro with video ( in advance ) because of cheap cam.
A dog or a frog ?
Great job! Really cool frog already, time to put a name to it to then slowly fade the pillow -- go to folded blanket first and then slowly unfold it until it’s all flat. Nice hind feet movement and definitely ready for a smaller box for 4in!
Hi! Here it’s little Kalhy on the frog exercise!
As you can see she’s always pushing with her paws but not for crawl. It seems like she pedals.
🙂 That is just too cute! Looks like a “swimming frog”! 🙂
Kalhy would definitely win the cutest frog dog contest! 🙂 Do try to click the moments when she doesn’t pedal too much (seems like you’re already doing that though) to eventually get “static frog”, but her swimming frog is sure adorable too!
Thanks a lot for my little swimming frog 😀 Yes that’s what I’m triing to do: click when she doesn’t pedal. We will continue to work hard (and funny of course ;p). ^^
Hi Silvia, Myth and I have been working on getting 4 feet in a box and the frog trick. Frog has been challenging for us as he loves to tuck his legs under or roll to one side and slide. Once he gets into a frog-like position, he is slides across the cushion, is this OK or should his feet not leave the floor? I am looking forward to your suggestions 🙂 .
Great! Amazing how fast he mastered that smaller box! Looks ready for the next size! And yes, his frog is going really well, it’s perfectly o.k. if his feet leave the ground, you can keep rewarding as long as they’re stretched out. For all struggling with the frog: try a cushion like that, it makes it easier to get a stretch on a high cushion like that! Great job Myth!
Hi Silvia.. here’s a video of Vini doing Touch, 4 in box & Frog. Touch she seems to understand -- the 4 in box she is doing okay -- but the frog is a bit challenging for us -- she hasn’t yet understood it’s the movements of the rear legs that I want. We are training Lie Down extensively so that’s why she is a bit hesitant to move 🙂
Glad to finally meet Vini! You seem to get all the smallest BCs out there! 🙂 She seems to be a thinker too. Try to mix in some more toy rewards and tossing treats is good for her too, to get more action. Nice paw touches and almost there with 4in, one more session on this box and you’ll need a smaller one! Is she hesitant to move even if you don’t really tell her down, but just wait for her to lie down? Also, you could use a bigger, higher cushion to make the frog easier for her, but she actually doesn’t seem to physically have a problem to stretch the legs back, it’s just that she doesn’t know yet what you’re clicking… So bigger pillow won’t necessarily help… -- but you can try. It will definitely make a move as such easier even when she is not lying on her side: she is doing it nicely in the video, but lying on her side makes it easier. Great job so far, happy training!
OK, here’s my first try at posting a video. This was Star’s second session working on 4 in the box. We started with a big box and transitioned to a smaller one. Does this look OK so far?
Deb
Great job with the boxes! All set for the next size! Star sure seems to be having lots of fun, I love her attitude!
Deb, your video was a big help to me. I am having a problem with Secret getting all 4 feet in a box if the box is smaller than she is. I can see how you are having the exact same situation at the beginning of the smaller box and I can see how you progress Star forward by rewarding movements of the other two feet towards the box. You are the queen of good clicker timing. If I could just duplicate what you are doing I would be able to progress to a smaller box. I’ll try to post a video later this week to show my struggles with my timing and my lack of patience. I MUST learn patience! That is my journey.
Yeap, anything in the right direction goes! And sure, post whatever you got!
Hello Silvia, I´m sending you two videos and I have two questions:
1) Can I use now a smaller bowl now?
2) Trono sometimes tries to put his two paws on the plate. Should I use a smaller plate?
thank you
The white headed puppy looks like he wants to join in too! 🙂 What a focus! Try to do one more session with this box, rewarding him while in a box, with a head low to promote standing in the box. If that goes well, you can switch to a smaller one yes. Nice paw touches, no problem if he is doing it with both paws too, we’ll actually need both on too anyway! Great job!
Silvia, This are 2 videos from yesterday, one was at morning and the other one at afternoon, This is the second session for the frog trick, Astro sometimes is not leaning down with his feet straigh he lies down on one of his rear legs, Do you now wath I meant? with the pillow he is better.
Now he can understand with the bowl on the flor 🙂 should I tryed with a smaller one?
am i doing rigth the trick with the food in my hand?
Great!!! I love how he throws himself down into that frog! What a smart puppy! You can already name the behaviour and then switch to a folded blanket and slowly get rid of it. It’s no problem if he lies on his side sometimes, reward for stretching one leg out by tossing a treat and try again. Great 4in too, what a balance! Definitely ready for a smaller box! And yes, continue like that with ignoring the treat trick. You can then make it harder by dropping a treat on the floor and clicking when he ignores it and does something else instead (looks at you, puts the head down etc.)
sorry I forgot the videos