Hi All! My name is Lara, and I have Cassie, an 8 month old golden lab terror, I mean puppy Background Info: Long story short, I've busted my knee and been pretty down since November 20th, then had surgery on the 20th of December. I live with my parents, and my Mum and I share pretty equal responsibility with Cassie, but I would spend more time practicing training with Cassie than my Mum. Since I've been down well over a month, my mom has been doing her best, but been stretched thin between taking care of me, and Cassie (making sure she gets two walks a day, playtime outside, food, etc--she's been AMAZING) but we've noticed especially as the weather gets colder and we are inside more...she's getting SO restless (The dog, not my mum ) She's super smart, and we do our fair share of puzzle toys/enrichment. She eats out of a Kong some meals or puzzle toys most meals, sometimes we put food in a box with tissue paper and let her shred and enjoy! We make sure physically she's tired, but I think she's still mentally lacking. I'm FINALLY up and moving (with a brace, but hey, I can walk, so I'll take it) and I want to get back to incorporating some training sessions in hope of wearing that busy brain of hers out! I'm noticing a mix of teenager blank stares and rebellion when it comes to "sit" even, and I'm sure it's a mix of her newly found independence and lack of consistency from my end, poor girl! Question: I'm a very structured, detail oriented person, so I was hoping I could get some ideas for how to start some small training sessions as it's hard for my to just jump into something without a game plan! I understand this can be challenging because labs are not always the most structured dogs so I need to be flexible to the distractions and such, but I'm open to trying new things and giving it a shot, but I was hoping to get some advice from you lovely lab lovers. Do I just walk up to my dog and start, or how should it be prefaced? How long should I be training and what sorts of things should I work on? I've made a list of basic skills I'd like to work on, but I didn't know if there needed to be some rhyme or reason to how or what order I do things in. Would a schedule be helpful in ensuring I work on all of them? Whenever I've tried training sessions in the past, Cassie is dang near perfect because she becomes fixated on treats and will do ANYTHING I ask, even when the treat isn't in my hand (it's usually in my pocket). Then, I'll try it a little later, and if she sees no treat, she doesn't do it (even though I was planning on giving her a treat, she just hasn't seen it yet). I worry she's not learning anything, just doing the motions for the treat, or is this normal to start? She's familiar with all the commands on my list, though she seems to have forgotten many of them: sit, sit-stay, down-stay, down (lay down), off (when she's jumping up on something), drop it, leave it, wait (for me to go first, or waiting for her food), and handling (touching her paws, ears, mouth, etc), and recall. I'm wanting to refresh her on these basics, and work up to proofing them. I know this all sounds probably silly and self-explanatory, but I'd love to hear some advice on going back to basics, how to incorporate training sessions, and any other tips and tricks! I'm also open to any ideas of additional skills to teach her, as I know learning a new skill is great work for their brain! I want this to be fun and tiring for Cassie, so anyway you have to make this more enjoyable is just fine by me!
Hi Lara, Sorry to hear about your knee and glad that you're recovering well. Re: your questions Welcome to the teen phase of labrador where if you're unlucky (like me), you'll get a complete pain in the ass pup!! Bowie had 6 months of training (he was the star of the class in fact!) before the puberty hit, then all hell broke loose. He went 2 steps backwards in his training, ignored us completely and just a complete nightmare esp. when we took him for a walk or left him by himself!! We consulted our trainer and had to adjust our training method and be more stern with Bowie. Basically we went back to basics, distanced him more from 'distraction' when we did training and used less 'food' treat reward until his attention was fully on us and he did the commands well. We tried not to repeat the same command twice, instead if Bowie didn't 'sit' as he was told, first we lured him (with food) but if it didn't work (for example when the distraction was too high, even food was ignored, or when he's just being stubborn), we just pushed his bum downward (gently of course ). It's not that Bowie forgot what we taught him, he just pushed the boundary and wanted to see what he could get away with. The hardest bit was to be consistent and outlast his persistence Also try to incorporate the training with the play sessions. I find Bowie is more engaged and he'll more likely to respond to the training/commands. Plus it's great for brain work! Hope that helps and good luck!!
If you want a structured training plan which covers basic cues then 'Train your dog like a Pro' by Jean Donaldson is the book for you as she breaks down all training into tiny steps which are well explained. Extra things to train really depend upon what you want to do - shake paw, high 5, roll over, find games, scent games, training around Hoopers or Parkour. There is so much to choose from You should only ask for a behaviour once, if the dog doesn't respond It's because they really haven't learnt the verbal cue properly or the dog is in any area with distractions. Yes food will be ignored when the dog is distracted so you need to wait until the distraction is reduced - it is not the dog being stubborn, dogs just don't think like that. Pushing a dog's bottom into the sit doesn't help them to learn to sit and is so out of date I'm surprised any trainer would suggest such a method.
Nope, he was just more distracted by his environment. Things that weren't of interest before suddenly become so much more interesting during puberty. All those smells suddenly have new meaning! He starts to lose his dependence on you and make his own decisions, that means he needs to be more aware of what is going on in his environment, which might be a risk to him, and pay less attention to you - he knows you're cool. It's not "pushing boundaries" or "seeing what he can get away with", it's simply survival mechanisms kicking in. To get through this, it's a case of going right back to basics and re-teaching the skills he knows in these "new" environments. You have to scrap any thoughts of "he already knows this" because, you know, he really doesn't. In general, if dogs don't respond to cues, it's for one of two reasons: he's either not been properly motivated (meaning a strong history of reinforcement) or else he just doesn't understand what you're asking. Other potential reasons may be that he hasn't actually heard you - just like humans, dogs' ears can turn off background noise when they're concentrating intently on something else - or he's afraid of performing the behaviour you're asking). But, in general, at this stage, it's one of those first two. So, go back to puppy training and start at the beginning. Be very clear in your communication, and up your use of reinforcers. Keep distractions to a minimum at first and gradually build them up again. Be aware that a situation he excelled in previously is now difficult for him. Be patient. He'll work through the stages a lot faster than he did in the beginning but just keep in mind that, if he's not responding, you have to change something to make it more achievable for him. You are the one who sets up the training sessions, so you are the one who is control of his success or otherwise. It's frustrating, gosh I know it can be frustrating, but keeping in mind that it's not his fault really helps to keep you from losing your mind. I'll repeat my mantra one more time: train the dog in front of you. Look at how he's responding. If he's falling short of your expectations, your expectations are too high. Make it easier and you'll both be happier.
I wish sometimes I knew what he's thinking (I think I did most times ) We always ask Bowie to sit before he greets people or other dogs but when the distraction is sooo high, I find giving him a gentle push/tap helps bring his attention to me and he'll do the sit. Perhaps we need to go a step backward and do more distraction proofing - learning everyday!!
