Sorry for yet another question! So I'm going to start training Willow heelwork and hope to be going by this article (http://www.thelabradorsite.com/walking-with-your-labrador-at-heel/) and (http://www.thelabradorsite.com/clicker-training-heel/) and doing all the steps Pippa says to take. I'm just confused right now because I'm reading this part: [h=2]Avoid rehearsing the pulling habit[/h] Once you begin this training process it is essential that you do not allow your dog any opportunity to pull on the leash again. Pulling is a habit, and you cannot expect the dog to differentiate between ‘training’ sessions, and any other occasion when you might need to put a lead on him. So for the next few days, and maybe even weeks, you need to stop trying to walk the dog anywhere on a normal collar and lead. If it is essential that you walk the dog on a lead you will need to have him wear a head collaror body harnessthat prevents him from pulling at all. It is best to go ‘cold turkey’ and make the decision: “From today, all pulling stops”. and she's not been on a lead (or collar before) and it says how you have to differentiate between training sessions, so do I get two different harnesses... one to use in training, and one to use when out and about so she knows the difference? And do I begin by putting her in her harness and dragging the lead along so she gets used to it, or just go straight for that when I get to the other parts of this training later that mention it? Sorry I'm just really confused and want to start right but not sure which part is the start. Thank you!
Hi Lucy - my pup Jaffa is 15 weeks now and I started her with the clicker heel as soon as she'd kindof knew what the clicker was and that what she did could earn a click etc (the 2nd article you mention) - in a small section of the garden with nothing interesting there apart from me and treats! - Off lead - I kindof helped her a bit by manoeuvring so she was in the right sort of position and clicked her - The clicker heel teaches her where the most rewarding place to be is and how to get herself there. Its become almost a game - "here I am Mum you can't get rid of me" Build it so Willow knows to eat the treat and re-find heel position again + walk a few steps with you and then you can start to "cue it" when you know Willow is going to do it. Then sometimes you can add a lead (but don't toss the treat far then) which will then be irrelevant for Willow but gets you used to coordinating with it in your hand. Do as much of this as possible - gradually add distractions (eg I get one of my other dogs to sit outside the puppy pen) then move to new areas until it becomes almost a habit - "Oh this is what I do when my Mum cues "whatever your cue is". I have incorporated definite sniff breaks (Jaffa sits first and then released to sniff for a bit) and then get her attention and a little bit more. I am trying to keep to a minimum the times when she is on lead and I know that she will be too distracted but she's bound to sometimes pull. (I don't use my cue then - and just encourage/lure/whatever in order to get somewhere) But at least she is not learning to pull on her collar or hurting her neck. It is working so far - I can now go to eg a new carpark (ie not too distracting with scent) - get out the car - play a bit of clicker heel then have a sniff break or perhaps a game and then back in the car. The other thing I'm finding (mentioned in my post yesterday) is that she's offering to heel when out on free walks - usually once she's had a good run round, then she pops up at my heel for a bit. I haven't trained a clicker heel before, so I am still learning but I am enjoying it and I really want to make heel a nice place for her to be as well as somewhere where sometimes she has to be. I think the first article is possibly more for older dogs ( sit - one step - sit) who perhaps have already learnt to pull and are restarting, but I could be wrong.
Hi Lucy, no you don't need two different harnesses; the point is that you need to ensure there is no pulling at all, whether you're in a training session or not. This means that basically every walk on-lead is a training session. It may mean that you don't go any distance at all, because she can't manage to move more than five feet without pulling. That's fine, though. Once she's able to go out and about, you'll just have to make sure that you're either walking on-lead and reinforcing the fact she's not allowed to pull ever, or else you're on an off-lead walk, which may mean you drive her to somewhere you can take her straight out of the car and free-running. The article is saying, though, that if this just isn't possible, that you need to get a device that makes it physically impossible for the dog to pull; there are harnesses which turn the dog as soon as it starts to pull, so she doesn't get into the habit of pulling to get somewhere. The problem is that lots of people use these types of harnesses as a crutch instead of actually training a proper loose-lead walk without any mechanical assistance. Others also believe that they can be aversive (punishing) to the dog, and can alter their gaits which isn't desired because it can put extra pressure on the puppy's body. For me, nothing beats persistence and patience to get your dog walking nicely without the use of corrective devices. The absolute most important thing is you don't get into the situation where you're whatever distance from home with her on the lead, she starts to pull, but you have to get back home to go to work/the shops/the loo etc so you have no choice but to let her pull. This is disastrous for teaching loose-lead walking. Absolute, 100% consistency with never letting her self-reward through pulling is vital to success and is the reason many people fail; they set themselves up to "go on a walk" with their dog when it's simply asking too much for them to do it well. Using a clicker to mark a good position is really useful and you may find yourself streaming treats (giving one after the other) in the early days and it literally may be after each and every pace. Remember to take it slowly and build up over time. She's just a baby in a big, exciting world and can't be expected to walk like a mature dog for a good long while yet.
