I was teaching drop last night just before bed on our last bathroom stop before the lights go out and within a few clicks he was giving me his stick and getting his treat. Which for me was awesome cause he was playing keep away last week. So tonight at the exact same time I took him out last night he whined at the door to go out, so i took him and he immediately got the stick we were using last night, brought it to me, put it in my hand and sat. Obviously looking for his treat. He's been learning everything I teach then turning it around just to manipulate me for treats. These dogs are like puzzles we need to figure out. Always changing the game.
Having worked at a vet and seen the damage sticks can do, please do use another article, unless of course you have the 'safe stick'. In your instance it wasn't too bad as he was picking up a 'still' stick from the floor, it is when they are running after a stick and it can damage the throat. However, well done to your dog, he sounds very bright
Another questioin. After a successful session tonight with new clicker it was time to end and after i released Duggan he sat there looking at me very intently like he wanted to keep going. Do I get to decide when we are done and should he just go into calm state and realize it's time to relax or what ? He then didn't want to come into the house after 10 very successful long distance recalls finished with a drop and sit/stay. I didn't want to ruin what we just accomplished but it seems to me that he's begging for treats and I don't want to bribe him or let him win. Any tips.
Do you have a cue to end your training session? I use "all done" and they learn that, after that, there is no more to do, so they might as well settle down. It's great that he wants to continue, though. Don't consider it begging as much as loving the game But, you should always end the game when they want more.
Thanks. I always leave him wanting more and I do have release cue. Not so much as an end of training cue but more of a release cue from a sit/stay to eat and control doorways etc. I can give him a release cue from training but as far he was concearned last night we were having a hell of a good time not training. Lol.
When Meg first learnt drop....she literally dropped every shoe in the house at my feet for quite some time....it was quite funny to start with...she settled down eventually...Clever dogs
Lol you get what you pay for! You won't be the first trainer to adopt a blackjack dealer pose as you show your dog your empty hands. They learn eventually that you mean it when you end the session.
I get the empty hand thing. But if we are suposed to be training our dogs and shaping behaviour then should it really matter. I mean, are we fooling ourselves. I have asked my dog successfully to do amazing things this week and tonight I couldn't get him to take the last 6 feet steps to come inside the house after his pre bed bathroom break.
Too funny! It's exactly that!! We slowly wave the empty hands back and forth (sometimes swiping the hands across each other) while saying "Fee-neeeshed" in a high squealy voice. Snowie wags his tail and pulls his ears down in acknowledgment that the treats are done and then wanders off to go lie down. As for our squeal - it's become a family tradition after we went to a Thai restaurant 23 years ago and every dish we wanted to order was met with a reply from the waitress: Sorry, fee-neeeeshed, we don't have.
Re the thinking it's manipulation - I wonder that myself. Are dogs capable of manipulating, or is it just a learned response? Snowie knows that he gets his all-time ultimate treat before bed: butter. (It's also our magic word when we need it.) It's our night-time ritual to get a small nob of butter and take him up to bed with us, getting treated along the way. Sometimes we'll be heading up to bed and Snowie won't budge from downstairs. Aaah! Forgot! Butter! He will not move now unless the butter comes out. Manipulation? Or learned response?
