Hi Guys, I have a question about our 13 week old pup Bentley We seem to be really well with the training and he hardly ever pulls on the lead (I am guessing this is becuase he is still so young and small?) however..........he only sits and lies down on comand when he knows there is a treat reward when he does it. Today we have been working on both sit and lie down......however......with no treat and he's not inetrested! Are we trying to do too much too soon do you think with such a young lab? Also......any hints/advice for "Stay", have tried ita few times and with us taking baby steps back but he just thinks itsa game and bounds towards us. Starting Puppy classes in 2 weeks so hoping we can learn a lot from them! ALSO, sorry last question.....over the last 2 weeks he has started barking a lot, usually when we are in the room with us and sat down and think its becuase he wants our attention and wants to play......as soon as we give him some attention and start to play with him he stops. Should we be ignoring him when he barks............? Thanks for your advice and tips as always. x
Re: Puppy Training With the sits and lie downs, i would use a random reward system, so have some treats and first time give him a treat for sitting or lying down, then the next two times dont give him a then the next time give him a treat and keep mixing it up, so he many get several treats in a row, then miss one or not get treats for a couple of times then give him loads in a row. Just keep him guessing, so he does not know whether he will get a treat or not. You could also start using toys as rewards, so play with him for a bit then stop and ask him to sit then if he does continue playing and make it really fun, if he does not sit walk away from him and take the toy with you. With the stays, at our puppy class we were told to have the pup sitting next to you on the left, then walk one step away with the right foot then immediately step back to the dog and reward, and keep doing this and slowly building it up step by step, keep your back turned on him when doing this, so you just go forward and backward, turning and facing him will encourage him to come to you more. With the barking i would ignore it, then when he is quite pay attention to him, as by you giving him attention when he barks is rewarding the barking so it will make him do it more often. Puzzle went through a stage of this, ignoring her stopped it, she may bark or whine now, but only for a reason like she wants to go outside to the toilet or i am late giving her her food (typical lab, always wanting food)
Re: Puppy Training My lab Max is nearly 4 months and we have had a problem with barking and I have started to ignore him. I usually just stand still and dont look at him when he is doing it. If I am preparing his food I will stop what I am doing. It seems to be helping a bit so I will let you know.
Re: Puppy Training Definitely don't give in or give attention in response to barking Turning away can be enough and if it's not (the barking may even escalate in response!), then walk away completely. Soon as you get half a second of silence, respond with attention, praise and treats. Next time expect 1 second then 1.25 etc. With the treats, do as PuppyPal suggested Also, make it impossible for your pup to tell whether you have treats on you or not (don't always have them visible, put them in a pocket). Don't take this personally, but you need to be less predictable Just checking one thing - are you still using treats to lure your dog into position or are you using a cue, marker (click) and reward (treat)? With the stays, the way to go is also as PuppyPal describes, but at first move only the teensiest little bit with your right foot. Gradually increase this till you can move a tiny small step and then back again. Small, small increments - don't rush it When you are going to leave your dog in a stay, always step away with your right foot first as PP says. And when you want to heel off with your dog and have them come with you, always use your left leg first. Your dog will notice this and will eventually see your leg movements as the cue to stay or heel.
Re: Puppy Training Thanks for your advice, much appreciated. We have never used clicker training, just words and hand movements and he seems to be getting it really well. Have been working on "Lie Down" today with no treats and he's doing it straight away.
Re: Puppy Training My Frisbee - who is around 5 months now - does the same thing. He sits on command with ease - treat or no - but the "down" command is at this point ONLY luring with treat. Should I start moving him into the down position or should I keep luring him? He's really a great dog but I need to get him going past this stage (increasing the down duration) but he just seems content to ignore me unless I lure him. Help!
Re: Puppy Training I had a bit of a problem with down - advice on the forum (I think it was Rachael that was kind enough to give it) was that down can be a bit tricky, it can make the dog feel a bit vulnerable. Just continue with the lure, and associating the command, they get it eventually. I've only had a reliable "down" since about 6 months.
