Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Thanks everyone, I feel okay about the whole thing but it always sets you back a bit when your dog makes contact with you with his teeth! On both cases it was not a hard bite, more like a clamp down with his teeth, which is usually what he does. And I agree I should have thought more about reaching in to grab him, I did have food but he wasn't coming out (first sign right there, should have been paying attention!) , and I never would have grabbed his collar, knowing how he hates it, but he's never reacted to any pressure on the harness before. Thanks for your suggestion, Helen, I don't know that a toy would have any greater value than food for Simba, that is his number one treat! So will work on this, we have a bit of a break until the 29th, so will see how we do. He's doing very well, overall, we are enjoying the classes and the "homework" so it's all good. The trainer took some pictures, I'll see if I can get them off Facebook to show you all!
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Except for the little blip Simba sounds like he's doing really well Lisa. I agree with everyone else. It was most likely the situation rather than you getting hold of his harness that caused him to get hold of you. If you think about it he was stuck in a tunnel and not able to see what was going on. I bet if you got hold of his harness now it wouldn't even register with him.
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Sounds like the class is really worthwhile, and it's great to hear that he's started trialling new things to earn a click, even if it's early days
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Ack. Feel like we've taken a wee step backwards. We have a young lady staying with us off and on, she was here today. I had a bit of a manic day so I asked her take Simba for a walk while I ferried my daughter to physio. Got back to the report that when she tried to take his harness off after the walk Simba growled at her and then grabbed her arm. Yeesh. All of a sudden he's harness-sensitive?? It's disheartening. We used the harness because of the issues we were having with his collar, which he has got over, but now he's reacting to it? Yesterday I did some harness desensitization, but got absolutely no reaction from him no matter how I hauled on the harness. So I chalked it down to the situation with the tunnel. But now, this. The young lady was amenable to doing some clicker stuff with me so I got her to do the desensitization while he had the collar on, taking it slow at first. He didn't seem to be reacting to her hand, we got to where she could put a hand on the harness with no prob. I called it quits there, we'd been at it for about 5 mins so didn't want to push him too hard. But he showed no signs of issues. She is here on and off over the next few days so I'll keep getting her to do this with him, hopefully it will help. A bit set back by this.... :-\
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Who knows what she did exactly.... I honestly would not be too worried, but if anyone else is going to walk him in future then I'd have a little clicker session with them first and explain how to handle Simba gently so he doesn't feel threatened by a fast moving hand. What you did after sounds great and I'm sure that future sessions with her will help. I think that education of people who may be handling his collar or harness is important - it's not just a Simba training issue. Don't feel too stressed
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Ah Lisa,I can imagine you being down in the dumps about it...but you are on ot.Its a funny time of the year too ,routines and the house are all different,different smells,different people ,so much coming and going...I reckon that could be a factor too and he's a bit out of sorts ? He'll come through it,he might have just been pushing his luck with your visitor if he sensed she was a bit nervous ?x
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Thanks you two. It's hard to know what set him off...you are right, Angela, people coming and going, she is not unknown to him but not well known either. It's just weird that this has come up, I've had other people walk him while we've been gone, not had any issues with putting harness off or on. Little worried what this might mean for his stay at the kennel.... :-\
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? I hope you are not too worried. lisa - I don't want to down play it, when I know it's important and you've worked so hard on it. But he only grabbed at a hand in very specific circumstances. Good points made by Rachael and Angela already. Just explain to the people at the kennel - they are experienced, they'll easily be able to watch out for this. It's quite minor, really (although I know important to you).
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? I so agree with everyone, if you educate the people looking after Simba I think that will go a long way to resolution Take care and try not to worry xxx
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? You are dealing with this so sensibly Lisa. You know, its so difficult to remember the Simba that came to you - the long lead chewing, the collar issue..... You have come so far with him and he is turned into a lovely dog. I certainly feel for you with this blip. You know what to do and have a really sensible approach, I am sure you will crack it. I agree that the kennel should be fine with him, but a heads up to let them know and talk about his sensitivity is really important. Try not to worry x
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Lisa, Jac has nailed it and I totally agree with her reply. Keep the faith because Simba is a dog to be really proud of xxx
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? So, we had our fourth class last night. To recap, so far we have done: Sit Shake paw Hand target Spin (clockwise/counterclockwise) Weave (through legs) Take a bow Sit pretty (beg) Two front paws on object Agility tunnel Jump (through hoop, over agility jump, or over/through body part) Last night we added: Stay Two back feet on object Peek a boo (dog sits behind owner, peeks head between owners legs, then tucks head behind legs when told to hide) Rollover Phew! We are learning a lot, and not just the tricks. It's been enlightening to see Simba in this class environment. I think he's done pretty well, but a couple things are very clear: 1) Sitting around and waiting is not a strong suit :. There are times when we have to wait for the trainer to review how the others are doing in the class, or watch as she demonstrates how to do a trick, what steps to go through, etc. Probably about half the class, around a half hour, is doing this (not all at once). Simba has a hard time settling during these "waiting times". He will sit if I ask him to, but he's soon up, intently focussed on the other dogs or, in the case of last night, the agility tunnel was really intriguing him, he just wanted to go over and give it a go again. So I have him on leash, he gets up and tries to get to it, the leash holds him back, he turns and tries to chew the leash. This happened quite a few times during the class. Now this is not a surprise, he came to us hating being tied up by a leash (perhaps he had quite a lot of that at his former home? Don't know). It is all part and parcel of his dislike of being restrained. He's come a long way with this, but he certainly isn't comfortable with it. 2) He does much better in the class if I get there early enough for him to have a sniff around the room (it is held in a doggy day care, lots of smells around). If he doesn't get that opportunity, it's hard for him to focus. 3) an hour is a long time to work on tricks! He's eager to do it, but having to be on a leash with the other dogs around and work on the tricks and have the restraint issue and the treats raining down, etc....he quiets quite hyped up by it all, I think. I was quite glad to leave by the end of the hour last night. He's not vocal or anything (a little whine here and there during those waiting times) but I can just see him getting more and more worked up. Anyhow, it's all good, he's doing well, as I say, and it's giving us opportunities to try new things. I think the two back feet on an object is going to be tricky, I'll try it on my stairs, but not sure he will exactly get what I am asking for. Also the one thing I find a bit lacking is that the trainer doesn't give us cue words or hand gestures to use for these tricks, at least not for all of them. Hmm. I'm going to have to email her and ask her about that, I find it easier to do these kinds of things with hand signals as well as words. Before the holidays are over and the extra people around here leave again, I will get someone to video us so you can see us in action!
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Sounds fantastic, Lisa, what a repertoire he's developing!! An hour sure is a long time - I'm sure you are both quite tired by the end!
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? This sounds great! It'll exercise Simba's mind, improve the connection you have, and improve his focus on you. Charlie is hopeless at doing nothing. Now I know a bit more, and see more experienced trainers, I can see that I should have done more "doing nothing" with Charlie when he was younger. Trying to catch up and do more stopping, settles, and do nothings on walks and in different places now.
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? I think the best thing about it must be the rapport you are building up between Simba and yourself. I mean, the tricks are cool - but really it is the fact that you are learning to work together as a team that is so impressive.
Re: Simba - Novice Trick Dog??? Wow that is incredible! Reflecting on the last year and training with Benson, I think I would have spent more time initially on "look at me" and a settle much earlier, he has it now, just about, but teaching focus earlier would have helped I think...
