So, Tess (8 weeks) has only been with us since Thursday and whilst we aren't training as such we are trying to condition her to sit to say please and to discourage her from putting her paws on us or jumping up by withdrawing attention when she does that and returning it when she stops. It is going very well and she already seems to know that if she wants me to give her a cuddle she sits nicely next to me and looks up My question is this, if I go to give Tess a treat for sitting nicely, then she paws me to get the treat ... do I still give it to her?! I've so far been moving the treat away and only actually giving it to her when she stops pawing but I don't know what's right - should I click and then drop the treat on the floor so she knows she's getting the reward for sitting because I really don't want to encourage the pawing. If I'm using the clicker and I click for her sit then it takes a few attempts for her to accept the treat nicely do I click again when she does or make sure she only got the click for the sitting?! Tess is doing so well with the sitting to say please - how long should we wait before introducing the 'sit' command as she does it? We are taking every opportunity we can to have Tess run towards us in preparation for recall and it's working very well I did also dabble in using C&T to teach her to walk close to me - but the instructions say to throw the treat away from you and Tess doesn't always seem to a) notice me throwing them or b) seem to be able to find them! Is there a way around this, should I just wait a while and go back to this, should I do something different? I've seen clicker training used to teach a heel by teaching a puppy to touch the back of his/her owner's hand. Is that maybe worth looking at as an alternative? Thanks in advance - that's actually more questions than I thought I had ;-)
Re: Some initial questions I'd concentrate on just giving her treats without pawing at you, forget about dealing with sit and no pawing at the same time. Just get her used to taking treats nicely separately. For a puppy of 8 weeks, if you want to encourage her to trot alongside of you, just drop the treat right in front of her nose.
Re: Some initial questions Another question if that's ok ;D Yesterday in town we had to put Tess down because she needed a poo. It was the first time we put her lead on and she bit it and dug her heels in (I was worried she would slip her collar) then tried to lunge forward. What is a good way to get her used to it? I thought I would let her drag it around but she pays it a lot of attention and gets tangled up in it.
Re: Some initial questions What I would do is to attach the lead to her collar at every opportunity, in the home and garden , so that it doesn't become an alien being Obviously she must be supervised at all times and keep the lead sessions short so that she doesn't get too bored x
Re: Some initial questions It's my first time doing this, so I may not have it all down pat, but here's how I dealt with some of these things. 1. I didn't add a sit cue to my "sitting for please". I don't want to have to cue them for that - it should be something they do as a default. When I taught "sit", I did it separately and using the usual progression; luring a couple of times, then removing the lure but making the same hand movement, then making the hand signal a bit clearer (open palm, face-up), then added verbal cue after that. 2. I don't let them misbehave for the treat. So, if I've clicked for a good behaviour but then they do something "bad" to try to get the treat (mine would jump up), I'd just move my hand to a place that they're in a nicer position before giving the treat. It sounds like you might need to do some work separately on the pawing - you could use the same method as this "no mugging" video to work on that https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4IzTn-kMU0 3. Mine were also a bit rubbish at following a treat that was thrown. In fact, at that age, Willow found it very hard to follow anything that was thrown, especially if it was thrown over her head. It's a skill they learn over time, don't worry about it. 4. Teaching a hand touch is a very easy and fun thing, and useful for other skills as time goes on, so it's definitely worth training. Here's an article and video http://totallydogtraining.com/teach-your-dog-to-target-your-hand/ 5. The reason that they suggest to throw the treat is to get the puppy away from you so that it has the opportunity to then return to your side, which you'd C&T. It didn't work for me for the same reason as you, so I just kept on treating from my hand for continuing to walk by me. When we're out on walks now, they get lots of treats and games for coming back to me of their own volition, so they do it very regularly (in fact, when we're on a 1-on-1, Shadow very rarely leaves my side). 6. Willow HATED her collar and lead at first, so I did a lot of work with her popping it on and off with lots of treats (for it going on and staying on) throughout the day. All of a sudden, she stopped fussing it. She was never a lead chewer, though, so I don't have experience of that, but I'd say a bit of desensitisation as above is probably a good start and, if necessary, clicker training her to ignore it. It's not a habit you want to allow to become ingrained, because it can make on-lead walks difficult. Shadow was never bothered with his collar. We got him a few weeks after his sister, and he was fully vaccinated by the time he arrived, so we could immediately go on walks with him. Very shortly after getting him, though, he was spooked by a bin lorry and slipped his collar, nearly running out in front of the lorry. It terrified the life out of me, so we put them in harnesses after that. They're a lot kinder on a puppy, too, as if the pup pulls, the pressure is distributed over a larger area, rather than concentrated on their throat, which is very easy to damage at that age. [img width=500]http://i.imgur.com/M4t1JHv.jpg[/img] They've grown into the harnesses; they were a little large back when this photo was taken! I don't even put the collars on them any more, since I've moved their ID tags to their harnesses. The harnesses aren't the type that correct them from pulling, so you still teach loose-lead walking in exactly the same way as on a collar. After my experience, I would strongly recommend any puppy owner to consider a harness like these, especially if walking near roads.
Re: Some initial questions Lovely photo snowbunny With mine, at the carrying stage, I put the collar and lead on to carry them. This way they got used to the feel before being put on the ground. Once on the ground I didn't expect them to walk at first - just to sit and get used to being in such a different position. It doesn't take long for them to gain confidence. To stop them mouthing the lead I put bitter apple spray on it. I also put the collar and lead on at meal times, so that they made good associations with them.
Re: Some initial questions All fantastic advice, thank you so much! I was considering getting a harness actually. The only person in our house that she wants to constantly jump up at and mouth is my toddler - it is odd because she's pretty calm around the puppy and stands up and folds her arms in when she gets excitable like the rest of us, but somehow the puppy knows! I would like to have her close to me in the garden occasionally while I have my minded children out there, otherwise I wouldn't have any need to put her on a lead yet, but I wondered if a harness might make the lead less noticeable to her and she can lay next to me and chomp on a Kong or something. We are actually on chicken and rice for an upset tum today so no training with treats until that is better!
Re: Some initial questions Not much to add to the good advice above, we went with a harness rather than collar by about 10-11 weeks, found it much better and still do. Every time we went out in the garden we put the lead on him to walk around, he got used to it within a few days, a week max. WE are now dealing with some problems with pulling on the lead, so if I could go back to him being a puppy again I would concentrate on clicking and treating good loose lead walking which I never appreciated at the time. Monty did chew through fabric leads and the (v expensive) retractable leads, so we now use leather leads which are stronger and can also be repaired. Same with the harness, we got a padded leather one fitted for him which he grew into by extending the belt buckles. It's now extremely soft and pliable and small chews on it don't do any damage.
Re: Some initial questions She is doing so well bless her. She'll walk up and down the garden on a loose lead while I click and treat, the same without the lead. I wait for her to sit to say please and aside from this we've been doing sits with a click and treat, downs the same, recall whenever we get the opportunity. She has a pretty soft mouth anyway but I give her her treats between my thumb and forefinger and she must take them gently - though that was tricky for her when we were doing downs! Harness ordered for peace of mind I think I'd like to get a specific clicker training book - any recommendations?
Re: Some initial questions [quote author=snowbunny link=topic=10158.msg148852#msg148852 date=1426104999] I have Learning Games by Kay Lawrence, which has lots of ideas of games to play with your dog at various stages of its development. It's not an easy read, and you need to understand the basics of clicker training, but there's some great ideas in there. I've also just bought (still awaiting Other End of the Leash by Patricia B McConnell Clicker Training: The Perfect Foundation (Levels 1 and 2) by Kay Laurence Clicker Gundog (Level 3) by Helen Phillips Clearly I can't give you any feedback on these three, but they were all recommended [/quote] I asked this on another link ( labrador puppies, book recommendations) and snow bunny recommended these ... I've also ordered the Karen Pryor clicker training for dogs
Re: Some initial questions Just to add the Karen Pryor book arrived and it's very basic - great for beginners don't get me wrong, but not so good if you already know the basics of clicker training etc so I wouldn't advise purchasing it for next step trying. I'm going to also get the Kay Laurence book level 1 and 2.
Re: Some initial questions I was too quick off the mark Hopefully there will be something helpful in there!
Re: Some initial questions I just noticed your signature - we had two cats called Tinker and Bella. Bella is still here, tip toeing around the puppy, who thankfully doesn't take a blind bit of notice of her!
Re: Some initial questions Ahhhh she actually isn't too much of a tinker these days ... Only when she is scratching bald patches in my carpet , I've already accepted I'll be paying my landlord for a new one when we move in June :
Re: Some initial questions You can also do an online course on clicker training...I'm just finishing the foundation level course by Karen Pryor.
Re: Some initial questions I started trying to teach Tess to touch the back of my hand - but she generally tries to nip it, which of course I don't want to encourage at all! At other times I've been teaching leave it (as in the don't mug video link) - I wonder if it's confusing and/or I should concentrate on leave it before I attempt touching or maybe try to click as she moves towards my hand but before she actually touches? She is very nippy at the moment though ...
