Manners For Mutts Blog

I’m just going to come right out and say it, I hate wee wee pads! As a dog trainer I’ve seen so many potty training programs derailed by the use of wee wee pads. In some cases people just don’t know any better. But other people are looking for a short cut. There is no short cut to potty training, its hard work, and 24/7 until your dog gets it. Another thing people don’t realize about wee wee pads is that you still have to teach your dog to use the pad and not go anywhere else. Wee wee pads don’t potty train your dog for you. So, if you’re going to go through all the trouble to teach your puppy to go potty in one particular area, and nowhere else, why not just teach him to potty outdoors?

O.k., for the sake of argument, let’s just say you own a Yorkie and you live on the 22nd floor of an apartment building in Chicago, and it’s the middle of January. You, my friend, have my blessing and are more than entitled to use wee wee pads for potty training. If it were, me I would too! But here is sunny So Cal there’s just no reason for wee wee pads.

I’ve also seen people place wee wee pads all over the house like throw rugs, which only serves to confuse the puppy – “where exactly is it o.k. for me to potty”?? “Looks like everywhere.” What happens when you finally decide to get rid of the wee wee pads because you’re tired of them?? That’s right, the puppy goes potty where the wee wee pads used to be, or on just any old rug or bathmat on the floor. Then there’s the fact that most puppies will simply chew up the wee wee pads out of boredom, and potty on the floor anyway.

So forget about wee wee pads, forget about making things easier for yourself, forget about short cuts. Get your puppy on a potty training program that is consistent and easy for your puppy to understand. Supervise your puppy, confine your puppy, and teach your puppy where you want him to go potty and your puppy will reward you with a reliably house trained dog.

Many people these days, it seems, are not just getting one puppy, but two from the same litter. While the rationale behind this sounds great – they can keep each other company, will always have a playmate, and won’t get upset about being left alone while their owners are at work. In reality, the problems may far outweigh the benefits. The puppies may become so bonded to each other that everything and everyone else in their world ceases to matter. When separated, they simply cannot function as individuals.

Once they reach both physical and social maturity the real trouble begins; aggression towards each other leading to fights (especially if the two puppies are females), dual aggression toward other dogs, one becomes dominant while the other becomes timid. This is usually when the dog trainer gets called in because this behavior seemingly came out of nowhere. “They always got along so well, they were inseparable! Now I have to keep them separated for fear they will kill each other!” It’s very upsetting for owners to have to deal with this kind of thing.

So what’s the solution? Well, if you are considering littermates, think again. It might be better to get one puppy first and then add a second when the first is well on its way to becoming a well-trained, well socialized, independent dog. If you already have littermates, then make sure you are ready to invest the time needed to make them two individual dogs. This means they must be allowed, no, REQUIRED, to have their own space, to develop their own personalities, and to look to the owner for bonding and love. They must have lots and lots of “only dog” time.

* Crate them separately (preferably in separate rooms.)
* Feed them separately.
* Walk them separately.
* Play with them separately.
* Train them separately.
* TRAIN them! Take them to a good puppy class where the instructor knows how to work with littermates. Take them at separate times. Do NOT take them to the same class.

Of course they can play together, but in supervised and controlled sessions. And, they need to regularly, and separately, play with other dogs and puppies their own age in order to properly learn dog to dog communication. Are you scared yet? Well, fear not, this routine will not be forever. After a period of about 12 to 14 months the pups will have formed their own personalities and temperaments, and be ready to live their separate lives together.

I get asked often if tug of war is a good game to play with your dog. “Will it make my dog aggressive”? “Will it make my dog dominant over me”? I have to tell you, I absolutely LOVE the game of tug! I play it with all my dogs, and if they don’t tug as puppies, I teach them! It’s a great way for dog and owner to bond, its great exercise for the dog and it’s a fun reward for the dog. For those of us who do performance events with our dogs, it’s a great way to warm them up and get them jazzed up for work. However, there are definite rules for the game of tug and here they are:

1. Your dog has to release the tug toy on command – teach your dog the “drop it” command so he will let go of the toy when you ask.
2. The game only happens when you say so – you initiate the game and you end the game. It also helps to have a special tug toy that you store away from your dog and only bring out when you want to play.
3. The game stops often for training breaks – before the game starts up again ask your dog for an obedience behavior such as sit or down.
4. Zero tolerance of sloppy jaw control – game over if teeth hit your skin or grab your shirt, even if it’s an accident.

That’s it. Now grab a tug toy and go have fun!

Hundreds of thousands of dogs have been turned into animal shelters because their owners didn’t know how to deal with behavior problems and couldn’t find a reliable resource to help them. The Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) has selected January as the perfect month to bring awareness to the importance of dog training and socialization, and most of all, to inform the public that training your dog can be simple and fun!

Many dogs and puppies are adopted and brought home during the winter holidays. The APDT wishes to help these new pet parents start off the New Year with their newest family member in the best way possible. The APDT is planning a variety of events in January 2012 to celebrate National Train Your Dog Month. All dog owners are invited visit the event web site www.trainyourdogmonth.com so that they can see how easy and fun training can be, and how patience, consistency and a deeper understanding of their dog’s behavior can lead to happier, healthier and harmonious households. Dog owners will find a wide range of topics covered so that they will recognize themselves & their dogs. There is also great deal of information that will help, using methods that are kind and gentle, and that have an emphasis on building trusting and respectful relationships with dogs.

In addition, the APDT has more than 6000 members who are willing and able to help dog owners who need help with their dogs. If there is one thing that current television shows about dog training have taught the public, it’s that there are solutions to help dogs with behavior problems and there are alternatives to try before giving up your dog.

I like to teach dogs to think, use their brains, problem solve. One of the hardest things for people to do is not talk to their dogs and allow the dog to figure out what they’re asking him to do. People often ask me “shouldn’t I be telling him to (fill in the blank)?” Well, no. If he doesn’t know what a “sit” is, how is chanting at him “sit-sit-sit”, going to get him to, do it any faster? It won’t. In fact, talking to your dog this way will more likely distract him from trying to solve the puzzle of what you’re asking. Even by getting it wrong a few times the dog is learning; he’s learning what doesn’t work! Training this way takes more time than pushing and pulling your dog into position, but the dog is more likely to retain the information by working it out himself. Also, there is no consequence for the dog if he gets it wrong, other than no treat! He simply has to try another behavior. People are so proud of their dogs when they get it right. And I think that’s part of the problem, people want to help the dog get it right by giving him the answers to the test rather than allowing the dog to figure it out. I am in no way advocating allowing dogs to fail over and over until they get frustrated and bored and walk away. It’s o.k. to help the dog out, just do it in a way the dog will understand. Use body language, a food lure or, if needed, break the exercise into smaller parts. I love it when an owner asks a dog to do something and then just before they ask the dog again I say, “give it a second”, and the dog does what they ask. Both the owner and the dog just light up with satisfaction, it’s a great feeling!

Cord’s first agility trial has come and gone, and I am happy to report that things went fantastic! I’m sure I was way more nervous than Cord was; to him this was just another adventure to be met with the same unadulterated enthusiasm as every other adventure. We ran 5 classes each day, a total of 10 for the weekend. Not sure what I was thinking entering him is that many classes, but he handled it just fine. I, on the other hand, was quite sore after running 2 dogs in 5 classes for 2 days (again, what was I thinking?). So, here’s the final tally: 1 “Q” each in Standard, Jumpers and Gamblers, he even placed first in one class beating his big sister, Annie. I am so proud of my little boy! We still have much to learn before we are a true team, but having tested the waters I know what areas to focus on in our training. For instance, Cord’s only about 50% on his contacts, so I will need to work on that before I enter him again in standard. Also, since I had never actually trained him in Gamblers, he didn’t understand why I was so far away from the obstacles I wanted him to take. As a result, we only got 1 out of 4 of our gambles. Anyway, I’m looking forward to more agility with this little guy and hopefully, you all are looking forward to lots of stories and pictures!

Well the training program is not progressing as fast as I’d hoped. First, the time changed and because it gets dark before I get home I stopped training after work. Then the rain came, then Cord’s first agility trial (I was so sore from all the runs we did), then I got sick, and let’s not forget Thanksgiving. Excuses, excuses right?? So when I should be in week four, I’m just starting week three. The good news is that I’m still working at it. In fact, the last two training sessions were particularly good – Annie and I are really getting the hang of running together as a team, she’s also starting to understand that once we start running she won’t be allowed to stop and sniff everything, so she gets her stuff out of the way during our 5 minute warm-up.

Annie and I will continue to train as much as I can work it into my schedule and hopefully I’ll be ready when the event rolls around in January. I’ll keep you posted on our progress, or lack there of!

Annie and I started our training today. I belong to a group called Active Dog Adventures – really great group, you should check it out – and a bunch of us signed up to do a 5K run with our dogs. In all honesty, a 5K run isn’t really that far, but I haven’t done one in at least 8 years and I’m pretty out of shape. So I downloaded this app for my iPhone called “Couch to 5K” which promises to get you ready for a 5K run in 9 weeks. The program alternates between running and walking with a warm up and a cool down. It also plays music you already have on your iPhone. So I thought what the heck, let’s try it. Today was day one!
We did really well, at least I think so! It took a while to work out the logistics of leash, iPhone, ear buds and poop bags, but after about 5 minutes we were cruising along nicely. Annie also wasn’t sure why we had to keep moving past our regular stop, sniff and pee spots. For me this will be starting from scratch, for Annie it will just be building her endurance. She’s more of a sprinter – chase the ball, Frisbee, rabbit or whatever. So day one is behind us and so far nothing hurts. I’ll keep you posted on the rest of our training.
Oh, and if you’re wondering why I’ve chosen Annie as my partner for this adventure instead of Cord, well, he’s a little to hyper-excitable still at this point and I want to live to tell about it!!

For more information on this fun event that you can do with your dog, visit this link:

http://www.walkrunwag.com/5k9/

What you are about to see is me trying to learn to handle my own herding dog. I have to say this is very difficult for me. I’m not one of those people who has dogs for other people to work and play with; I don’t have a dog walker, I don’t have a groomer, I don’t have professional handlers that show my dogs for me. The reason I have dogs is so that I can work and play with them. So if I’m going to have a herding dog, I’m going to have to learn to handle him myself.

I have found videotaping my training sessions really helps me to figure out where I can make improvements in my handling skills in order to help my dog understand what he should be doing. When I’m out there doing it, things move so fast that I have a hard time just trying not to get run over, fall down or stepped on, let alone handle my dog without sucking all the fun out of it for him! So let’s watch the video shall we? (I’ve left in the commentary so you can get the full effect!)

Me handling Cord (bear with me, it’s about 6 minutes long)

So here’s what I learned by reviewing the video:

1. Cord wants to run into the sheep and chase them. I have to learn how to put pressure on his shoulder and move him out. Once he gives to the pressure I can allow him to work his sheep. That’s his reward for doing what I ask.
2. Cord prefers to circle counter clockwise (“way to me”). I need to learn how to get him to circle clockwise (“go bye”) and keep him going in that direction.
3. I cut him off when I’m trying to move him out. I need to learn to not get ahead of his shoulder.

With these three things in mind, the next time I go out I hope to be a little better, calmer and more confident so that my dog will get better and both of us can enjoy our new game.

Last week we had an earthquake here in So Cal. What’s the big deal you say . . . that happens all the time in California? Yes, it does, and most Californians hardly blink an eye unless there’s significant damage. Think Northridge 1994, that quake registered 6.9 on the Richter scale and made national headlines due to damage and loss of life.

Last week’s earthquake was a 3.5; just enough to shake you awake from a sound sleep, but hardly worth grabbing loved ones and heading for the nearest doorway. For my friends that don’t live in California, you’re supposed to stand in a doorway during an earthquake because doorways are believed to be stronger that the rest of the structure. It’s really just a myth.

So why am I blogging about a less than ordinary earthquake? Because it was Cord’s first one. Most of the rest of my crew are used to earthquakes; Dempsey barely opened an eye, Flurry ran and hid but she’s flighty anyway, and Annie came in off the patio and curled up on the floor next to the bed. Cord on the other hand, went into the living room and came back with my tennis shoes in his mouth. “I got your shoes mom in case we need to evacuate!” He was so proud of himself.