He's So Excited!

Feef Speaks: I'm just a little dog! When I take mom to work, we see a lot of other dogs. Most of them try to maul me. Not in a mean way, they're just just way too excited. They need to get out more. As they stand, I wish they'd STAY home. I try to show them the right way to greet a princess like myself, but most of them are jumping, barking, and lunging, and by no means are they heeding their people! Luckily, my mom spends a LOT of time talking to their people, and shows them the right way to meet me. They usually apologize for their dog's beastly behaviour, and tell mom "He's just so excited to come here". Well la-de-da! I get pretty excited when mom gets ready to go and grabs my fifi-cave but I don't go around mauling everyone! Mom taught me that when I see another dog she wants me to sit first, I think because it helps that other dog be a little less excited. I, of course, could really care less if I get to sniff noses with most of the ruff-raff she exposes me to but it pleases her, and helps her train those other dogs. Nice stuff that I get tossed under the bus so other dogs can learn! Plus, when I do act nice she gives me a yummy little piece of goodness to nosh on! I guess that makes it worth it although there's occasionally a whirling dervish dog that I simply don't want to have anything to do with. Mostly mom will understand if I really don't want to meet them.

I try and be nice but sometimes these other dogs can be just downright irritating. Mom says "Feef, say hello" so I very nicely walk over and sniff their stupid nose, and they get just a bit too sniffy. I let them know with a snark that being too friendly just is NOT on my itinerary! They back up fast! Usually it's the puppies that are the worst. The little bohemians NEED snarked! I don't go overboard, just a quick "yarrrgh" usually puts them in their place and gives me room to breathe.

I think more dogs need to learn to say hello. I'm happiest with the dogs who will also sit when they see me, and who approach slowly and respectfully. All it takes is some practice! So people, if you're reading this, don't let your big oaf of a dog come running up to other dogs without asking if it's ok. Teach your dog to sit and wait to be invited over. Leash manners are a must! They always tell mom "Oh he gets so excited here. He doesn't act like this at home." I want to cough up my kibble when I hear this. I'm thinking to myself "Well if you'd bring him out in public more often than vaccination day and teach him how to act, meybe he'd be a bit more mannerly!"

So, my mission as a training demo dog is to bring manners to the dog world, one snark at a time. To learn the finer art of teaching your dog to say hello, sign up for a class with my mom. She's awesome at teaching people how to have a more polite dog! After all, she's done wonders with Turbo. He actually listens when she tells him to leave me be and if you knew Turbo, you'd know that is impressive!

Training the Trainer Tip #1

Attention all you incorrigible corgi's, you maladjusted malamutes, and you terrorist terriers:I have been very pleased with the way my human is teaching me to understand her. Believe me fellow canines, this is well worth directing your human toward. Once I realized there was a pattern to her yapping and gesturing, it was very easy for me to get my personal Puppy PEZ Dispenser to fork over tons of yummyness. So here, in her own words, is what she is doing that is revolutionizing our relationship. As much as I hate to admit it, she makes training FUN, and that makes ME one happy Feef!

Cue - Marker - Release - Reward

4 things you need to remember while training your dog.

Cue: Use your visual cue as well as the verbal cue. Dogs are very adept at reading visual cues. Use this to your advantage. Use a piece of your reward treat as a "LURE" to entice your dog into the position you are trying to train.Verbal cue's should be consistent, spoken in the same tone and inflection every time. Your tone of voice helps set the pace of the excersize. Be excited when you want your dog to move (here, boy!!!), use lower and slower tones with a downward inflection when you want the dog to remain still (stay.). Once the dog knows a cue, do not let him make you say it more than once or twice. Most dogs pick up that they don't get the reward if they don't respond by the second try IF you make that your policy!
Marker: The instant the dog does what you want (or what you don't want) use a marker word! Pick a "yes" marker, and a "no" marker for training. the yes marker can be a clicker, "yes!" "right" "thats it", or even a whistle tone. The no marker can be a buzz sound "eh" "at" "at-at". The reason not to use the word "no" is that you want to save that all-important NO for when you really really need it, not during training. A marker word needs to be delivered within 2 seconds of the act in order to have any meaning to the dog. Puppy comes to understand that the yes marker will earn him a tasty reward so he will associate the action with the marker with the treat.
Release: Always use a release word to let the dog know he's done. "All done!", "over", "that'll do", "finit" and "ok" all serve well as release words. A release word clearly tells the dog when the excersize is over. Using a release word results in a dog that remains sitting when told to sit, instead of a "dine and dash" sit. Be pleased with your dog when he performs well, and he will be happier to perform for you more often.
Reward: Food, praise, attention, play, toys; all make good rewards to a dog. Teeny bits of soft treat work well to treat the dog for his efforts. At first the reward immediately follows the yes marker to tell puppy he's right on track. Once puppy "gets it", you want to hold out on the treat until he's remained in position long enough for you to use your release word. You want to hold out longer and longer, building puppy's duration over time.

Remain patient! Be consistent! Some things puppy will pick right up, and some things puppy will just not get right away. Remember that training should be somewhat fun and positively rewarding to the dog, otherwise he can develop resentment to the training process. Not what you want! Take it slow, keep training sessions to 10 or 15 minutes once or twice a day. Using the same consistent cue, marker, and release words will give your dog a comfort zone for learning in. Using a variety of rewards will keep him excited to keep getting it right. Once he really really knows the behavior, you can use more conversational tones with your dog to get results but if you use too many words in training the dog gets confused.

Keep it to "Sit. Yes, good sit................. All Done!" or "Sit. Yes, good (dog jumps up) at-at!!! Sit. Yes, good sit........ All Done!"

If you catch yourself doing this: "Sit, Spot, there ya... NO! Sit Spot, sit, sit, sit. NO over here! Down! (dog is jumping up by now)Sit! Down! Sit Down! (which do you want, sit or down?) Ok Spot get back here and sit down right here right now!" STOP IT!

Well my canine comrades, good luck with your own humans. I got lucky, mine "gets it" and I couldn't be a happier dog now that I can finally make sense of what she's trying to get across to me!

Until next time, Work when you must, play when you can, take care of your own, and leave your mark!