I am glad that you are using dog friendly methods. ❤ I do have some additional thoughts that I would like to share. I have used many varieties of that method throughout the years. For some context, I run a dog daycare center where hundreds of dogs of all breeds have passed through over the years. So I've had a chance to experiment quite a bit. Turns out, the most powerful thing is to not pay attention to the dog at all for a couple of minutes. Takes a lot of weight of the dogs shoulders, not expecting to having to interact or react everytime there has been a separation or when someone enters. Even my 11 year old aussielady was successfully retrained in this way, it was honestly even pretty effortless and quick. If you are constantly reacting to your dogs behaviour, you are actively keeping the behaviour chain alive.
Is that a Beauceron? The “be a tree” method also doesn’t work for my Beauceron. Backing up doesn’t work well either if he’s distracted because he weighs 90 lbs and doesn’t find leash pressure aversive. If he’s too distracted he won’t move when I back up.
Yes, Pekoe was a Beauceron. I hope you can find a combination of humane equipment plus high-powered treats plus life rewards (as seen in video) to help your boy improve on loose leash behavior. 🙂
Every time I play with a dog I appreciate how gentle they are with their mouth/teeth. Their jaw force is enough to crush bones, they literally could bite your arm off... but they never do it to any friendly creature, it clearly shows how social and gentle all dogs are.
It's so difficult to track down agouti breeders/owners. They're rarely seen as pets, though they do well in captivity and seem to be more manageable than their more-popular cousin the Capybara. I'm going nuts trying to find even a price quote. How much did you pay for Alice, ballpark, if you're comfortable disclosing?
Alice was older when I got her. She was in a private home, after beginning in a zoo setting. She was $350, and I got her originally to learn about agoutis because I was involved in an army research project where we were training rodents in scent detection. I fell deeply in love with Alice, and dearly wish to have an agouti again one day. But you are right, they're nearly impossible to come by.
I never really continued the work on leash walking, but with reward-based training I'm sure it could be taught. Alice never bit -- she was a very gentle soul. Rare, accidental tooth contact would only occur if I was hand-feeding her a tasty morsel and her aim was slightly off.
I LOVE her ! Have you been able to get her to walk on the leash? And does she ever bite or nip? I would like to have one but was concerned about that...
Love this video. Training at its best. I've never seen anything like Valerie and german shepherd Reina before. Two trainers in one. If you saw my doberman Omar Blue here, you know I need two. Reina is showing Omar socialization in doggie language. This was after Valerie showed us both a thing or two. They're getting us ready for a doggie parade fundraiser, the Mutt Strutt, here in Richmond, sponsored by an organization we all love, FETCHACURE. Omar's first steps towards becoming a Therapy Dog.
Thanks for your comments! I originally filmed this for a seminar I was giving on behavior problems. This skill is great for preventing door dashing, dog-to-dog arousal near the door, and to prevent inappropriate behaviors when guests arrive. So it was meant to demonstrate next steps. The 'go settle' behavior is actually taught on one of our DVDs, The How of Bow Wow. But I'll try to film and post some home footage on the 'go settle' skill with one of my current animals.
In this dog's case, I just started her in a sit position and then shaped small approximations of front left paw movement. It began as a slight shift, then a tiny lift, bigger lift, and so on. Once at the correct height I began selecting for slightly longer duration. Hope that helps.
Great question. My verbal cue is "line up" and I begin adding it to the training sessions when I see that the dog is able to offer the desired behavior reliably and with ease. To start, I add it when the dog is just beginning to offer the behavior on her own. In a short while, I begin to say it just *prior* to when I expect the behavior to happen. With repetition, the dog learns those specific words mean it's time to offer the 'line up' behavior.
