Learning CALM around exciting stuff
Last night we went to a Flyball competition where my own dog "Nudge" is in training. Nudge has high arousal issues and it has been something we are ALWAYS working on. Therefore at flyball, he will lose his sh*t and bark and chase moving dogs. This is not a good trait in a future flyball dog or any dog for that matter. Chasing the other dog is a massive NO NO for obvious reasons.
To work on building calm in the flyball environment last night we used the Lickimat Tuff soother, inside an Indoor Keeper, on a mat. The mat and Keeper held me to provide information to Nudge where I want him to be and focus his attention without me needing to say words. The licking action is soothing (and low arousal) to dogs and the whole experience helps build calm, good associations with events around the dog at the time. In this instance flyball. Previously I would use food and reward markers in a similar setup. However, I felt the anticipation of the rewards was just as over-arousing for Nudge and he would still bark and carry-on like a pork chop this was not ideal when learning to be calm.
As you will see in the video we managed to get reasonably close to the ring and he was calm, even after he stopped. Meaning his arousal level was DOWN not up. So that's a win. We managed to walk back to camp, past the ring in a calm, polite manner. So we will continue to use this method in various set-ups around exciting things for Nudge. Not just flyball.
If you have a dog who chases things we can help!
Or even just over excited, the Un-Chase!ยฎ training protocols help build calm responses to exciting things
If you need help with chasing or you have an excitable dog who you want to teach to be calm in exciting situations we can help.
Our next Un-Chase!ยฎ workshop is Saturday 26th November at 9am. I will place a link in the comments.#goldcoastdogs #dogsofthegoldcoast #unchase #lickimat
Last weekend we had a flyball competition in Brisbane. My own dog "Nudge" is not ready to compete yet, so we attended to get some valuable training in the ring time. However, when not training in the ring we can do LOTS of training using just the environment. A flyball comp is a hyped UP environment for dogs! Nudge is a VERY easily aroused dog, he gets excited and OTT at the slightest thing and he will chase the other dogs who are running.
Therefore, a lot of our training is about building calmness in lots of environments. Because if he is not calm, he can not think. If he can not think, he can not learn!
Here we are at the comp building calmness next to the busy flyball ring with loads of movement and noise for Nudge to deal with. He is learning to look at the distractions and movement and remain calm and look back to me...... rather than get excited and chase!
He did pretty well and I was happy with the distance we managed to get from the ring. Our goal is to get closer to the ring gradually and he remaining calm. I think he could be a little more relaxed than he is in this video so we have more work to do. But all dog training is a work in progress!
The second part of the video is Nicola and her young Koolie "Opal". Opal is in training for flyball as well. She is doing the same exercises as prevention to chasing. Being a working breed, they are VERY prone to chasing behaviours so Nicola is putting a lot of work into preventing this from becoming a habit, especially in the flyball environment.
If you have a dog who chases, whether it be cars, bicycles, dogs, small animals or anything that moves really.... we can help with that!
Our next Un-Chase!ยฎ adult dog workshop is Saturday 9th July at 9am and registrations are open now. See link below for more information
https://goldcoastpetbutler.com.au/un-chase-%C2%AE-classes
We did a bit of videoing in last nights puppy class. Let's just say it doesn't always go to plan.... and when it doesn't it is generally pretty cute! ๐
Nudge is working hard on his KONG while I am working from home.
What is your dog doing while you are working from home? Post pics in the comments
Our new online puppy class - how it works.
Our new online puppy class - how it works.
Little Archie at last nights puppy class learning the beginning of loose lead walking. He and Teddy were rockstars last night! Sorry I didnโt get a video of Teddy!
Did you have a lazy Sunday sleep in today? Here is puppy class students George and Piper the French Bulldog this morning. No wonder mum got up early :) turn up the volume...
In Wednesdays puppy class we had just two puppies. So I invited Piper the French Bulldog along (she is from my other class) to play with Shadow the Staffi. Both have similar play styles and great temperaments. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves. When your dog or puppy is playing with another dog it is important to supervise and monitor the interactions. Play should be even for both dogs ie not one dog bouncing all over the other victim, that is bullying. Dogs should look like they are enjoying themselves. if your dog is trying to escape the other dogs play then take note and get them out of there.
Checkout my friends little foster puppy "Belle" learning to use the KONG Wobbler. We can do this for first time users ( always under supervision) to hep set them up for success by knocking off the top. Once the puppy (or dog) learns knocking the Wobbler over means food....then you can start doing up the top of the Wobbler.
Young Missy learning how to play with the Wobbler..... Nailed it!
