…Part 2 of Lottie’s loose leash training (different environment)
Working with my lovely client in Boston this morning.
First thing we did was take off the halti and worked with a standard flat collar.
No corrections or aversive equipment necessary.
Clear communication, correct leash handling and correct movement with the appropriate criteria set for optimal learning.
Dog featured is a German Shepherd x Lab called Lottie
Part 1
Collect-and-train session in Kirton with the super smart, yet highly excitable Bella, the Springer Spanner.
She has a tendency to zig-zag and lunge when she sees squirrels, pigeons or when she picks up a scent, particularly at this location where she would lurch from one tree to the next. So I took her out and focused on calmness, making turns with me and exploring the environment without feeling the need to suddenly bolt. She was taking in the environment without tension on the leash, and she kept a nice steady pace without trying to race off.
Lots more to work on, but a great start.
Credit to my media department (my 8 year old daughter 😂) for filming this 🐾
Dexter being an absolute boss on his walk. Good boy Dex 👏👌
Busby, the Cocker Spaniel improving his leash skills.
He was a very strong puller and would lunge frequently (every few seconds).
Still some work to do, but a massive improvement thanks to the hard work of his lovely humans.
✅ ️Comfortable harness
❌️ No slip lead
❌️ No choke chain
Just consistency, good timing and practice at his pace with steady progression through different environments
Good boy 🐾😊
"Leave it"
Teaching a reliable leave it takes practice and gradually upping the criteria at your dog's learning pace.
At first, asking your dog to leave something when you take just one step away is difficult for the majority of dogs.
Use the leave it cue in a positive tone rather than "leave it or else" and you will have more success.
Start with something that your dog considers low value and work in small manageable chunks is best.
If you need help with this then let me know.
Note: she stood up as she heard me come in, but still didn't touch the kibble
Working with Lola on her leash skills today. Allowing her to sniff and explore her environment on a longer leash has made her much more responsive to training and there was no pulling whatsoever.
She was also not bothered by passing vehicles and this was an issue previously on a shorter leash.
No corrections, no aversive equipment, just calmly moving together.
Short video of the final loose lead session with Leo.
He was a really strong puller when I started working with him and his owner had tried a halti to try to manage him.
With some practice and positive reinforcement he's now brilliant on the leash.
No halti or corrections required for any of his training!
When training any dog to walk on the leash, start off with the easiest environment possible for your dog with the least distractions you can find. Once hes mastered this, you can begin to work in more distracting / challenging areas. Building step by step.
Much like a video game, it starts off very easy and then as you pass each level it gradually becomes more challenging.
Well done little man, I'll miss his company 🐾
A short clip teaching Raja to observe cars but then look back to the handler rather than lunging using the engage / disengage technique.
She was once spooked by a very loud vehicle and has since taken to lunging at cars in a panic.
Using distraction such as holding treats to your dog's face or throwing them in the opposite direction to stop your dog noticing the trigger (in this case the trigger is vehicles) will NOT solve the issue as it does not change your dog's conditioned emotional response (CER).
Forcing the dog to sit or tightening the leash will also NOT change their CER either.
Imagine yourself in a position where something that you considered threatening was heading towards you and someone made you stay where you are as it approached or even restrained you. It certainly wouldn't make you feel any less threatened as it moved closer to you.
What we're teaching Raja is that the cars are not a threat and to look back at the handler after seeing the car go by rather than lunging.
Here I marked (clicked) the moment that she looked at me after observing the car passing and reinforced the behaviour.
Distance is key to this when you begin this process. We started further back from the road earlier in the session and then moved closer based on how Raja was responding. If you start off with your dog too close (for your dog to cope) to the trigger(s) then the training will be counter productive. Furthermore, if you rush a dog to get closer before he/she is ready then it can also be counter productive.
The clicker is simply an alternative marker instead of 'yes' or 'good', but I personally find it to be the most effective in a distracting environment for many training requirements. Yes or good also works well if you don't have a clicker.
Here you can see she is still not relaxed with multiple glances in the direction of the vehicle when she heard it approaching. So the next time we added a little more distance.
We also did regular sniff breaks to help he
Video 2 of Kong's leash progress
Kong the handsome Rottweiler progressing nicely with his loose leash skills. Lots of practice, patience and regular video updates from his brilliant humans to ensure that they're comfortable with the techniques that we go over during sessions👏
I always like to keep a back and forth dialogue going with my clients between sessions to help them maximise what they get from the training
(Sorry about the lighting)
Sniffing and its behavioural benefits!
Most dog owners recognise the importance of keeping their dog mentally and physically enriched. Not only is it better for the dog's general wellbeing, but it can also help reduce the chances of problem behaviours arising as a result of boredom or frustration.
There are a whole host of puzzle toys available to let your dog try but, often, owners can overlook one of the simplest, natural and enriching behaviours - sniffing.
By giving your dog more opportunities to use their powerful sense of smell, they will undoubtedly enjoy their walk more. They will also be more stimulated, gain more choice and freedom, and, ultimately, be more tired and relaxed.
Don't Underestimate the Power of Your Dog's Nose
It is important to remember just how powerful our dog’s noses are. They’re up to 100,000 times more sensitive than our own. A common quote is that a dog would be able to sniff out a single drop of blood from an area as large as an Olympic-sized swimming pool!
Dogs devote lots of brain power to interpreting smells. They have more than 100 million sensory receptor sites in the nasal cavity compared to 6 million in people, and the area of the canine brain devoted to analysing odours is about 40 times larger than the comparable part of the human brain.
Their sense of smell is crucial for communicating, exploring, and evaluating.
Slow Dog Walks Down and Give Your Dog Choices
Owners often make the mistake of assuming that a faster, long walk is the best option for tiring a dog out. Commonly, the dog is on a short, traffic-leash, being power walked along roads and pavements closely by their owner's side. Maybe they then go to the dog park where they charge around for a while with lots of other dogs.
The walk may not be particularly interesting, and dog parks can be over-stimulating or stressful if interactions are not managed carefully.
By picking a more peaceful walking route, with grass and other non-road surf
Cybil with her lovely human working on her reactivity to other dogs using the 'engage / disengage' technique.
Some trainers may tell you to distract your dog using food or to use corrections for unwanted behaviours... neither of those are the correct approach as they do not deal with WHY the dog is reacting in such a way in the first place (because of how they feel).
We've taught Cybil to calmly observe other dogs walking by (engage), and then reinforcing the behaviour of then looking back to her owner (disengage) instead of reacting.
As you can see the other dog is pulling towards her and yet Cybil is not particularly interested.
This is a behaviour that we worked on this week, and its great to see progress so quickly rather than the barking and lunging behaviour that we had previously.
Basically we have changed her emotional response to the presence of other dog, and therefore her behaviour has changed with it.
Loose leash training
Loose leash training with Woody yesterday. He's doing so well considering how much he pulled beforehand. Made my day to see him more relaxed and engaged with his lovely human 😊🐾
Dog owners in BOSTON (& surrounding areas)
NEED HELP WITH YOUR DOG NOW?
....1-2-1 training at your location
Lead pulling, recall, reactivity, jumping up, excessive barking, impulse control, comprehensive puppy training... and much more!
-Scientifically proven and effective methods
-Friendly, relaxed sessions, tailored to your specific requirements instead of a "one size fits all" approach
-Ongoing dialogue between sessions and video analysis to ensure that you're kept on track
-Detailed feedback emails after each session.
For more details / quote contact Craig via any of the following:
-Call or message me via WhatsApp: 07887494454
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Milo 🐾
Short video sent from a client who has just finished 4 sessions with me.
Milo, who's only a year old was a strong puller on leash, was showing some aggressive behaviour when having his harness put on, used to dash out of the front door as soon as it was opened and was resource guarding.
The improvements have been huge thanks to the dedication of his brilliant humans implementing the techniques that we went through.
Every dog learns at their own pace and there are many factors to consider.
Every single dog is an individual. Genetics, personality, breeding, home dynamics, age, health, and what motivation drives them is important (this applies to those who say their dog is "stubborn").
What drives them to do the unwanted behaviour? Has this unwanted behaviour been inadvertently reinforced the past? Do they get the chance to rehearse the behaviour daily? Are there any underlying health issues? Is your dog's food of poor nutritional quality which in turn affects sleep, disgestion and causes poor behaviour? Are their mental and physical requirements being met? This is all important.
Every dog has their own levels of concentration and criteria has to be raised according to the learner, not our impatience.
No two dogs are ever the same, even from the same litter. Breeds are often pigeon-holed unfairly.
By using postive reinforcement training you can achieve the best results, however there is no magic quick fix and as with us, habits are not easy to break
This is all based on scientific studies of how a dogs brain and body functions.
The best way to train is not to say NO! It's to show your dog what TO do in given situations and encourage this more.
If you were in a class, would you learn faster if you were taught how to do something from the ground up or would you fare better if the instructor hovered over you and shouted NO! and jerked you on the neck if you made a mistake, without an explanation?
The problem with "NO" is the dog might stop doing the unwan
We have been working on teaching Benny to do behaviours at a distance (so much harder for a dog to learn than when he is right in front of you).
In this example Benny is able to drop to a down position a good distance away from his human.
Fantastic work by Benny and his dedicated mum! 🔥🔥🔥🐾
Benny's loose lead walking coming along leaps and bounds.
Get in touch if your dog pulls on the lead 🐾
