Fast responsive recall comes from practice and the right reinforcement.
A lot of people want to be able to call their dogs and not reinforce, but in the long run, the dogs learn there is nothing worth coming back for.
If you went to work and were never paid, would you turn up again and again?
Also, some people want to get their dogs doing the equivalent of 50 press-ups when they get to them before reinforcing. This can be demotivating to the dog and again will reduce drive to return.
Instead, reward them as soon as they get to you. Build up that drive to return, and then when they are engaged you can ask for your 50 press-ups.
Cotswold Hound was setup to help people harness the best in their dogs, if you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Getting your dog to drop a high value item can be difficult.
Doing it without conflict can help your dog to trust and avoid them learning to guard items.
Typically a dog will start guarding something if you force it from them.
Don’t dupe them by getting them to drop it and then removing it – next time they won’t be as willing.
Also, removing it while they are watching can create feeling of “That’s mine!”, so remove it when they aren’t watching.
Practice with low value items and make it a game that leads onto other reinforcement, rather than stops the fun. This replaces the fun with something else and helps them learn to work with you and task switch.
Cotswold Hound was setup to help people harness the best in their dogs, if you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Start as you mean to go on is so true with dogs.
We train dogs to make sure they behave as we want and become obedient and a joy to be around.
Starting with the right approach, encouraging good behaviour, and reducing rehearsal of unwanted behaviour is important.
If we encourage what we want, this becomes automatic and long-term habits.
If we allow behaviours we don’t want to be repeated this makes it more difficult to achieve what we want with our dogs.
But it has to be said that some dogs are more difficult than others and require extra effort and the right approach to make sure we are handling and motivating them in the right way.
In this clip is a young Fox Red Lab that came to our puppy sessions and has also had some 121 sessions since entering adolescence, where his behaviour started to degrade. After a number of sessions, the owner has been complimented about his dogs behaviour and now has the problem of his dog not playing with others and just wanting to interact with him. A nice problem to have.
Cotswold Hound was setup to help people harness the best in their dogs, if you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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I hate hearing stories where people have been made to feel bad because their dog has struggled in a certain situation.
A lot of people put a considerable effort into training and improving how their dogs behave. It’s an ongoing journey.
Hearing how someone has made someone upset without knowing the effort they have put in, the progress made, and understanding the desire to help their dog be the best they can really frustrates me.
If we own dogs and/or are in the profession, we should understand how dogs can be and at least have a little empathy.
We need to judge less, be supportive, and overall be kinder to people who are working to improve how their dogs behave. You don’t know just how much effort people are putting in.
Be kind!!
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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We love making sure our customers find it as easy as possible to progress their dog's training.
During a training session, even though you might be concentrating as best as possible, there is a lot to take in, plus you are managing a dog while trying to listen.
This is why we aim to provide as much support as possible.
Making sure our customers are able to take away the key points from a session and contact us for more advice, guidance and support as needed to make sure they keep on the right track and benefit as much as possible.
It’s typically after a session that you might not remember something, or something happens or a technique isn’t working like it did during the session.
Being able to contact the trainer to ask for advice and get the right support can maximise your progress and make sure you develop your dog’s abilities.
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Most dogs love to chase. We can use this to our benefit during training.
However often dogs, especially certain breeds, love nothing more than the thrill of the chase when wildlife is involved, and this can be counterproductive if dogs are able to rehearse this.
We learnt early on that our Patterdale Terrier cross love a chase. And seeing a large deer as close as this one really triggered her – a very high distraction.
So we have put in place management protocols to reduce the likelihood of this happening, namely a long line and this has helped her by reducing her sudden reaction of chasing on sight. She now freezes and watches rather than running in. She usually has great recall too but this is just too thrilling.
Now she loves to watch so I give her time to enjoy the sight and then call her back.
When she returns I use some reinforcing interaction to get her to calm down and refocus on us before continuing the walk.
Just after this we walked towards where the deer had been and she was happy to walk next to me.
Dog’s with a natural drive for things in the environment can be a challenge and we would recommend reducing their ability to rehearse such behaviours in an uncontrolled and inappropriate manner. It’ll make life easier in the long run.
Secure fields, long lines, walks in less stimulating environments etc can all help your dog develop in the right way.
Cotswold Hound was setup to help people harness the best in their dogs, if you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Having the right motivation to train is important.
Using food can be central to motivating your dog, especially when you use it in ways that meet and drive the dog’s needs.
Here, with this 11-month-old working line Lab, we are getting the dog moving, chasing, hunting, and grabbing as part of the reinforcement. The food is just some average treats (oat based from Feelwells), how we use them builds value and motivates the dog.
What we do keeps the dog coming back for more.
I was doing 4-6 reps and then releasing to play/explore for 3-5mins before calling back and starting again. This will develop consistent recall, heel walking, and engagement over time.
This was the first time we had done this with this dog as part of our Walk and Train service. I’m looking forward to shaping this further and building up some solid heel walking for longer periods as we progress.
Give it a try and have fun with your dog!
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Recall is a core skill, and while we train this, we need to be mindful of motivation and distractions.
The better the motivation is to return to you the more chance of success. Building a strong bond and having fun with your dog will aid this process.
The more there are distractions, the more the chance the dog will return until it is well trained – so in such circumstances, a longline helps to avoid ‘burning’ your recall cue.
Also, some recall exercises expect the dog to disengage from something they are enjoying and come back to an unanimated you for a treat and to sit. This can be boring and reduce motivation for them to return again and again.
The more we think about what the dog wants and practice recall with something that motivates them, the more they will respond and return.
Give it a try and have fun with your best furry friend!!!
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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A hyper dog sometimes needs more rest and sleep.
Trying to get them to calm down by exercising them can be counterproductive.
Dogs have evolved to spend most of their time walking, not running.
Some exercise we encourage them to do is anaerobic, such as sprinting to chase a ball, and this type of exercise impacts the body’s ability to recuperate.
So running for the majority of their ‘walks’ will tire them out, but it will impact their sleep.
Heart rate will be up, and they won’t get the rest they need. A dog that hasn’t rested can seem hyper and likely to overreact to the simplest things.
Plus, if every walk is doing this, it becomes routine, and the dog’s physiology will remain hyped up.
Instead, slowing a walk down so the dog is mooching and sniffing can help to increase their ability to calm down and generally calmer.
Using a long line can help this if your dog struggles to slow down.
Try it for a week and see how it affects them.
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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Odin and Florence love the vets.
This was this evening when we walked past the vets on the way to the park.
It's great when you find somewhere that truly cares for your pets, both in terms of the medical side and also looks out for their welfare and well-being. Especially those that, like Florence, are a little more sensitive and unsure.
Thanks @regency_vets both our dogs are loving your work. And we have a lot of customers who have said similar. 🙌🐕🏆👌
Cotswold Hound was set up to help people harness the best in their dogs. If you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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It’s not a case of IF, but more WHEN a dog may react at your dog.
So understanding what to do is important.
I was in town on Saturday doing some generalisation training with Odin, basically training him around distractions when this happened.
Odin wasn’t aware until the dog growled and you can see his reaction is to have a look and see what is going on.
While his lead was tight, there was minimal tension/pulling
His body language was relaxed and fine, but we’ve trained for this.
So I gave him time to process it, I kept calm and called him a few times to encourage him back. No pressure, as he’ll pick up there is an issue if I sound stressed. Keep it nice and light.
Then I reward him for responding. This is to create a positive association and help him come back quicker next time.
I could have also moved away as he approached and been a bit more animated but I didn’t as this isn’t his first rodeo and I know how he reacts and part of his training is to lessen how much reinforcement I provide.
We then continued with the training we had been doing, to utilise something he finds rewarding and also to show him this was just another distraction and normal service is resuming.
Whenever he’s had similar situations, even with dogs he's had fun with, I always add something positive after the event to build him interacting with me. This helps mellow the long term impact of a dog reacting at him. Being an entire male and my stooge dog he's had a number of such reactions and I’ve always praised / rewarded him for not reacting.
Helping your dog to learn what to do around dogs is an important life skill, and training them to take everything in their stride is important.
Cotswold Hound was setup to help people harness the best in their dogs, if you would like more advice on training strategies to improve your dog's behaviour, link in bio for free consultation
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