Recall through temptation alley! ๐พ Well done to all the pups in Plymstock tonight who all took on the temptation alley challenge! All the pups did so well! Hereโs Willow demonstrating just how itโs done! Well done Willow and family ๐๐๐๐๐
โ โ๐ฏ๐จ๐ต๐ซ๐บ ๐ช๐ถ๐ด๐ฌ ๐ป๐ถ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฝ๐ฌ, ๐ต๐ถ๐ป ๐ป๐ถ ๐ป๐จ๐ฒ๐ฌโ
๐ถ Yesterday in Plympton, the pups and their pawrents were learning about resource guarding and the importance of preventing this early on.
๐งฆ When a dog feels that their resources are being threatened, they may start to become defensive and show signs of aggression.
๐ง We can prevent resource guarding from becoming a serious problem by practicing SWAPPING items our dog has for something of HIGHER value, rather than snatching items away from our pups, which breaks their trust and only teaches them that they need to protect that item more (and puts you at risk of getting bitten!)
๐ชจ If your pup has hold of something dangerous like a rock, or something youโd rather them not have (like your favourite slippers!) offering something of higher value gives us enough time to safely remove the item whilst our pup is distracted.
๐ Always set your puppy up for success by being prepared for anything they may encounter on walks, or at home, by having their favourite treats at the ready! The higher value, the better, as youโll have more chance of your puppy successfully dropping the item on their own.
๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐ช๐ถ๐ต๐ป๐จ๐ช๐ป ๐
Yesterday in Plympton, Sarah welcomed two new groups of pups all ready to embark on their training journeys!
Here are the pups in group 1 learning how to give eye contact when they hear their name, so that we know they are listening to us. Itโs pretty hard to train a puppy if weโre not sure theyโre listening to us, so putting their name to cue makes it a lot easier!
We made sure this was rewarding for the pups, starting off with brief eye contact and building up the duration as this can be quite scary for some pups, and even trickier when there are distractions, but all the pups did great! Well done!! ๐
Training Academy - Level 1! Scent work - Abe sniffing out and finding the treats hidden under the tub! Well done Abe! ๐๐๐๐
Recall away from play ๐พ๐๐ถ Last night in Plymstock the puppies and their families had a go at recalling away from play. This is really hard for pups to learn but they all did a great job. Puppies need to learn that sometimes they may be having fun but itโs ok to leave the fun behind and come to your hooman because they may have something just as fun for you there! Itโs a great skill to master and a life skill for when there are fun distractions around - for example other dogs, people, squirrels/birds etc! Using a toy to then call your pup away from these things can show them that you are just as fun! Here we can see Rolo with his family doing a great job of this ๐๐๐๐
Halloween dress up and desensitisation!! ๐ป๐๐ Last night at Puppy School we had a spooky visitor who helped the pups learn not to be scared of people wearing things which make them look different - perfect for Halloween! Here we can see Scream giving Ernie lots of treats - luckily Ernie says โI donโt care if you look creepy as long as you give me fooooood!โ ๐๐๐
๐ด๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ป๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ ๐ท๐ฌ๐ถ๐ท๐ณ๐ฌ
โฌ๏ธ On Sunday in Plympton, the pups in Sarahโs class were learning how to greet people without jumping up.
๐พ We teach this to the puppies by placing โtreats by feetโ of the person theyโre meeting, so they learn that it is more rewarding to keep all four paws on the floor, whilst jumping up gets ignored.
๐ฆด That way, they notice the treats before theyโve had a chance to jump up, and then we can calmly say hello to them, while all four paws are on the floor.
โ๏ธNot everyone appreciates a dog jumping up at them, even if we might not mind it. Even the friendliest dogs can knock a child or elderly person over by jumping up excitedly, so itโs important to be consistent and teach them that they only get attention when they are calm and not jumping up.
๐ถ Here is Twig, showing how he calmly greets people with all four paws on the floor. Well done Twig! ๐
Temptation alley! ๐๐๐ Amazing recall last night at Bittaford on week 5 of Puppy School! Check out how well Buddy did running past a whole array of temptations such as toys and tasty food! He did a fantastic recall to his hoomum who he knew was worth coming to! Well done Buddy! ๐๐๐๐
Recall past distractions! ๐พ๐ถ๐งบ๐ฅช At Puppy School in Plympton on Sunday the pups on Sarahโs group were working on recall past a distracting picnic scenario!! Check out this video of Bilbo running straight past the picnic to his hoomans! Recall past distractions is really hard but if you make yourself the most appealing thing in the area (using a fun, exciting high pitched voice and high value foods!) then youโll be more likely to be successful at recalling your pup! Well done Bilbo and your hoomans this was awesome ๐๐๐๐๐
๐ณ๐ถ๐ถ๐บ๐ฌ-๐ณ๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ ๐พ๐จ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ ๐ฆฎ
On Week 2 in Plympton, the pups in Sarahโs class were learning the first steps of loose-lead walking.
Until now, the pups have gotten used to being rewarded in front of us, so we need to teach them that being by our side is a rewarding place to be. When they step out in front of us, we use food to โresetโ them into the loose-lead position, as shown beautifully here by Percy and his dad ๐
Once this is reinforced, we can then move on to loose-lead walking, which the pups will begin to do next week! ๐พ
โSETTLEโ
Yesterday in Plympton, Sarah welcomed two new groups of pups all ready to embark on their training journeys!
The pups in group 2 were working hard on their settles, and they all did an amazing job for their first tries! ๐คฉ
If we teach our pups early on that it is rewarding to switch off and do their own thing, then it will mean weโre able to complete tasks such as cooking or work meetings without disruptions. ๐ฅ๏ธ
Once we have practiced enough in quieter places with fewer distractions, itโll make it much easier to take them out to places such as pubs and cafes. ๐บโ๏ธ๐ฅ
Well done pups! ๐
Recall to hand touch! ๐พ๐ถ At the Training Academy this week the Level 1 students were working on their recall from a distance to a hand touch! The students have to pass an assessment on week 6 of the course and recall to hand touch on both sides is part of the final assessment! Here we can see Peggy the Corgi practicing this and absolutely nailing it!! Well done Peggy and your hoomans! ๐๐๐๐๐๐
