Do More With Your Dog UK

24/10/2021

I will probably regret training this 😆😆😆

14/10/2021

Now that hold is coming up nicely we had a go at the roll yourself into a blanket trick. We had a couple of successful attempts and some hilarious ones too 🤣 😆

10/09/2021

Deedee earned her Expert Masters Trick Dog Title

04/09/2021

The most important thing to train to your dog isn't recall, isn't food refusal, or even sit, it's the Head Down trick 🤣😍

09/08/2021

Dougal earned his TDCH title 🥰

08/08/2021

Dougal passed his TDCH title with flying colours 🥰 I'm so proud of him 💕

19/06/2021

Trick training is a massive help when photographing dogs 😍 The long grass wasn't an issue as Deedee can jump up vertically on cue 😊 My little kangaroo 🥰

16/05/2021

One of the many benefits of trick training is that you can capture unique pictures of your dog whenever you want 😉 Dougal can put his head down on cue, so the stray dog look is not a problem for us 😆

14/04/2021

Practicing something different 😉 I didn't do much obedience training with Dougal, but I thought I put more emphasis on it with Deedee. Her size makes it very easy to reward her, and she's just overall so happy when she can train with me 🥰
Also introducing my puffin leggings from .co.uk 😆

12/04/2021

Very important

09/04/2021

Freestyle rebound is coming up nicely 😊 My criteria is all 4 feet touching my body.
This exercise is physically taxing, so we only do 5-7 reps at the same time. It's also a good idea to do this at the beginning of the training session when the dog is full of energy 😉

07/04/2021

- this picture popped up in my memories 🥰 I'm still not sure I could do it with Deedee but will give it a go 😉

05/04/2021

Book recommendation: my all time favourite book about dogs is In Defence of Dogs by John Bradshaw
It is a very comprehensive book about how dogs evolved and how they behave. I would recommend it to everyone who's not sure if they should believe in dominance theory (no), or who has any doubts about the effectiveness of positive training

01/04/2021

We had so much fun filming this new challenge 😍
The idea is to do 20 tricks with one prop. our first prop is the box 😉
1. 1 paw on the box

2. 2 feet on the box
3. 4 feet on the box
4. Elephant on the box
5. Spin on the box
6. Sit pretty on the box
7. Back up with 2 feet on the box
8. Pull up to the box
9. Rear leg hike on the box
10. 2 feet in the box
11. 4 feet in the box
12. Jump over the box
13. Go around the box
14. Pull the box
15. Touch the box with nose
16. Put ball in the box
17. Dig the box
18. Jump off the box
19. Sit behind the box
20. Drop on recall by the box

31/03/2021

Home made tug toy 😍
Deedee loves tugging, so we have several different tuggies.
Playing tug is an excellent way to reward your dog, but it needs to be built up - as everything.
Be extra careful if you have a teething puppy, as you can make them hate the game for the rest of their lives

27/03/2021

Dougal wishes you happy 😍

27/03/2021

Happy 🥰

23/03/2021

How to get your dog to love their harness?

Make sure you the harness is set to the widest possible, and do not adjust it on the dog until she is very comfortable in the harness.

NOTE: you do NOT need to complete these steps in a single training session! As you can see, I progress with Dougal very quickly, but he's an experienced trick dog, he now learns very quickly. Younger dogs, or dogs who had less training migh need more time, and that's perfectly OK.

1. Show the dog the harness - mark and reward. Repeat a few times, depending on how your dog reacts. Dougal wasn't bothered by the harness at all, so I preceeded very quickly
2. Show the dog the treat trough the neck hole of the harness, don't expect her to put her head straight trough. Mark and reward
3. If your dog confidentally takes the treat, gradually move the lure further and further. If she becomes hesitant at any point, take a step back. If she goes away, finish the training for the day, and start agian from scratch the next day - do your best to avoid this by paying close attention to her body language. Do not punish or scold your dog for not co-operating
4. After your dog has put trough her head the hole fully a few times, try to put the harness gently on her back without fastening it - only for a second. Then remove the harness, mark and reward (the plan is to reward taking off the harness too so the dog would do it voluntarily)
5. After a few successful repetition you can move on to fastening one of the buckles. Lure your dog head trough the harness as always, mark and reward, gendtly put the harness her back, mark and reward, fasten one of the buckles, mark and reward, fasten the second buckle, mark and reward. Than immediatley the other way around: unclip one of the buckles, mark and reward, unclip the other buckle, mark and reward, pull the harness of the dog, mark and reward
Repeat this a few times before letting the harness on for a longer period of time.

Hope you find this useful

23/03/2021

Make sure you the harness is set to the widest possible, and do not adjust it on the dog until she is very comfortable in the harness.

NOTE: you do NOT need to complete these steps in a single training session! As you can see, I progress with Dougal very quickly, but he's an experienced trick dog, he now learns very quickly. Younger dogs, or dogs who had less training migh need more time, and that's perfectly OK.

1. Show the dog the harness - mark and reward. Repeat a few times, depending on how your dog reacts.
2. Show the dog the treat trough the neck hole of the harness, don't expect her to put her head straight trough. Mark and reward.
3. If your dog confidentally takes the treat, gradually move the lure further and further. If she becomes hesitant at any point, take a step back. If she goes away, finish the training for the day, and start agian from scratch the next day - do your best to avoid this by paying close attention to her body language. Do not punish or scold your dog for not co-operating.
4. After your dog has put trough her head the hole fully a few times, try to put the harness gently on her back without fastening it - only for a second. Then remove the harness, mark and reward (the plan is to reward taking off the harness too so the dog would do it voluntarily).
5. After a few successful repetition you can move on to fastening one of the buckles. Lure your dog head trough the harness as always, mark and reward, gendtly put the harness her back, mark and reward, fasten one of the buckles, mark and reward, fasten the second buckle, mark and reward. Than immediatley the other way around: unclip one of the buckles, mark and reward, unclip the other buckle, mark and reward, pull the harness of the dog, mark and reward.
Repeat this a few times before letting the harness on for a longer period of time.
When you first leave the harness on, do not do it on a walk. Have a training session in your living room or garden, and see how it goes.
If everything goes well, you can start using the harness on your walks, and gradually phasing out the treats as the walk itself is going to become the reward. Hope you found this helpful

22/03/2021

Harnesses - why? and which one?

Before anything else, let me emphasise that harnesses do not make dogs pull and do not teach them not to pull either. Pieces of equipment are not magic wands that will do the training for you. I saw dogs pulling on choke chains and prongs - they simply learnt to ignore the discomfort/pain (luckily, that was about 25 years ago, and they were not my own dogs)

Why do most reward-based trainers recommend a harness over a collar?
Because the dog's neck is very sensitive, and even flat collars can cause damage to the trachea. Besides, as mentioned above, collars will not stop your dog from pulling; only training will

What type of harness should I use?
The best harnesses are the ones that make a Y shape on the chest of the dog. These leave the shoulder blades free, so your dog can run, jump, etc., without being restricted. Some brands that fit the bill: Dog Copenhagen, Ruffwear, Perfect Fit Harness, and some models by EzyDog (this is NOT an exclusive list)

But what about pulling on the lead?
Again, that's something that needs to be trained, regardless of what equipment you are using/planning to use. That said, some pieces of equipment can help you with your training - but if you use them without the training, your dog will learn to ignore them
I'm thinking of front-clip harnesses (like Dog Copenhagen). If you clip the lead to the front-clip, the dog will be slightly imbalanced and won't pull - at least until he gets used to the feeling. Using that ring is also great when the dog lounges as it will imbalance them, so you can gain back control more easily. (But if that's the case, training is even more important.)
And that brings me to my most important point: being consequent is that matters the most with loose lead walking. There are several training methods, and most of them would work if you use them consequently and build it up slowly with lots of rewards
That's why I'm not going to describe any of them here; however, I would highly recommend listening to episodes 90 amd 91 of 's podcast, Drinking from the Toilet, for a detailed explanation on how she teaches loose lead walking
Hope you found this helpful

19/03/2021

My all time favourite book, that made me a positive trainer 🥰 Don't Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor
It is not a 'how to' book, but gives you invaluable insight on how animals (including humans) learn
It has been translated into most languages

19/03/2021

Your chance to win 😍

https://www.facebook.com/101337927957034/posts/441168447307312/

**COMPETITION TIME!!**

Thanks to our wonderful friend of the podcast Danielle Beck - Clinical Animal Behaviourist, we have a fantastic prize to offer one lucky Bookshelver! If you liked the sound of the Trauma In Animals conference that we discussed in this week's 'Off the Shelf' then you could WIN A FREE TICKET!!! 😲🥳🤩

All you have to do is like and share the Barks from the Bookshelf and Control The Meerkat page so that you can tag us in your competition entry. In this thread below, post a picture of your dog enjoying one of your/their favourite training or behaviour books. The photo with the most likes on 31st March 2021 will win a ticket to the conference! So you'll need to ask your friends and family to get involved and like your pic if you're in with a chance to win. If you've already bought a ticket, you can still enter and give your ticket to a nominated person and for our wonderful Bookshelvers that are overseas in different timezones, the whole conference will be recorded so you won't miss a thing! Find out more here https://conference.controlthemeerkat.com/

Best of luck and get snapping!

19/03/2021

Deedee with her favourite toy 😍 Actually, we have 2 of them which made recall training so much easier 😊
Tug toys are great for interactive games, so your dog learns that taking the toy back to you is great fun
Check out for amazing tug toys 🥰

17/03/2021

15/03/2021

Trying to train a freestyle rebound to Deedee just for fun 😄 This was our 4th training session, each with about 5-10 reps 😊

13/03/2021

It's so true when they say everything is a trick 🥰
I can put this soft cone on both of my dogs without any problem and the only reward they ever got for it was some back scratch or cuddles.
I have to admit that this training should be done before the cone is actually needed, but I failed to do that...
(Deedee has something going on with one of her ear, we are off to the vets in the afternoon)

10/03/2021

Don't forget to smile 🥰

09/03/2021

No flyball training, no problem 😎

07/03/2021

So true

06/03/2021

Dougal loves his tricks 🥰

Music: Temperatures Rising
Musician: Lovefine
URL: https://icons8.com/music

28/02/2021

Let's finish this challenge with a fun trick called roll over. It is a very easy one and most dogs can be taught very easily to do it.

Hope you enjoyed these tricks. Make sure to check out Hearing Dogs for Death People because they are doing an amazing job

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27/02/2021

Bow is a great trick for a number of reasons: it's a hand stretching exercises before or after an activity, and it also resembles the so-called play bow which is a friendly behaviour. Dogs who learn to bow on cue tend to do it more frequently without the cue as well, so they might get more polite with other dogs

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26/02/2021

Doggy push ups is when the dog does a few sits and downs while her butt stays on the ground. It is a great warm-up exercise before a regular training session or a dog sport like agility or Canicross

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25/02/2021

Walking Footsie needs to be built up gradually. First, you only lift one of your foot for a fraction of a second, then increase the criteria very slowly. Also make sure that you are wearing appropriate footwear, one that it is easy for the dog to balance on

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24/02/2021

After you trained Peekaboo/Middle you can train your dog to put their feet on yours. There are several ways of doing this so please consider your dog's learning history and their preferred learning method.

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23/02/2021

When your dog already knows Peekaboo, you can start teaching the Walking Peekaboo by starting to walk and luring them with you. It is a fun trick to teach, but take care if you have a larger dog.

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22/02/2021

In the next few videos, I'm going to show you how you can build tricks on each other.

The first trick in this series is Peekaboo also known as Middle, where the dog stands between your legs.

This trick has several practical applications: if trained properly, your dog will feel safe between your legs, so you can call him middle when you meet something threatening or scarry on your walk - another dog, a mountain bikers, etc.

It's a great way to set up your dog before an agility course, or even before throwing a ball (a lot of injuries are caused by twisting and turning when lounging after a toy).

However, when training this trick, you need to make sure your dog is comfortable with you standing above them. If not, the first thing to do is counterconditioning.

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21/02/2021

The elephant trick, also known as side step drill is a great exercise for rear end awareness. Start with a larger object and swap it to a smaller one when your dog is more confident. You can either move with your dog, or lure them with a treat.

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