Working with Evie and her mum in public today. Evie is reactive around other dogs and we’ve been working on management strategies to keep her under threshold.
Today was about understanding body language, when to create distance and when it’s not needed, and throwing in random cues to check Evie is capable of listening and doing.
She has the best hair do!!
Odin's making good progress with learning Treiball (football for dogs). When we started a week ago, he had guide rails to help push the ball in one direction. This time around The guide rails are removed and he's getting the hang of pushing the ball towards me.
Okay, so Odins not quite to the level of a doggie Messi or Renaldo when it comes to ball dribbling but still proud of him!
#treibballdog
#herdinginstinct
#enrichmentfordogs
Weekly walk with these 3 in glorious technicolour thanks to some actual sunshine!
The 3Ps of training: Patience, Persistence & Practice.
Hobbes is suspicious of anything new in his environment and deals with it by backing away and barking. This is the second time he’s seen my scratch board and he’s figured out it’s not going to hurt him.
Hobbes also doesn’t like his paws been touched. Therefore for several weeks I’ve been playing fun Paw games with him, and today he not only put his paw on the scratch board, he also did a little scratch.
👏🏻 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
It takes a while with Hobbes, but asking him to sand-paper his own nails is being done at his pace where he has the choice to do it or not.
Meet Poppy...
Poppy came to our place to learn about how to behave around other dogs. As her behaviour swings from "OMG.... Be my friend!" to "Go Away!!", our objective ia to help Poppy into a state of "I see a dog but there's nothing to get excited or anxious about..."
With Bailee's help, we spent time at the right distance and engagement techniques for Poppy to be calm, relaxed, indifferent and happily focussed towards her Dad.
Good to catch up with Jim and Butch. Jim is the elder fur kid who is doing so well with a range of body wellness and mental stimulation exercises.
Big break through with Butch who expresses big anxious feelings when he meets someone who isn't family. I was greeted by a relaxed Butch who was all good with me close by.
So happy to see the amazing progress Azalea is making when it comes to impulse control. It wasn't that long ago that Azalea lacked self control when it came to distractions or demanding attention.
We've been steadily increasing Azaleas capability to adapt to not only a number of distractions but also her ability to calm when needed.
As Azalea loves play with a flirt pole, she can engage when allowed and then is asked to disengage when cued.
Great team work between Azalea and dedicated Mum.
#funplayfordogs
#impulsecontrol
#dogimpulsecontrol
#dogtraining
#calmdogsarehappydogs
🐾 **Treibball for Dogs** 🐾
Treibball is like soccer for dogs! 🐶⚽️ Originating in Germany, it was created to keep herding dogs engaged when traditional herding wasn't possible.
Your dog uses their nose to push big exercise balls into a goal. It's a fun way to burn energy, build teamwork, and boost their confidence. Perfect for active dogs like Odin who love a challenge! 🐕💪
We began by positively introducing Odin to the ball. Progressively getting him used to pushing it with his nose and head towards me.
Looking forward to developing Odins ball dribbling skills!
#DogSports #Treibball #ActivePups
Ready to give it a try with your dog? 🐾🎉
You may watch the 2m video and say “so what?”. But this is Hobbes allowing me to sit on the floor without him thinking he can jump on me; he’s engaging with the cue Paw; happy to do it and then starting to engage with a sandpaper board. Considering Hobbes is suspicious of anything new and doesn’t like his paws being touched, this is fantastic progress!
If you have ever struggled with loose lead walking your dog, then you need to meet Mario, Kiki and Ria.
Every week, I get to enjoy a very relaxing and calm walk with these 3 greyts. While temperament counts, it's the fact that these 3 have been so well socialised by their family is a key factor. Joggers, cyclists can whizz by, construction noises, heavy trucks driving past, very little phases them (aside from the nearby ginger cat & duck poo).
Loose lead walking at its best!
Evie is back with us for another session. A much calmer dog than last session now we’ve worked on the distance she’s comfortable at being around our Flynn … and our Maisie-cat 🐈⬛
Second walk with Gypsy. She’s getting the hang of lead walking nicely. Perfect? Nope. But she’s not pulling me down the road 👏🏻
In a Down position, with a sniffle mat. This is how Hobbes will allow me to touch his front paws and fiddle gentle with his nails. Not bad for a dog that only a few months ago wouldn’t let me touch him 👏🏻
Odin and the Premack Theory...
Odin has a serious obsession for chasing the tether on his flirt pole. So as part of Odin's training, we've been working on extending how to reinforce low probability behaviours before he gets the tether as a reward.
So the Premack Theory states that high probability behaviours (like Odins love for the tether) can be used to reinforce low probability behaviours (like.. Sit, leave, stop and down).
As Odin has a strong foundation with cues like sit, leave etc, what he had been lacking was the ability to offer more self control. You see, Odin is a "0-100 in a split second" kinda dog. Once he spots that flirt pole, he'd go into a state of over-the-top arousal, snatch the tether and you literally could hear Rick Astley singing "Never gonna give you up" as he tries to run away
So why should something like the Premack Theory matter?
Well for one thing, it's useful to use a high value reward that helps make training more effective and enjoyable for your dog. The other reason is about behavioural balance which helps to balance high energy activities with necessary training.
In the video, you'll see captions based on the cues I give Odin. The good news is that the dog gets his just reward!
#premacktheory
#enrichmentfordogs
#calmdogsarehappydogs
When it's the school holidays and it's raining outside, the dilemma is what can the kids do for entertainment???
Well keeping fur kids entertained has similarities. For Bailee, it started with "I'm bored" but ended with everything working out in the end.
#enrichmentfordogs
#keepingdogshappy
#dayslikethis❤️
When walking a reactive dog, it can be a stressful time for both the dog and the owner.
Having practised strategies in place such using an appropriate distance from triggers and walking in low distraction environments will make a welcome difference.
This is what we put into play with Ollie and his family during this accompanied walk. Even though, there were plenty of other dogs being walked, cyclists and skateboarders..... Ollie did so well observing and then happily disengaging.
#calmdogsarehappydogs
#reactivedogtraining
#reactivedogsneedspace
Meet Poppy....
We first met Poppy when her parents attended our Cooperative Care workshop with Orewa Beach Vets.
Our in-home consult today was about how to start transferring the extensive training Poppy's has had through dog clubs and puppy school she has attended into practical real life situations .
We then worked on strategies with loose lead walking and how to turn zero focus into focus that worked for Poppy.
Looking forward to catching up again and being part of Poppy's development.
#looseleadwalking
#focussed
#impulsecontrol
When I catch up with Odin, we always work through a routine of exercises when it comes to body conditioning. To keep things interesting, it's always good to create some variety so that Odin stays engaged.
In this session, I'm having Odin hold (for short periods) position with body weight on his hind legs. Stabilisation using flexi-bands followed by a simple game of pushing the ball into a box.
#germanshepherdsofinstagram
#caninebodywork
#caninefitnesstraining
#onesmartgsd
As dogs have a natural chase drive, we are sometimes asked if it's possible to eliminate the behaviour.
Our answer is "No"... BUT it can be managed. Giving your dog a healthy and safe outlet to chase is important to satisfy their instinctual behaviour. Agility work, dog sports such as fly-ball or just good old fashioned fetch are great ways to manage and control what your dog chases.
Azalea has recently been introduced to a frisbee which has been a fantastic outlet to satisfy her chase drive.
#chasedrive
#instinct
#healthyoutlets
#dogsportslife
#playfetch
Back with Jim at the gym...
After vet approval, we've been working with 12 year old Jim to help build strength back into his hind legs as a result of a medical condition causing a loss of muscle mass.
Jim's and his Mum were introduced to this simple game of walking from one side of the barrier to the other in order to snack on a treat. By placing random, low level obstacles in the path, it safely caused Jim to be mindful of where he was walking and in turn making him lift his hind legs.
It's been wonderful to hear feedback from Jim's Mum that he is more comfortable and confident managing his movement around the house.
#caninebodywork
#caninefitness
#jimrocks
