Something I hear often is: "My dog has too much prey drive, I could never encourage that by doing rat sports!"
That's a hard NOPE from me. I have been teaching rat sports since 2015, and working with high prey dogs for much longer than that. I have yet to see a dog who isn't at all able to play these games, simply due to their high intensity for prey. Does it require more planning and training? Sure, often, but what doesn't? However...
Meeting all of a dog's needs, including structured hunt rehearsals, and then adding training improves a dog's ability to *think* while around prey so much.
This is incredibly valuable, especially for city dogs who are often only exposed to manicured nature and leashed outings.
Here's a lovely example of that in action:
Ellie used to hit the quarry box VERY hard and is a high prey dog. So we worked on it and added more clarity into her rat searches; her needs are met beautifully outside of class too. Look how easily she can source the rat up in the tree and then move onto food reinforcement now! Good girl!
#noseydogtraining #whatcomdogsports #trailingandlocating #nasdadog #ratsports #preydrive #preysequence #dogsport #canineenrichment #dogsportclass #havefunwithyourdog
Lots of lotus ball conversations lately!
I really enjoy using these toys, both for dogs I want to build more toy interest/search skills with, as well as dogs who need more chillness around toy interactions (ahem, Perkins).
The easiest way to think of how interesting a lotus ball can be is to relate it directly to the predatory sequence: locate, bite, k*ll, dissect, and consume. Otherwise known as: species appropriate enrichment!
Here's how I use it to also include handler interaction and trained skills:
1. Introduce the lotus ball until the dog understands they can access the piece of food independently. Many dogs understand this immediately while others need a little help!
2. Toss (or place) lotus ball and cue dog with whatever cue I want to use for this specific toy/eventual chain of behaviors.
3. When dog finishes eating, I cue a retrieve. Mark and reward when the now empty lotus ball is delivered back to me.
4. Repeat in short sessions until fluent. End goal is to locate lotus ball, self reward, and then automatically bring it back to me without having to cue anything else.
5. Now we can use the lotus ball for plenty of fun and building up to a lot of challenging searches!
#noseydogtraining
Real life training? Here ya go!
Perkins feels very strongly about everything, but especially neighbors; her property is HERS and anything within view from her property deserves to be yelled at, if you ask her. I knew they were outside (plus their dog, plus machinery and a 4 wheeler) so I took a few minutes to work on those feelings. Perk's tail position is extremely telling at all times, notice those changes throughout this little bit of work and movement.
Slip lead is on her to prevent a bad choice, not correct or use pressure with. A long line would have been better, sure, but this still works.
