Play cannot (truly) exist without a GOAL (and rules) between peers 😉
but when it comes to playing with our dogs, we often don't think about the goal and most of the time we don't think of the DOG's goal either 🤔
So in this video you can see mom & Jupiter playing chase, tug, and keep away - the goal in ALL of these games it POSSESSION of the toy. It's a competition & Jupe needed to BELIEVE his mom wanted (and could) take the toy from him.
This game took 30+ minutes for them to establish their goals, come to a mutual understanding of the rules & for him to truly believe mom was going to take the toy from him.
30 minutes is a longggggg time but it will get faster next time now that the rules of engagement have been established.
Why do we care? Wellllll play builds:
- communication
- confidence
- understanding
- resilience
- focus
AND is inherently intrinsically motivating (in a way that food often is not)
Don't we all want a confident, focused, resilient partner? Then using play is one of the fastest ways to do so 😉
So keep your eyes peeled for more videos on how to use play to build all of these skills in your dog BUT
remember to ask yourself what your goal in each game is and try to gauge what your dogs goal is and find a way to meet in the middle ❤️
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Enrichment doesn't have to be pricey or hard work - sometimes it can be as easy as a novel food item.
Broccoli stems are a household favorite here.
Healthy table scraps (when not fed directly from the table) can be a great way to add "newness" to your dog's day.
Other favorites to try:
👉 Frozen whole carrots or celery
👉 Chicken/Beef scraps (make sure seasonings are dog safe)
👉 A dollop of cottage cheese or greek yogurt
👉 Sprinkling or cheese
👉 A bit of canned pumpkin or sweet potato
👉 Frozen bagged veggies
Treats should never make up more than 10% of your dog's diet.
You can make new foods even more enriching my hiding them, tossing them in the grass to be hunted for, frozen in/on a toy, or freezing them solid to make a great chew toy (appropriate sized only).
Which of these snacks have you tried? Let us know in the comments ⬇️
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It's never too early to teach polite leash walking!
We're not talking about a formal heel, we want to set our dogs up for loose leash walks!
Teaching loose leash skills come in multiple parts:
1️⃣Rewarding our dogs for where we want them to be (near our side)
2️⃣How to respond to leash pressure (when they inevitably feel it)
3️⃣Rewarding our dog for staying tuned in to us (even with distractions around)
So here's a quick exercise that takes care of 2&3!
Stand like a tree - when your dog turns to you- say GOOD & offer a reward (don't bring the treat to your dog make them come to you to get it).
Start with baby steps! Minimal distractions and a fair bit of distance from something interesting.
As your dog gets quicker to turn to you, start to wait for them to STAY near you to reward. We don't want this to turn into: I run to the end of the leash, turn around & then get a treat.
We want to reward STAYING with us instead.
If your dog gets stuck staring at something give them 3 seconds then call their name as you slowly step backwards away from them.
Your dog should take less and less time to turn towards you as you practice.
This exercise paired with others can create clarity for our dogs about how we want walks to go.
Want help with loose leash walking? Reach out, we'd love to help ✌️
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Morning hikes with foster Remi
Remi the foster goes on a walk 🐕🚶♀️
This lady is a bit nervous, a bit vigilant and a bit reactive when she sees people - so watch how we build trust in the handler by giving her the space to process on her own and guiding her (with the leash and our body) past some strangers.
This girl is not (yet) interested in food/treats so I didn't try using them in the moment 😉
We're still building trust and confidence but this was a great first outing!
Have questions about how to apply these techniques with your own dog? Reach out, we'd love to help ✌️
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Nap time at day camp - working our "enough" window to promote calmness around other dogs 😉
Dogs do not understand sentences or the meaning of words WITHOUT being taught what they mean 😉
In our training programs (& this video) we use:
👉Good = keep doing what you're doing a reward is coming
👉Yes = you did it! Come get your reward!
👉Nope = try something else
We can teach the meaning of these words several ways (and we should!) in this video you can see Rosie learning through play!
Sitting = good then yes when she stays in the sit
Standing up = nope (because we want the sit to start play again)
Teaching commands becomes easy when we have a way to tell our dogs what we like AND what we don't like too.
Life becomes a giant game of hot & cold where we can show & reinforce our dogs exactly what we want from them!
Want helping improving your communication? Reach out, we'd love to help ✌️
#tridogsolutions #dogtrainer #phillyburbs #dogtraining #aussiepuppy #puppytraining #puppytrainer #puppies #dogs #gooddoggo #gooddog #baddog #dogmom #dogmomlife #dogplay #doggames #engagement #puppyproblems
Harnessing play has a number of positive effects that we love to see with stranger danger dogs.
👉Dopamine! Happy hormones from play can translate to the new persons presence
👉Lowering frustration levels! Giving your dog an outlet to move & play can release the pressure valve in a safe way
👉Learning to self regulate! When play is used in a structured way (ie breaks from play to help them cool down to start the game again) it helps them learn to think while adrenalized
Notes & tips:
👉this dog is playing tug with his owner with the stranger present NOT the stranger playing tug 😉
👉having a 2nd handler to hold the leash during play with a high drive dog can be super helpful
👉Reward any signs of calmness (sits,quiet, shake off, yawn, down, etc) with treats or by starting the game again
👉Aim for 50/50 play/breaks - these BREAKS are the key to your dog thinking while adrenalized
👉HAVE FUN! Your dog will feed off your energy 😉
Have a stranger danger dog, reach out to us, we'd love to help ✌️
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There are TONS of different marker words that we use in our daily training. We have words that mean:
👉correct answer - here's a reward
👉wrong answer try something else to get a reward
👉correct answer - keep doing it to get rewarded
👉All done - you're free to do what you want
All these words tell our dogs exactly what they did right or "wrong" - clickers are often used the same way!
In our training we use reward markers "yes" & "good" to tell our dogs their reward is coming AND "no reward markers" - in our case "nope" which simply tells our dog "try something else" allowing the dog to problem solve the answer you want.
Using reward markers (or clicker) and no-reward markers allows us to communicate much more effectively throughout our day to day lives. Even if you don't reach any commands, you can communicate with your dog what you do & don't like using these words!
In this video you can see both dogs on place - when they first hopped up there we used "good" to tell them "keep doing that and you'll get a reward"
Then we threw a bunch of words at them, all of which start with "O" because they're release to leave place (terminal marker) is "Okay" so this was a game to help them pay attention to exactly which word I was saying.
Want help building communication between you and your dog? Reach out, we'd love to help ✌️
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