Not your expectations for what you want from your dog...but about what your dog expects is coming next.
We're all mostly creatures of habit. And habits can form quickly. Associations and expectations of what a situation means are all our dogs have to understand their lives and environment.
So when I showed up to the beach with Archer, he was 100%, entirely and FULLY expecting that he'd be off leash to zoom at any moment.
He was whining, trembling, staring at me, offering a hectic cycle of sits and downs all to try to figure out what the key was to get me to take off his leash so he could GO. Archer was so focused on getting to run he wouldn't take food - he was over stimulated and nearly over threshold.
But that wasn't why we were there. And he can't be off leash here.
So we took our time.
I changed the picture - a blanket for him to Place on (a skill he knows and loves) and I sat next to him.
Small signals to show Archer this was more like cafe chill time, than crazy play time.
I modeled calmer behavior. Looking around casually, slow deep breathing.
When he could handle being pet, I added in sloooooow deep firm pets/massage.
And about twenty minutes later, he started to get it. And relax. Take in the world with me. Air scent when the breeze picked up. Watch kids play frisbee. Just hang.
There's a time and a place for both the high drive play, and calm relaxation.
Change doesn't always come right away.
Remember your dog has formed habits and expectations because that's been their experience so far.
It's up to us to teach coping skills, and use them to show our dogs other possibilities and new expectations.
How to you know you're dog has a +CER (positive conditioned emotional response) to their Place spot...you cant even pick it up before they've hopped on again!
I love how ernest Archer is, always trying his best and trying to figure out the game so he can play it together.
Place/stays are so useful from the (dog friendly) crags to coffee shops. Nope, it isn't a place they need to sit bored for hours on end at home, but learning a solid "go to that spot, get comfy and wait a bit" means your dog can stay safe, out of the way, and ultimately get to join you out on more adventures!
Here's a glimpse of leash reactivity training in action! It's a progression - we help reactive dogs feel safer and calmer around other dogs, practice how to look away and reengage with us, then ultimately learn that other dogs are a cue to check in on their own. All centered on how your pup is feeling and building that connection together.
This gives reactive dogs something constructive *to do* around a trigger, reducing frustration and building confidence! Our ultimate goal is they can be comfortably neutral around other dogs while on leash, so they can enjoy exploring more of the world with us
Have you given your dog time to just be a dog lately? Well, here's your reminder 😉
Let em dig, chew, sniff, run, explore, jump at their pace without direction.
At first, freedom can be SO novel its is ubsurdly exciting, so pick a safe place (fenced or on a long line)...but as it becomes less novel, your dog will settle in, actually become *more* engaged, and MUCH more relaxed at the end of the day.
This is mental and physical enrichment for Tango and Archer. Each with their own style of course.
The Cooperative Care course is here!
'Hands off Handling' teaches you and your dog cooperation for grooming, vet care, handling and more. Designed as hybrid of online course content and Zoom or in person lessons, I'm here to to support your unique goals.
Hands off Handling is a style of Cooperative Care that prepares your dog to cooperative with potentially stressful care. They learn they can ask for a break. They can let you know when it's too much anytime.
We train with food, toys, teach comfort with safety holds, practice in relaxed downs and stands - all to give you a huge tool box to work with your dog anywhere for any new scenario,
When our dogs understand we're in this together, their window of tolerance for handling widens.
Just like if we're at the dentist and know we can communicate ours needs, we can relax and tolerate some of the stress. Compared to how difficult that same routine clearning might be if we were held down and forced into it!
Why??
Well, I trained Cooperative Care techniques with Tango back when he was a pup on a bit of a whim. He didn't like his feet or belly touched.
In fact, he'd roar a huge growl and swing his head around to grab my arm most times I tried to touch him there 😬
And as (bad) luck would have it - Tango went on to have some pretty major injuries that have required extensive handling by vets and techs of his feet - of all places.
From needing a dew claw removed, to a major ligament repair in his hock, and months of bandage changes and rehab on a painful injury.
To be honest, if we hadn't trained cooperative care, this all would have been a major struggle to get Tango the care he needed. He's strong and opinionated - wrestling him every vet visit would be exceedingly stressful!
Instead, he was able to be handled by the vets, techs and myself through it all - recovering and getting back to competitions each time.
The Hands off Handling course includes a TON of content -a written, step by step guide, videos docume
I use lots of different marker words in training. Each marker word communicates something about a specific moment and gives information about how and where to get the reward.
From heeling with Archer, if I mark "yes" it means that was perfect! Duck behind me to get the food from my right side
If I mark "left" it means that was perfect! Spin to your left to get the reward.
Both a terminal markers that reward a correct behavior, and tell Archer he is done.
With more 'yes' markers and rewards, he'll tend to drift back in heel (good to counteract forging) in anticipation.
With more 'left' markers, he'll tend to drift away from me (good to keep him off my leg and free flowing movement)
It's always a balance to maintain good heeling!
I use different words for a toy reward too - so he is never disappointed by what the actual reward is (a toy is MUCH higher value than food for Archer)
Check out puppy Abu! He's a brilliant pup with an owner whose super dedicated to building him towards not just competing in Schutzhund/IGP, but to also be a member of the family and adventure dog 😊 Lucky guy!
He's been learing how to back up onto a platform to build rear-end awareness and a way to teach a solid lock up for the stand out of motion.
The KEY when teaching any new skills is how your dog FEELS. That emotion will be 'built in' to the skill, so we need to make sure it's the right one. In IGP, there is a skill of a running heel, and a stand after 10-15 paces, while the handler continues to run another 30 paces. The dog needs a quick, confidant, and solid lock up! Check out Abu's focus and how he's holding himself completely frozen on these little lock ups before the mark and release for the reward
..and watch his happy tail with big swooshes - he's confident he's got it right.
What do dogs need MOST?
Its simple, but unfortunately not always easy to get.
It's just time to be....a dog.
Run, sniff, dig, be goofy, playful, explore, nap and use their bodies.
I'll be talking a LOT more about this, since it's a big piece I feel too many of our dogs, and ourselves are missing.
TLDR; I can't wait to have this orchard space be available for YOUR dog to run in. To play in. Chill in. I'm working on new gates, removing the t posts from trees long gone, and then reseeding it early fall. Hopefully with some rain and new growth, itll be usable 'for real.'
Longer background:
Moving to Felton in 2010 was the 'proof of concept' for me that, well, many dogs do better with some space and freedom. I lived in downtown DC and San Francisco with my reactive cattle dog for years. And she got to a point where she was doing really well!
But when I moved to just a half acre in Felton, the shift in her behavior to a calmer, more confident, more playful dog, was undeniable. While we could get by in the city, she was happier with more freedom. And...I was happier. Gardening, moving, the sunshine, quiet time is all so good. Us humans were also built for exploring, being curious, and long walks.
Our doggie paradise here is not just for lessons. It's for community. Building better dogs, and better dog/human relationships. Not everyone can just go live on acreage. And unfortunately Santa Cruz county has very few safe places for dogs to be off leash. But a bit of time to decompress here goes a long way. And I can't wait to have things a bit more ready to get us there.
I recently got a FidoPro Airlift, a sling to carry out a dog if they get injured, to keep in my pack on longer hikes. Figured I should practice at least once....first try Archer had NO idea what the goal was, and tried to frantically chew at and spin out of the harness 😅 I quickly stopped, and reevaluated for our next training session.
Thanks to lots of cooperative care training, within a few reps I was able to pick him up calmly.
He definitely doesn't love it, but it's important for all dogs to know how to stay still and calm through things they might find unpleasant (this, pulling ticks, nail trims, vaccinations). I teach them to stare at a pile of food until released, so they have something to focus on, know it'll be short and manageable, and that there is a reward in it for them at the end. If they move away early, no problem. We just pause and reset for an easier rep, but no food reward yet. Archer figured it out quickly and happily.
Shimmy *adores* all people - to the point she will bee line and fling herself full force at anyone she sees, wiggling in excitement.
I don't want her to feel frustrated when she can't say hi to every single person out there, so she's learning that people are actually a cue to check in with me.
Today we watched people eating lunch, and people coming and going from the grocery store.
In the beginning, I'd let her see someone, then 1-2 seconds later, call her name, and reward her for turning to me. She's quickly picked up that the start of this process, that ends with a yummy and fun reward, is people!
So see people = look to me = food and fun.
Much calmer and happier for all.
A little engagement session with Shimmy 🧡
This is her first time at this location, so we kept it simple. I'm just looking for her to check in with me, then a verbal maker (chip!) and reward.
Keeping the rewards dynamic helps a ton to keep the game interesting for your dog! Jump back so they have to chase the food, lure them into a quick spin before releasing it, toss it, something so you're not just a boring food dispenser!
I'm mostly looking for what she does after she eats. Does she sniff the ground? Look around on the ground for more? Check out the sheep behind us? Chase butterflies?
I don't prompt her, but wait for her to offer me that "hey what's next??" look. Some reps I place food on the ground so she has to make a clear choice to check back in.
Most every rep, she chews, swallows, and checks back in 😁 This tells me her brain is on, ready to learn, and next time we can work some 'harder' stuff.
Play!
Theres a lot of subtle commication that happens during play. I prefer for puppies to mostly play with appropriate adult dogs. Older dogs are more likely to regulate play sessions with pauses so play sessions don't turn into over aroused chaos.
Some good things to notice here:
-Archer is handicapping himself well for Shimmy. He's flopping over to let her feel big, moving slower, and generally being gentle
-Archer is offering being on his back, he isn't pinned
-Both dogs have loose body language
-Shimny doesn't respond with loose body language when Archer mouths her at the end, so he backs off
-This wrestle match was short then they moved on
-We spend a lot of time relaxing and chewing separate bones/Kongs so theyre are magnetized or obsessed with only play together
What signs do your dogs give that they're enjoying play?
I'm incredibly excited to welcome little Shimmy!
Long story short - I saw a little black lab puppy with all the confidence, drive, calm but crazy I could want to see in a little pup, and just couldn't stop thinking about her. She has just the most beautiful temperament and incredible drives. Thanks so much to Kate and Sundowners Kennels for trusting me to raise and train this special girl.
Shimmy will be primarily be training for Search and Rescue and detection work, with a side of competition obedience, demo dog and of course just being a good happy labrador 🧡🖤🧡
