furry_frolics

29/02/2024

Norah Sprout and Riddle waiting outside the supermarket in a Down Stay.

Riddle is environmentally sound- she is pretty comfortable with noises, heavy footfall and wheels etc. so being this close to the entrance and trolley park is really easy for her.

Norah is 5 months now and is pretty confident, especially when Riddle is there, but much more easily distracted by people walking close by. This was rush hour so one of the busiest environments she has worked in so far. I kept the reinforcement rate pretty high at first but faded it quickly back down after about 30 secs, once she had relaxed into it.

I'd rather pay well now so I don't have to do more work later. It's about building habits and making what works for you work for the dog.

Remember when training puppies: when you raise the distraction level, raise the reward level, be that freque cy or value.

Set them up to succeed and make it super obvious what's expected in whatever environment they find themselves in.

29/11/2023

Introducing Norah 🤩
She's just started on the Puppy Deluxe Package, and it's a special job for me as I've known her mum since Furry Frolics started all those years ago!
I used to walk Natalie's previous dog Pippa, they came to classes, and we did some 1to1s as Pippa aged and sadly went blind 🙂
She was a great dog in so many ways and her passing was super hard, so I was so excited when I heard it was time for another gorgeous Jack Russell to fill Natalie's world back up with joy!
She's a super smart little thing, a little shy at first but fiesty for toys and great fun once she got playing with me.
Humans and pup all doing a great job so far, I can't wait to see her confidence and skills flourish over the coming months 😍

11/10/2023

16/08/2023

Please join me in congratulating our recent puppy graduates- Sammi, Coco and Billy!!

You have all had such fantastic success, this has been one of the most heartwarming courses we have ever held! I'll do another post later with more info but suffice to say for now- it was emotional!!

Well done teams 👏 👏

30/03/2023

Introducing Rudy!!

Like most Cockers, Rudy loves to pick things up. It's no surprise that this is a common behaviour in the breed- this is what these dogs were born to do! The problem is for Rudy and his owners, he was swallowing lots of illegal items, meaning multiple vet trips and many poorly tummies. 💩

This behaviour is obviously dangerous, so I was pleased to hear Rudy was already muzzle trained so we were able to fulfil his exercise needs during training so he didn't end up totally frustrated on lead all the time. 🐕‍🦺

We got to work teaching Drop, Leave It and Retrieve in synchronicity so Rudy's owner had lots of tools in her toolkit to pull out when he finds litter (sorry, treasure) to pick up. Wherever possible, we don't want to go against the grain of the dog's natural motivations; instead we can work with what the dog wants to do but simply align that way more with what we want him to do. 🐕

Well, today was a big day! It was the first day being off the long line AND unmuzzled at the same time!
He found a total of 11 bits of litter, most he didnt pick up at all, and only refused to give up 1 straight away, which was a peice of tennis ball felt- his kryptonite. 🥎

At first, his owner was disappointed when this happened, but when I pointed out that this is over a 90% success rate on the first day of zero management, she realised what an AWESOME job she has done so far! 🤩

Well done team Rudy! I'll stick a picture in the comments of the 10 successfully Left, Dropped or Retrieved items. He's just looking after the environment apparently 🤷🏼‍♀️

27/03/2023

As per my previous post, following the immediate sell-out of the Tricks & Engagement Workshop, I have added another one which will be more suitable for beginners!

In this workshop we will cover some core concepts to understand as you enter into the world of trick training, as well as some "easy win" quick tricks. We will also begin thinking about chaining together some behaviours to create some more fancy, impressive tricks.

Please note, although this workshop is for beginner trick trainers/dogs, it will be useful if your dog already has some basic training in their repertoire: Sit, Down, and Recall are pre-requisites. Unfortunately on this occasion we are unable to accommodate reactive or fearful dogs. Please feel free to send me a WhatsApp or email (pls avoid fb messenger) if you'd like to discuss your dog's suitability.

Bookings can be made through the website, the link is in our bio.

Looking forward to this one 🤩

04/08/2022

Thanks to Milo's human for this adorable picture of him doing his homework!
🐶
This week in Tricks class the dogs learned to balance toys on their head! It's a cute trick but it also requires the dog to exercise self control, focus and stillness- skills which can then be transferred to improve all the more useful "tricks" in their behaviour repertoire, like waiting at doorways, being polite at dinner time, safe car exits to name just a few!
New Tricks Courses will be released soon so keep your eye on the fb page for dates
🦄