A little bit of lunchtime delivery training. Zappa is learning to cleanly deliver to hand with a central hold. I am not allowing him to take the dummy if he goes for the toggle and I’m encouraging him to lift his head and deliver which will help achieve a sitting delivery (one day…. 🙄)
Next on Zappa’s list of Big Scary Things was water. I’m so proud of this little dog and how he has come on. I started his confidence building on Tuesday and this is where he is today… already!
Up until now, he has flatly refused to get his feet wet. He managed wet ground ok but any sort of water was a no-go. He would jump or skirt puddles and recoil in fear at the sensation and sound of water.
I understand Zaps so well now. I know how he thinks and I can see the world through his eyes. I started working with him on the sound of water and teaching him that it wasn’t scary. Then we moved on to sensation, then finally we combined the two.
Ace was a huge help, showing Zappa what to do but that hasn’t worked on its own up to now. He needed that little bit extra.
He’s now quite happy getting wet up to his belly, in the lovely shallow water entry I’m lucky enough to have at the training field.
I’m not pushing him to swim yet - that will take some time. I also want to make sure we don’t go too far the other way and overexcite him around water, it’s all about fostering that confident and neutral approach to all things.
When he’s ready, he will show me. And then, like with the car, there will be no stopping him!
Important lessons for Zappa.
Sit steady.
Don’t chase.
Nothing to do with you.
But, no matter how steady, ALWAYS on a lead.
We’ve been practising non verbal cues today and basic obedience without using words. I love this exercise for quite literally taking all the noise out of training, sharpening the focus and tuning the dog right in to the handler.
Welly socks optional.
🐾 8 months old 🐾
An important part of Zappa’s training is teaching him to slow down and do nothing. He is a 100mph dog: he thinks and does everything at maximum pace so it is essential that he learns to channel this and save his energy for when it is needed.
We spend some time on most walks just taking in the surroundings. Through this, Zappa learns that being out and about doesn’t always equate to being busy and running around.
As a keen young dog, he is learning to switch on and off and how to be calm and quietly take in what is going on around him.
Today we watched horses, dogs, birds and listened to the noise of the nearby house build.
#labrador #8monthsold #blacklabrador #gundog #traineegundog #gundogtraining #steadiness #steadydog #doingnothing #petgundog #thepetgundog #accreditedpetgundoginstructor
Zappa has been enjoying his training up at the field. We have been working on his delivery of the dummy and his steadiness: he did so well today!
He even forgave me the little mistake in my casting off, which I’m hoping my clients will spot 😉
Comment below if you can see it…
Time to polish those lines out on memory retrieves next 👍🏻🐾
Out and about enjoying off lead sniffing time 🐾
A loose lead doesn’t have to be a long lead.
Keeping your lead short means your dog is less likely to make mistakes and you are more able to correct them effectively.
Good boy, Zappa. 🐾
🐾 Loose lead walking 🐾
I’ve been very pleased with Zappa’s loose lead walking. We laid the foundations early and this really helped.
I’ve also been using the Lez Graham Slip and Clip lead in his training, which I love.
https://gencon-allin1.co.uk/shop/slip-clip-lead/
Zappa spends most of his walk on the clip lead at the moment, where he is still young. However, I can easily switch to the slip lead for short periods when I need more control, and as I am teaching Zappa about how I will communicate with him on a slip lead.
The switch can be made without ever having Zappa off the lead, which means he is always safe. It’s an awesome bit of kit and it’s really taken the stress out of lead training.
Loose lead walking practise for Zappa. We’ve also been working on an automatic sit when I stop walking. Well done, little pup!
