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Where should I go next?

2K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  Deb 
#1 ·
Ronin is now 12 weeks old and still continues to impress me!! We have him trained to sit and stay at the door until we give a release command, he sits and waits patiently while we put on/take off his leash. He is leash trained and walks perfectly on a loose leash. We have started a formal heel, which, so far, he's doing pretty well but we're still at the first stage (sitting at a heel position, haven't added any steps yet). He knows sit, down, stay and the words "nice"(reminder to be softer when taking food from hands) "off", and "no." We're working on "eyes" (for focusing on me) but he's doing very well with this already. His recall training is going very well, but the only thing that stops him from responding immediately are deer bones (next door neighbor throws them for his dogs after he hunts, and a few always end up in our yard. I'm not too happy about it but what can ya do?) So we're working on recall with distractions.
However, in between recall training and heeling, I'm at a loss as to what to do next. I'll be taking him to puppy classes soon, but I enjoy the time spent training this youngster and I dont want to just bore him with the same 'ol same 'old, if you know what I mean. I'm just not exactly sure where to go to next. Should I start doing some basic rally obedience commands, even though he's not perfected the heel? Should I teach him some tricks, like "spin" or "shake"? Should I work on longer "stays"? He has stays down pretty well, but there's always room for improvement.
What do you all suggest??
 
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#3 ·
Hahaha! I guess I am fortunate! Although when he starts getting bored with his training, he starts acting up. He'll chew on things he's not supposed to, he'll try biting our hands again and challenge us in small ways, all because he'said not getting that mental exercise again, he's a busy one!

We do have a place for tracking, agility, rally, and schutzhund, but you have to take and pass 3 classes (Basic puppy, advanced puppy, and one more but I can't remember what it was called) before you can do anything else with them. That's the place I'll be taking him to for his puppy class, I'm pretty sure.
 
#4 ·
I'd start solidifying what he knows. For example, the handlers all thought their dogs knew the stay command. They could go up to six to fifteen feet straight in front of their dogs and the dogs would stay. But when I made them put them in a stay and just walk to the side of their dog, not moving away, guess what happened? Every dog broke their stay to face their owners. Forget walking behind them or all the way around them. The dogs didn't really know stay. But they were so proud that they had gone past what I'd told them to... If your puppy is in a sit and you step back three feet and tell him to down, will he? Or go back into a sit?
 
#5 · (Edited)
I wouldn't focus on the static exercises at this age .

I would definitely focus on the moving exercises , heeling and RECALLS.

Many dogs don't know a recall if there is any change into how it is asked for.

Command "come" means that the dog presents himself in front of you , looks to you for the next command.

Used to do clinics for these things for people that were in competitive obedience trialing.

You would be surprised that how many dogs were baffled and did not come to a front finish on the recall if the dog was recalled from an angle , or if the dog was behind the handler .

the dog might recall to the backside of the handler , or might be confused and come close to , or at heel , but not the front finish.

keep the dog thinking.

heeling ? what does it mean .
it means that the dog is to walk with you on YOUR left . This places the dog's right shoulder to your left knee.

what happens if you start walking backwards , if even for a few steps?
the dog will switch to YOUR right side so that HIS right shoulder is in line with your right leg.

but , heel means to stay to your left.

see how you can proof an exercise and teach the dog what a command means?

I had one of my dogs Carmspack Rakatan get her CD in 3 consecutive trials with critical judges with a score all over 195,
average 197.5 -- Dog World Award of Canine Distinction .

oh her age ? 6 1/2 months of age . Entered as soon as there was a local trial available AND I went to those trials using public transit --- no car , inner city living , did not even have a driver's licence then.

keep it fun . make the dog think . activity creates brain excitement , walking together forward forges a bond --

static exercises are depressing

recall and heeling are so important

later you can include a pick up and carry --- not retrieval --- pick up a balled up sock , and ask for a return to hand .

with this you can create directional send aways

with this you can ask for a recall without picking up the sock , which should be an asked for command

look at some of the french ring exercises --- campagne exercises

fun and more fun
 
#6 ·
Carmen and Deb are spot on as usual:)One thing not to forget is the importance of leisure time for your pup.Casual strolls off leash in a safe area where he can go at his own pace and use his nose and ears to explore.It's very intense,fun,and satisfying for dogs to just do doggy things regularly.He sounds like a wonderful puppy!
 
#8 ·
Thanks everyone!! You've helped me get out of a little rut, haha! I love being able to get ideas from others on this forum. You guys are great! Glad I found it.
He is a pretty good pup, but he definitely still has his moments and tests my patience! We certainly love him, though, and he gets along very well with his "big sis".
Carmspack I LOVE the idea of making sure actually understands commands, and making sure he thinks. I'll definitely incorporate that.
Deb, I absolutely enjoy the idea of having him practice commands in different situations. I tried it out earlier today, and even he seemed to enjoy me walking around it circles and going different directions while he was in a stay position. Wonderful advice, indeed!
 
#9 ·
Another thing is to take him out to different places and mix letting him walk around and explore and smell things, see new things and adding in some sits, downs and stays. You may find what he knows so well at home won't be so good in new places with distractions all around him. Perfectly normal. He needs to learn sit means sit no matter where he is or what he is doing. It'll help for when you start class and there are all these other dogs and people around. Just make sure to keep it fun.
 
#10 ·
However, in between recall training and heeling, I'm at a loss as to what to do next. I'll be taking him to puppy classes soon, but I enjoy the time spent training this youngster and I dont want to just bore him with the same 'ol same 'old, if you know what I mean. I'm just not exactly sure where to go to next.
How about quantum physics? Ronin sounds like he's up to the task! ;)
 
#11 ·
I wish there was a like button on these forums, I would use them a lot! Squerly's reply was awesome haha!
We just got Ronin his last round of shots, so that's a perfect idea Deb! We have a petland and a Lowe's now too far from the home, I bet they'd be good to practice with new distractions.
 
#12 ·
I'd be careful of Petland or any pet store. Too many untrained pets that walk around in there with oblivious owners who don't watch what their dog is doing. I'd stick to Lowes and other stores that allow pets but don't have a ton of dogs in it. If you have an Academy store, I think almost all of them allow pets. A lot of hardware stores do as well. Call around and find which ones you can take Ronin into.
 
#14 ·
Ah! I didn't think of that! Thanks for the heads up. The hubby and I ended up taking him to our Lowe's today. He did great! We practice sit-stays (I walked around him in circles), and simple recalls and just walking around. I let him sniff around a bit, too, and be curious within reason. He did wonderful! I think what I liked most about it was that it taught me things that he needs to work on more. For instance, two small kids wanted to pet him but he shrunk back. I don't want to force him to love kids or anything, but I don't want him to be too shy, either. He has to work on his down a little more, too. I noticed at the store that half the time he would lay down, but when I would say "Yes!" or "Good boy!" he would jump back up into a sit. I'll probably start focusing more on down-stays than sit-stays to try and help this problem.
He got a lot of praise at the store today, too, which made me proud!

Also, side note Deb, because of you I found the like button! :laugh2:
 
#13 ·
My breeder emphasized to also have them tag along when you are working outside without too much interfering/training, to give them time to explore and learn. This has actually been very fun. Puppy with us when burning yard debris, cleaning up stuff outside etc. That's how they learn that fires are hot and to avoid walking in smoke, etc. I love seeing them learn and they are way smarter to stay out of trouble than you may think. You don't always have to present the world in a structured way. Same with human kids.
 
#15 ·
LOL, Glad I was able to help you find the like button! With Enya as a pup she wasn't interested in meeting people. If they asked to pet her, I'd say it's up to her. I'd tell her to 'say hi' and wait. If she didn't move I'd tell them 'maybe next time'. I never forced it or allowed them to pet her if she didn't walk over to them. About the time she was close to three and a half or four months she suddenly decided she wanted to be petted and would walk over to them. She just turned seven months and no ones asked to pet her for at least a month now. She hasn't been able to figure out why yet.
 
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