Give your dog a Job!

[Discoetheque]

I've recently started something called 'Trick-A-Week' with my own dogs. In addition to our regular obedience training and exercise, I'll teach them a new task at the start of the week. It can be anything ranging from learning to wave hello to learning names of specific items, carrying items from one room to a person in another room, or opening or shutting a door. We'll spend the week honing and tightening that trick, and then start fresh with a new one the following week. I like it because it's 1) something I can do interactively with my dogs 2)something I can do, even with my limited or sporadic time 3) They seem to enjoy the mental task of learning something new and 4)a lot of these skills turn out to be pretty useful

[MaggieRoseLee]

Originally Posted by Discoetheque

I've recently started something called 'Trick-A-Week' with my own dogs. In addition to our regular obedience training and exercise, I'll teach them a new task at the start of the week. It can be anything ranging from learning to wave hello to learning names of specific items, carrying items from one room to a person in another room, or opening or shutting a door. We'll spend the week honing and tightening that trick, and then start fresh with a new one the following week. I like it because it's 1) something I can do interactively with my dogs 2)something I can do, even with my limited or sporadic time 3) They seem to enjoy the mental task of learning something new and 4)a lot of these skills turn out to be pretty useful

I just read your post to my girls and they want to come live with you for awhile.

[Cheerful1]

I like the idea of helping with the recycling.

Right now we've just done "find it" with Joey.

What might be construed as a job is when he wakes me up daily around 3AM for "house patrol". We go downstairs, I tell him "check it out", he walks around the first floor, then we go back up to sleep.

We did not teach him this; he did this in his former household; he checked in on the children all the time, and it carried forward to us.

[Discoetheque]

Originally Posted by MaggieRoseLee

I just read your post to my girls and they want to come live with you for awhile.

Lol...we have a good time over here

[fishernut]

Great thread!

Yesterday I decided that Shovel needs to learn something other than just the "sit", "down", "stay", etc., that we've been working on every day. He'll be 4 months old next week, and has these commands down well (well, some better than others... )

I thought it would be fun to teach him to close my kitchen cupboard doors for me, and I was AMAZED at how quickly he picked it up!!! When I'm standing right next to the open door, and say "close" he will push it shut with his nose!
Now I just have to work up to being able to do it from a distance--ie: send him into the kitchen to close the cupboard doors...

Fun stuff for me AND Shovel!

[shepherdmom]

Originally Posted by DarkStars

Very interesting thread! I just came across this; I'm a little late posting but one thing we've recently started with our two was metioned a couple times as 'find it'. I like it because it's something I can do with both dogs at the same time.

We play like this: I show them the toy, then I have both dogs sit and stay in one room - while I walk into another room to hide the toy (under a blanket/chair/on a windowsill/ on top of a stand), they have to stay/sit until I release them to go 'find it'. They LOVE playing this game! I agree that they need mental stimulation, because something seems to come alive in them when we play this game and they 'win'! They really are so proud of themselves!

When the kids were younger (they are grown now) they loved hide and seek. We soon figured out that Shadow was better at it than any of the humans. He would always tell me where the kids were hiding. I could say find and the name and he would alway go straight to that person. The kids thought this was a blast and he was always willing to be "it". haha It kept both the kids and the dog busy for hours.

[Zisso]

My two always carry their own water, portable water dishes, extra leashes and poop bags when we go anywhere.

They pick up their toys from the yard every afternoon because too many have been stolen and they want to keep what is left. Funny thing is, I have not trained this. Nadia always has a toy in her mouth so when she comes in the house, she brings a toy in. Zisso has been picking up on this and doing the same.

[Olivers mama]

I finally got off my duff & started reading some of these informational threads - this is GREAT!

Did most of you start your dogs off with their 'jobs' as young dogs? Ours is about 3 years old (we're guessing) & have had her about 1 1/2 years. I am TIRED of dealing with her obedience training for the moment. I can picture her learning to carry sox into the other room, so we'll get started there. (Or rather, hubby will have to start it - she refuses to listen to anything I tell her.)

After sox, do you just move on to similar things or try something entirely different? She likes the hide-&-seek, but she's not very good at it.