Today was a busy day for Darcy. Hopefully it will make her sleepy tomorrow! First we picked up Justin (our son) from school and she did markedly better in walking. I did remember treats this time but she really has no interest in them when we are outside. Too many squirrels to watch I guess.
When we got home Darcy and Bella had an INSANE play session in the backyard. I don't think I have ever seen them both that tired. They were cashed out on the couch for the rest of the day.
I finally got Darcy up to go to agility where she rocked. We did some simple courses but worked on some new concepts like getting the dogs to take a number of obstacles ahead of them even if you aren't next to them. Before that we did a course that involved both the "a frame" and the dog walk which have been a bit difficult for her. Last class she discovered the joys of the "a frame" but today she really got the dog walk. After multiple tries with me on one side, Polly the instructor on the other side and Kim at the end of the dog walk for her to target on she finally plowed over the thing. It is crazy how fast that dog is. She got to the top and then just left me in the dust. I was so proud of her!
Lastly Darcy stuck around after agility for Puppy Parties. Her boyfriend Capone, the Neopolitan Mastiff, was there so they played like maniacs. Here's an old video of them playing together:
Courtesy of Capone's blog Capone's House. We'll see tomorrow how resiliant she is!
Showing posts with label leash walking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leash walking. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
9/21
No work on Sunday since I was training other people's dogs for about twelve hours but Monday I took Darcy to pick up my son from school and she did great. The walking took a bit longer since we had to keep stopping when she pulled. I probably should have brought treats to help her stay focused on me. Even a trainer forgets!
All the other parents were interested in the new dog. I can't imagine what they think of me bringing first my Rottweiler and now my Pit Bull to preschool. The great thing was that his teachers thought she was very sweet so hopefully I can get to talking to them about using the dogs to teach the kids animal safety and things like that. A lot of the kids are extremely good aroung the dogs (asking if they can pet them and petting the dogs backs) but some just run up and pull on them. I know both Bella (our Rottie) and Darcy have no problem with it but many dogs would. I would also love to get both the dogs in the school for kids to practice reading to. Bella would love it since she adores kids. Darcy just likes everyone.
Anyway, not so much about training in today's post. Kind of sleepy and writing just train of thought stuff. Hopefully it's interesting... :)
All the other parents were interested in the new dog. I can't imagine what they think of me bringing first my Rottweiler and now my Pit Bull to preschool. The great thing was that his teachers thought she was very sweet so hopefully I can get to talking to them about using the dogs to teach the kids animal safety and things like that. A lot of the kids are extremely good aroung the dogs (asking if they can pet them and petting the dogs backs) but some just run up and pull on them. I know both Bella (our Rottie) and Darcy have no problem with it but many dogs would. I would also love to get both the dogs in the school for kids to practice reading to. Bella would love it since she adores kids. Darcy just likes everyone.
Anyway, not so much about training in today's post. Kind of sleepy and writing just train of thought stuff. Hopefully it's interesting... :)
Saturday, August 29, 2009
8/29
Today was the last Canine Good Citizen prep class and we skipped it. Such a good student. My reason sounds so silly too. While folding laundry I jacked up my shoulder and just didn't like the thought of wrestling a 65 pound dog for an hour after that.
To make up for it (a bit) we worked on walking down to the Walgreens near us. Once there we sat outside the door watching all the interesting people walk in and out. At first I just wanted her to associate good things with all these different looking people so I popped her a treat each time she looked at a person. Once she was relaxed I started working with her on basic commands like sit, down and stay.
To work on the walking on leash I found out that we can't use treats much because she ignores them. She is much more interested in finding out if every movement is possibly a squirrel. The method that works best for her is give her only a specific amount of leash and then when that leash she gets tight we come to a stop. As long as she walks on a loose leash she gets to keep walking forward and continue to explore the world. The first half a mile is torture but after that she gets much better.
To make up for it (a bit) we worked on walking down to the Walgreens near us. Once there we sat outside the door watching all the interesting people walk in and out. At first I just wanted her to associate good things with all these different looking people so I popped her a treat each time she looked at a person. Once she was relaxed I started working with her on basic commands like sit, down and stay.
To work on the walking on leash I found out that we can't use treats much because she ignores them. She is much more interested in finding out if every movement is possibly a squirrel. The method that works best for her is give her only a specific amount of leash and then when that leash she gets tight we come to a stop. As long as she walks on a loose leash she gets to keep walking forward and continue to explore the world. The first half a mile is torture but after that she gets much better.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)