Something Waggin' Train Your Dog Month Challenge

So, on January 3, Pamela at Something Wagging posted the Something Waggin' Train Your Dog Month Challenge. I immediately jumped on the bandwagon (could you imagine me not?) and stated

Oh, this is a great idea!
I’d like to teach Elka how to close a door. I’d also like to teach her the every so cute “say your prayers”. We’ll see if I make headway on both, or either!

See, January is what the Association of Pet Dog Trainers has designated as Train Your Dog month. On that site, they state "We selected January as the perfect month because so many dogs and puppies are adopted or purchased from breeders and brought home during the winter holidays. Our desire is to help these new pet parents start off the new year right with their newest family member", which I think is great, and I definitely support!

Elka tends to be a big fan of training sessions, because she loves treats! When she hears the clicker rattle as I get it out, she comes running, and watches treat preparation with enthusiastic interest.

Book Review: The Thinking Dog, by Gail Tamases Fisher

I try not to do review posts back to back, but I couldn't wait any longer to talk about this book!

The Thinking Dog, by Gail Tamases Fisher, is a book that I wish somebody had handed me when I first got Elka. Technically, it's a book about switching to clicker training with your dog, after having used traditional methods.  In actuality, it's that book, but also just fine as a starter manual.

Command Clinic: Go to your Bed

Elka is allowed on the furniture.  I declared this early in our relationship.  There are, however, times it would be really useful for Elka to lay on her own bed.  When the couches and chairs are full of humans, for instance.

If all of the "comfy" spots are taken, Elka will frequently pace around for the entirety of the time, sometimes soliciting play or pets, sometimes not.  Judicious application of a Kong or Monster Mouth frequently helps.  But having her realize she can lay down on her bed would help a lot more! I mean, really, I can't blaming Elka for preferring the furniture; it's clearly warmer and more comfy. However, we've begun to work, in earnest, on "go to your bed!"

Command Clinic: Teaching a new trick

When I teach Elka  a new trick, it happens for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes it's because I see or hear about what another dog can do, and I think "Well, Elka can do that."  Sometimes, some behavior she's already exhibiting is something that I wand to shape and encourage into a complete behavior.

Whether you're using a clicker or not, you need to have criteria.  You have the finished product in mind, and have to have an idea of what steps you want your dog to correctly take in order to reach that product.

"Find it" is something Elka already knows, depending on the context.  She knows the names of a few of her toys (Gumby, Pokey, ball, etc.) and I can say "Where's Gumby?  Find it!" And she'll find Gumby and bring him to me.  We in fact play the "Where's Gumby" game for some indoor fun; I have her down-stay in the kitchen and I hide Gumby in the living room, and then release her.

Then I heard about the Kyra Sundance Trick Dog title, and thought, "Well, Elka can do that."  I'm confident she has Novice in the bag (and already have a willing witness lined up), and am more or less confident about the Intermediate, but thought we ought to brush up, and perhaps add some more.  You can always add more tricks.

So, I saw the "Which hand holds the treat?" and thought it could be a different "Find it" context. To teach it, I have Elka sit, show her a treat, rub it between my hands, and then close each hand into its own fist, with the treat in one of them.  She can sniff both hands all she wants, and lick; I decided that my criteria for the trick to be successful is for Elka to put her paw on the hand that holds the treat, as it seemed much clearer to me than just nosing or licking.  Sometimes she will sniff the correct hand for a good long time before bringing the paw into play, but really, we've only had two sessions of it.  Unless I have it in my teeth, I can't use the clicker for this particular trick, as both hands are already occupied, so I'm using "Yes!" as a marker for when Elka uses her paw correctly.

Command Clinic: Down

Hello and welcome to the second "Command Clinic" installment.  To continue with the "basic commands", if you've already mastered Sit, "Down" is the next logical progression.  If you have little carpeting in your house, and a lot of wood and tile like I do, your dog probably will already Down from a Sit very frequently.  More reliably than she will hold a sit, perhaps? I know we've certainly encountered that.

The Clicker Crossover: Paradigm Shift

I wish I'd picked up a clicker sooner.

A month or more ago, when I got food for Elka at the Tractor Supply Company (the only place around here with Taste of the Wild food), I saw a bunch of clickers hanging on one of those little plastic racks in the aisle, and thought, "hey, why not?"  Why not sooner, is the question, really.