kitty

thanks corvus!! Im thinking maybe if i use tot it might help with her attention. We r babysitting a friends puppy for the weekend, so mayb i should work on any attention molly gives me while the other puppy is around.

yeah huski - sometimes she'll just get vocal and chuck a mini tanty. but maybe i don't take her further enough away.... (which is easy enough to do outside in my own backyard!) very good point though.

we use NILIF as much as possible. Before food, before patting, being allowed on the couch etc. When she has zoned in, even if i touch her on the flank to try and change her focus, she is still fixated on what it is. If it's next doors dog i will get some focus every now and then (like she's looking at me wanting me to go play with her) and i try and reward any focus on me.

thanks Huski - i find it hard to explain. It's literally like she just completely zones out when there is a distraction. To be fair to her though, people and other dogs are pretty decent distraction to have as a puppy! When she is at home just with me, she has fairly equal drive for all of the things. I just had a thought - what about clicker training 'watch' or something similar? whenever she looks at me, C&T and then work distractions into that? Maybe it's my lack of confidence that she WONT focus on me thats contributing as well?

will happily work for food, toys, pats, verbal affirmation - anything! she's most attentive at home. (except if she's in the backyard and the puppy next door is out in its backyard too) i just can't explain it - the second there is any distraction her brain literally switches off, and she just becomes completely tunnel visioned on the distraction.

really high value treat like steak + minimal distraction (eg. someone standing like 10m away) - ZERO interest. like literally nothing. At puppy training she would literally stand on the full length of the leading, looking away for me for up to 20-30 minutes sometimes, regardless of what treats i had, and how many different ways i tried to break her interest in the distraction. Thanks guys - i love that i can get feedback and ideas from DOL!!

thanks for all the great advice guys. She gets 2-3 short 5 minutes sessions a day, and i always finish with a game of fetch or tug, or something similar. Huski - we've tried every food i can think of. kibble, liver treats, devon, bacon, raw steak, roast chicken, yoghurt drops, cheese etc. I have tried both low and high drive food, and every one gets met with literally ZERO response when there are distractions around. Molly's distractions are pretty much only other dogs and people, oh and walks. eta - just to clarify - by fetch - it's never a proper game of fetch. She will bring the ball back maybe 60% of the time

hey huski - yeah we definately are going to see Jane - might not be for a month though - we just bought a house, so we're still crazy busy and a little bit tight on cash at the moment, but i want to set the ball rolling and at least work on it if i can. at puppy school, i would literally have to push the food in her mouth, and she would just hold it in there, and she would spit it out. she loves treats when we're inside, but as soon as you add one single distraction, she just completely zones out to anything else. I just cant figure out what her drive is. I'm not sure what else there is other than treats, toys & pats (oh and verbal affirmation )

she's getting close to 7 months old now - didn't realise how late in the year it was!!!! I don't necessarily want CONSTANT attention, but more when i ask for it - i would like to be able to command more attention than other animals, dogs etc

following on from my previous thread on loose lead walking, i thought i would ask for some tips to help molly with her distractions. I want to be THE MOST irresistable, exciting, tempting, wonderful, amazing thing in Molly's life. I want her to WANT to come to me, no matter how many dogs are running around her, how many people are calling her, and what else is going on around her. Molly is not treat, toy or pat oriented, and training in distracting areas is difficult at best. I haven't figured out what her drive is, and i'm all open to suggestions to make myself the most important thing in her universe. Our puppy trainer suggested withholding all food unless she is near/next to me, and feed her dinner a bit at a time only whilst she is giving me attention. She will happily come to us inside the house, but not out the back, because the puppy next door, or other people talking etc distract her. Thanks in advance for any suggestions

Huh? If it's 'common ground' why aren't you allowed to use it? You're not breaking any laws; you have your dog on a lead and are trying to teach her to behave nicely for godssake! I don't get it. I would be questioning whoever told you that... it was the property manager - we live in a gated estate. despite Molly being on lead and everything. Apparently kids are not allowed to play in the area out the front of the houses either. To be fair, we do have quite a large yard, but the backyard isn't exciting to Molly the same way that the front is!

I think the OP said the LLW is perfect in the backyard and home? yep, Shellectra - she does well i found out this morning that we can't train molly out the front of the house, because it's 'common ground' - so i can't focus on the area where she gets hyper excited anymore i'm only allowed to train in the backyard, or outside of the estate - so i don't know how that's going to assist me at all with introducing areas and distractions gradually we just went for a lazy walk though, and Molly actually settled down during the walk, and didn't pull per se.... she just explored, and we actually had a little bit of LLW - but i'm atrributing that to the heat, as opposed to her knowing what she is supposed to be doing practice and persistence makes perfect i guess

very true Huski - very very true

it's like a bunny hop.... she tends to do it when she's not getting her way and she decides she feels like chewing on the lead (which she no longer does). She just hops along for a little while, and i don't really want to encourage it. Ignoring the behaviour and turning and starting again (without stopping) seemed to limit that behaviour. I am proud of us tonight, it was far from fantastic, but it was something. We walked in and out of her breaking point zone, and as time goes on we can further that distance. I think that one of the puzzle pieces i was missing before. i think i'm on the right track, but only time and persistence will tell.... any other ideas or tips that worked for other dogs is still fantastic though! i'll take all the opinions and education i can get on this matter at the moment!

well i did have some success tonight. When i got home from work it was too dark to take Molly for a walk by myself, so i attached her lead to my training belt, and went out to the front of the house, about a step before Molly's 'breaking point. I got her attention instantly, and worked on treating her whilst on a loose lead around me. she getting very good with offering sit and drops without me asking for them, and tonight i was a little suprised. After i treated her just for being near me with a loose lead, i started taking one step'(JUST into her breaking point area). If she bounded ahead, i stopped and sharply turned in the other direction and took one step. She actually did pretty well...What i discovered is that if Molly offered me a drop while the lead was still tense, and i ignored it, she walked in closer to me, and offered a drop again. So i think that's a good start. I did discover one behaviour i didn't like. Molly was staying at my side, but she did start jumping up whilst next to me, to get closer to the treats. I just stopped, sharply turned and ignored the behaviour. I don't want to push it too far at all, and i think that baby steps are the way to go. I got some good attention etc and i'm pleased with the progress.

Molly has absolutely perfect (and i mean perfect - always giving me full attention, and glued to my side) loose lead walking in the backyard.

thanks for the replies everyone.... I will go to the field this afternoon and keep working on it. One thing molly does not have is food drive around distractions. At puppy school we wouldnt feed her the day before and still she had no interest in any food, no matter how high the value of the treat.

thanks PF.... i have been consistent with my training, and i completely agree that i could use a one on one session with a good trainer, obviously to help me more than help Molly! i just don't know what to do in the meantime! i feel pretty helpless, like i'm just missing something really obvious!

Sorry corvus. i wait until she has calmed down, but not just calm, but giving me full attention. but then as soon as i take one step it's all systems go for Molly. Any attempt at stopping for attention after that is gone. She sits perfectly for me to put the lead on, and will sit outside the front door. ETA. we have an infinite collar on the recommendation from our puppy school trainer , and they have a specialised LLW course coming up, but i feel i either need to do it myself, or get a one on one trainer that doesn't have to worry about 5 other dogs in the class. The infinite made no difference whatsoever. Nothing i can do seems to stop her at all from just pulling and pulling. and i know it's not her fault, it's mine...

oh WOW huski - i'm glad i'm not the only one. I feel kind of embarrassed having to ask for help, but if i don't nip it in the bud now, it's just going to get harder the longer i keep doing it. Huski, noticed you are in brisbane, if you don't mind, could you PM me the name of your trainer who worked such wonders? The change of direction thing doesn't really work for Molly, she just pulls in the other direction, and eventually i walk in circles. This afternoon, Molly actually started doing a couple of turns mid walk, like chasing her tail type turns. I have a feeling she is just way way way over-stimulated, but i can't find a middle ground....

i feel a bit bad posting this. I know it's my fault, and i'm not helping the situation, but i'm trying! I've done all the research, we've completed beginner and advanced puppy training, and we simply cannot overcome this hurdle. I know what we need to do, but i feel like i've just hit a brick wall.... Molly, my 6 month old cocker, cannot for the life of her walk on the lead politely. I have tried not letting her advance forward, but she cannot, or will not give me attention so we can move forward. Molly has literally at times, stood at the full length of the lead, looking elsewhere for 20 minutes. We did a lot of attention work with Molly and puppy school, and we got better for a little while, but loose lead walking still wasn't happening. I have tried very very gradually to introduce the new environments. I have absolutely perfect loose lead walking in the house, and in the back yard. I have also had perfect LLW in the garage with the doors completely up, and in the driveway. However the second we step onto the footpath, she just loses it. I also will not go on a walk until she sits for about 5 minutes to calm down, and we always start the walk on my terms. Clicker training we have had success with, but once again, it's that fine line between environments that is the problem. The only way i can describe it, is a brain snap. (although i KNOW that it's my lack of training etc that is causing it, not Molly!) It's like we need some kind of middle ground between the driveway and the footpath that i can train on... but there isn't one! We can't NOT walk her, she needs her daily walks, but i need help on how to handle the situation. Please DOLers... give me advice! I've persevered with a different ways of getting LLW, but with absolutely no success. Molly is a fantastic dog outside of all of this. She gives a lot of focus, and is very attentive (although her recall still isn't 100%). I want to walk with her in harmony.

I've heard good things about the Malaseb, and i agree with cutting out the richer meats in your pups diet. I definately agree with the other posters re: your itchy pup. there are lots of different reasons for itching, and i know how much of a pain it can be.... Molly used to scratch so much, it upset me to see her itching like that! Fingers crossed you have an itch-free pup soon!

hi sunday's child! ooh another cocker! you should come pop into the cocker thread under breed subforums. Molly my girl was itchy when we got her home. If it is a dry skin issue, try Aloveen shampoo and especially the conditioner. Is really good for sensitive skin, and smells divine as well.

hey angelsophie... could be totally irrelevant, but we had a batch like that. Very very oily, and Molly wouldn't touch it. Turns out the OH left it in the car for a day, and i think the heat must have changed it somehow. It smelt a teensy bit different to the old bag we had as well. Suffice to say that bag got thrown out after one try.

gorgeous pic Luke!!!! gotta love those cocker ears