Kavik

Personally I am glad that Diesel is of the temperament that I was able to easily walk through Paws in the Park without worrying about what his reaction would be to a large crowd of people and dogs. He got lots of attention and loved it He is such a social doofus of a dog. OK would have liked more fire and drive so I could harness it for obedience competition, but it is nice to have one dog to take to social events. We got to watch as Steve Austin showed off some of his protection trained dogs (Rotty and Malinois - gosh it is a nice looking Mal!) and a retired service dog and new pup as well. All of those dogs walked through the crowd of people with no problem and certainly they did not fire up at any of the crowd - did exactly as they were supposed to do.

Thanks After watching LOTS of seesaw performances on Youtube, I really like this one. Not as breathtaking as those amazing sliding seesaws done by some Border Collies, but more controlled and attainable for me with my first attempt at a proper seesaw performance Casima's Anna also has a great seesaw very similar to this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0GVWHZWqTo

Here is our full height seesaw performance. Getting there - I would like him driving ahead more and I need to fade the target. I decided to change to 2o2o contact instead of 4on.

Generous offer Jeff - Can't wait to hear the results

Is it mainly when out walking the dogs that you feel you may run into problems? What will happen when you walk your other dogs or do you plan to walk them all together? From Rex's description of his dog it sounds like a serious dog that does not like strangers at all - is that really the kind of dog you would want? I wouldn't as it would require a good deal of vigilence on every walk in case a person comes close - worse than a dog which is dog aggressive (I have one of those - not fun)as you can often avoid other dogs, and aggression towards people is much more serious. Have you handled a dog that fires up at people at all?

ANY type of dog that is expected to work needs to be trained for it - some breeds have more drive or instinct for the work but that alone is not enough. Jeff gave the example of a sheepdog. There are many sheepdog/herding breeds, but you would not expect a herding dog to do what is asked of it with no training - it might show good instinct (necessary or won't be any good) but you can't expect it to take direction and do exactly as asked with no training. Or retrieving, pointing, etc.

Those times are tricky! You just have to trust your training and hope when dogs pop up suddenly. If yours isn't aggressive I guess the worst that will happen is your dog will try to play. If it doesn't work out the way you wanted I just go - oh well, not anybody's fault as it was sudden and unexpected. I will turn around and walk the other way if a dog comes out of nowhere but it doesn't always work if the other dog comes rushing over off lead.

Yes that is the kind of focus work I was talking about How close are you to the other dogs when you do your focus work? Maybe you are too close and they are too much of a distraction for him at the moment. I would go further away until you find the spot where he will focus on you instead of trying to get to the other dog. With my DA dog this means I go into a driveway so I can get enough space.

Have you done any focus work? Teaching the dog to focus on you? Best to start in a low distraction area with no other dogs. I like to use a clicker for focus work (you don't have to) and click and treat when the dog looks at you. When you can do this at home and you can put it on cue you can start taking it on the road and do it with other dogs at a distance. While your dog is not aggressive, the technique I use for getting focus on me around other dogs is explained well in Click to Calm: Healing the Aggressive Dog by Emma Parsons - the book uses clicker focus techniques and I use it with all of my dogs including those that are not aggressive towards other dogs. I like it because it gives the dog a choice and the correct choice of paying attention to you instead of the other dog is rewarded. That way you are not constantly trying to bribe or talk your dog out of paying attention to the other dog (you don't have to stick a treat under their nose) but they can look at the other dog and then choose to look at you instead of pulling towards the other dog.

I think showdog raises a really good point here. Your other dog will still need to be walked - will you do this with another dog (which will be more protective and how will you control both if there is an incident), walk your current dog on its own (still have the same problem you have now if you get worried something may happen) or not walk your other dog.

I use a ladder for much the same thing - for understanding where their feet are etc

Great shot! I haven't seen many Rotts at agility

Like these? http://www.affordableagility.com/cavaletti.htm

You are talking about weaving poles The distance between poles is not adjustable. With some designs you can slant the poles or make a channel for training. Here are some Aussie sites http://www.airdogs.com.au/agility/product....=252&page=1 http://www.agilityaustralia.com/ and some US sites http://www.affordableagility.com/WEAVES.htm http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...p;ParentCat=336 http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...p;ParentCat=336

Interestingly Diesel has the worst and slowest recall of my lot. Kaos and Zoe are responsive and fast. Diesel is improving, but I don't get the same response as with the others. Sometimes a correction helps speed him up considerably. Don't need to do that with the others. Completely different temperaments. ETA: Diesel is also the least body sensitive - which can be both good and bad.

Vickie: - I guess it is all relative

Well it does look impressive in competition http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhGtMLs3GaY

That is very different to what you said corvus, it is easy to see why I got confused You should have been more clear. ETA: Just not sure what else I was supposed to think when you said his name IS his emergency recall (exactly what you said) but that you also talk to him using his name in conversation just because you like to talk and you don't always want him to respond to his name? You said you use his name for his recall, in everyday speech for no reason except to talk to him and his emergency recall, so that is what I assumed you did as that is what you said. I'm sure you know that to the dog using the word 3 times sounds is effectively a different word to saying it once (sit as opposed to sitsitsit). The recall is no different to any other command in that respect. I do not use an emergency recall command. I have their name to get their attention and 'informal' check in type recall and their formal recall command (Diesel's is Come, Kaos's is Here) where I expect them to come in quickly to a particular position.

I also use "OFF" for get off the furniture and use "DROP" for lie down in obedience work.

No no, feel free to discuss. I just did it like Leslie Nelson said. I say my dogs' names quite a lot. Usually to get their attention, but not always. Sometimes I just say it to greet because I'm a verbal creature by nature. Inevitably, my dogs' names lose their sharp edge over time, even though periodically I might sit there with a pile of treats and go "Kivi" *treat* until they are all gone. I just say that name too often without a good reward. I see the ER as an easy way to preserve a good recall, although as I said, I think it still needs maintenance. At least I'm not saying it a dozen times a day just to give my dog a pat on the head or have them look at me or something, though. I talk way too much around my animals. I don't really need or want them to pay attention to me every time I say their name. Kivi's name IS his ER, but just said in a certain way with a certain pitch. I don't need him to pay attention to me every time I say his name, but he can differentiate tone, and I would like him to respond to his name when I say it in a particular way. I have a "look at me" way I say his name and a "we're going to do something exciting" way to say his name and a "I have roast beef" way to say his name as well as a "just wanted to touch base" way to say his name and so on. IMO you are creating confusion by doing this. Either you want the dog to respond EVERY time you use a command (in this case the dog's name) or you don't want them to respond. I DO want my dogs to respond to their name when I say, so I do not just talk to them using their name when I don't want a response. ETA: it is responses that these that make you tend to sound inconsistent.

I agree with SBT Dogs with plenty of drive can be frustrating if you are not used to harnessing all that energy, but once you know how to use it rather than fight it, they are great dogs with quick responses for training.

poodlefan raises another reason I use a crate at trials. Kaos gets very excited when at trials - lots to look at, smell and do, and he knows he will be doing something fun. If he is in his crate he relaxes and remains fresher for his time in the ring, he has his down time in there. And he would not take kindly to a dog coming up to him if he was tethered.

Whoops! That is too funny

good luck shantiah

Food reinforcement is useful in conditioning puppies to the stimulus/response, but should be gradually phased out, as it does not produce reliable service in a dog. Training a dog to be obedient does not rely on "what the dog is interested in", but teaches a dog to obey (no matter what else they are interested in). Needing more tasty morsels to keep a dog "interested" is not what I would call obedience training. But each to their own (I thought Huskies had strong pack instincts, so should be quite motivated to please the leader rather than be waited on??) You do know that working service dogs like those in AQIs/customs/SAR etc are rewarded on the job with food or a game of tug right