Kavik

Just an idea, what about trying TOT?

poodlefan That is a good point, but a lot of pet owners lose interest if they do the same thing all the time and it is not seen to be 'fun'. In classes geared towards pet owners, I think you have to include some non essential 'fun' tricks such as rollover, shake etc as it helps to keep owners motivated, and it is fun to teach the dog and they like to show it to friends etc.

Umm the way pack structure works is that the more dominant dog is the boss . . . not the other way around. You cannot change their temperament like that - they determine it not you. IMO it doesn't matter WHO is dominant, what is important is that there are no problems because of it.

I have seen a video of a JRT doing Schutzhund, but I can't seem to find it . . . still looking . . .

They are more my size!

Very cute

Ooh can we see pics My manager breeds Jap Spitzes - cheeky little buggers Go slow and work on socialistaion, basic obedience and foundation work. While you can't do much equipment work as he is just a baby, there is some foundation work for later agility you can do. That is what I am doing with my Kelpie at the moment.

Beginning of 2000 I think - March? or something like that.

I thought it had to be a Mal as surely Kelpies wouldn't be there! But it looks quite small too, maybe the angle?

We had a short break when I went away for Xmas. Lucky Kaos got to come with us, go to the beach and river and have his first encounters with WATER! Which he loved but was still unsure about going deep enough to swim. Now we are back to our normal routine, my club starts back next Tuesday (9 January).

So that covers the practical training only? Or are all the guest speakers there at that time as well? One of my favourite things about the course was the guest speakers - I'm hoping you guys get to meet all those personalities too!

Do you still have to go to Melbourne for the workshops/guest speakers? I did the course in 2000 and went to Melbourne one weekend a month throughout the course ( + 1 week at the start) and was able to do my practicals (class instruction) in Sydney.

It does look like a Kelpie! Don't think there are many over there though? Nobody I know over there (relatives) know what they are.

I use a treat bag, with the treats in a ziplock bag so the treat bag doesn't get too gross. I use cheese as treats. I have tried other things such as various meats but prefer cheese as I find the smell of the meat on my hands gross, especially in warmer weather Also because I sometimes 'spit' food with Diesel's heeling and prefer the taste of cheese.

Hi Denise It sounds good! Lia

Have emailed you myszka I have stopped being bothered by people thinking I am weird when dog training :D Sometimes I go off and do my own thing instead of going in class - I did some random heeling out of class when Diesel's attention needed perking up, do my retrieving as well as my send aways and contact training with Kaos (don't take him in class much at all). Some other people do their own thing. As long as you aren't interfering with others they don't have a problem. They may think you are weird though

A restrained recall is where someone holds the dog while you move away from the dog, and when you have the dog keen to get to you, you call the dog and the restraining person lets the dog go. Builds up speed and enthusiasm nicely I did it for a while with Diesel to help with speed. I still sometimes do it with Kaos. They thought I was mad :D because I was not doing the usual OB recall of sit-stay-come. Unfortunately it requires two people though. I use the restrained recall for a few things now. I use it to teach the tunnel and weaves in agility as well as recall in general, and when teaching the send-away for agility I restrain the dog before letting him go to the target. Also one of the ways I am trying to speed up Diesel's retrieve. They do break for summer, next week I think is the last week, but they don't break for long, can't remember dates but sometime in Jan. Will we see you there next year? Though you will have to watch what equipment you have on - I don't think they will be that tolerant.

Most clubs have a certain way that they prefer to train, and instruct accordingly. My club allows me to do things differently to the way they do it, but I do get some strange looks and exasperation from some of the instructors. Spitting food for example and for some reason they thought a restrained recall was strange :D Most that I have been to use food primarily, and encourage toys etc. I think this is because food is easier to instruct for and not many people know how to train in drive properly.

Interesting topic! I've found recalls are certainly easier with some dogs than others! My Kelpies have very good recalls - they are very responsive and quick and keep an eye on where I am. Running the opposite direction speeds them up very well. Diesel's recall is improving, but is not as good as the Kelpies'. I think it is a combination of a few things, different personality, less motivated, more interested in playing with other dogs. Until I am comfortable with their level of recall, I keep them on a long lead or at least a trailing lead. Interestingly, one thing I think may contribute (although it sounds contradictory) is that I gave Diesel less freedom than the Kelpies when young. Not sure why, maybe it was the size thing and worrying about people being scared of Diesel. But I was less worried about letting the Kelpies run around and come back than Diesel. One thing that I have found useful with Kaos - I started this as soon as I started taking him out on walks. I would allow him to wander to the end of the lead, go up to the park fence and see the dogs there with no interference, and when he turned to me or came to me, click and treat. So it wasn't long before he would go and say a quick hello and run back to me. Whereas Diesel would spend the whole time by the fence wanting to make friends :D

Well said K9

Like wheres my rock I see heel as a position. If the dog is wide, lagging, forging, whatever, it is not in heel position. Generally I do a lot of random heeling, so if my dog is out of position I will change direction to keep the dog guessing and on his toes. So if my dog is heeling wide I will do right turns or right about turns without a verbal command. I taught my finish in small increments moving a small distance and direction away from Diesel and then saying 'heel' and getting him to come to the heel position (flip/pivot style finish) - so this also means that if he is wide in a stationary position I can tell him to heel and he will pivot and scoot in closer to me.

If my dog is not in the correct position (eg not close enough at heel or recall) I reissue the command for the position I want. So I can adjust heel position by saying "Heel!" and front position with "Come!" I do use a Hold command in initial retrieve stages as it is a different command to Fetch - you can have the dog hold any object this way, and heel the dog holding the object etc.

Bindo, I bet you go to the same place as me With a GSD and Kelpie, I often look out of place among the Schnauzers, Aussie Shepherds and Goldies

There are 20-30 people in the trialling Tuesday night class at my club. Give or take LOL. I don't attend the Saturday pet obedience classes so I don't know how many people go there. There are more people in the pet classes (when I went when Diesel was a pup for socialisation) but I haven't been since Diesel was about 4 months old.

There are maybe 20-30? people in my club - it is quite small. I would say out of those only a handfull have not competed before - there are only a few newbies to trialling.