Kavik

I guess that depends on how risky you like to be. If your dog does not take challenges well, or say dogs running up and getting in his face (Kaos is like this), why on earth would you take the dog to a dog park where lots of the dogs do this? It is just asking for trouble.

I'm so sorry Life is just not fair, he was only a baby!

I agree with dogmad - it doesn't sound like the dog park is a great place to take your dog given that he has staring contests which then escalate.

I didn't think you were allowed to touch your dog like that in the obedience ring? Very neat though!

This week: With Kaos (who is recovering from a leg injury) I am working on: * Hold an object (currently using a toilet paper roll :laugh: ) * Put head in a bucket With my puppy I am working on lots of things: * Stand on (all 4 feet on) - dog bed, travel plank * Front feet on - perch (and extending that to perchwork where he moves his hind feet while the front feet stay on perch), small kids chair * Balance discs - front feet on one balance disc, back feet on another balance disc * 4 feet in - box * Through a hoop * Around a laundry basket * Under my legs which are raised on a chair * Walk backwards I use shaping :)

I have been free shaping my puppy since I got him home. Lots of foundation stuff and body awareness stuff - perchwork, balance discs, 4 feet in a box, on a dog bed (my substitute for a table :laugh: ), front feet on a kids chair, through a hoop, around the laundry basket. Front feet on perch was pretty easy, getting the back feet on the balance discs is more challenging (I have front feet on one, and back feet on another). I am using a marker word, feed in position multiple times then give release cue and throw a treat to reset so they can come back and try again. The get on a dog bed has transitioned seamlessly to the low table at agility so far, offered it straight away, happy to stay there until released.

I got the impression my vet doesn't want to do it either. I didn't end up getting it done, being several times the cost of vaccination

I was quoted a similar price - around $200, at my local vet.

I do agility, and have been to several clubs and classes. This is what influences me. * Distance from home * Cost * Size of club - this can influence how much equipment comes out, how much input you can have into classes, instructors, help available * Aims of club - some clubs cater more for competition, some are more for fun * Instructors - handling style and quality - I want to train with people who are better than me who can help me, and who have an understanding of the type of training/handling that I use * Flexibility if I want to do something differently

At trials, there are often 3 rings set up at Castle Hill, next to each other but separate.

Happy Birthday Reggie!

It takes longer for a very small, light dog to bring the seesaw down. What a great photo!

Cattle Dog? Lab? GSD? Kelpie? In the end though it doesn't really matter, what matters is the dog's temperament.

With offering all of their behaviours at once - don't reward and wait them out. I got this a lot with Zoe, as well as anticipation of the next cue, my fault. Eg sit to beg. If I've asked her to sit and she goes into beg I just ignore that and wait til she goes back into a sit and reward the sit. With duration, do you have a release cue? I have a release cue as well as marker word and sometimes clicker. I mark for action and reward for position - so for stationary exercises (eg I am shaping a drop with my puppy) I mark when he goes into a drop (at first when he moved his head down etc) and then give the reward low. Now that he will drop, I mark when he goes into a drop and reward in the drop with multiple rewards and then give my release cue and either throw a treat to reset so he can have another go or tug.

Rather than use your treat pouch (dogs get to know those very well!) have you tried having your treats in your pocket or in a container somewhere else? If in a container ask eg for a sit, then release and run to the container and get reward. For me, the number of rewards depends on several things: How well does the dog know the exercise? How distracting is the environment? How well is the dog performing the exercise (do I want to improve performance)? Rather than thinking about it in terms of phasing out rewards, you could think about it as making them work harder to earn rewards. So if the dog is performing the exercise as quickly and proficiently as you would like, you could add duration or distractions etc before giving the reward, make him work harder. Probably different in obedience, but in agility I always use rewards. Before my run I get my dog focused and excited and ready to work with fun games and running and chasing me, for food rewards. Depending what I want to reward in my turn, I may reward at the end of the sequence or at a particular obstacle that I want to improve, or a small part of the sequence with difficult handling. I reward sequences and obstacles mostly with a toy.

You could start at home with a ball or tug, then go to more exciting locations. With food, instead of having it in your hand, have you tried having it somewhere else (pocket, container on shelf etc) and giving the cue then giving the reward? It seems to me the issue is more about the dog being able to see the reward/knowing it is right there, then the type of reward you are using.

I always start out with a light weight collar. I've only had one dog that had an issue with their collar when I initially put it on as a puppy(Kaos - who got aggro and tried to attack his collar!), the others I put it on and maybe they scratched it a bit but they soon got used to it. I can't remember what I did with Kaos - probably put it on for short periods and then left it on. With leads, I also start with a light weight lead, let them drag it around, off you go. Use treats to distract them.

Maybe a vet check is in order? Hips? or soreness somewhere? If the dog is not sore. I wouldn't be giving the cue if the dog is unlikely to do it and the owner can't get the dog to do it - it will poison the cue. If the dog won't drop in class and the owner cannot get the dog to drop in class, then maybe they should work on it at home and not do the exercise in class yet. So they've tried luring (under something? the right direction into the dog and back?) and placing it in position, they could try shaping it. I've just taught my puppy to drop via shaping. The initial stage was a bit frustrating (as it can be with shaping) but once he figured out what I wanted it progressed quickly.

My name is Kavik and I am a lead collector (among other things) 2 x Fibre Tek leads 3 x Gripper leads (2 different lengths) 1 x Black Dog lead 1 x Kumalong lead 1 x Rogz puppy lead 2 x braided fleece tug leads (for the competition dog who doesn't tug at comps ) several old cotton leads I no longer really use, kept for extras, and other various uses (holding tunnel bags for one :laugh: )

I am using Black Dog leads and Gripper leads at the moment :)

I started off using "Free" with Kaos, now also use "Break"

That's him :)

I've always switched my pups straight over to what I want to feed them (currently using Advance), I have never found out what the breeder fed them before.

I know you can get them from Eddy, who runs JRTs, in Sydney. He makes a lot of equipment for Sydney people and I have some weave poles from him, he can make any configuration.

If you teach heelwork as a separate exercise (with focus/attention) and on a collar, there shouldn't be a problem with using a different tool for just walking. You can also improve your dog's loose leash walking if you want to, although I understand this is hard with kids in tow! (I have two little kids).