grumpette Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 love it grumpette, rotties are definitely photogenic. Hubba hubba Jake. Totally rockin' it in your box. Love the bully in a box pose. PS the collar is bloody impressive as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 He just had another mini meltdown seemingly over nothing. I was sitting at the computer in the lounge and he got off the couch, came over and was shaking and trying desperately to climb on my lap. I haven't worked out an effective dose of the Trazadone yet so I've given him some Clonidine but it will be a while before it has any effect. At the moment I'm sitting on the couch with him on my lap and stroking him to keep him calm. Was he asleep? A bad dream may have shaken him. Did he possibly hear something outside due to the weather? Poor Justice is not having a good day today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 So glad that Justice has settled for the night. May tomorrow be a lot better :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Best Dogs! Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 (edited) love it grumpette, rotties are definitely photogenic. That is a handsome hunk of dog! Where did you get the martingale? Stylish! Thistle nosed her box around the floor, not the most exciting pictures. Think I'll take a small box to the park with me do we can play with it it new challenging surroundings. She's been doing very well people-socially this week so we know puppy classes are gonna be a flop lol. Might as well get some distraction games in. I'm hoping we can play with the classes agility equipment. Met a lady who rescued a boxer pup who has some anxiety issues. Thistle did a good job of only watching it intently. Boxers are so bouncy lol. Too bouncy. The pet store had these cool rope toys you hang from trees they play tug of War with? But they were like $70 and I just got a large surprise bill so decided not to D: thistles not big on tugging anyway. She's currently snoring. Poor Justice he's not having a good day. I've only read about it today but there's some kind of calling spray you can put on thundercoat patches that's meant to help calm a dog down? Edited July 24, 2015 by Thistle the dog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 How is Justice coping today, Snook? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hankdog Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 (edited) Could Justice have arthritis. About 7 months ago Jake started being a bit odd. Not coming upstairs tipped me off that he could have joint pain so we started on cartrophen and he picked up. He was sort of edgy, wanting a cuddle but then pulling away and going off and hiding. I love Jakes collar so much I have thought of having a belt made but I'm probably a bit beyond that stage. Edited July 25, 2015 by hankdog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 It is a great idea to engage Justice with training before you go out, so that hopefully he is mentally tired and relaxes whilst you are out. Just make sure to keep his training episodes random so that he does not associate training with you going out. They are bloody great at associating cues. Everytime I go to the loo the dogs come rushing in, in anticipation of a walk. Yes, I always go pee before I take Dee for a walk just in case we run into trouble. So much easier to concentrate and react on an empty bladder. :laugh: It is great to hear that the cartrophen is working for Jake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Best Dogs! Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 Poor Justice idk where you are but we just got blizzard thunderstorm warnings. thistle is thankfully ok with bad weather, it's all people and dogs and sudden movements and, so I hope it's safe weather for you guys or pups are ok with it. For 101 box game, we had a light bulb moment when we switched to a small shoe box (flappy bits on boxes move and are scary D:) She's now nosing it around and pawing it like a pro and I'll slowly increase box size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hankdog Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 I akways pee before walking. Hank used to carry on outside the bathroom door anytime I went after about 3 pm. He would stamp his feet, turn curckes and bark. Once he got older he stopped caring what time it was or who was in the bathroom. Visitors were often surprised by the barking whirling dervish blocking their exit from the bathroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 What is it with dogs and the toilet. Is it because when we toilet train them we go out with them and praise them, so they feel the need to come and praise us? Or do they think that there is a secret exit that we can use to escape them unnoticed? Strange creatures lol With Hank having so much character is it any wonder that Jake is also full of character? You raise interesting dogs lol Snook, have you tried hiding food or treats in the box? That is how I got my dogs started. As well as hiding food in toilet and other rolls of cardboard, by taping up the ends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 I didn't put food in the box because I was concerned Justice might confuse it with noseworks and think that he just had to find the treat. How did you progress from having food in the box to getting Dee and Zeph to initiate contact with the box without the food in it? Luring and a healthy respect for food refusal. The look on Zeph's face is rather priceless :laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Ha ha.. love Zeph's expression. I was trying to steer away from luring because I thought it was supposed to be about the dog initiating all the interactions with the box. I'm so confused! I wanted them to do it gently, and not destroy the box. Cardboard in this house ends up as confetti on so many occasions, especially with Zeph. Or he picks it up, brings it to you, then buggers off with it and turns it into confetti. Nothing like living with a character. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 (edited) Any interaction is done predominately through shaping, whether it is click and reward, or mark and reward. So lots of patience. My guys already think boxes are a great source of fun and entertainment, so they naturally interact with the box. My mission is to now teach them to do it in a less destructive manner. I want to teach then to tip the box over themselves and move around with it. This should be relatively easy considering they paw and pick things up. It is finding a box big enough that is going to be the challenge. Edited July 27, 2015 by grumpette Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Ha ha.. I can just imagine Zeph nicking off with the box and having a party all by himself.. :laugh: I could leave a box on the floor for months and Justice wouldn't touch it so it's tricky teaching him that boxes are fun and he's supposed to do stuff with them.. lol. I'll keep working on it! Will Justice approach the box if food is in it? If so, you can use the food to create a positive association with the box. Hide the food under the box a few times, then put the box down with no food, and as Justice goes towards it, mark and reward. When he touches it, jackpot the reward. If he turns it over, really jackpot the reward. That way he will begin to associate the box with positive rewards, not the fact that the box hides a reward. I hope that makes sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Ha ha.. I can just imagine Zeph nicking off with the box and having a party all by himself.. :laugh: I could leave a box on the floor for months and Justice wouldn't touch it so it's tricky teaching him that boxes are fun and he's supposed to do stuff with them.. lol. I'll keep working on it! He tried tonight, but Dee came along and tried to take it off him, resulting in a tug of war. Lets just say that the box is a little worse for wear. But on a great note, both dogs can tip the box over with their paw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hankdog Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 With Jake I had to teach him to do something, he didn't seem to have that "initiate" button. So initially I just went to the kitchen, where we normally train (and I wonder why he's food obsessed) and clicked him for the first thing he did, think it was looking at the fridge. Next day I tipped the box off the counter and then clicked for looking at it. There's a certain point at which I can see Jake has lost interest versus is trying to work it out. I think it took a few days of tipping the box off and clicking that first look before he worked it out. I always have his treats on the counter where he can see them so he sort of knows that we abandoned because of lack of effort rather than we had finished with a treat shower. He will try and get me to go back but two of us can play the stubborn game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Best Dogs! Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 (edited) Thistle really got the hang of it tonight - we moved onto an acutal box and ended up ! It's nice seeing her so waggy, she really likes puzzle games. She's also not scared of flappy bits on boxes anymore! That was lots of fun, after a couple more sessions I'll grab the more portable shoebox and we might try this in somewhere outside the house (Best Friends Store?) and after a couple of (successful) lessons there, move it to the Petbarn (she still cowers an awful lot in there, because we don't go often but it is quieter/more space than Best Friends). Hopefully it will be enough to relax her and associate outside the house with fun. Edited July 27, 2015 by Thistle the dog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hankdog Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Aww and she's so pretty too. She looks really enthusiastic, well done for making it fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 With Jake I had to teach him to do something, he didn't seem to have that "initiate" button. So initially I just went to the kitchen, where we normally train (and I wonder why he's food obsessed) and clicked him for the first thing he did, think it was looking at the fridge. Next day I tipped the box off the counter and then clicked for looking at it. There's a certain point at which I can see Jake has lost interest versus is trying to work it out. I think it took a few days of tipping the box off and clicking that first look before he worked it out. I always have his treats on the counter where he can see them so he sort of knows that we abandoned because of lack of effort rather than we had finished with a treat shower. He will try and get me to go back but two of us can play the stubborn game. I love the way that Jake's mind works. He is so evil Bwahaa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpette Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Oh wow look at Thistle go. Amazing and brilliant to see. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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