You know how when you get up in the morning, you head for the bathroom and make use of the toilet. After flushing, you wash your hands and then stop at the mirror. You look at yourself, maybe make a face or two, inspect your teeth and run your hands through your hair before leaving. I think it’s a way of reminding ourselves “oh, yeah. That’s me.”

Have you noticed that dogs do the same thing? They head out in the morning, do their business, then turn around and give it a good long sniff.

I think this is their way of looking in the mirror first thing in the morning to remember who they are.

We’ve introduced heeling against a wall, working on both attention and position. We’ve also worked on stationary attention, with minor distractions. Today we will introduce moving attention.

The command HEEL means position; the command WATCH means attention.

When you start putting HEEL and WATCH together, it’s very difficult for the dog. It is common for the dog to give great attention sitting in heel position, but as soon as the handler takes the first step, and the dog gets up from the sit, the dog’s head goes down.

The dog has to be taught he can get up from a sitting position while maintaining attention and keeping the head up.

In addition, WATCH has meant eye contact. But as soon as the handler starts walking, they quite naturally want to see where they are going and are no longer looking at the dog. The dog can either forge and wrap around in order to maintain eye contact, or they have to learn to watch a new focal point such as the handler’s shoulder.

So that first step is difficult for the dog because of physical limitations (butt comes up, head goes down) and because the attention picture is changing. Up until now, WATCH means sitting at the handler’s side making eye contact. It doesn’t (yet) mean moving at the handler’s side watching a shoulder or other focal point. So we will shape moving attention one step at a time, first teaching the dog that they can get up while keeping the head up.

Technique. Begin with the dog in heel position. Tell the dog to SIT and then you move into heel position. It may help to pass the leash around behind you and hold it with your right hand. Have a treat in the left hand. Holding it up (luring) above the dog’s head, say HEEL and take one step forward with the left leg. If the dog manages to get up, keeping the head up while watching the lure, mark YES and reward by encouraging the dog to jump straight up and take the food.

Jumping up to get the food helps reinforce the head up position. You can’t jump up if your head is down looking at the ground.

If your dog has a hard time with this, begin with the dog standing in heel position. Take one step forward. You might have to reward the slightest try in the beginning, until the dog understands that the movement is possible.
Practice one step, MARK&REWARD. Then two steps, M&R. Then three steps, etc.

Moving heel
Technique. With the dog in heel position, begin walking forward in a straight line. Tell the dog WATCH and MARK&REWARD the moment he looks up. Only ask for one step of WATCH. Try to keep moving while you give the reward. Give the reward with the left hand, rather than reaching across the body with the right hand. Give the reward next to your left hip in the place the dog would be if he were in correct heel position.

The reward needs to come pretty quickly in the beginning, so it’s nice if you can hold several treats in your left hand. But your dog will probably bother your hand and forget about the WATCH.

Try putting your left hand with treats on outside of dog’s head, next to his nose or ear, so that his head is in between your left leg and left hand. Don’t touch the dog or try to force him to look at you, make the treats accessible but not available. If he mugs your hand just ignore it. Say WATCH and the moment he looks away from your and and makes eye contact, MARK&REWARD.

“You have to do something to get something!” This is an important piece for the dog to understand:  it doesn’t matter where the food is, it’s not available until he’s released (YES) and his actions are what makes the food available.

Keep your left hand still. Don’t hide it from dog, put it behind your back, try to move it away, etc. Moving your hand will turn it into a chase game. Keep your hand still so that the food is accessible, just not available until he makes eye contact and you MARK&RELEASE.

With the treats in your left hand, put your hand down by dog’s face and start walking. Use no corrections in the beginning, just say WATCH and walk until dog looks up, then immediately MARK&REWARD. Reward just one step of attention. When you can start getting that reliably, go for two steps.

The reward should come either by opening your hand up in place and letting the dog take a treat, or by raising your hand and letting the dog jump up for a treat.

In the beginning, no leash corrections, no verbal corrections. Wait until the dog shows understanding before adding any corrections. Reward success, ignore faiure.

Alternate method: the hand touch
If your dog understands a hand touch, that can be used to teach proper heel position. Hold your hand out flat, with the palm parallel with the floor. The position depends on how tall your dog is:  your hand should be held in such a manner that when the dog looks up, he can see your palm while maintaining correct heel position. Take one step, MARK&REWARD by giving the TOUCH cue and letting the dog jump up to touch your hand.

Make the reward a game. YES, touch, then give the treat.

Teaching heel in this way avoids some of the forging issues, and the dog won’t be wrapped around trying to make eye contact. Instead, it models head up and looking straight up, which may actually be easier on the dog’s muscles as he’s not always walking around with his head turned to one side only.

You will need to fade the hand position eventually.

–

Even if WATCH means eye contact, you need to be very aware of your shoulder and head position. Early on, you ask for attention as you stare back at the dog, with your head and perhaps your shoulders turned to the left. As you begin to make progress in heeling, you will start to look straight ahead. But the dog, who has the picture of eye contact and turned shoulders on his WATCH card, forges and begins to wrap around in order to maintain that same visual picture. This makes for incorrect heel position.

So even in the early stages of training, try to keep your shoulders straight and facing forward. If you want to look at your dog, look over your shoulder. Don’t turn to the left. If possible, practice in front of a mirror so that you can see when the dog is correct and then MARK&RWD without any physical cues.

Using toys in training watch
For many dogs, toys are far more rewarding that food, which makes heeling more motivating. Remember Grandma’s Rule? If the dog understands that heeling with correct position and with attention is just a means of getting to play with a toy, he’s much more likely to do it with enthusiasm.

You can use a tug toy or a tennis ball in a short Chuckit!® You will do exactly the same thing as you did with food:  make the toy available but not accessible.

Begin with a stationary WATCH. With the toy held on the outside of the dog’s head, ask for a WATCH. If the dog grabs the toy, be unimpressed and unemotional. Keep the toy still until the dog outs it. Just OUT, SIT, WATCH. The moment the dog turns his head to look at you, MARK&REWARD.

Reward by having the dog jump up to take the toy, or by throwing the toy. If you’re rewarding with a tug toy, reward high, at shoulder level for a shepherd for example, so the dog jumps up.

If throwing, throw with your left hand away and behind so dog has to turn away from the handler. If you throw the toy ahead or to the right, the dog will forge more and more. If you reward to the left, the dog will anticipate that’s where the toy will appear, and not get so far out of position.

Whatever you do, don’t hide the toy, put it behind your back, or try to lure attention by putting the toy up in your arm pit or at your shoulder. Again, we want the dog to understand that it doesn’t matter how accessible the toy is, the only way the dog will get it is to give attention and gain the release word YES. This is an important component of self control. The dog needs to understand YES is a release as well as a reward. YES releases the dog to chase or take the toy.

With the dog in heel position, start walking. Continue walking until the dog gives just a moment of attention —  then MARK&REWARD.

Retrieving day 2
Shaping — reward early tries frequently.
Correct pickup and hold is important in dogs going on to do competition obedience or Schutzhund. For other dogs like service dogs, the pick-up is not nearly as important as the dog learn to retrieve many different items: socks, keys, a quarter, a piece of paper.

Teaching the hold
The correct hold involves holding the dumbbell calmly and firmly. There is no chewing, chomping, rolling the dumbbell around in the mouth. A correct pickup is fast and direct. Hitting the dumbbell with the feet, sending it rolling etc. are all faulty.

The shaped retrieve and the hold are taught separately. If the dog wants to play with the dumbbell, roll it around in motion, pounce on it, chew, or chomp, then we need to teach hold. This will give us a tool to use during the retrieve… if the dog begins to chew or play with the dumbbell, you will be able to just say “no, HOLD” and know the dog understands.

The hold is taught through compulsion. I prefer to use a piece of PVC pipe to teach hold, so that there are no negative conotations associated with the dumbbell. Also, the PVC is not so nice to carry in the mouth, and the dog may be more inclined to chew, giving us an opportunity to teach that chewing is incorrect.

First step: the PVC is placed into the dog’s mouth.

Begin with the dog in front in a sitting position. Hold the collar with three fingers of one hand. Open the mouth by putting your thumb in the corner and pressing. Place the PVC in the mouth, not too far back, but just behind the eye teeth. Watch the lips. Don’t let the lips get caught between the teeth and the PVC, or you’ll surely teach the dog to hate this exercise..

Hold the mouth gently but firmly closed. You fingers in the collar keep the dog from backing up; your thumb and forefinger of the same hand hold the lower jaw. Your other hand is placed gently across the top of the muzzle.

When the dog holds it calmly without fighting, MARK&REWARD. Just let the PVC drop to the ground. Repeat. Release when dog yields. Don’t make the dog hold it for very long, just hold long enough to yield. (If the dog really fights or struggles, place the dog in a corner where he can’t get anywhere.)

Often, after you repeat placing the DB in the dog’s mouth a few times, the dog will begin to reach for the PVC before you can put in his mouth. This is a good thing.

Look for a calm, yielding hold.

Slowly make it a little longer. Now, instead of marking immediately, use your “keep going” marker: “goood… YES and reward.

–

Shaping – no corrections, No “no”, no ott. Reward success, ignore failure. If the dog does something you don’t want, don’t say anything, just ignore it and it should go away.

The way shaping works is you quit rewarding one thing and wait until the dog offers something new. Be patient. Wait while the dog tries to figure it out. The dog will get frustrated and try something new. If the new action looks like it will lead us in the right direction, MARK&REWARD.

What we’re looking for is a good attitude: the dog should be eager, trying things, engaged, looking at handler — “didn’t you see this? watch me!”
Patience is important — don’t be too quick to help.

If dog gets stuck, you may need to go back to a previous step. If wait too long with no reward, the dog may give up. Small steps and many frequent successes, especially in the beginning, will lead to rapid progress.

Day 1

There are really only two practical ways to obedience train a dog: you can teach through compulsion, where the dog is physically positioned or made to perform a behaviour; or you can use inducive methods, where the dog is induced or coerced to perform a behaviour. In compulsion, the dog has no choice but to perform the action. In inducive training, the dog makes a choice to perform, because he wants something the trainer can provide.

Compulsion means force, but it doesn’t have to mean harsh corrections and severe collars: placing the dog in a sit by pulling up on the collar and pushing down on the butt is compulsion. The dog has no choice.

In inducive training, the dog is somehow lured or coerced into performing a behaviour, and then rewarded. The dog has a choice in whether or not to perform. The trainer’s job is to find something the dog wants enough to make the right choice.

In compulsive training, the dog learns that when he yields or complies, the force goes away. When the dog sits, the collar pressure releases. Proper timing allows the dog to “beat” the pressure. The trainer gives the command SIT, pauses momentarily, and then pushes the dog into a sit. The dog quickly learns that he can beat the pressure by moving into a sit before the handler can manipulate him. The trainer can further reinforce the sit by saying “good sit”, praising the dog for sitting. But the dog is still working to turn off the pressure.

Compulsive training is effective. It is the method traditionally used by military and service dog trainers. Many trainers feel it is the only method that results in a consistently performing obedience dog. Some dogs, and particularly some breeds, are happy, upbeat workers through compulsion training.

Commonly, though, dogs trained through motivational, inducive methods are more engaged workers. They’re willling to try things while searching for the key to the reward, and unafraid to make “mistakes”. A dog trained to a high level motivationally will show a balanced combination of precision and enthusiasm. In the last few decades, thinking trainers have become more and more adept at motivating their dogs to perform and keeping them motivated over time. And, as trainers have become better and better at communicating with their dogs, judges have recognized that dogs can be both precise and exuberant in their work, and this is the picture that is being rewarded with high scores in both Schutzhund and competition obedience. In Schutzhund, a dog is said to have “Arbeits freude” or “joy of the work” when he works with a happy, willing attitude.

Using food in training
Inducive training depends on finding something the dog wants enough that he’s willing to work for it. The dog has to be motivated by food or toys or play.

Food is the easiest thing to use initially when teaching a new behaviour. Food is easy to present, and it can be presented over and over again while working on repetitions. Toys are difficult to use while rewarding repetitions — every time the dog gains the toy, the handler must play, then take it away from him again, thus disrupting the flow of the exercise.

Food can be used as a lure initially to help the dog find the correct position. And, most dogs like treats and are willing to take them as a reward. If you have a dog that’s not interested in food treats, then the only food he gets is during training sessions. No more free meals. It’s a rare dog that would rather starve than take a food treat. If the dog is not interested in treats or toys, then the only choice left is compulsion.

Many dogs love to play tug or fetch a ball. For those dogs, the chance to play with a toy is an exciting, motivating reward which can be used in training. Generally, toy driven dogs often find the toy so exciting that they can’t think when the toy is present. For these dogs, food is used in the teaching phase; then toys and games are used as rewards once the behaviour is learned.

Thinking in pictures
“But he only does it when I have food” is a common and accurate complaint about food training. When a new exercise is introduced and the dog is lured into position, the food is visible and available. The dog stares at the food, and is not aware that he is being manipulated into a SIT. He passively follows the food, and somehow ends up in a sit, but he has not been taught to SIT.

Luring shows the dog that an action is possible, but it does not teach the action. The dog is not thinking when he’s following a food lure. He’s merely reacting. “Follow the food follow the food”.

For learning to take place, the dog needs to understand that it’s his behaviour that causes the treat to appear. The dog must learn that there is a connection between his action and the food. For this, the food must be out of the trainer’s hands and no longer visible.

The latest research suggests that dogs think in pictures. The pictures the dog forms are very precise and context oriented. Imagine an index file with cards and pictures. On the SIT card is a picture of the dog’s owner slightly bent over, holding a piece of food over the dog’s head, smiling and making a repetitive noise. In the background is the kitchen counter and refrigerator.

Now imagine the owner saying “sit, sit” to the dog outside. The owner doesn’t have any food, but is standing up straight with the leash in his hand. As he says “sit”, he’s jerking up on the leash. In the background is a distracting group of people and strange dogs.

The picture the dog has formed of SIT is nothing like what is now happening. While the owner is thinking “my dog is blowing me off — I know he knows this!” the dog is thinking “I have no idea what you want, I want to go meet that dog!” The dog isn’t being disobedient, he is reacting to a picture he’s not familiar with.

The ability to understand that SIT means the same thing both in the kitchen and in the dog park is called generalisation, and the dog only learns to generalise by learning SIT in many different places and circumstances. In the beginning, every time you go somewhere new, you have to teach SIT all over again. As the dog starts to learn SIT in many different environments, he begins to understand that SIT is SIT, regardless of where you are or what is happening. The index card SIT now has many different pictures on it.

Using food correctly in training
Only lure with food visible for a few times. Then put the food out of sight in your pocket or bait bag, or in a bowl on a table. You can continue to lure without food for a few more times, using the same hand or body mtions used previously with food. But now the marker word becomes important as we tell the dog “YES, that was right, here’s your reward.” Use your body language to help the dog find the position; mark the moment the dog finds the position, and reward. Now the treat becomes a reward after the dog performs a behaviour rather than a lure to cause the behaviour.

The dog’s action causes the treat to appear; the treat does not cause the dog’s action.

Using a clicker or marker words
This is where having the dog understand a marker word is very effective. Removing the food from sight allows the dog to think and problem solve. The marker word tells the dog when he is correct.

Dogs learn when an action is rewarded. The closer the reward comes to the action, the more clear it is what’s being rewarded. But now, since food is in the pocket or otherwise out of sight, there’s a delay between the action and the reward. A marker word bridges the time between them. YES tells the dog that:

• the thing he was doing the moment he heard YES is the thing being rewarded,
• YES promises a reward, the dog will never be cheated,
• and the exercise is now over. The dog doesn’t have to do anything else to gain the reward.

Now food can be out of sight and the dog will still understand immediately when he is correct.

Body language always overrides verbal
Once the dog is understanding the physical cue and responding correctly most of the time, it is time to “put the behaviour on cue” or name it. All that means is that now we’ll use a word or command to ask for a specific action.

But because body language always overrides verbal, if we say SIT at the same time we give the physical cue, the dog will only see the physical and not hear the verbal.

We need to separate the verbal from the physical. Give the command SIT, pause momentarily, then help with the physical cue.

Again, because body language always overrides verbal, if we say YES at the same time we reach for the reward, the dog will only see the physical movement. And the thing he was doing the moment he heard YES was watching the trainer’s hand reach for the bait pouch. You will know if you’re doing this because the dog will start looking at your hand. You MUST say YES without moving your hand to present the treat or toy:

• YES…
• pause…
• then get the treat out and give it.

Putting it into practice
BACK. Teaching the dog to back up on command will be used to micro-manage the dog’s heel position. Exuberant dogs often learn to forge in heeling. Forging allows the dog to see the trainer’s eyes and puts the dog into a better position to quickly gain the reward. If a toy reward is used, the trainer must be absolutely consistent in where the toy is presented, which is nigh on impossible. Otherwise, the dog, who understands that the reward is coming, tries to put himself in a position where he can get to the toy quickly and efficiently. This leads to forging.

Being able to tell the dog BACK and then to mark and reward correct position helps the dog understand just what that correct position is. Eventually you will be able to communicate:

• NO tells the dog that what he’s doing is not correct and won’t be rewarded;
• BACK tells the dog how to be correct,
• and YES marks when the dog is correct.

This allows the trainer to fine-tune heeling and make the information very clear and understandable.

To begin teaching BACK, start with the dog in front. It’s easier if he’s standing up and not in a sit. Hold a treat with both hands (this prevents one hand from floating around, pushing against the dog or otherwise confusing the picture) with the hands held together at the height of the dog’s point of chest.

Use the magnet effect: touch the dog’s nose with the magnet (food) then slowly move the food down and lightly push both hands into the dog’s chest. Take ONE step forward with the left foot. If the dog even leans away, mark YES and open your hands to reward.

No command is used at this stage. Be quiet, and allow your body pressure and your hands to push the dog back.

1. Food held in both hands.
2. Food put in pocket, but both hands together as before.
3. Count out ten treats and put them in your pocket. Practice moving your dog back ten times in a row. Is he beginning to get it? Does he start to move back as soon as you move your hands together and before you have to push?
4. When the dog starts to show understanding and willingness to move before you have to step into him, you can “name the behaviour”. Say BACK, pause for a moment, then move hands together and step into the dog. Do not say BACK and move simultaneously. Remember: body language always overrides verbal. If you move at the same time you give the command, the only picture the dog will form is of the physical movement. Likewise, if you mark YES and move your hands simultaneously towards the treat pouch, the dog will only see the physical movement. He won’t remember what else he was doing the moment he heard the word YES because at that moment he was watching your hands move.

• Give the command…
• pause…
• give the physical help…
• Mark YES when the dog takes a step backwards…
• pause momentarily…
• reach into your pocket or treat pouch…
• give the treat.

AROUND FINISH has two components: speed and a straight sit. Initially, we’ll work on speed and not worry about the SIT at the end —  we’ll teach that later.

With the dog sitting or standing in front, lure three or four times with food in your hand, transferring food from your right hand to your left as the dog moves around behind you. When he reaches heel position, mark YES, even if he continues forward. Reward at your side, where he would be were he in correct heel position. If he swings wide every time, work against a fence or wall.

Now put the food out of sight. With an empty hand, lure the dog around behind and into heel position. Mark YES the moment the dog is in correct position.

Add the command and fade the luring hand. Give the command first, pause momentarily to give the dog a chance to respond, then help.

Continue until very little of a lure is needed. If you want to use hand signals in obedience down the road, occasionally use the hand signal without a verbal command, or use the verbal without a hand signal.

I say “former” student, because Jeannie has far surpassed the teacher. She and her two Aussies, Paisley and Saige, not only survived the NADAC Championships in Tennessee, but placed in the ribbons consistently!

Congratulations to the three of them and to all the successful NADAC competitors!

Paisley

Saige

I now have 4- and 8-strand snap leashes and agility slip leads available in a variety of colours.

Current colours

They are available in both snap lead

8-strand snap lead

and slip lead styles,

4-strand slip lead

and 4-strand (about 3/8″ diameter) and 8-strand (about 1/2″ diameter) leashes.

These leashes soften with use and are washable.

I will send you a toy or two to test… in return, you will write a short critique of the toy — what you liked about it, what your dog liked about it, how well it held up to abuse, etc.

Most toys are “durable but not indestructible” — but how well did it last? Minutes? Hours? Days? Weeks? or more?

My own dogs are not really the best testers around. First, they love everthing. There isn’t a toy they don’t like. Of course, they’ll retrieve fluff and blades of grass, carefully placing a bit of something in my lap hoping I’ll throw it. And Harley, the malinois, always has a toy in his mouth — he even falls asleep with a toy — but he is very gentle and rarely damages it… that is, until another one of the dogs tries to steal it and it becomes the victim of  a violent episode of tug-o-war…

So if you’re a writer and photographer and have a dog who’d give some toys a run for their money, please contact me at k9fundamentals at gmail.com

Thanks!

-sam in Montana

We will also discuss topics from K9FUNdamental‘s dog training classes, and outlines and handouts will be provided for students and visitors to reference.

If you find something to be helpful, please let me know. And if you disagree with something, let me know that as well. We’re all here to learn!

We will also review toys, equipment and other “dog stuff” found in the K9FUN store — does your dog like it? Is it durable and well-made? Did it only last three minutes and you wish you’d never bought it?

I would love pictures and personal accounts of your dog at play with a toy you bought through K9FUN.

Thanks for visiting, and I hope to see you again,

-sam in Montana