February 09, 2003
Crate time: A very, very sad face.
6:30 p.m.
I've been trying something new. Before each meal (Dusty presently eats three meals a day), I do a short training session.
There are several advantages to this. First of all, Dusty's always hungry so I can use her kibble as treats. She's usually been playing and burned up some of her excess energy - this adds a few seconds to her attention span. And, finally, doing the sessions in three parts allows me to reinforce what we've already learned and try out a few new skills. I did this today and it worked great!
Dusty is really making some good progress with the target stick. The dowel I bought at Home Hardware was too long - a clerk cut it down to three feet for me. This left a stubby little remainder, which I actually used to introduce Dusty to the target concept (I figured that the little stick woudn't be as scary for her).
She was reliably touching both my hand and the mini-target stick, so today we moved on to the big stick. She caught on right away and by the evening she was walking on my left side, following the stick. I had really jumped ahead of the lesson plan in doing this, but I was curious to see how it worked. It worked!
For fun, I'm teaching her how to 'shake' hands/paws. She understood the right paw, but we're still working on the left (maybe she's right-pawed?). She's still touch-and-go with the puppy push-ups, but she's fine with the basic commands. I've backed off on teaching sit/stay and down/stay. The book I'm using doesn't recommend teaching that until later lessons.
I've been reading several dog obedience books to prepare for Dusty's training. Needless to say, there are as many ways to raise a dog as there are to raise a child. Everyone seems to have a firm opinion and think their way is the only way.
I've opted for a non-violent, reward-based training method that uses the 'clicker' to mark appropriate behaviours. I was definitely a reluctant convert to clicker training, but once I saw how well it worked with Dusty, I was a believer.
There are several good training books on the market that incorporate clicker techniques - Karen Pryor seems to be the authority on this. I didn't pick up her book, but there are three books that I've been reading:
The Power of Positive Dog Training by Pat Miller: This is my main book. She uses clicker training and her approach is very direct and no non-sense.
The Dog Whisperer by Paul Owens: This book combines elements of yogic breathing techniques and eastern philosophy into the dog training process. It may be a bit 'out there' for some people, but he does have some good things to say.
Train Your Dog, Change Your Life by Ross & Ross: This is the 'Seven Habits' book of the dog training world (they even quote Stephen Covey). There's some good material here and I like the idea that we can learn from our dogs, even as we're teaching them.
Some other good books, which I read for pure enjoyment:
The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell: Great book that examines *human* behaviour around dogs.
Bones Would Rain From the Sky by Suzanne Clothier: I can't say enough about this wonderful book - it's filled with training tips and techniques, but reads like an inspirational tome. Fantastic!