From the moment you get your puppy home to around 6 months is the babystage. The dog cant control it's bladder, it's still fairly difficult to keep it's own body temperature and needs to sleep next to someone to feel safe. A nervous puppy will do more accidents during the night than one that sleeps safely. The puppy will need to go outdoors to do it's buisness about every hour, sometimes more, sometimes less. It will chew on things cause the teeth are itching. Dealing with a puppy and training such as housebreaking etc will be brought up in a different post. If I don't keep to one topic I will just become complicated and lose my tracks.
6 months to 2 years is the teenager stage. This age is where the males discover females, they might start to ride pillows and females go into heat. They now have bladder control and the muscles are itching and they are little pains in the butts. They might get destructive, they forgot everything you taught them, they stop listening, they run away, they are a puppy in an adult body and might not know how strong they are. Surviving a teenager will also be brought up later. The teenager stage is where most people give up and rehome their dog which is a big shame. because once the teenager stage is over, the fun begins!
2-3 years is where the dog kinda lands from being a teenager and grows into being more of an adult. This is where you can come back to the training you did with the puppy. You can start to trust the dog again and you can breathe after what feels like a long winter. You start to have fun again and you feel more and more love for the dog.
3-6 years, you now have maybe 1 or 2 issues to work with, other than that the dog is the most perfect you couldve ever gotten and you question why you thought of giving up when it was such a pain and you are happy you didnt! If you like competition this is usually where you make a lot of progress and manage to get yourself out there and advance.
7-9 years, the dog is probably slowing down some days but is still strong and have much puppy left. You barely have any issues left, and those you do you now love as a personality quirk in the dog.
10 years, you sit and wonder what happened to that little puppy. Ten years, are you really that old?
11+ You value every single day together as a gift from the skies. You look at the grey face and you never thought you could love a dog this much.
You don't know what it's like to really love a dog for 15 years until you do. After all, having a dog is like having a child with a very short lifespan. Savor every moment you have with your dog, cause you never know when the time is up!
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Positive Reinforcement Training
I bet you have heard that term before. Positive Reinforcement Training. So what does it mean? It actually is exactly what it sounds like. You reinforce behaviors with positive rewards. This is often done with a clicker.
To make the clicker positive you click - reward with a treat, click - reward with a treat, click - reward. A couple of times. You will see when the dog starts to connect the dots cause the dog will start to look at the clicker. If you pause it might start licking or nudging your hand with the clicker in it. If you have reached this point, wait for the dog to look into your eyes, click and reward the SECOND the dog looks into your eyes, and after the reward redo it again a couple of times. If you want a command for eyecontact (like the kiss-kiss sound, the dogs name or a whistle) you can add this when the dog gets the eyecontact game. Command the sound or word (happily or casually) click for eyecontact the second it does and reward. This will make the dog connect the dots sound (words are sounds too) to behavior means reward.
Did you ever as a kid play the game "hide the key" where you were searching for a hidden key high and low while your friends said it was "warmer" if you got closer and "colder" if you went further away from the hiding place? That game is a lot like clicker training!
When you want to reinforce a behavior you click each time it gets warmer and reward. You may have to do the same babystep several times however for the dog to understand which behavior you are rewarding. Nomatter which method you use you reward every step in the right direction towards the goal. It can be shifting weight, to lifting a paw, to taking a step, and so on.
First method you simply wait for the dog to think for itself and try offering behaviors until you click. This will be slow in the beginning until the dog knows the game but it is the the most challanging way of clickertraining. This may fit high energy dogs best since it tires them out well. Example: Border collie, australian cattledog and other herding dogs.
Second method is to lure the dog with a treat. Upside is that you help the dog in the right direction, downside is that you can create a dog with a hand obsession, so fading the lure is important as soon as the dog starts to get the game. (To the dog learning is always a new game you came up with.) This method fits independent breeds better since they easier gets bored. Example: Terriers.
Remember that all dogs are individuals however and you might have a terrier that loves working independently, or have a herding dog who requires guidance. Some insecure dogs prefer the guided method, eventhough the selfthinking method increases their selfesteem with time.
If the dog fails or gets frustrated, you advanced too fast and need to back up in the training.
You can cut up and dry chickenfillets into chicken jerky in the oven on low degrees until they are fully dried. Remember to keep the pieces small enough that the dog don't have to stop to chew for long. They only need the flavor. For small breeds you can split the chicken even after drying for even smaller pieces and avoid burning.
You can use dry catfood. They have tiny pieces and a higher amount meat so the dogs love them! Catfood last a half forever as treats and you can reward more times without worrying too much about calories. Catfood even has several types of flavors eventhough most got chicken. Try to vary! This treat works for both large and small breeds. If your dog is obese you can choose a diet food for less fat.
Both these options will save you money on the candy. But there's another option! Toys! If you have a dog that just loves balls, the frisbee, a squeekytoy or tug-o-war you can use this as a reward. A small warning though, this can be stressing for some individuals. Key is to vary your reward with those between treats and toys.By varying the reward the dog will have that christmasfeeling, what reward will I get now? Will it be the thing I love most in the whole wide world?
This turned out long so I will finish for today. Thanks for reading!
Motivation.
Why is motivation so important? Because a motivated dog will try it's hardest every single time to get the reward. A little like people working hard at work to get more money on the paycheck. Have you ever seen how hard a child tries to get a parent to say yes to something? That's motivation we want in a dog! If you have the right reward the dog will walk on fire for that reward, meaning doing whatever you ask just to get the reward.How can a clicker help me? Isn't that silly?
The clicker is never upset, angry, having a cold, or gets frustrated. It sounds the same all the time. Also, it is easier for the brain to press a button than forming words. Because in dog training timing is everything. If you are a little too late your dog will have licked its lips or taken a few steps and you will reward the wrong behavior or the dog will not understand what you rewarded.Now, are you telling me that a dog really will find some form of reward in a click?
Well, no. Some people believe that the click is the reward itself. But it really is just a signal that a reward is on the way. It just becomes more accurate this way when used right and when the person understands the idea of this.To make the clicker positive you click - reward with a treat, click - reward with a treat, click - reward. A couple of times. You will see when the dog starts to connect the dots cause the dog will start to look at the clicker. If you pause it might start licking or nudging your hand with the clicker in it. If you have reached this point, wait for the dog to look into your eyes, click and reward the SECOND the dog looks into your eyes, and after the reward redo it again a couple of times. If you want a command for eyecontact (like the kiss-kiss sound, the dogs name or a whistle) you can add this when the dog gets the eyecontact game. Command the sound or word (happily or casually) click for eyecontact the second it does and reward. This will make the dog connect the dots sound (words are sounds too) to behavior means reward.
Two types of clickertraining.
There are two ways of doing this clickertraining. Once the dog is "clicked in" and has connected the click to reward you can start training for real.Did you ever as a kid play the game "hide the key" where you were searching for a hidden key high and low while your friends said it was "warmer" if you got closer and "colder" if you went further away from the hiding place? That game is a lot like clicker training!
When you want to reinforce a behavior you click each time it gets warmer and reward. You may have to do the same babystep several times however for the dog to understand which behavior you are rewarding. Nomatter which method you use you reward every step in the right direction towards the goal. It can be shifting weight, to lifting a paw, to taking a step, and so on.
First method you simply wait for the dog to think for itself and try offering behaviors until you click. This will be slow in the beginning until the dog knows the game but it is the the most challanging way of clickertraining. This may fit high energy dogs best since it tires them out well. Example: Border collie, australian cattledog and other herding dogs.
Second method is to lure the dog with a treat. Upside is that you help the dog in the right direction, downside is that you can create a dog with a hand obsession, so fading the lure is important as soon as the dog starts to get the game. (To the dog learning is always a new game you came up with.) This method fits independent breeds better since they easier gets bored. Example: Terriers.
Remember that all dogs are individuals however and you might have a terrier that loves working independently, or have a herding dog who requires guidance. Some insecure dogs prefer the guided method, eventhough the selfthinking method increases their selfesteem with time.
If the dog fails or gets frustrated, you advanced too fast and need to back up in the training.
Rewards.
What reward to use for my dog is a common question. And a good one too!You can cut up and dry chickenfillets into chicken jerky in the oven on low degrees until they are fully dried. Remember to keep the pieces small enough that the dog don't have to stop to chew for long. They only need the flavor. For small breeds you can split the chicken even after drying for even smaller pieces and avoid burning.
You can use dry catfood. They have tiny pieces and a higher amount meat so the dogs love them! Catfood last a half forever as treats and you can reward more times without worrying too much about calories. Catfood even has several types of flavors eventhough most got chicken. Try to vary! This treat works for both large and small breeds. If your dog is obese you can choose a diet food for less fat.
Both these options will save you money on the candy. But there's another option! Toys! If you have a dog that just loves balls, the frisbee, a squeekytoy or tug-o-war you can use this as a reward. A small warning though, this can be stressing for some individuals. Key is to vary your reward with those between treats and toys.By varying the reward the dog will have that christmasfeeling, what reward will I get now? Will it be the thing I love most in the whole wide world?
Do I have to carry around a clicker for the rest of my life now?
No, the clicker is only for learning, once the behavior is taught you don't need the clicker for that behavior anymore. As for rewarding, it's good to reward with praise and occasional treat or toy just to keep the motivation up even after learning.Help! My dog is scared of the clicker! I'm screwed!
Don't worry. It doesn't have to be a clicker. You can go "Yes!" or something instead. It is not as percise but it works just as good. I have a dog who is scared of the clicker and we managed fine. :) Just make sure the rewardword or sound does not come up too much in everyday speech, this can lower the value of the word. Yes is good because it's short, it's clear and most people go "yeah" in everyday speech nowadays.This turned out long so I will finish for today. Thanks for reading!
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Don't buy from a pet store!
Life is busy at the moment so will take a bit to update, but wanted to share this image for awareness.
Link to image: http://www.fureverfriendsofwny.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/puppy-mill-parents1.jpg
This is their breedingstock. They live in cages where the floors are made of net which is harsh on the paws, the feces fall down on the neighbour below, they never get to see the vet, get a bath, get vaccinated or dewormed, they dont get groomed or any other form of care. They are full of fleas and mange and are being bred to death for money.
This is their breedingstock. They live in cages where the floors are made of net which is harsh on the paws, the feces fall down on the neighbour below, they never get to see the vet, get a bath, get vaccinated or dewormed, they dont get groomed or any other form of care. They are full of fleas and mange and are being bred to death for money.
Buying means supporting!
Thursday, September 19, 2013
To be a good teacher for your dog
Help! My dog won't learn!
You have to teach your dog how to learn. This probably sounds crazy but hear me out. For the dog, learning from a human is like trying to learn from someone who does not speak your language. We can do sounds with the mouth and we can wave our arms and point our fingers but it all actually just looks very silly.
By teaching your dog how to learn your dog will learn your language and thereby learn from you faster and faster the more you work together.
Training techniques:
There are several training techniques to use. There is the harsh, dominant, punishing way that will just create a scared insecure dog. Imagine being a kid in school again and for each wrong answer you get pinched in the ear or whipped.
Now, imagine instead being that same kid, and when you answer wrong the teacher tells you "No, not quite but great that you are trying! Here's a cookie." What will happen with this child? He or she will work harder and harder on trying. Now, imagine that the kid gets a chocolate cupcake for the right answer? Boy, will that child be motivated to work hard on the homework!
The same thing is with the dog. The dog is working FOR you, and therefor will work better if you have a good salary. Basically, the more confident and independent dog, the higher salary needed. Will to please dogs are workoholics who most of the time are happy just to work but they still need a salary, encouragement and rewards to stay motivated.
Positive reinforcement:
Positive reinforcement training is growing more and more just because it is so very successful. If you tell an independent dog "Do this for me" he will ask "What's in it for me?" If you then go "You will get a piece of treat if you do" and the treat is yummy, the dog will answer "Sure!" but if it is a low value treat it will go "Eeh. No. Do it yourself you lazy human."
Common mistakes:
Many people nag their dogs. Sit. Sit. Sit. Rover, SIT. Sit. Sit. Siiiiiit. SIT! and lose their patience. The dog will learn fast that you will eventually blow up and give up, or yell at the dog and hopefully not hurt the dog. This is not a happy dog ownership and teamwork. The dog does not know the word, your "salary" is not good enough, or you have an environment that is too distractive and advanced too fast. Think about your tone of voice. The dog listens to you by sound, not by word. Would you listen to a parent that were angry and naggy, or one that asked you kindly and rewarded good behavior?
How to progress in the right speed for your dog and how to stay interesting will be brought up in the Clickertraining post next time I have time to spare. I will also bring up "How to find your dogs currency" later on.
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Why dominance is a big misunderstanding
We have all seen the dog whisperer on tv telling people that they have to be the pack leader. I agree, you do, but not in the way he is describing it.
It is always compared dogs to wolves and that is exactly what I will do to explain why dominance-methods are useless. You see, in a wolfpack there is the alpha male and alpha female who are the only ones to mate and have puppies. But when said puppies grow up they help the alpha-pair to raise the upcoming litters of puppies. Siblings taking care of siblings. Parents and children. The reason why the pack gains on helping raising the puppies is because they get a stronger pack and can take down larger prey, but also because the puppies carry the same genes as the siblings. They ensure their bloodlines survival this way.
Seeing it from this perspective, the pack would not gain at all from members attacking eachother, wounding eachother in battles for the alpha role, and not being able to trust eachother. They trust the leaders (alpha female steers the females and alpha male steers the males) and they follow them. Leader/follower. And dogs, just like people, like having someone to guide them and not have the responsibility for the packs/family's survival. The wolves stick together as a team, and everybody help out in their own way, which is why they are such a powerful dynamic. They all know what to do. Young wolves sometimes wander off to find themselves a mate to start their own pack or to become "lone wolves". Alternatively, young males sometimes team up in waiting to find their chance of a new territory and create their own pack.
What I am trying to say is, dogs are not baboons where there is one male and several females where other males attack all the time to take the position as the "top dog" to spread his genes to the next generation.
With this said, I will now break down the meaning of the word leadership. A leader is someone who leads. This means that a good leader is not the meanest and bossiest bully, it is the one who leads to success. The meaning of "follower" does not always mean walking behind unless you have that as a rule. I prefer having my dogs infront of me so I can see them and I do a lot of trustwork before I have them unleashed. Eventhough they walk infront of me they are still waiting for my directions. I tell them to stop, come, wait, turn around, go left, go right, continue forward and I got no aggression issues. They do have ranks among eachother but no agression whatsoever.
You have to be a pack leader, but the true meaning is that you have to be the parent. You teach it right from wrong, you tell them when it's time to go to outside and play. You make sure they eat right and stay healthy. You take them to the doctor (well, in this case, veterinarian) if they are sick. As long as you are a good parent and keeps the dog safe and is consistant and fair with your rules, it will never act out on you. (Example: One consistancy is to never be on the furniture. Another is to only be there when you give an "ok". But if the dog breaks this rule, be fair. I dont mean you to be mean, I mean tell it to go down from there and praise when it does so. Dogs are capable of asking for permission.) But if you constantly pick on the dog, it will not trust you and may feel as if it has to defend itself against you. This is not good leadership, this is creating an insecure stressed dog.
What you also have to be, is a good teacher. The dog is your student and if the dog does not get it then you need to find some other way to teach it. But I will bring this topic up at a later point.
Most of the time when people think they got aggressive dogs is when the dog is a puppy or teenager. Puppies use their mouths to see the world with. They just like toddlers have to touch everything they see. They also play with their mouths with their siblings and when they get wind up at around bedtime they can bite pretty hard. If you don't know how to handle this then it will continue doing this when it is a teenager and possibly adult with larger size, larger teeth and stronger jaws. This training is a lot like the "You do not hit people" training with kids. I will bring this up later too, or this post will be too long.
I will also bring up:
I am in no way picking on Cesar Millan as a person. He saves a lot of dog lives who are on the brick of death. But I truly wanted to get this knowledge out there. I will through this blog bring up how you can make it right from the start, and how you can correct problems and errors with some patience, time and effort.
How you can have a life in harmony with your dog, where he truly is your best friend and you are one solid team. A true pack!
It is always compared dogs to wolves and that is exactly what I will do to explain why dominance-methods are useless. You see, in a wolfpack there is the alpha male and alpha female who are the only ones to mate and have puppies. But when said puppies grow up they help the alpha-pair to raise the upcoming litters of puppies. Siblings taking care of siblings. Parents and children. The reason why the pack gains on helping raising the puppies is because they get a stronger pack and can take down larger prey, but also because the puppies carry the same genes as the siblings. They ensure their bloodlines survival this way.
Seeing it from this perspective, the pack would not gain at all from members attacking eachother, wounding eachother in battles for the alpha role, and not being able to trust eachother. They trust the leaders (alpha female steers the females and alpha male steers the males) and they follow them. Leader/follower. And dogs, just like people, like having someone to guide them and not have the responsibility for the packs/family's survival. The wolves stick together as a team, and everybody help out in their own way, which is why they are such a powerful dynamic. They all know what to do. Young wolves sometimes wander off to find themselves a mate to start their own pack or to become "lone wolves". Alternatively, young males sometimes team up in waiting to find their chance of a new territory and create their own pack.
What I am trying to say is, dogs are not baboons where there is one male and several females where other males attack all the time to take the position as the "top dog" to spread his genes to the next generation.
With this said, I will now break down the meaning of the word leadership. A leader is someone who leads. This means that a good leader is not the meanest and bossiest bully, it is the one who leads to success. The meaning of "follower" does not always mean walking behind unless you have that as a rule. I prefer having my dogs infront of me so I can see them and I do a lot of trustwork before I have them unleashed. Eventhough they walk infront of me they are still waiting for my directions. I tell them to stop, come, wait, turn around, go left, go right, continue forward and I got no aggression issues. They do have ranks among eachother but no agression whatsoever.
You have to be a pack leader, but the true meaning is that you have to be the parent. You teach it right from wrong, you tell them when it's time to go to outside and play. You make sure they eat right and stay healthy. You take them to the doctor (well, in this case, veterinarian) if they are sick. As long as you are a good parent and keeps the dog safe and is consistant and fair with your rules, it will never act out on you. (Example: One consistancy is to never be on the furniture. Another is to only be there when you give an "ok". But if the dog breaks this rule, be fair. I dont mean you to be mean, I mean tell it to go down from there and praise when it does so. Dogs are capable of asking for permission.) But if you constantly pick on the dog, it will not trust you and may feel as if it has to defend itself against you. This is not good leadership, this is creating an insecure stressed dog.
What you also have to be, is a good teacher. The dog is your student and if the dog does not get it then you need to find some other way to teach it. But I will bring this topic up at a later point.
Most of the time when people think they got aggressive dogs is when the dog is a puppy or teenager. Puppies use their mouths to see the world with. They just like toddlers have to touch everything they see. They also play with their mouths with their siblings and when they get wind up at around bedtime they can bite pretty hard. If you don't know how to handle this then it will continue doing this when it is a teenager and possibly adult with larger size, larger teeth and stronger jaws. This training is a lot like the "You do not hit people" training with kids. I will bring this up later too, or this post will be too long.
I will also bring up:
- clickertraining
- how to guide your dog to success
- how to save money on grooming
- how to deal with stress
- how to deal with an insecure dog and build confidence
- risks with neutering your dog
- what to think about when buying a dog
- and so much more!
I am in no way picking on Cesar Millan as a person. He saves a lot of dog lives who are on the brick of death. But I truly wanted to get this knowledge out there. I will through this blog bring up how you can make it right from the start, and how you can correct problems and errors with some patience, time and effort.
How you can have a life in harmony with your dog, where he truly is your best friend and you are one solid team. A true pack!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)