And of course, as soon as I post that I just had another session of backing Bob down. Although, he did respond a little quicker this time. It only took me about ten minutes. And I think if I run through his commands - sit, down and wait - while he’s in the middle of it, he sort of listens, but it takes a lot of “heys” and “no’s”.
I did finally get him to lay down and relax just by staring him down and then he eventually got up and slinked away into his room for a drink of water. Now he’s chewing a bone, the little jerk. As soon as he gets comfortable I’m bringing his ass for two miler.
You’re doing fine. He’s testing you. Just hang tight and keep doing the training. Bob is a smart dog who has to try it his way. But, smarts are what’s gonna make him a fun companion.
Keep posting. There are plenty of dog owners here who can help.
You’ll be fine. And I think Bob’s doing remarkably well. He’s not perfect, no pet is. But he’s just young and rambunctious and learning. You’ll both be fine.
Don’t worry about the squat-to-pee. Leet the Wonder Dog[sup]TM[/sup] alternates between lifting his leg, and crouching down. He generally lifts his leg when marking his territory, but not always.
His tinkle marksmanship is not all it could be - he often winds up peeing on his other leg - but it doesn’t bother him and by the fourteenth or fifteenth tinkle it is just a token gesture anyway.
I thank you all for the kind words and encouragement. I knew this was going to be a big step for me, but like I said, I think this was the right time to pull this trigger. I’m feeling more and more confident every day, despite a few anxiety set-backs.
Ok. So it is getting easier. I just finished a session with him, and that’s what these little episodes are becoming. First sign of getting unruly - first bark - I just ran though the commands: sit, down, wait. There were fits and starts and after I while I got him to go on his side. More fits and starts, but I remained calm as a bomb and it took maybe ten minutes for him to chill. It’s the eye contact that I think is key. I could see the challenge in his eyes start to turn to respect, or at the very least attention. So that’s promising, I suppose.
Our routine got a little discombobulated today due to weather. We went for a mile and half walk in the misty rain right after I sprung him because it’s just going to get worse outside later on. And I didn’t play fetch with him in the back yard because I don’t feel like trying to give him a bath right yet. Later on I think I’ll take him for a little ride in the car for some take out and see what that does for him.
Bob, and more importantly, I am doing a lot better in the last few days. I had a chance to talk to a few people and gain perspective and the more I work with Bob the better he’s getting. Morning walks are absolutely A+ efforts - but there aren’t a lot of distractions in suburbia at four in the morning. Back on his routine since Tuesday and he’s dialing in. He still challenges me from time to time but not as often and not as intensely. I’ve developed three techniques that seem to work - and they will be no surprise because they were suggested here. Run through his commands. With treats, he’s perfect. Without it’s fits and starts. The other thing that is working better and better is the ignore him technique. He’ll jump up on me as I’m sitting here typing and I’ll just push him off me with a “no” and just ignore him. He’ll bark at me once, twice, maybe three or four times, then he’ll huff off.
The other technique is to pick up my guitar and start to play. I’m not talking John Denver and Dan Fogleberg covers. I’m talking dirty blues tracks on YouTube that I wail over. He curls up right under my amp and chews on a bone the whole time I’m playing. It’s worked twice. No reason to think it won’t work again. It’s funny, because I was complaining to someone that the dog takes up so much of my time that I never just jam out any more. I used to do it every single day when I would get home from work. The advice I got was that Jack needed some Jack time, so to speak, so music (loud and raunchy as it may be (and occasionally funky)) does seem to soothe the savage breast.
The best thing about the Bob on the shoulder picture is that I was trying to get myself face to face with him for a selfie and he’d start licking me or squirm, so I got about ten pictures that look like a fuzzy brown blur with a tongue sticking out of it and then he just pulled this move, as if to say, “Fuck, man, here, take the picture. You’re welcome!”
Bob has been remarkably well behaved in the house this weekend. He’s challenging less and less - turning more into a pestering that I can avert. Still not a single potty accident in the house since I got him - that was such a bonus; I didn’t have to do a thing to house train him. Of course, now that I say this, I realize I’m tempting the doggie-fate-gods and he’ll probably shit in the tub later on or something.
The thing I’m focusing on now - or rather, my foregoing concern - is his behavior toward distractions on walks. Like I said, with no distractions I hope someone is driving by or watching out a window to see what a perfect dog I have. But one squirrel and that shit’s right out the window. If let him go, he’d never stop til he got one. That’s not to say he yanks me off my feet, but he yanks to the end of his lead that’s for sure. If I sit him down it’s impossible to avert his stare; generally he won’t completely chill out until the squirrel is out of sight. Even then, he seems to remember every tree he’s seen a squirrel run up and he always tugs to get a sniff.
The bigger problem, though, is with pedestrians and bicyclists. He doesn’t go after them aggressively … sometimes he doesn’t do anything at all … but a bike riding up from behind us will startle him and he’ll lunge. A pedestrian, with or without a dog, will sometimes draw his attention to the point where he’ll try to walk in front of me and I have to correct him just so I won’t trip over him. The worst was we were at an intersection waiting for the light and Bob was sitting at my side; usually, he stands there waiting politely, so I was overjoyed that he was sitting, so I guess I let my guard down and I didn’t notice him shift his focus to the guy walking toward us. Bob took a quick step toward him before I got him back and gave him a no and he never got within five feet of the dude, but he jumped back like a panther was leaping at him. I felt so bad. I apologized and he seemed cool about it, but I think he peed himself a little.
Beside that, he is much, much better just on the general walk. He was always at my side, but I was giving him a little too much lead I think. I adjusted to give a little shorter leash (still with slack) and he seems to respond to it. Or it’s correlation with causation, but either way, I’ll take it.
We just got back from a long (one squirrel freak out) walk and now he’s enjoying a busy-bone that’s intended to last hours; he’s kills it in about twenty minutes.
Carry treats - the best possible treats. I’ve seen chopped up hot dog recommended. I’ve gotten away with just using a different training treat than I use at other times.
Part 1 - Before you go on a walk, practice at home getting Bob to turn and look at you. Call “Bob” and give him a goody as soon as his attention switches to you. Once dogs have that, I like to switch to making sure they’re looking at my face. I use a hand signal to move their eyes up to my face before they get the treat. Once he’s got it indoors, move to practicing it outside on a leash. If he’s got it in the front yard, then move to trying it on a walk. While there’s no distractions, practice saying his name and, as soon as he checks in with you (attention wise), hot dog. Also reward him for checking in even if you don’t call his name.
Use the same technique when you know a distraction is about to happen. Call his name and reward him for his attention. Keep shoveling treats into his mouth and keep his attention on you until the distraction has passed (or you have moved past it).
You can also put yourself in positions to test this. Stand outside of a dog park, and see if you can get his attention. Yes? Treats and move a little closer. No? Move farther away and try again.
Part 2 - Teach him “leave it”. (Some people use “don’t touch” for this command). Start with a treat in your hand. Tell him “leave it” and extend it in his general direction. If he moves towards the treat, move the treat back. He gets the treat (initially) as soon as he hesitates in grabbing the treat and shifts his attention to you. As he gets better at “leave it”, you can extend how long he waits before he gets the treat. (BTW, I use “take it” when I give him the treat.) When he’s at the point where he waits patiently, start over again with a treat on the floor. Put a treat on the floor in front of you, and tell Bob to “leave it”. If he moves toward the treat before you tell him he can, put your foot over it and tell repeat “leave it”. Expose the treat once he backs off and repeat. Initially, he can have the treat as soon as he hesitates. As he learns the command, extend the amount of time he has to wait until he gets to have the yummy treat. Once he knows this, you can put him on a leash and walk him by the treat on the floor. “Leave it” as you pass.
On a walk outside, you can practice “leave it” in a stationary mode, and then head out down the street. Use “leave it” to get him to stop sniffing that fire hydrant, and give him a treat when he responds. I use it for all kinds of distractions (Leaf! Bug! Poop!). I rarely treat for it at this point. It’s part of our daily routine and Akiko understands what it means. Once Bob knows this, and has the habit of instantly switching his attention to you, you can use it successfully with very attractive nuisances.
Thanks for laying that out. I’ve been considering the treat based direction. He does know “leave it,” to an extent. I can drop a treat at his feet and say “no,” and he’ll leave it alone until I tell him “ok.” It’s just those squirrels are so damn tempting.
A-minus walk this evening. One squirrel spotting that led to a sit down and chill, but except for that he was perfect - including walking past three pedestrians, one with a dog, a jogger, a bicyclist and two construction workers with no problems.
