Do you seek training challenges for your dogs?
What am I talking about?
Let’s say you are walking along and all of a sudden you hear some kids in the yard of a house you are about to pass. At the same moment, you realize your dogs hear them too and are very interested. Maybe a bit too interested.
Or maybe you are trucking along and you see a dog approaching. You know your dog is going to want to visit, or maybe your dog is going to be less friendly. Of course about the time you notice the dog, your dog does too.
So what to do. Do you welcome a chance to proof your dog’s training or do you avoid putting your dog in a challenging situation?
Last weekend we were out walking the dogs at the cabin and as we rounded a bend in the road, all of a sudden we heard kids playing outside one of the cabins.
Normally this cabin sits empty, at least when we have been up there. But many people use their cabins seasonally and perhaps they come up more in the winter so that is why we do not normally see them. At any rate, the dogs heard them and were very interested. Too interested.
Now we could have turned and gone the other way. In her younger days Storm would have been barking her fool head off at something out of the ordinary, especially kids.
By why not get some training in and practice heeling with a big time distraction.
Hubby called the dogs into heel. You may have noticed that they are off lead. They do have their e-collars on (and wear them whenever we walk them off lead) but the receiver is in hubby’s pocket. The hope was not to have to get it out which would have happened if either dog decided to bolt.
They practiced walking at heel until we passed the house with the kids and then they were allowed to walk a little ahead because we were just about back home.
I think too many times people do not want to put their dogs in a situation that might challenge them. The inclination seems to be to avoid the challenge rather than meet it and see where you might need more training. Sure sometimes it is a hassle when all you want to do is have a calm and leisurely walk. But are you really doing the best for your dog by not meeting these challenges when they present? It is a brand new year and a great resolution might be to seek out training challenges and work through them as they present themselves.
Do you seek training challenges or try to avoid them?
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I think that is a great idea. I don’t have a dog right now which makes me very sad. But I believe that would be a great thing to do.
It’s funny you should write about this because we just started doing the same thing before Daisy had her surgery. We used to avoid leash reactivity issues because we didn’t want to wake the whole neighborhood up with her insane barking, but then we decided it was better to attack the problem head-on. Even though it was embarrassing at the beginning and it did annoy one always-grumpy dog walker, she’s better off for it now and it’s paying off big time now that we have to be careful with her after surgery. She’s nowhere near as reactive as she used to be, and we plan to keep confronting challenging situations once she’s healed.
We tend to meet the challenges as they come but sometimes there are just some days where we turn and head back the other way for various reasons. We only have an issue now with 2 dogs in the neighborhood and Oz’s insane barking…one of them is a new neighbor so it may just take some time to get used to him. The other is what I can only describe as Oz’s arch enemy and no matter what techniques we try, he barks like crazy every time we see him. I guess some things are just not meant to be. LOL
I have daily challenges walking the dogs as I have written about extensively. Most of the time I come out the loser. Since we have moved and are living in an apartment until we find a house, there are tons of distractions and hazards on our walks. Mainly people walking dogs, people walking, traffic and bicycles. When we first got here, I would take kibble with me and when a bicyclist would approach I would make the dogs sit and feed them kibble until the bicyclist passed. Now when a bicyclist approaches the dogs take it in stride and keep walking.
Other dogs are still a huge challenge and with the colder temperatures I don’t have the kibble with me but I may have to restart carrying it.
We are beginning to seek challenges and are also looking for the next class/step in Penny’s training. Thinking about doing a scent class. We posted about National Dog Training Month today!
You KNOW I avoid them, but only the challenges that involve other dogs.. 😀 If I only had one dog with me I would certainly accept the challenge, but I’m too nervous to try with the two of them. Believe it or not, Delilah IS the better dog in that situation but once Sampson starts his antics, she joins in.
Just in the last couple of days I’ve started telling Sampson, “No.” I know this is not popular with positive training folks, but I personally feel a dog should know “no.” I have gotten a name of a positive trainer and I plan on getting in touch with him to see if he’ll come out to the house. Both my dogs do very well in the training classroom, it’s real life where we need the work.
My mom is a challenge person. She always takes the challenge and we have to work through it. We get it that sometimes people aren’t in the frame of mind, but it is amazing how many people go out of their way to avoid challenges.
It depends on the mood I’m in. Some days I’m up for the challenge…others I’m avoiding it. But for the most part I’m trying to do better at not avoiding. It really does feel good when you don’t avoid and your dog does well!
You make an excellent point. I think sometimes we avoid because we aren’t sure how it will work out. Hubby and I kind of looked at each other deciding whether to change course but we both decided just to continue on and practice heeling. And you are right it feels great when they do well.
We have never used collars, so for walks in the city or parks our dogs are always on a long or short lead. I guess the real test came during the long journey. Anticipation, awareness has always been a factor. Of
course these dogs sense intrusions blocks away! Deer in the yard, crying babies, wheel chair folks, other dogs ~ you name it, we do not turn away. Step aside and ask them to sit or bring them to heel. Often we will introduce the Chessies, if the situation allows. The young girl, while curious, is strong at staying close. The old girl, you just might hear a rumble in the throat ~ she has always been on guard, just needs verbal reassurance that things are okay.
Life long socialization and adherence to the rules. Good post!
I agree, I do like challenging them sometimes for sure!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
Because I am a big girl (70 lbs) people with little dogs are often afraid of me. Mum, also, is never sure whether I will be nice to the other dog or vice versa.
Mum here: It is really weird with Cookie — at the park in our complex, I am never sure how she is going to behave. When I go to the public park — she is GREAT with ALL the dogs there!!
There are always opportunities to challenge your dog for sure, and the dog is better off addressing them rather than avoiding them. But there are still a lot of times I follow the path of least resistance.
Great training exercise, I would of kept going to with the dogs at a heel.