SESSION 4: Follow up on homework from Session 3 & switch gears to learn how to train younger puppies.
In this session of the podcast, I follow up on homework from session 3. I answer some email questions from listeners and teach you how to “redo” your dog’s “front door ritual”.
ALSO: I switch gears a little bit in the second half of today’s show and talk about how to train younger puppies.
In this session:
EMAIL BAG SECTION:
Jumping question?
Summary: have your dog on a loose leash nearly all the time now. Gather the loose leash as they approach you or other people. When their front feet come off the ground to jump, give a quick “pop” to the side with the shorter leash. Ignore your dog (and direct other people to ignore your dog until they decide to “not jump”. Also, don’t say “off”.
Jumping video discussion:
http://www.thedogsway.com/?s=jumper
Front door ritual and approach and retreat:
Use the loose leash walking homework from session 3 to adjust your dog’s desire to bolt up to people at the front door and “lose their mind”.
PUPPY STUFF
Three broad stages of puppies for me in training:
- Really Young Puppy 8 to 11 or 12 weeks(baby phase)
- GOALS: bonding, structure, gentle coaching, house breaking
- Maturing Puppy 12 weeks through about 6 months (kindergarten and primary school)kid training stage)
- GOALS: Begin more high level training, introduce pup to many things(socializing)
- Transitional Puppy: 6 months to about 8-9 months (Your puppy turns into a dog)
- GOALS: transition your older pup into real responsibility)
STILL FOLLOWING THE MAIN 2 PRINCIPLES (probably even more important with puppies!)
- Natural learning process: Start everything as easy as you can start it and then incrementally adapt to progressive challenge
- Keeping the Freedom/Responsibility quotient in tact
To give you an idea of what we expect from puppies, here’s the stuffwe cover before 7 months in the puppy curriculum:
- Follow me game
- Bonding
- Sit
- Down
- Leave it
- Come
- With me (walk next to me)
- House breaking
- Meeting people and other puppies
Focus on taking these skills through the “progression of difficulty” so you can get these skills to be functional in real life.
Recall: start easy! Work with the “follow me game” first.
TWO HINTS FOR PUPPY TREAT STUFF:
- If your puppy goes crazy for the treats in your hand, do the conditioning that shows your puppy they only get the treat by back off and waiting for you to offer it.
- Think of accomplishing phase 1 of a behavior (that is, the puppy recognizes the command and does the behavior fairly consistently) In other words only do 2-3 second sits or downs just starting out. THEN, start using two treats to extend the time your puppy can do a behavior. One treat for performing the skill and then one that gets held out to give them as they finish the behavior.
Let me know how this experiment goes with your dogs and puppies.
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About the Author: Sean
I’ve been training people and dogs in Seattle for the last decade and a half. My main focus when working with clients every week in one-on-one, private lessons is to help people learn to get their dogs to a functional level so that they can actually enjoy spending time every day with their dog instead of stressing about their dog’s behavior issues.
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About Sean
I’ve been training people and dogs in Seattle for the last decade and a half. My main focus when working with clients every week in one-on-one, private lessons is to help people learn to get their dogs to a functional level so that they can actually enjoy spending time every day with their dog instead of stressing about their dog’s behavior issues.
Ask Sean a question!
If we use your question in the show, Sean will send you a coupon code for free access to the online video course!
If you have a question you’d like me to respond to on the show (and you want to hear yourself on a future episode) leave me a voice mail! 1 (844) 364-7929 or email me here.
Hi Sean, I’ve recently begun a certificate 3 in dog training and behaviour in Melbourne Australia and am getting a lot out of listening to your podcasts!!! I started listening because I’m doing a unit on scent detections d found your session on scent games which I loved. – Thankyou.
I liked it so much – i though – this guys worth listening too so I decided to I start right back at session 1 and am learning a lot – as is my course colleague – Zander the Dane/mastiff X – 10 month old.
My question refers to where one accesses the videos you mention now and then on certain training segments. I’m only up to session 5 but I’m sure some videos have been mentioned once or twice already. Had a look around and not having much luck.
Thankyou in advance.