I've been busy

We've had a spell of GLORIOUS weather here, and I have been unable to do anything productive indoors, including writing. Oh well, winter is on it's way (unless global warming is really here to stay), and I figure I might as well get a few projects done, including fixing the back door, painting the porch, organizing the shed, planting bulbs and winter pansies... I'm sure I'll find more to do as I go on.

I have, however, been walking the dog everyday, although she insists it hasn't been enough - but then when is it? I've read most of "Animal Reiki" by Kathleen Prasad. I've been meditating. I've joined several Yahoo groups on dog training and behavior.

And I think I'm learning more from those groups than I did in the formal training program I was struggling with.

I confess, I'm a bit of a "lurker" - I tend to just read rather than contribute because I've found that most groups have at least one or two people who get a bit snarky if you say the wrong thing. However, so far I've been pleasantly surprised - a group on positive training is actually practicing what they espouse on the humans too!

It's also nice to find that I'm not alone in my search for the "right" or "best" way to train and work with dogs. I'm not alone in having dogs with issues, in making mistakes in training or mistakes in how I handle problems.

But the sun is rising and the projects are calling...

...and there's only three more days of glorious weather, and there's still plenty of work to be done!

How Dogs See The World

One of the problems with working with dogs, or indeed any other species (cats come to mine), is that we really have no idea how they see the world - we theorize, but we can experience what a dog experiences. Or at least most of us don't, but that's a different post.

We do know they rely on their sense of smell more than we do. While they do communicate verbally, they rely more on body language, and that nebulous concept "energy". While they do remember things from the past, they don't appear to worry too much about the future in the way we often do, they live in the now.

Then there's the question of "intelligence". Most people, and I fall afoul of this thinking frequently myself, measure a dog's intelligence by human standards. However, the comparison is unfair to dogs, and means we miss the areas where dogs are perhaps more intelligent and are perhaps wiser than we.

Of course there are exceptions, and while I laugh till I cry at the adventures of The Simple Dog in Allie Brosh's blog at Hyperbole and a Half, I do hope she's making it all up, or at least exaggerating...

Why is this all important? Because in order to motivate our dogs to do what we would like them to do, we need a basic understanding of how they operate. We need to accept that while they aren't like us, thinking wise, they do have their own innate intelligence. In my opinion, dogs even have a need and a right to enjoy life on their own terms, to a certain extent, if we want them to be happy and fullfilled.

Question of the day: What have you done today, just for your dog's pleasure and happiness?

It Ain't Scientific, But If It Works....?

My first encounter with energy work was almost 25 years ago. We were trying anything and everything to get my horse's trotting problem sorted out, including acupuncture, Rolfing, TTouch and yes, energy work. My riding instructors and I played around with it a bit and it seemed to help, even though we didn't understand it (they tried TTouch on me, and I couldn't stand up straight for a week!).

Anyway, through various events from then till now (material for several another blogs) I've been exploring "alternative" therapies - homeopathy (not so effective), reflexology (somewhat effective), aromatherapy (very effective) and more recently Reiki.

I can't remember why I got the book, but when I read "Animal Reiki" by Kathleen Prasad, I knew had to try it. I went to one Reiki practitioner, but the session left me unimpressed. However, my chiropractor has a practitioner on staff, and when hormones and life collided rather spectacularly a month or two ago, I decided to try again, and boy am I glad I did.

After the first session I was MUCH more relaxed (I even survived a family reunion!), and decided to pursue becoming a practitioner myself. I took the Reiki Level 1 course was last week, and Level 2 will be in two weeks. I'll probably go on to Level 3 as well.

My hope is that when I become more proficient my calmer "energy" will give me an edge with dogs and owners alike. Being able to help a dog who is "out of balance", should give me an edge with behavioral issues as well. As for the "communication" aspect discussed in "Animal Reiki" and in "Natural Healing for Dogs and Cats" by Diane Stein, well, I'm not so sure, but I'm keeping an open mind.

But I can hear the scientific minds out there screaming "but it's not scientific!!!". Well, while no animals suffered through lab experiments (some of the stuff in the text books isn't fun reading, even if it did, eventually, get us to R+ methods), there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that Reiki benefits animals. More scientific studies have shown that Reiki treatments can improve health and mood in humans, so why not critters?

Question of the day: What do you think about the concept of "energy", energy work and non-scientific/alternative options in training or behavior modification?

My First Human Training Session

So I'm also a babysitter at the moment (I prefer to be called Nanny McPhee, but Red - one of my little charges - said no). Anyway, Red picked up my clicker and started playing it, which got Ozzie's attention immediately. Rather than tell her the usual, "That's not a toy, put it down",  I explained what it was for and showed her how to use it.

She caught on pretty quick for a 11 year old human.

I also got a little lesson in generalization. We were working on "sit", which Ozzie already knows from his pre-me training. They were doing really well, until Red sat down with the exaggerated exhaustion only an adolescent can experience - Ozzie's little brain couldn't cope with it and he stood around looking confused. I got her back up, and we finished the lesson on a really good sit.

We expect our dogs to catch on so quick to what we see as simple behaviors. I've always been amazed at owners who complain about how slow their dogs are to learn something, and then complain the dog is "bad" when they won't do the something everywhere and anywhere, under any conditions. But seeing the confusion in Ozzie's face when his "trainer" was doing something different really reinforced this lesson for me. I explained it to Red, but I'm not sure she got it.

And that reinforced the lesson that sometimes it's hard for the owners to learn new stuff too...

Question of the day: How much generalization training is enough?


PS I also learned to keep the clicker in my pocket from now on, not on my key ring...

Ozzie

I've been working with my own dog, but I also have a second "patient", Ozzie.

Ozzie belongs to a friend who is wheelchair-bound (she's in hospital right now, recovering from yet another surgery). Oz is huge, under-socialized, under-trained and pretty much out of control. On the bright side, he's devoted to his people, perfectly house and crate trained, and more than willing to learn something new.

There are a lot of environmental issues too - the house is VERY cluttered, he doesn't have a place to run or anyone to walk him on a daily basis. Unless my friend or I work with him, he doesn't get much training, at least not with positive reinforcement. And what troubles me the most is that the two kids wind him up and encourage some very bad behavior, and the husband has lost his temper when Ozzie has done some things he really shouldn't have done - knocking over a small child and biting one of his own kids.

As I said, Oz is more than willing to learn, but some of his behaviors (licking and mouthing, playing "silly buggers" when I want him to do something, stealing clothes or toys) are being reinforced by the children. So Oz and I take two steps forward, and move one step back when the kids come back from school. And with the other issues in the household, dealing with the dog's behavior - and indeed dealing with the children's behavior (with the dog and in other matters) is pretty much a low priority.

As an aside, I'm there for a few hours a day with the dogs and the girls, so while I have some influence, but I have better luck with Ozzie than the girls...

So here's the question of the day: Is my working with the dog towards improving his behavior, but allowing the children to continue their reinforcing of the unwanted behavior unfair to the dog, confusing him? Or, will he learn at least to behave around me at least, which I can then generalize to others, including the children?

PS I've given up on that day counter - looks like I'm going to be in interrupt mode for quite some time...

Day 8 - Distraction-Proofing Me

No, my math isn't off - despite promising to myself that I would write something here everyday, I slipped a bit. But in my defense, there were distractions - family, friends, Internet connection problems (thanks Verizon) and so on.

(I did make a start on the outline for my studies however, boy it seems like I have a lot to learn!)

So OK, I accept that part of why I didn't complete my formal course was that I am too easily distracted. But, this realization has made me aware of two things which might, eventually, make me a better trainer of both humans and dogs.

1) It's VERY easy to get distracted by the business of everyday life, be it family needs or chasing bunnies.

2) A little patience, a bit of  encouragement and lot of practice is essential if we're going to reach the goal - whether it's to be become a trainer, to help an owner or to teach a dog NOT to chase bunnies .


Question of the day: I read a few blogs regularly, and found Want to be a Better Marketer? Start by Becoming a Better Teacher!, by Jennifer Louden to be applicable to one of my biggest concerns, teaching (and motivating) dog owners. Here's the question - which resources have you found to help your in work with dog owners, in particular unmotivated, resistant owners?

Day 2 - Reality, But With Progress

One of my goals is to make time to work with my own dog everyday, as I truly believe that hands-on, practical experience is essential to becoming a pro. So while I didn't get as much done yesterday as I had hoped, I did make some progress with training, and with training one of our toughest "opportunities" - the recall.

With most of my dogs, the recall hasn't been important - we had a fence, they just stayed around or they were slow enough that I could catch them. Ben was so obsessed with tennis balls that any small yellow object in my hand gained his immediate and intense attention.

Not so with Mac, my beautiful, bunny obsessed, sniff happy Collie/Shepherd angel.

And worse yet, we live on a major road, and not far from a very fast express way. Mac, who loves to run and play, has been on a leash or a long-line for the better part of the last year. Occasionally she's allowed to run with a drag line, but I tend to panic - what if she sees a rabbit!

I have been working on the recall, and 80% of the time she comes the first time she's called, but for me, that's not good enough. But yesterday, when she started playing "mad dog" (running around the house like a Tasmanian Devil, overturning furniture and rucking up the rugs), I knew she needed a run. So I stuck my courage to the sticking post, grabbed a hand full of her favorite treats, put her on a short drag line and we headed out to the field.

And she was wonderful! We practiced coming while I had hold of the line, then from a short distance and her recalls where a vision. She dawdled one time when she got to the trees, but when she saw my hand moving in an inciting manner, she decided that kitty treats where better than sniffing. We even started fading treats in favor of a good scratch above the tail while we were on the way home.

So day-one of training was a success. And I realized that tough as it is, I needed to let go of at least a little bit of my fear... yet again.

Question of the day: How do you distraction-proof a dog against things over which you have no control - like the sudden appearance of squirrels, bunnies or deer?