Summer School

I usually play ball with Morey several times a day (typically before work, during a lunch break and then before heading home from work). But since the weather has turned hot I have changed Morey's schedule to include indoor training sessions instead of outdoor ball time. Morey loves to train so he doesn't mind this change a bit!

Morey and I are working on a few different training goals right now, most of them for agility. I taught Morey "left" a while ago and now am teaching him "right". Having directional cues makes it a lot easier for me to direct Morey through different obstacles when I am farther away from him. And, since he is much faster than me, it doesn't take much for him to get ahead of me!

Another training goal for Morey to learn "spot". This will be used for the contact obstacles (dog walk and A-frame) which require the dog to make contact with the bottom of the obstacle before moving on. I want Morey to do a "2 on-2 off"- basically to stop with his two front paws on the ground and his two back paws still on the obstacle.

All ICAN dogs learn the "shaping game" which is kind of like playing the "Hot Cold" game. The person has an end goal in mind- it can be a real task or a training goal just for that session. It's common to use an object and have the dog do something with it- touch it with their nose, put their front feet on it, pick it up with their mouths. You click and treat the dog any time it does something close to what you are wanting and continue until they figure it out. So you might start by clicking the dog for looking at the object and then for moving toward it and then for sniffing it, etc. If the dog does something different you ignore it (equivalent of telling a human "colder") and wait for them to offer another behavior.

When a dog know the game it is lots of fun! You can bring out an object and they will immediately start offering behaviors, trying to figure out what will earn them a treat. It's a great way to build your bond with your dog and since it makes them think it can tire them out as much as physical exercise. I have really enjoyed breaking out my clicker and doing some shaping with Morey!

What I realized with Morey is that he must have never been shaped to do anything with his back feet. It's almost like he doesn't know he has them! It took a really long time for him to step on the board we are using with his back feet. It's been slow going but each session we make more progress. By the time "summer school" is over and we go back outside I am sure he will have it down! Practice makes perfect!