Nipping it in the Bud
Good Tuesday to everyone. As mentioned yesterday, here is the video of Max’s lesson with “place”. You will see that while he tries really hard to stay focused, he needs a lot of work in that area. You will also see not one, but two incidents where he nipped. The first nip was to Violet when she came too close to the food reward I was giving him. The second nip was to Glimmer, for the same reason. When he nipped at Violet, I failed to correct him; when he nipped at Glimmer, he was immediately corrected. I attributed the behavior to him getting frustrated and ended the lesson.
Yesterday, there were a total of four nipping incidents from Max. The first two incidents seemed to have no cause. The latter two occurred while he was chewing on a bone. This behavior concerned me, because, until Sunday’s incidents, Max never exhibited this type of behavior. Normally, he is submissive to Glimmer and Violet; he waits patiently for his turn with food and treats, and he has a very good grasp on the concept of sharing toys. Until Sunday, he never nipped, growled, snarled, or even bared his teeth at either one of them. So, when I work with him today, I’m going to spend some time with claiming. If I can film the lesson, I will. And now, here is the video of Sunday’s first lesson with “place”.
Place Focus Dance
Max (a.k.a. “Peanut”) is staying with us. He arrived this past Friday, and our house has been filled with laughter – and some pretty amazing changes – ever since. The changes involve our dog, Glimmer, who has a lot of trouble being around other dogs. She’s not aggressive; she’s nervous and she lacks confidence in setting boundaries about what she will and will not allow. Max is a 7-month-old Chinese Crested puppy with so much energy that only our cat, Violet, can keep up with him. So, the patience and reigned-in energy he offers Glimmer is incredible; he seems to realize that she needs gentleness from him, so while he constantly invites her to play with him, he only gives her what she can handle. And when they do get playing and she gets too intense with him, he immediately lays down in front of her and gives her calming signals. Once she calms down a bit, they’ll either lay down together, or they’ll resume their play. It’s a beautiful relationship, because Glimmer helps teach Max his basics (sit, stay, etc.), and Max helps Glimmer come out of her shell and have some fun.
Max has a very bad habit of getting underfoot. Yesterday, I was working in my kitchen and I nearly stepped on him. It was time to start teaching him “place”. Thanks to my awesome friend Christine, I was able to video the exercise. He did okay for his first time with this lesson, but as you’ll see when the video is posted later today, Max needs a lot of work on focusing and obeying the “stay” command. He also has an unwanted tendency to get on his hind legs when he’s asked to do something. Today, I’m going to be focusing on correcting those behaviors.
The weather is cool and rainy today, so getting the dogs out for a walk isn’t an option. But that’s okay. There are lots of fun things we can do indoors that will stimulate them and drain out enough of their mental and physical energy to keep them happy. Have a great day, and remember to stay calm and lead on… 🙂
Happy Dawgs Obedience Training 