Havanese Pay Attention To Me

Oh, it's surely getting cold out today and so bath times will begin - Katsuro first as he is - well a mess - then Wasabi and on and on.

I received a surprise gift from friends who made it - a grooming table so I am jazzed about having something other than my washing machine to stand them on. We shall see how it goes.

Well, here is Sassy - sorely needing a bath herself - still doesn't look so bad but still - it's time. We put a jacket of Shoshi's on as it's rather windy today to practice look at me. Once we have this mastered, we will start heeling.

The first step is to get him/her to gain comfort with the leash, the various mediums, noises etc and then you start training. Some say train from the minute you start but we find that it interferes with the love of the experience. We want the dog to look around, enjoy his surroundings and gain some curiousity and excitement about the process. Then when your dog is excited about getting a collar and lead on, you then start getting them to pay attention to YOU.

First command is an 'attention' command as this will be the core to getting your dog to do what you want. If you want your dogs to listen to you in all circumstances, then you must first have their FULL attention and a method that works.

Attach a very long leash to your dog's collar. Why? Because a short leash doesn't give him enough room to "test" his limits and learn which behavior you're going for. Ultimately, if your dog willingly stays with you on a long leash, then it will be easier to teach him to stay with you willingly on a shorter leash later.

Start by getting your dog's full attention. With the dog standing (or sitting) on your left side, call his name. When he looks at you, reward immediately with a TREAT.

If he doesn't look at you, take a treat to his nose and bring it to your eyes. When you are doing this, say 'Sassy, look.' (trade your dog's name for Sassy) When he looks up at you (really the treat) then reward him. You can also start using a clicker here to get them to understand a click means something positive and this will help you in the long term to wean off of the treat system.

Then, start walking. With each and every step that the dog follows along next to you, TREAT. If he gets distracted, repeat getting him to pay attention to you. If you get to this 2nd step, you have just begun teaching your dog to heel. If you are stuck in the 'attention' portion, it will come. Be patient. It's not about intelligence but creating an atmosphere where they know this is what you want. The key is always make it fun. Do not practice for too long and do not get frustrated. If you are getting frustrated, it's time to stop. You should only be practicing this in 5 to 10 minute intervals. Do not treat when he wanders off or refuses to pay attention to you when you call his name.

When training, feed a tad less to compensate for the addition of training treats.

This is in no way a substitution for training classes. You will be glad that you plunked your money down if you find a quality training centre.

More later.