Thursday
Jan152015
Gallery Of the Class
Thursday, January 15, 2015 at 8:31PM Not all the photos came out and I wasn't in a spot where I was able to get photos of everyone due to angles but each dog should be in it at least once. I didn't have the time to edit just remove the blurry photos or too dark. That room is difficult as all photos do come out dark. Still there is next week. Here is the gallery.
Thank you everyone for coming. Practice 5 to 10 minutes a day. Treat to nose, into position and get them to focus. The more you do this at home the better but do not overwork them. Make it fun! Try to incorporate things into daily living. Start on the scavenger list. It will and does make a difference.
We plan to do Petsmart twice a week and not necessarily the same Petsmart.
Reader Comments (7)
We had a great time tonight. The pictures really captured it. It was so nice to see all the puppies. Everyone a beauty. I was glad to meet Patches and Abbey since I saw them grow until they went to their forever house. And it was amazing to see Rusty's siblings and to see how much he looks like Ella and Holly. Ella is a young lady that seems to have herself together. She needs to give her brother some advice. He was so excited to see the dogs But nothing compared to his excitement when he saw Nathan. My question is how come Ella is always looking at Nathan and appears to be listening to the instructions while Rusty was looking all around and not concentrating at all. We need a lot of practicing. Hope we can do it. At home Rusty listens better. I guess he is not as distracted as when he has his friends around. Looking forward to next week.
Darlah - thanks for taking pictures tonight. It was so nice to see all the pups again. Ella was a real delight - so focused and smart! Abby and I will practice this week and hopefully improve for next week. She, like Rusty was distracted at times. It was good to see you and Nathan also. The Havanese breed is the best!
Liz/Ronnie: Remember Nathan has taken these classes for years and years and years. He started working with Ella who was a disaster just a few days and he only fed her half lunch and no dinner so she was focused on food.
If you work with Abby and Rusty 5 to 10 minutes a day once in the morning, once in the afternoon you will find a HUGE and I mean a HUGE difference by weeks end. It just works that way. Realize you are learning along with her and Nathan doesn't have that aspect.
If you want to learn sit (I know we didn't cover that) but as fun put a treat to the nose and slowly bring the treat over her head till her bum sits on the floor. Mark it with whatever word you use to tell her that's what you want then treat her. Then when she has that down solid start making sure you get her to do it on your left side.
I thought Abby and Rusty was great. Abby, Holly and Rusty were distracted and so was Ragus and he is older but has not taken classes. They are the play monkeys that wanted to play. It is 'normal' to be distracted but as the weeks go on and they understand what is expected, it gets easier.
I thought everyone was WONDERFUL in class - seriously.
Leti in this class laid down and refused to do a thing. Gad love her but she was not impressed with this thing called classes and our son Jonathan worked with her while Nathan worked with Inula. Each class she refused to do a thing and then she got home and she did it after Jon was working with her all week.
One of the things Jon did do was be proactive. He kept asking the instructors for help. He said give me ways of getting her to do this or that. It helped him immensely. He learned techniques one on one. It didn't take away from the class as there are 2 instructors and it was only a few minutes here and there. But it really helped him as he was new at training.
By week 5 and yes I said week 5 Leti started truly participating. Poor Jon having everyone else doing and his not most of the time was beyond frustrating for him.
The instructors said that's the problem, Jon. She knows you are frustrated. Let's laugh and have fun and when she does it get beyond happy when she does and not get frustrated when she doesn't. It worked. Week 6 she was most improved. Yes they award one dog with most improved. Jon and Leti remain very bonded over and above all the dogs as they shared this experience. This was a bonus. He is now talking about doing a tricks class or next level of obedience with her.
I asked him just now what he got from this class and he said to allow himself to act silly as that is what Leti needed. He never talked baby talk to any of the dogs but he does with Leti as she responds to it. Each dog needs something different. When you figure out what it is then it all falls into place. You must allow yourself to applaud the progress and have fun with it.
When training at home if you are getting frustrated stop training. Try it again when you are not. Do short sessions and make it a game. Do a little before each meal so they are motivated. Incorporate training into every day living. For instance a sit can be practised before feeding. Get them to sit for each meal. When you learn down, sometimes get them to do down when you feed or when someone comes to the door. When walking get them to sit at each corner and wait.
Some of the most intelligent dogs are the ones that are distracted as they are always thinking.
Oh Darlah, thank you so much for your comments. I was one that was frustrated. I have been working so hard with Patches at home and when she comes to class she was hardly doing anything she has learned at home, not even for the best food I could think of. But, if I might say so, I think she is very smart and as you say some of the smartest are distracted by what is going on. That is my excuse anyway, and I will stick with it :-)
One thing I did wrong though (I think) is that when we did Puppy Preschool I focused too much on socialization and didn't leave her alone enough because now we are having a problem leaving her alone. With this weather it is hard to be out all the time.....
What do you think is the better thing to focus on, socialization at this age or leaving her alone? Hints?
Angela: You need to focus on both a few minutes at a time. Also start in on the scavenger list. It is actually quite valuable. By doing most of the items you actually create a balanced dog that embrace changes and new things.
PS: The distracted dogs are multi-tasking thinking dogs. But good news by doing the classes and the scavenger list they do start to focus. They also mature. Ah puppyhood... you go how did it go by so fast - watch one day you will.
The key instead of frustration you have to laugh about it. By laughing you are having fun, the dog is having fun and suddenly you go wow she's heeling perfectly. When did that happen?
Boy oh boy - was Holly ever distracted. She needs A LOT of work - lol! Any suggestions for softer treats that I can bring to next week's class? The liver was too dry for her, I think, and she kept choking on it.
Thanks Darlah, for the tips - will try them as we practice this week!
Thank you so much Darlah. You make me feel much better. I was feeling guilty about pulling Rusty on his leash. He seems to be so much better at home But we are more relaxed and it is more fun. He sees lots of people young and old but he hardly sees any dogs. He went crazy. He was so happy. We will practice at home and hopefully he will be better next week. Like you said Darlah we have to remember he is still a puppy. Elana really was frustrated too. At home she is the one that trains. She taught him sit and stay he does it most of the time. At the class she couldn't focus on listening to the Trainer and having Rusty obey. It was a hard night.
Still looking forward to seeing everyone next week. Have a good week