Sometimes you have to fake it...

Everyone is in a position at some point, where they are not 100% confident in what they are training. Maybe it’s a new skill or a new exercise. Maybe it is an unusual reaction from your dog that you weren’t prepared for. Maybe you are trying different methods to work through a particular problem.

I often see people being cautious about how they handle and train their dogs. They are worried about doing something wrong, so their commands are wishy-washy, without spelling out exactly how they want their dog to perform.

How would you feel if you were sitting in your doctor’s office and your doctor came into the room to discuss what was wrong with you. Instead of him spelling out EXACTLY what the problem was, he beat around the bush. “Maybe" you have this or “maybe” you have that. We can “maybe” try this medicine, but “maybe” this would be better. You wouldn’t have much faith in your doctor, would you?

Your dog is the same way. They want (and NEED) specific and clear instructions. They need you to apply things confidently and with purpose.

It is better to do the wrong thing with confidence, than the right thing with trepidation.

You are not going to mess up your dog, or your training, if you don’t handle something correctly; as long as you handle it with confidence. As a disclaimer (because there is always one person in the bunch)....this obviously does not mean that you should “confidently” rip your dog’s head off if they perform an exercise incorrectly, this can cause lasting problems. But, most people train with cookies and/or toys. You are NOT going to do any lasting damage with a cookie.

I’d rather have my dog make a confident, wrong decision than an unconfident, correct one. Much, much easier to fix and build on.

So, if you get into a situation where you aren’t quite sure what to do, fake it. You always hear that dogs live in the moment, and I agree with this. You can always retrain something. You can always start over. But, if you start making your dog guess what you want, you are creating indecision and confusion. Neither of which is a good thing for the competition ring.

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon

Stop training

Once and awhile you need to stop working and leave trainer “mode”. It is easy to stay sucked into the role of always working on your dog, always perfecting, always practicing. But, sometimes, once and awhile, it is good to stop and check where you are at on the different pendulums of training. These pendulums may be different for everyone, though some are common themes between teams.

One side of my pendulum is drive, energy and exuberance. The other side is precision and detail. Can you have both? Absolutely, but they need to be balanced. Too much focus on precision and detail can result in lower energy and flatness. Most dogs do not like being drilled on details over and over again. Things like fronts and finishes are extremely important, especially in advanced classes, but drilling them is not always effective. Drilling fronts with my German Shepherd would have dramatically reduced her speed coming into front position, something we struggled with towards the end of her show career. Does that mean we didn’t work on them? Absolutely not. But only a few a session. She had to have more drive building, more encouragement, more energy.

My Springer on the other hand, exudes energy. He needs to be reminded that precision is critical. He works on fronts and rear end awareness almost every single day. He needs to be reminded that, while animated heeling is beautiful, he is also required to stay straight, sit quickly and not lose attention. Sometimes, however, I fall too far on one side of the pendulum and get out of sync. I’m working too hard on precision and I lose sight of the overall picture. All of a sudden, my dog's heeling has flattened out and I’ve lost the “look” that I want. Once I bring his pendulum back into balance, I’ve got what I want.

I’m fortunate to have some fabulous training friends that I meet with at least monthly to work through issues. However, I train by myself the majority of the time. This works for me because I like to take my time, working through my problems and trying different approaches to solve them. If I trained with a group every day, I would not accomplish near as much with my dog and our training would suffer. However, I can tell when we need to be reinvigorated by a training group. Sometimes, it just takes a weekend dog show to put the balance back. But, sometimes, it takes a few hours of talking and working through problems with like-minded friends.

It is natural for the pendulums to be continually swinging back and forth. But, the more you practice evaluating where you and your dog are at on “your” pendulums, the easier you will find it to stay in balance. And, when you find that “sweet spot”, there is nothing better. :)

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon

Smile!

What is the most important thing you need to do when training your dog?

Smile at your dog!!!

Get up and go to a mirror. Make a mean, angry face at yourself. What happens? Your posture changes. Your shoulders become rigid, your body tenses and your breathing changes. Now smile at yourself and notice what happens. Everything softens...your face, your shoulders, your breathing...your entire body relaxes.

If you were your dog, what person would you rather be next to?

Even when I need to stop my dog to fix a behavior, I’m smiling. I’m talking to them in a silly voice, telling them how goofy they are for messing up. Does my dog know he messed up? Absolutely. My hands are on his collar, putting him in the correct position, bouncing him to his go-out spot, or taking him to his jump. But, while I’m “correcting” my dog, he also understands that it is merely a mistake, nothing to worry or obsess about. He doesn’t shut down and he doesn’t start to stress about what I’m doing.

Does this mean that I never show my dog true displeasure? No. If I need to make a point with a stern voice and a firmer correction, I will do it. But, this is normally reserved for the times that my dog decides that working is not an option. Maybe he decides that the grass is more interesting than the article pile or he decides that he’d rather sniff the person standing in the corner, rather than pick up his glove. It is up to you and your ability to read your dog that determines how you should handle any given situation.

Smiling is also shown to relieve stress, improve your mood, lower blood pressure and release good endorphins. How many of us couldn’t use all four of those things on show day?  Train like you show...that’s the rule, right? So, when you prepare to walk into the ring, stop, take a big breath (and let it out!) and smile at your dog. Let him jump up on you while you tell him how smart he is. Then, when you are called into the ring, smile at the judge. You will set a good impression, telling the judge that you are confident and ready to show them what your dog can do.

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon

What kind of trainer are you?

While warming up for a class at a dog show the other day, I was practicing some quick drops before going into the Open B ring. My warm up consisted of doodling with my attentive dog and telling him “down” as I went in with my hand on his shoulder blades. I wasn’t hitting him, I was simply reinforcing a fast down by putting my hands on him. In most cases, he was down before my hand even came in contact with him. A person walking by made a comment...”I saw that.” I must have looked at them pretty strange, because the person added “I thought you didn’t correct your dog.” I’m sure I probably made a funny face, and I responded “I don’t know what made you think that?”

No one can argue the huge societal change that has occurred over the past 10 years. Probably longer, but that’s as far as I’m going to go back. Why? Because that is longer than the length of time that I’ve been involved in competition obedience. I’m not going to debate the positives and negatives of different forms of training...that has been done ad nauseam. But, primarily, I just really do not care.

Fortunately, I don’t have to make my living as a dog trainer. Because, if I did, I would have to worry about what others thought of my training methods. I would have to cover my website in flowery descriptions, including “force free”, “positive only”, or “clicker” because that is how a lot of people think dogs need to be trained. (Ironically, some trainers who have these words plastered all over their websites, also order prong collars from me in bulk.) I would have to defend my props or tools, calling them “positive tools” to train a dog. I would have to micro manage my dog’s life and surroundings so they were never put in a position to think for themselves.

If you want to train with a clicker, go for it. If you are stuck in the old compulsion days, go for it. If you think you can talk to your dog telepathically, go for it!! I won’t judge you. I promise. Well, except for the telepathic people...I will probably judge you. :) But one thing I will do, I will call a spade a spade. If you are being unfair, I will tell you. If your dog has got your number, I will tell you that too. And, if I don’t know the answer, I will try to help you find one.

My belief is that dogs should be happy when training. I want my dog to push me to work and interact, even if it requires several training sessions each day. While I have trained dogs in a prong collar, I am currently training only in a buckle collar, relying on my hands to do any correcting (if necessary). I guide, I encourage and I require...depending on the dog, it's training and the given situation.

All dogs are built differently. Some dogs can heel with their heads up and others can't. I do not believe that heads up heeling is required or necessary for all dogs. But, don't confuse attention heeling with heads up heeling. Attention is required to be competitive. Heads up heeling looks nice and improves the overall picture, but is not required. I do not believe it is good training to force a dog to keep his head up, if his structure does not allow it.

Train the dog in front of you. If they need more positive and ego-stroking, do it. If they need more rules and boundaries, do it. But, don’t train a particular way because that is what the cult around is doing. Let your dog and his actions determine how you train. And, by all means, if the people around you are training in a way that makes you uncomfortable...LEAVE.

My methods are constantly evolving. I am continually watching other trainers work their dogs...how they train new exercises, how they respond to problems, and how they read their dogs. I find it fascinating. I look forward to training my dogs, working through problems and seeing the lightbulb come on. I love training with people who share the same views as I do, just as much as I enjoy training with people who have other training beliefs and backgrounds. 

Oh...and if you are wondering what the person’s response was at the dog show, when I asked them why they thought I didn’t correct my dog...it was “because your dog is so happy in the ring”. It was one of the best compliments I have ever received. But, in truth, if he’s so happy, why does it matter “how” I train?? 

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon

Foundation skills

I’m always amazed by people who skip the foundation work and then wonder why everything falls apart later. Actually, the “foundation” needs constant work...as it’s the “basic” things that make or break a good run.

What things do I consider “foundation” exercises:

1. Voluntary attention (HUGE!!)
2. Hold
3. Marking
4. Hand touch & hand push
5. Nose target 
6. Motivational pop
7. Pop up release (to food for puppy, later a hand touch)
8. Rear end awareness exercises
9. Find heel position
10. Move with me & stay with me (even when released)
11. Bounce, spin, twist, backup
12. Position changes
13. Find front
14. Come
15. Spin back after picking something up
16. Getting on a platform & send away to a platform
17. Dumbbell games
18. How to use their nose (beginning scent work)
19. Send to a mat or crate
20. How to come out of a crate
21. How to play with me WITHOUT a toy or a cookie
22. Chasing a cookie or toy
23. Marker words
24. Muscle memory for head position
25. Responding to their name
26. Responding to cue words that I can take into the ring, i.e. “Ready”
27. and (most important) learning that training with me is the funnest thing in the world!!

Spend the time training these things to your puppy or young competition dog and it will pay off in the end!

Train hard. Play harder.

Shannon

Asking for advice...

Everyone has to ask for advice at some point. We simply don’t know ALL the answers to ALL the problems.

But before you start asking for advice, stop and think…

1) Are you ready for peoples' opinions?

Maybe you are wrong, maybe you aren't...but are you ready to hear what other people think? If you don't have an open mind going into it, you may miss something wonderful. Did someone suggest a training method or a tool that you aren't willing to use? If you say no before they even explain their reasoning, you won't understand their methodology behind their answer. If you want someone to give you their time by answering your question, the least you can do is listen with an open mind. Understand, this is NOT the same as when someone gives you an unsolicited opinion. But when YOU ask for advice, be prepared to listen...to everything and everyone before making a decision.

If you're wrong, be prepared...the truth hurts. Maybe you've completely messed something up and someone (if they're being truthful) will tell you. Is it the end of the world? Absolutely not. But, maybe, most of what you are doing is correct and it just took someone from the "outside" to see the issue. Either way, if you aren't prepared to listen and HEAR, then don't ask.

2) Do you really need advice or are you just looking for validation?

Yes, sometimes it may be a combination of the two things. Where you "think" you are doing something correctly (or handling a problem the right way) and you want to see what other people think of your methods. But, if you are just looking for a pat on the back, don't bother asking.

3) Who is the best person to ask?

There really isn’t a “best” person, but the only rule is that the person needs to have more experience than you. And don’t evaluate a person solely on titles. If you have having a problem with your little terrier’s retrieve, the local “professional OTCH trainer” who has worked with countless Border Collies or Golden Retrievers may not be the best person to ask. It doesn’t mean you can’t ask them, but I’d also seek out a successful terrier person to ask for advice.

Be prepared for a different answer from every person you ask. Thus, don’t ask very many people. Ask the people you trust, the people you respect and, above all, the people with experience.

4) What are your reasons for ignoring advice?

Trust me, you do not have to listen to every piece of advice you are given. You know your dog and your steps of training better than anyone. But, if you are ignoring advice simply because it's not what you wanted to hear or you don't like the answer, then you are never going to learn. Instead, think through the person's advice and make sure you understand exactly what they are trying to say. Maybe, after you understand it, you may be able to adjust the advice to your particular method of training. If you don't understand, then ask questions!

Don’t made decisions based on emotion. We are great at coming up with excuses for not listening to “good” advice, simply because we are too close to the topic at hand.

But, in the end, trust yourself. A mistake is simply a mistake. Even if the advice doesn’t work completely, maybe it addressed a portion of the problem. Keep working towards your end goal and surround yourselves with people who want to see you succeed.

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon

Interest vs. Commitment

I ran across a wonderful quote this morning....

“There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when it’s convenient. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results.” (Kenneth Blanchard)

Wow, how true. I know a lot of people who are “interested” in training their dogs, but make excuses when it comes time to actually do the work. The people who are committed are obvious. They are the people training their dogs in the early morning before it gets hot or the people in several layers of clothes because it’s cold outside. We train in the rain, in the wind (stake those ring gates!), in the heat and the cold. We haul our equipment to parks, fields, parking lots and anywhere else that has enough space for us to train our dogs. We get in the car and drive two hours to a match, where we will pay to rent a ring for 10 minutes, just to get back in the car and drive the two hours home.

When things don’t go right in the ring, we come out, sit down and figure out what we need to do to fix it. We don’t blame the dog, the environment or the judge.  Instead, we blame our training or our preparation.

Now, don’t get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with just being interested in showing and wanting to have fun on the weekend. But, if this is the case, don’t hold your dog accountable to YOUR failure to prepare him to compete against the dogs with “committed” trainers. And, by no means am I saying that being “committed” means all other areas of your life are ignored. I have a family, a home and a job that are just as important. However, you will only “get out” what you “put in”. Do you find time to do what is important or do you just say “I’ll train tomorrow”?

So, before you enter a show, decide which person you are....are you “interested” or are you “committed”?

Train hard. Play harder.
Shannon