posted by Lorna :
Help! I’ve brought a monster into my home!
The sweet 16 lb puppy adopted Oct 6 has turned into a 19.5 lb chewing machine who gets into everything and destroys it. What did people do before Xpens and crates were invented?
It’s great that Kitsa is full of confidence and feisty and I want to encourage these qualities. It’s not so great when she balances on the back of the couch to pull ornaments off the shelf and make off with them! When I cann’t actively watch her she has to be confined, if she’s not life is a series of "Noes". Don’t touch the garbage, the cat food, electrical cords, the cats; don’t get on the kitchen table or the counters, don’t chew books, papers video tapes — the list of "no"s is endless. I want her life to be full of "yesses", you’re a good dog to come, sit, touch my hand, follow; it’s good to watch me rather than chase the cats, to chew on a bone rather than the couch, to play tug with a dog toy and drop it when asked.
She’s learning fast — she can sit on one command just about anywhere, now I’m adding distractions. She has to sit while I open the door, if she jumps up the door is closed. We’re working on sit while a piece of food is placed on the ground, she can wait until it’s about nose level then jumps up, so it’s going to take a while to reach ground level. She can touch my hand 3 or 4 times for one treat, can follow beside me for 10 or 12 steps on either side. When we’re walking I play games with her, I’ll get 3 or 4 feet ahead of her, call her name and walk quickly away with one hand held out to the side saying "touch". If she comes to the outstretched hand I click and treat, if she comes to the other side nothing happens. This is ground work for both obedience and agility. When she’s not actively engaged with something I’ll call her to come — sometimes staying still and guiding her into front position, sometimes running away, sometimes dragging a tug toy — there’s always lots of praise, excitement, special treats or games when she gets to me. We’re also doing restrained recalls, one person holds her while the other calls, we want her to run between us, this also gets her comfortable with being held and going to someone else for affection and treats.
I’ve also started to work on shaping with her, I want her to learn that her behaviour affects her environment. With a small cardboard box on the floor and her supper nearby I wait for her to investigate. Any interaction with the box is rewarded – looking, touching with nose or paws, putting a foot inside, pushing across the floor, to encourage as many different behaviours as possible I only click 2 or 3 times for each one. What she does is not important, it’s the process. It’s encouraging her to interact with her environment and to think, to learn that certain behaviours will be rewarded. The first couple of sessions she was confused, she would paw the box a couple of times then wander off, or continue to paw after I stopped treating. By keeping sessions short, 5 or 6 clicks, and ending when she had done something with confidence, she soon learned the game, now she touches it with her nose and looks at me as if to say "was that good enough? do I earn a treat?"
On our walks I’ll ask her to jump up and walk on concrete dividers, old tires, fallen trees, bleachers – anything low enough that she can safely jump or fall off, when she is on I’ll click and treat. This is good preparation for agility, she’ll be aware of her body and able to handle herself on planks and teeters. I’m also introducing the word "over" which means we’re no longer playing, don’t bother working me. There are times I want to walk or sit and relax without her deciding she’s ready to work for treats, and it also gives her permission to go off sniffing and digging and doing dog things.
.JPG)
As she learns self control and more obedience I think some problems will take care of themselves. Grabbing and chewing should decrease with age and time; she’s a bit nervous in town so we’re coming in for short trips whenever possible; the 2 cats are not comfortable with her, it can take a bit of persuasion sometimes to get them into the house, but Kitsa is getting better at watching me and letting them walk past, rather than going into a play bow in front of them or sticking her nose under their tails, normal dog behaviour but not acceptable to adult cats! A spray bottle of water helps keep her from stretching up to the kitchen counters and I have to be careful to keep food out of reach. The sprayer has the advantage of silence, if I yell "N0" it upsets Rayla far more than Kitsa, with the water the other animals are not affected.
In two weeks we have both learned a lot, with consistency in training, good food, and lots of mental and physical exercise she should do well. (If my couch can last until the chewing phase is over!)
What I am trying to remember with her is:
to recognize the begiinnings of a behaviour, ie to be a splitter not a lumper
to click and treat fast and frequently, to give good feedback
to quit while I’m ahead, ie while she is still having fun and being enthusiastic
to not be in a hurry, we’re building a foundation for all future behaviours
to encourage her to want many different rewards, food, toys, affection etc.
to teach her that I am more important and interesting than anything else she encounters
to encourage her to learn self control, that good behaviour brings what she wants
©Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue Society. Have your pet spayed or neutered today.
