Help With Training Issues?

joelsilverman · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 9:49 pm Post subject: Help With Training Issues?

Ok.... Joel Silverman here.... I just wanted to open open a new thread on dog training. Is there anyone that is needing some help with a Gray Ghost?

G-Smith · Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 10:25 pm Post subject:

My girl Layla knows SIT, STAY (sometimes), LAY, SHAKE and HIGH 5..... Now when I give her a command she will Give me several Things and once... Example... I say SIT and she sits followed by a High 5 and then a LAY down??? 1 more thing.. I can't get her to do any of the above if ther is distraction around.... Especially stay. Any help would be much appreciated.. Thanks Very Happy

Sundown127 · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 1:21 am Post subject:

Hi Joel,

Susan here, who directed you to this group. Love your show!

My girls are 7 & 8 years old. Quite well behaved, as far as I am concerned. I have gotten advanced obedience titles on several dogs in the past, so was prepared for the challenge of my first two Weims.

Okay, now for my one problem I am not sure what to do about. My two girls are MAJOR lickers, which is no problem for me, because I really enjoy being licked by them! Laughing

In fact, with Zoe, the older of my two, I chose her as a puppy because she was the one of the 3 pups in her litter who licked my face endlessly.

But I am now engaged to a man who HATES to be licked. He says it just makes his skin crawl. Shocked

Since I have been in a relationship with him for 4 years, it is not likely he will ever get used to being licked. He is otherwise very good with my girls, although he is admittedly a "cat person". My girls absolutely adore him.

Question is, how do I deal with the fact that I like being licked, and my girls have done it for all their lives, but now, I am very soon going to be married to, and therefore living with someone who does not want to be licked at all? Confused

I certainly don't want to end up with my girls thinking they are bad for being affectionate with my fiance. It took quite a while for them to really bond with him in the first place. To them, part of being affectionate is licking! And I want them to continue this with me.

Any suggestions, other than getting a new fiance? Laughing

hoochmamas · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 5:41 am Post subject:

okay, i'll play.. hooch will be 1 next month Shocked

..

he is a fantastic sweet obedient dog.. i really lucked out. we have exactly 2 issues..
1. i'd say 90% of the time he does really well on lead, but he is difficult to redirect on lead when he gets distracted.. we use the sporn no pull harness or a fabric choke with the choke part being a chain.. he pulls anyway.. luckily i am strong, but am hesitant to let anyone else walk him.. which will become an issue in case i need to.. i can say "slow", and he will walk in a perfect heel.. for about half a block..until i treat him.. then he pulls off.. how do i get him to maintain the heel position?

2. he torments my cats.. he would never hurt them.. he only "plays".. chases, licks, barks, swats at the air by them.. his tail wagging at 100 MPH, my younger one takes off.. she wants no part of him.. my older one swats back.. hooch has quite a few scratches to prove it.. at night, the older one and hooch often both lay with me on the couch and relax..
i say "no cat" when he starts up if i see Hotto wants no part of playing.. .. if it goes too far, i crate him and say "no cat".. sometimes if he is resting and he hears one of them, he pokes up his head.. if he gets focused i cover his eyes and say "no cat".. until he settles back down..
anything else i can do?

3. we are moving.. what can i do to smooth the transition for him.. i was planning on having him go to my aunts house to play with his cousin dog on moving day.. then picking him up and taking him for a long walk around his new neighborhood before taking him inside.. should i be prepared for a behavior change? we took him on vacation with us, and he did well.. but we never left him.. do we need to recrate train in the new environment?

SirSilver · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 8:21 am Post subject:

I'll play too. I second hoochmamas' #1 - Calvin is 7 months old and we have the exact same problem with him walking. We use the easy walk harness; he'll heel for a block, get a treat, then pull again. He is horrible on a flat collar and 6-foot lead.

My other question is about the car. He's been riding in the car since the day we got him...and he cannot settle down. I have tried bones, treats, speaking firmly, restraining him, etc. No dice. He just paces and paces and occasionally swats me and/or bites at me. I drive a small sedan...not too much fun.

Thanks!

versatilek9s · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 8:24 am Post subject:

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:33 am Post subject: G-Smith

Ok.. This is for G-Smith..

That is something that is very common among high strung dogs, movie dogs, and dogs that just simply want to please. That "offering" of a behavior as we call it is something that is a good sign, but we want to get rid of it.
1. Go back to basics
2. Make your dog just SIT and Stay there from very close if you need to
3. Do nothing but reward the dog for doing absolutely nothing
4. This will begin to make things black and white and begin to calm him down
5. Start doing this and email me back as he begins to calm down and do nothing.

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:40 am Post subject: This is for Susan

First of all, thank you for introducing me to this site.

When you go to my website you will see this cute little gray terrier mix all over my site that I rescued about 4 years ago. His name is Foster, and believe it or not he is the same way! Isn't that hilarious, and I will guarantee he is way worse than your dog.

But he is not allowed to lick my face. If he could, he would. So here is how I do it.
1. Teach the dog the word "No", and it really must mean something
2. If your dog does not know that word, go back to basics and put a leash on his collar. It could be his regular collar or a chain collar. Let your Fiance get close, and as the dog reaches to lick, say the word "no" and correct the dog.
3. It is a great idea to set this up on the floor.. someplace where the dog is most likely to lick. Start with this and email me back
4. Thank you for recommending this site!!!!!!!!!!!

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:46 am Post subject: This is for Hoochmamas

OK. let's do one question at a time..

I don't know if you ever aw my technique on training the HEEL but it is a lot different, and it works. Try using that. Because of your dog's previous training, you may not have to spend a ton of time on it. Go to my free website www.companionsforlife.net and go the ONLINE DOG TRAINING AREA and click on HEEL. There are about 16 one minute clips that will take you step by step. Again, since your dog was already trained you may not need to go through all of them, but start from the beginning. It is a very cool technique that I think will help you. I will get to your next question soon..

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:50 am Post subject: This is for SirSilver

OK... Just read what I wrote for Hoochmamas for the HEEL.

As far as the car goes, you need to identify a few things and post. Here are the things:

1. Is the dog OK in the car when it is NOT moving?
2. Is the dog OK in the car when the engine is NOT on?
3. If the car is in your driveway just sitting there, and you put the dog in the car with you, what does he do?

SirSilver · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 9:56 am Post subject:

Hi Joel,

Generally he is fine just in the car, and with the car on but not moving. To be honest we have not done too much training in either of those situations...

Once the car starts moving he does too. He is not allowed in the front and knows that but still constantly tries to get up there.

CherrystoneWeims · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 10:01 am Post subject:

SirSilver · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 10:05 am Post subject:

Oops - I may not have been clear. He is ALWAYS restrained in the car with a harness. Of course I would never put the dog in danger. The harness situation does allow him to pace around the backseat, though - I have tried one that really held him in and didn't allow for a lot of movement, but boy did that not go over well...

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 10:16 am Post subject: To Pam

DITTO Pam!!!

joelsilverman · Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 10:19 am Post subject: Dog in Car

I understand, but if the dog is that much out of control when the car is moving, a crate is always the best thing. As Pam was saying, if nothing else, for the animal's safety. And remember that dogs like being in something like a crate, and for a dog that is uncomfortable, it may give him more security too!!