Walking Without Distractions

DoubleTrouble · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:38 pm Post subject: Walking Without Distractions

So, both dogs are doing great with training. I've broken Cache of pulling almost entirely, wearing just a plain harness. Now, I want him to be able to walk down the street without being distracted. He gets very distracted, especially by dogs. He tries to walk over to them, pulling. Or if we have to walk close to them, he sniffs them. But I really want him to walk down the street and be good completely. I'm trying to train him to do the TDI test. He knows "leave it" and "come" but I want him to walk without me having to say those. Suggestions?

Banshee13 · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:54 pm Post subject:

Problem with a harness is that aren't really LEARNING to walk good on a lead. The harness is simply not allowing them to PULL. My suggestion is to get a good training collar (that you only use for training, NOT when they are just in the house, etc.) and start "teaching" your dog how to walk on a loose lead by gently (or not so gently) "correcting" them when the forge ahead or get "distracted" with a sharp, quick tug on the lead to get their attention back on you...and then Praise, Praise, Praise when they are walking nicely and attentively. Have you had or considered any obedience training?

Peri

DoubleTrouble · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 6:25 pm Post subject:

He's done beginner obedience and did really well. He knows most basic commands. He can walk without pulling on a plain buckle collar. I just like the harness better and he seems to really like it too. When we were trying to train him to stop pulling, we tried a prong collar and he pulled right through it-- didn't care at all. I'll give martingale or a nylon choke collar a try. He's a very smart dog, and does best with only positive reinforcement. The problem is when I praise him for walking nicely, he tries to jump on me to get treats.

anne · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 6:32 pm Post subject:

That's good that he walks politely with a regular buckle collar because you cannot use any training collars for the TDI test. A dog is not reliable until he can do things with distractions, and the way to train him thru distractions is to start with smal distractions and work your way up to bigger ones. If you are in a training class, you can set up situations so that you can start with small distractions, if you are training somewhere in public, it can be hard to control what happens.

Travis · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 8:00 pm Post subject:

What's is the TDI test?

DoubleTrouble · Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:55 pm Post subject:

TDI is Therapy Dog International.

Because he isn't a puller, just gets distracted, would it be safe to use a choke collar to see if I can "remind" him when he gets distracted?

We just finished our obedience class. I have get to sign him up for the second one. He did really well in class-- a lot more focused there than elsewhere. Probably because he was inside on the lead. We didn't do much with distractions in class.

Banshee13 · Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 4:32 am Post subject:

I just got a new "choke" collar from our trainer. It has a toggle switch on one end so that you can clasp the collar on and off, rather than slip it over the dog's head. You can use a much smaller (and lighter) chain because you don't slip it over the head. We like it a lot. It was very inexpensive ($6- Cool

but I haven't seen them offered anywhere else but at the Canine Training Center we go to.

Peri

weimdogmom · Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 11:33 am Post subject:

anne · Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 12:09 pm Post subject:

Since he knows "leave it" that is what I would use and give him positive feedback for leaving it and focusing his attention back at you. You can also teach a "watch me" command or something too. The key with distractions is that he needs to learn that everything good comes from you and it is in HIS best interest to pay attention to you rather than other dogs.

Banshee13 · Posted: Wed Mar 26, 2008 8:50 pm Post subject:

DoubleTrouble · Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 12:24 am Post subject:

ZaneTheBrain · Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2008 11:40 am Post subject: