Luring "Grovel"

REVIEWING Target (L2) Paws Up

What you click is what you will get....

TRAINING Vested/Non Vested Behavior (L3)

And just what, then IS a training session?

I love Wal-Mart for training.  It’s got totally quiet aisles; it’s got busy aisles; it’s got merchandise; it’s got wheelchairs and electric scooters I can borrow; it’s got children and people with canes.  It’s perfect.  And sometimes I buy things in Wal-Mart.  Here’s where I have to pay attention.  If I’m going to Wal-Mart to buy a mat, that’s not a training session.  If I’m going to Wal-Mart to train my dog, that IS a training session.  I might even buy a mat while I’m there.

What’s the difference?  A Training Session has a goal.  It has a plan.  It has treats.  It’s focused on the dog’s behavior and state of mind, and it’s documented.

NON-VESTED

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VESTED

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NON-VESTED

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VESTED

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MENTORING SESSION AGENDA: 9/16/10

This Thursday it will have been a month since we last met in Balboa Park and our last mentoring session before Sue's clinic.  It's a milestone session, because we will be finishing up Level 2 and moving ahead to Level 3.


LOCATION:
Where it all began.
The parking lot behind the Sports Museum.
We'll plan to "de-brief" over lunch in the cafeteria.

PLEASE BRING:
chair
Steps
Clinic Handout
crate
your dog's Training Record Chart (up to date)

PREPARATION:
Complete L2: Leash: Steps 1 - 5/including all WWWW
and as you complete each Step and its WWWW CHECK OFF THE BOX
We presented this behavior shortly after Sue's last clinic.  Here we are almost 6 months later.
Focus on completing this prior to Thursday, please.

PREPARATION:
The ZEN required to complete the above behavior.

PREPARATION:
Have at least one person other than yourself teach L1 ZEN to your dog (as we did in class last week)

PREPARATION:
L2 behaviors
We tested L2 behaviors a month ago.
We will re-test those behaviors your dogs did not pass last month.

PLAN:
Zen
Watch
Leash: L2 from both books
Re-test unfinished L2 behaviors (and others)
Retrieve

Review Level 3 and begin.

PROBLEM SOLVING:
In the past we have "tolerated" certain unacceptable behaviors in each of our dogs.
For this session, those behaviors will not be tolerated.
Does this mean that problems will be solved by the end of the session?  No.
But this will be our underlying mind set.

Please come with a plan and a no-nonsense approach to a solution.
Plan in advance how you intend to change your training agenda to convey this message to your dog
(or someone else's dog, since we will be handling each others dogs).
I want you to think decisively and affirmatively as you plan.

The three of you have discussed "manners" of your dogs as a "missing link".
Sue's explanation of vested vs non-vested work addressed "manners".
This session we are going to tie it all together and get started.
Think Sue's analogy of a 10-year old boy in her discussion of vested vs non-vested behavior.


DISCUSSION:
Training Smart
Making the most of your training time.

MIND SET
There is no difference in the vested behaviour and the unvested behaviour. The purpose of V/UV is to teach the dog a state of mind while wearing the vest. 

What happens when he's not wearing his vest? He behaves himself and takes his cues from the trainer as to what "behaving himself" means. He does what she asks him to do, he keeps the leash loose. When asked to Come, he Comes. In the absence of a specific cue, he LLW, but may sniff or roll or solicit people with his eyebrows as they walk by. He may be going to do agility or going to the dogpark where he'll get excited and chase things - he has to maintain enough dignity not to be bothersome. There may or may not be an opportunity to be rewarded for paying better attention depending on what's happening. When the leash comes off, be behaves in an appropriate way for the situation.

What happens when he's wearing his vest? He behaves himself and takes his cues from the vest as to what "behaving himself" means. When asked to Come, he Comes. There is no LLW when vested. Vested means Service-Dog-Walk. There is no free time for soliciting people, and he is not going anywhere that's going to be exciting. He does SDW whether the human is paying attention or not, whether he is asked to do it or not. SDW is a vested default. Maintaining a small team footprint is a vested default. Not heading for a nearby tree is a vested default. There is ALWAYS an opportunity to be rewarded, whether the human appears to be paying attention or not. Taking the vest off is, essentially, giving him a "FREE" cue - he's free to return to his unvested, semi-paying-attention, responding-to-cues life.

Think of a 10 year old kid's behaviour in his own back yard. Now think of the same kid in church. How is he dressed? How does he behave? His mom asks him to sit in a chair and be still for a few minutes in the back yard, and he does. Being still doesn't mean he can't wiggle his eyebrows at the little girl next door or try to pick up ants on his toes. He sits quietly by default in church. No difference in the overall sit-still behaviourl, but a difference in the motivation and his general attitude, facial expression, and how many ants are climbing on his feet

Coaching Session 9/2/10

Can your dog stand here? Keeper standing on a rock at an incline

Cathy and I had the great opportunity to coach with Peggy/Ike, Sadie/Keeper today at OH. We started our session with all the dogs in the car going through L1 Behaviors.

There was not enough room in the back of the car for Ike and Keeper, so Peggy and Ike began their L1 behavior just outside the car.

Sadie is successfuly demonstrating L1 ZEN with Keeper at the beginning of our Coaching Session

BMO L1 SIT, Down. Keeper shows how it is done.

Ike and Peggy take their turn at BMO L1 Sit and Down

And the pros-Rooster and Cathy on the grate

like a walk in the park

and last, but not least, Webster demonstrates L1 on the grate

Keeper/ Paws Up

Mark is successful getting Webster's attention back

Mark is working with Web on Retrieve; getting Web to hold the leash in his mouth; wonder what's coming next?

While Mark is working with Web on Retrieve, Cathy is giving good coaching advice in the background of the video.