#i am very smug when the neighbors yell at their barking dogs to zero results | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mod2amaryllis · 2 years

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with it getting so hot it's hard to go out with the dogs after early morning, so!!! in case anyone else is stuck inside, i thought I'd share an exercise i do with my dogs every day that's come in clutch in so many ways

end of last year i took a round of private classes w/ a positive reinforcement trainer because my dogs were getting really leash reactive after an off-leash dog attack. part of their problem is they feed into each other, and goose especially struggles with independence from joan. the best exercise that came from that was this dinner game we play.

get your dog's dinner (works best with kibble) and throw them pieces one by one across the floor for them to seek. it's an AMAZING tool for multiple reasons.

it starts with fostering independence. goose grew up eating side by side with joan, they're both so used to doing absolutely everything together that they get anxious being apart. for our dinner, i position at a corner with one dog per side.

they can't see each other. they're both doing their own thing. goose especially is on her own here being deaf; she can't hear or see joan. she focuses only on me or the kibble. it's already improved her independence.

now this is how i apply it to the wider issue i was treating: leash/dog reactivity. part of my frustration was always that there was no treat that would break their concentration from another dog. i could offer anything, cheese meat whatever, yet they maintain focus on the perceived threat.

but what DOES break their concentration is A Game

there's a mental shift when it's a game. they are switching mindsets to a new activity, one that we practice every day. they see a dog, i get their attention, and i drop treats on the ground on either side of me. i don't HAND them the treats, i make them seek it. the combination of food motivation plus dropping their head to seek plus going into game mode has FINALLY been the thing to pull attention away from other dogs.

granted this takes time. we were months into practicing this before they initiated the game while out on a walk. like the first time goose saw a dog, then instead of focusing on it, looked expectedly at the ground then up at me, i was giddy.

I've found so many uses for this. new neighbor has barking dogs that joan and goose like to argue with? practice dinner game outside. they're feeling cooped up inside? running back and forth for food is mentally and physically stimulating. you can practice scent training by throwing the treat in the middle of some toys or on carpet or grass so dog has to sniff around for it. hell it's made ME feel more connected since dinner isn't just "here u go," it's an activity.

also it's fun! :-)

but yeah it just occurred to me this might be helpful to other people, it's something that i never would've thought of without a trainers input.

#i am very smug when the neighbors yell at their barking dogs to zero results #and i just softly go 'joanie ^^' and boom they're coming over checking the ground for treats #even if your dog doesn't have these issues you could try this #it's just a fun lil game!#m2a #dogs #my pets #dog training #long post

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