Hello Paw-lite Manners 201 Pet Degree Class!

Here is your continued practice Homework for Week 6 of Paw-lite Manners 201.

  • Stay (3Ds) (please see the instructions below)
    Goal for this week: Your dog will be able to maintain a Sit-Stay and a Down-Stay as you move 20 feet away, and then return to him or her before releasing.
    Here is a recap of how to apply the 3 Ds to Stay.
    – Stay with Duration
    When adding the Three Ds, we recommend starting with Duration while intermittently rewarding your dog. For example, you may ask your dog to do a 15-second Down-Stay. Before expecting your dog to maintain that Stay for 15 whole seconds, you should reinforce after every couple of seconds for continuing to maintain the behavior. Over time, you can slow down your rate of reinforcement and extend the length of time steadily. The key is to vary the length of time in between rewards. If your goal is 15 seconds, then you should not try to increase the length of time all at once. For example, you may reward after 3 seconds, then 6 seconds, then 5 seconds, then 8 seconds, then 2 seconds, then 10 seconds, and so forth. Dogs don’t realize that we are slowly increasing the length of time if we keep them guessing about when we are going to provide reinforcement.
    – Stay with Distance
    Next, we recommend adding Distance. Distance can be as simple as just leaning away from your dog or as complex as turning your back on your dog and walking completely out of sight. It’s important to start this process small and make it very simple because most of the foundation skills we teach dogs are taught right in front of you. When you begin adding Distance to any skill for the first time, it is common for dogs to become confused or to require a slow approach.
    One warm up exercise for beginning to add distance is to place one foot behind you and just lean backwards. After one second lean back with your posture straight up again and then reinforce your dog. It’s important to reinforce after every repetition to help your dog comprehend that no matter what you are doing, the required behavior is to just stay in position. It is okay to ask your dog to Stay again in between each repetition in the beginning, but ideally you should be working up to only cueing the Stay once your dog understands that he or she should remain in position until the Release cue is given.
    If you can lean to the side and back, then you can move on to taking one quick step backwards and then returning to right in front of your dog. Again, reinforce your dog for maintaining the Stay. Repeat the simple exercises until you can take two steps backwards and return or until you can turn your back on your dog for one second and then turn back around to face him or her the next second. If your dog gets out of the Stay at any time, simply re-cue the behavior and make sure you are not moving too fast. Multiple mishaps might mean you are adding too much Duration and Distance at once.
    Continue to add more and more steps as time goes on, but remember that building Duration, Distance, and Distractions into your dog’s obedience skills can take time and patience.
    – Stay with Distractions
    Next, we recommend adding the hardest D, which are Distractions. Distractions can come in all shapes and sizes and are one of the more challenging components that will help your dog be successful. A Distraction can add movement, objects, people, animals, noises, or exciting events.
    Some movements that your dog may find challenging while remaining in Stay are as follows:

    • Jumping Jacks
    • Dancing
    • Sitting on the ground or laying on the ground
    • Running away from your dog
    • Going to the door, opening it, and then closing it
    • Picking up a leash or harness and putting it on your dog

    Some objects that your dog may find challenging while remaining in Stay are as follows:

    • A tennis ball in your hand
    • Tossing a tennis ball up in the air and catching it
    • Throwing a tennis ball behind your dog
    • A squeaker toy in your hand (i.e., tossing and throwing it)
    • Throwing one toy after another toward your dog
    • Sweeping, vacuuming, or dusting

    Saying hello to people in your family who are coming through the door while maintaining a Stay is one of the most challenging things for friendly dogs. We recommend starting small with this and ask for short integrals with the Stays with frequent Releases so that you don’t make it too challenging for your dog. You can also have your dog stay while the person approaches and then Release your dog when the human is about 4 to 6 feet away. Over time, work up to your dog remaining in Stay for the entire greeting, even while being talked to by the human or pet by the human.
    You can practice Stays with other animals on walks or while passing a dog park. When you see a dog in the neighborhood or dogs playing together in a social setting, make sure you are a comfortable distance away before cueing the Stay. Over time, you can work up to getting closer to other animals, but you may have to start from a distance away initially.
    Some noises that your dog may find challenging while remaining in a Stay are as follows:

    • Doorbells
    • Door knocks
    • Squeaker toys
    • Opening the front door and pretending to greet a stranger with, “Hello; how are you?”
    • Other animals (e.g., dogs, pigs, horses, goats, cats, guinea pigs, etc.)
    • Car doors or beeping
    • Garage door

    Some exciting events that your dog may find challenging while remaining in a Stay are as follows:

    • Greeting people at the door
    • Watching a person running, jogging, or skating
    • People on bikes or scooters
    • Kicking a soccer ball around
    • Watching you eat dinner
    • Putting a bowl of food down on the floor
    • Open bags of treats tossed on the floor
    • Accepting a KONG
    • Tossed food on the floor

    When adding distractions, it’s important to mark with “Yes” and reinforce immediately after the distraction occurs when you are first introducing it. For example, if you put your dog in a Stay and then start to show the dog a toy, mark with “Yes” and then reward after the toy appears. Over time, you can add duration with distractions by lengthening the period of time in between rewards and start to play around with distance. However, when you first begin to introduce low level distractions, mark and reward as soon as the distraction happens. If your dog breaks the Stay more than once, you may find it best to go back a step or two or make it a little bit easier.

  • Recall and Stay with Distractions (please see video and NOTE below)
    Goal for this week: Your dog will be able to Stay and do Recalls with moving distractions.
    Video: Coalie the German Shepherd Dog learning to Focus with Distractions (by Zurison)
    NOTE: Wherever your dog is at in the process, continue to build on your criteria by increasing the difficulty incrementally this week. Do something different and challenging every day.
    Some dogs will veer off course during Recalls when a distraction is too enticing or is presented in a new environment. Start at low levels of the distraction or by moving far enough away that your dog can still practice Recalls. Go back to using a 20 foot leash initially until your dog is recalling reliably.
    During a Stay, some dogs will jolt as soon as you do something exciting. Their two front feet will take a baby hop forward. A good criteria to hold for stay is that if the feet move, it’s not really a stay. Remember to always measure your distance, duration, and distractions to increase or lower criteria appropriately for your dog’s skill level.

  • Heel – Step 4: Pace Changes (please see the instructions below)
    Goal for this week: Your dog will be able to speed up and slow down while you do a Figure 8 pattern and maintain a heel for at least 25 steps.
    When you slow down, you want your dog to slow down with you; when you speed up, you want your dog to maintain heel position while speeding up with you. It is important that you cue your dog in some way as you make the pace change. Leaning forward for the fast, and leaning back slightly for the slow pace. You can also cue with your voice. “Quickly” or “Fast” said in a chipper voice might pep your dog up a little. “Slow” said in a calm voice may get your dog to pay attention and slow down. Eventually, we want just your body language to be the cue.
    Set up two objects about 8 feet apart. Practice heeling around the objects in a figure eight pattern. Try to maintain the same pace as you are walking. Your dog will have to speed up or slow down to maintain heel position. Practice halts in between the objects.
    – Slow: Your dog will have to collect his or her stride and slow down to match your pace.

    • Get your dog’s attention.
    • Lean back slightly and gradually slow your pace. Reward your dog for heeling in position. (If your dog doesn’t slow down in heel position naturally, remember to lure (or hand target), and place reward high and close to your body.)
    • Continue walking at a normal pace.
    • Mark with “Yes,” treat, and then praise.
    • Rinse and repeat.
    • Begin to Mark with “Yes” and treat after doing a couple Slows at a time.

    – Fast: Your dog will have to extend his or her gate and speed up to match your pace.

    • Get your dog’s attention.
    • Lean forward slightly and gradually increase your pace. This doesn’t have to be a run; but a noticeable change in pace. Reward your dog for heeling in position. (Some dogs may get really excited and start bouncing up in the air; make sure you reward while your dog is trotting at your side.)
    • Continue walking at a normal pace.
    • Mark with “Yes,” treat, praise.
    • Rinse and repeat.
    • Begin to mark with “Yes,” and then treat after doing a couple Fasts at a time.
    • Begin to mark with “Yes,” and then treat after doing a couple Fasts and Slows

    – Figure 8: The Figure 8 exercise encompasses all aspects of heeling, left turns, right turns, speeding up and slowing down, and halts.

    • Take a left turn, mark with “Yes,” and then treat during the turn.
    • Walk forward a couple of steps, mark with “Yes,” and then treat if necessary to keep your dog in heel position
    • Take a right turn, mark with “Yes,” and then treat during the turn.
    • Walk forward a couple of steps, mark with “Yes,” and then treat if necessary to keep your dog in heel position.
    • Begin to mark with “Yes,” and then treat after doing a complete Figure 8.
    • Continue making Figure 8s, rewarding when necessary. (As your dog improves in Heel, praise and reward the best examples of Heel.)

    NOTE: When taking a turn toward your dog, he or she has to collect his stride and slow down. When taking a turn away from your dog, he or she has to speed up and extend his gait. You should NOT change pace during this time. Your dog should be changing pace to keep in line with you.

  • Relaxation/Massage (please see instructions and NOTE below)
    Goal for this week: You will spend 3 minutes at least 3 times a day rewarding your dog for physical signs of relaxation. The reward can be you dropping a treat calmly right next to his or her muzzle or you sitting beside your dog and practicing slow, methodical strokes to build up duration for massage.
    Using touch to calm down dogs or help them relax usually requires conditioning over time. For some dogs, relaxation through touch can take years to develop. If, at any point, your dog wants to leave, let him or her leave. You may even keep the strokes gentle and brief, and then wait to see if your dog is asking for more. This is especially important for dogs who become energized and stimulated by touch. Some of them may even need that time in between strokes to calm down. Teaching your dog to relax is a skill that takes time and consistent practice to achieve. Many dogs are unable to settle unless they are taught how to relax.

    • To set your dog up for relaxation success, your first couple of sessions should happen only when he or she has been exercised and is tired. Avoid relaxation training when your dog is in need of a run or is highly excited. Once your dog is getting sleepy and has found a comfortable position to take a snooze in, calmly walk over and sit down next to him or her. If your dog finds this exciting and gets up, then just nonchalantly give him or her the opportunity to settle back down. If this doesn’t encourage your pup to relax again, simply get up and try again later. Your dog should be able to let you sit beside him or her calmly before you begin teaching the process of relaxation.
    • Once your dog is remaining in a down or relaxed position after you join them on the floor or a piece of furniture, you can place a hand on your dog’s side and slowly begin to stroke the fur. It helps to have one hand stationary on the dog while the other hand is petting. You can do this by holding the collar gently or, if your dog is comfortable, by gently placing a hand at the chest. This action should not be used to restrain the dog in any way. It simply should be done to help them feel more grounded. Your hand can be used as a tool to calm your dog down if you remain calm while you use it. Practice heavy breathing in and out as you slowly stroke your dog. After a few sessions, you can move onto the next step.
      NOTE: Do not use your fingers for this. Use a flat palm and use slow, methodical strokes that start at one end of your dog and end at the other. Stay away from scratching or rubbing your hands back and forth quickly on your dog.
    • In order to begin the process of cueing relaxation, your dog must have a solid Down-Stay. After a few sessions of successfully going up to your dogs and slowly petting them as they continue to relax, try cueing a Down and then use those slow, methodical strokes, starting at one end of your dog all the way to the other side. It is best to use a little bit of pressure with your slow hand movements so that your dog can feel your breathing rhythm through your hand.
      Just like people, a dog’s body has many acupressure points. Unlike people, dogs don’t always ask to be touched when we’re trying to deliver a massage. It’s important to be mindful of whether they have the impression we are holding them captive or they are asking you to touch them more.
    • When helping your dog to relax through acupressure, start with the ears, tiny clockwise circular motions, starting at the base all the way to the tip. Picture yourself drawing tiny little pearls around the base of the ear with the slightest pressure
      Then move to the side of the face and jaws. This is great for dogs because they carry a lot of tension in the mouth. Apply gentle small circular motions on either side of the jaw. You can even do it on the gums if your dog is comfortable with that. This is helpful for teaching dogs to enjoy having their teeth and gums brushed.
      If your dog is comfortable, continue down the back toward the tail. Most dogs are not as comfortable with the hips and tail being massaged. If this is the case, spend a few seconds there then move back to where your dog enjoys being touched for a period of time before repeating the same process again.
      End with five deep breaths. Put a hand on your diaphragm so you can feel your breaths, and then leave one hand on the dog so you can feel his or her breathing as well. You might even find yourself synchronizing your breathing with your dog.
    • Eventually, you can start inserting a calming word that your dog can learn as a verbal cue down the road. Don’t say it repeatedly, but every once and awhile on an outward breath. Some words that we like to use are: Relax, Calm, or Settle. No matter where your dog is on the relaxation spectrum you will succeed in teaching your dog to relax, and the benefits will be immeasurable to both you and your dog.
      NOTE: IF, at any point, your dog becomes tense, growls, or continues to find being touched unpleasant, please DISCONTINUE touching them in that location. It is best to seek the assistance of your trainer before moving forward.
    • Take some time to figure out where your dog likes to be touched and how he or she likes to be touched. If your dog is in a position of relaxation, his or her mental state will eventually follow. When using food to teach relaxation, deliver the treats calmly and quietly near your dog’s muzzle. Take opportunities to practice watching him or her closely so that you can reward for the following:
      • Lying with head down or on side
      • Sleepy eyes
      • Yawning
      • Muscles visibly relaxing

Try to set aside 15 minutes a day (or 3 five minute sessions a day) to set your dog up for success and meet your homework goals for this week.

Please let us know if you have any questions or if there is anything you need more clarification on.

See you in class next week!

Happy Training!