Need some help on the retrieve

[Bo Peep]

I got the most wonderful smooth coat BC from my trainers wife- I almost don't want to send her away!!

I discussed this with him and he said ...........if my wife & I had space for . one .more. dog- LOL- we'd take her. I have heard those words uttered many times before.

 

Usher will "pick up" anything I just use the "take it"command but it's been 2 years since I' have been trained it and could use a little help. So, if anyone could be so kind with their knowledge, please send me a PM or post on here. TYSVM-

As Always-

Dianne

[diane allen]

I'm not 100% certain what you're asking...how to teach a retrieve and "bring it here" ? Or just get it back in the vicinity?

 

If someone is in a wheelchair, and the dog won't put the ball in her lap (icky anyway!), something like a Chuck-It would be great - she could pick a ball up off the ground, and never get slimed!

 

Is that it?

 

diane

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

This has two different parts, if you are asking for discriminatory retrieval (retrieval of an object on command). First, training a correct retrieve, which you do by back chaining. Start with the object (start with easy objects then retrain for harder/less pleasant to hold objects until the dog can generalize) in the mouth and ask for a "drop". The correct drop should be in the hand and nowhere else for wheelchair or bedridden patients. I start on the floor in a quiet room, place the object in the mouth while saying yor "take" word, then ask for a drop in my free hand. Most dogs will spit it out anyway because it's Not Food. Repeat about a million times, reinforcing in the way you want, then start asking the dog to "Take" it from your hand without it being put in the mouth.

 

You can also use M/R (clicker) training to shape a "Take" - I've used both depending on the dog.

 

Make sure each take is followed by a drop, and always in the hand. Don't reward for a sloppy drop.

 

Hold your hand farther and farther from the dog, then finally lay the object on the ground with your hand still on it. Then take your hand away a little. Then repeat with your hand further and further away, but don't back up yet. Continue doing the drop with you right there.

 

Next toss the object a short way and ask for the take. When the dog gets close to the object, say "THERE - take!" Repeat about a million times. Make sure you don't toss that object too far - just out of reach. Also, don't bend over or reach for the object as your dog brings it back. That will make the dog sloppy about coming all the way.

 

You want to start fading the command to drop at some point - you want the default behavior to be to bring it and drop it in your hand. Clicker training makes this much easier - you simply withhold the click until you get the object.

 

Increase the distance of the fetch but you don't have to make it huge. Presumably a wheelchair bound person wouldn't be hefting stuff 40 yards other than during play. focus instead on having the dog take directions - left - right - out - here, and THERE which you started when you began adding some distance. Once the directions are down, you can put objects out and do directed fetches.

 

My Ben got very good at this, and it was a wonderful thing when I was wheelchair bound and used a walker for about six months. I could point him to any random object whether I'd thrown it or not, and he'd get it for me.

 

The funniest and coolest thing he did was when I was tidying up my porch, which was about 24" off the ground, and knocked one of my kids' riding toys off (sort of a small plastic tricycle). I almost jokingly pointed to Ben and said "Get it!"

 

He immediately jumped down and grabbed it with his teeth, and hauled it up on the porch. To do it, he had to put half of it up, then jump up himself, then tug it up the rest of the way, encouraged of course by my words but with no possible help from me. That dog had some serious heart.

[Bo Peep]

Thank you so much for your response. I guess I haven't been as patient as a million times. This is one smart little ten month old dog. I told the woman 3 months to get her trained. LOL. But with 2 other dogs in the picture, it isn't coming along so smoothly. I don't want to give her a 1/2 trained dog- she only deserves the best (also the dog, too) I put the other 2 up when training- we have our own room to train in.

 

I just taught Usher "oops" and he picks up whatever I dropped. Heavy objects are more difficult for him, yet he still tries. I wonder if the new dog "Tia" could learn by watching him?