learning experience

[AdmiralGonsiorowski]

So I already posted once about Ski biting. Several of you guys gave me some good advice and turned me onto Ian Dunbar's books, so I read them. And I think I've realized why Ski is biting so much.

 

See, it has never seemed like play biting to me, but rather an adverse response to being touched or frustrated. When he's playing he mouths, when he's upset he bites.

 

When we first got Ski, we rolled him on his back and held him. It scared him. I didn't do it after that because I saw that it scared him and kind of tossed that out as a correction idea. But I think the damage was done, and now he associates prolonged contact like petting with being restrained, and he freaks out.

 

So I tried some distraction, feeding him by hand while scratching behind his ears, under his chest. He started humping my arm It also had no effect on the biting, and he was just getting anxious.

 

My last effort seemed to work, but I'd like to hear some opinions on it.

 

I put two fingers under his collar. And kept them there, keeping my hand and arm out of the way of his mouth. I didn't pull him, didn't jerk him around, let him have the full range of motion of my arm, just basically using my arm as a relaxed short leash. He spazzed out, jumped, flipped, lunged, rolled over, anything to try and get my hand in his mouth. I distracted him a few times with kibble and toys. I didn't make any noises, and I kept relaxed.

 

Eventually he wound down to pacing and whining. Then he calmed down enough to nose at his kong and eat some kibble. I walked him (hand still on collar) to his water dish and let him drink. He still tried a couple of half hearted twists to get to my hand, but eventually he stopped and laid down. Then he went to sleep.

 

So I didn't use any aggression, I didn't try to intimidate him, I didn't try to "show him who's boss" or any of that. It was distressing for me because he was so upset, but he doesn't seem to be scared of me, he followed me into the next room when I got up, and laid down in there to sleep.

 

Ugh. I didn't think I'd have this much trouble this early. It's hard to muddle through all the bad advice out there about dogs. Many people say it's okay to roll a puppy, but I'm almost certain that's what started this. I'd like to try completely positive reinforcement training, but it's a complete flip from everything I've been exposed to before. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but in Tennessee there's a lot of what we call "yard dogs". These are dogs which have no purpose but to hang out in your yard, bark at strangers, follow you around when you're outside and be ecstatic when you feed or pet them.

 

There is no positive training for yard dogs. You're lucky if they know how to sit. Leash jerks, pops on the nose or butt, kicks and yelling are par for the course as corrections.

 

Retraining myself is going to be the hardest part of raising a a good dog, I think. I'd appreciate any advice you guys can offer.

[mbc1963]

Interesting experience.

 

My dog is excellent about being handled. He lets me mess with his feet, put booties on him, clean his butt, pick him up to put him in the tub, and check his ears. He goes on leash very easily and is easily led. But one thing he really hated from the minute I brought him home was having me lead him by putting a hand on his collar. He would mouth me when I did that - not bite, but definitely make it known that he was unhappy in that situation. I can't think when the last time he did that was - but I never lead him by the collar, either.

 

I wonder if there's something about that particular posture that bothers a dog. I know my dog also doesn't like a hand over his head, not even for petting. (Lots of them don't.) The leading by a collar thing forces the hand to be right there.

 

I don't have any great no-biting advice - just my observations with my dog about this particular situation.

 

Mary

[sandra s.]

I find play-fighting (very gently if necessary) an excellent way of building that kind of trust. It allows you to show off your "bite inhibition" and your ability to read their signals, etc. Kyla doesn't really like being bundled about like Kessie does, and she hates having her feet handled, but she's not scared of it anymore by now, just annoyed.

[urge to herd]

EXCELLENT job at reading your dog. Keep up with the book reading as well.

 

You might try holding him by the collar and releasing as soon as he calms down, gradually extending the length of how long you hold and how much you do with him in the calm state. The exercise you described sounds like it went wonderfully for you both, but my experience, (with all of 3 dogs, by the way, I'm certainly no expert) tells me that generally slow is better.

 

He may have an off day, he may get over excited from running around earlier, he may hear a noise that scares him, and that could make his tolerance of restraint at different times less. So, if you increase gradually, he'll be much calmer, sooner. I don't think I'm explaining this well, but I hope you get the concept.

 

You should also work with him in different postures with this exercise. Laying down, sitting, you in front, you to the side, you in back. Call him to you, touch his collar, give him some kind of reinforcement, release him. You're beginning to build a good recall.

 

Good luck,

 

Ruth

[afrancis]

Ugh. I didn't think I'd have this much trouble this early. It's hard to muddle through all the bad advice out there about dogs. Many people say it's okay to roll a puppy, but I'm almost certain that's what started this. I'd like to try completely positive reinforcement training, but it's a complete flip from everything I've been exposed to before. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but in Tennessee there's a lot of what we call "yard dogs". These are dogs which have no purpose but to hang out in your yard, bark at strangers, follow you around when you're outside and be ecstatic when you feed or pet them.

 

There is no positive training for yard dogs. You're lucky if they know how to sit. Leash jerks, pops on the nose or butt, kicks and yelling are par for the course as corrections.

 

Retraining myself is going to be the hardest part of raising a a good dog, I think. I'd appreciate any advice you guys can offer.

 

Ski's mom, I'm not a trainer but have lived with border collies over the last 16+ years, and trained my dog Skye since she was 7 weeks old (she's now 6.5 years old and is extremely friendly and touchable over her entire body). I did roll my first bc Riley once, but never again. I have always thought that the best training methods involve praise -- so often I see people saying 'No!' to their dogs when they've done something wrong, but rarely telling them 'Yes!' when they do something positive. I think the latter is the most important thing (as well as talking to them generally) in order to ensure a strong bond develops with you.

 

This dominance strategy that you describe as being both a training tool and mindset in so many places, can IMO really backfire with so many dogs and owners. If a dog is exposed early in its life to its owner challenging it to the point of it being terrified, unnerved and uncertain about its very existence, it can develop into fear-based aggression that can manifest in biting, primarily in order to protect itself. Often when this type of training is used on soft, intelligent and intuitive dogs like border collies, the results can be disasterous and can escalate quite quickly. Even things like loud, stern voices, a hard swat, a foot on the back or physical force to make a dog sit, a flip onto its back, a pull-of-their-feet yank on a leash -- all of these things can be seen as normal and relatively mild things to us (esp if we are physical, loud people ourselves), but to a puppy or young dog can be terrifying and a threat to their personal safety.

 

You might try holding him by the collar and releasing as soon as he calms down, gradually extending the length of how long you hold and how much you do with him in the calm state. The exercise you described sounds like it went wonderfully for you both, but my experience, (with all of 3 dogs, by the way, I'm certainly no expert) tells me that generally slow is better.

 

I agree completely with Ruth above. I think in principle your method was good, but perhaps a bit too much all at once. The goal is to gently guide the dog through to compliance, so that it is rewarded for responding well, rather than winning the whole war right away. You did really well by staying low-key and matter-of-fact through the process -- this is really important. No yelling or losing one's temper, no hitting, but happy confirmations of positive behaviour. It means you have to be really quick and responsive since the settling down could happen suddenly and not last more than a few seconds before it is gone again. So seizing that moment and responding immediately to it with praise is essential. You should notice with the sound of your voice praising, your Ski's body language will begin to change: different ear position, tail up and/or wagging, and him seeking you out for petting and licking.

 

It's also really great that you did the Ian Dunbar reading and that you are so in tune already with Ski's behaviour as well as the traditional methods used down there that are also part of your own pet history. Try Patricia McConnell's books too, esp. The Other End of the Leash. See http://www.patriciamcconnell.com/

 

GREAT!

Keep up the good work,

Ailsa

[Root Beer]

I'd like to try completely positive reinforcement training, but it's a complete flip from everything I've been exposed to before.

 

. . .

 

Retraining myself is going to be the hardest part of raising a a good dog, I think. I'd appreciate any advice you guys can offer.

 

First off, I advise that you keep in mind that what you want to do can be done. One of the biggest pieces of advice I can give you, as someone who uses completely positive training, is to stick to it even when that becomes challenging. People will tell you that it won't work - I can pretty much guarantee that will happen! I've had moments where I've wondered if I should use corrections in some situations, but I've never ever regretted the decision not to do so in the long run.

 

Second, educate yourself. Read as much as you can. In fact, if you can spring for it, I highly recommend that you get Leslie McDevitt's new Control Unleashed DVD. It would be best to get the DVD and the book, but if you can only get one or the other, get what you can. You would learn a ton that would really help you with Ski.

 

Also, you might check out the ClickerSolutions website. There is a huge wealth of information on there. Any clicker technique can be modified to use without a clicker if you so prefer. Personally, I would start clicker training a dog like Ski immediately, but if you are hesitant to do that, ClickerSolutions is still a fantastic resource.

 

Just one thing you might want to consider - what you did with Ski and the collar is not actually "positive" in the sense that you mean. I'm not making a judgment on it, but Ski's response clearly shows that you holding the collar is highly aversive at this time. The technique that you used is a "flooding" technique. Flooding can work if the dog has the temperament for it, but it can backfire badly with some dogs. With a puppy who is already using his teeth to communicate, I would completely avoid flooding the dog.

 

To use reinforcement to teach the same idea, you would use a more gradual process where you allow the dog to choose to come closer and reinforce that choice. You can even incorporate releasing Ski away from you as part of the reward for accepting your touch of the collar. Once the dog gets the idea, his or her view of being held by the collar will change and, eventually, become a non-issue. The nice thing, I find, about using a technique like this, is that you can teach the dog to do what you want (hold him by the collar without him having an issue with it) without setting yourself up in conflict with the dog in the process.

 

Ian Dunbar's work is a fantastic place to start. Patricia McConnell is also a good resource. You might want to check out her book "For the Love of a Dog" where she treats the subject of emotion in dogs and the link between emotion and behavior. It's fantastic. It's not a training book, but it sounds like Ski has a lot happening on an emotional level and I think this book might really help you to understand him in a really different way.

 

In any case, I wish you the best.

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

All of Patricia McConnell's books are excellent resources.

I agree with Kristine when she says you could have been flooding him. (And the others too for that matter) I would take things nice a slow with him. In the recall classes that I have recently taken, the teacher has implemented the collar grab as part of the recall learning. It's a really good thing when a dog is comfortable with people grabbing onto his/her collar. First, sitting by the dog, quietly grab hold of collar, release and give food reward. Repeat this several times until he shows no avoidance. You can then add in duration to holding the collar, still remaining calm and quiet. After this has gone well, you can add in movement, by standing up. The next step would be to start walking with the dog while you are holding his collar. Always being happy and calm, while pairing this with food treats, the dog should become fairly comfortable with a person grabbing onto his collar.

A good book on learning your dogs body language is "On talking terms with dogs" by Turrid Rugass. Control Unleashed is also good, I am waiting for my DVD to come in, but I'm sure it will be a great addition to the book!

good luck

[AdmiralGonsiorowski]

Thanks for all the responses. I understand what you mean by the term "flooding", but I didn't know it wasn't a good method. Are there side effects to using that technique?

 

I'll go by BAM tomorrow and pick up a couple of books. I think he does have a lot going on emotionally, and I'm not really connecting to it. The last time I had a puppy, I was a kid, and a completely different person, so I'm having to relearn how to interact with my dog.

 

I've asked my husband to work with me, and not use corrections anymore. They aren't working anyways. The downside is that now Ski's going to jump on us, bite our feet, chew on furniture and eat rocks before we learn how to react properly. Logically I can accept that there are ways to stop these behaviors without corrections, but honestly, it's hard to have confidence about it.

 

On a related note, what are some ways to help build your dog's trust in you?

[sandra s.]

The downside is that now Ski's going to jump on us, bite our feet, chew on furniture and eat rocks before we learn how to react properly. Logically I can accept that there are ways to stop these behaviors without corrections, but honestly, it's hard to have confidence about it.

 

Mine react very well to good-natured corrections. I hardly ever use "serious" corrections in every day situations, since they're both quite soft and very keen on avoiding trouble. Not sure how well it works with a puppy (I've never raised one), but corrections don't have to be hugely negative experiences. If Kessie tried to steal something, for example, it would be enough to say "Oi, you, I'm watching!" without getting aggressive about it in any way.

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

Don't forget that he's a puppy. The do tend to do these things.

Google NILIF (nothing in life is free), that method seems to have some good pointers and I whole heartedly agree with the hand feeding part. It's help the relationship between my dog and boyfriend. She used to walk all over him! and pull attitude like you wouldn't believe. She's now changed her opinion of him slightly.

On flooding ~ I have a reactive dog. Brining her to group classes is a huge feat for her. Our first class was 3 dogs, then 5 dogs, 8 and now 11. If I would have brought her to the class of 11 dogs first (which would have been flooding her), she would have completely shut down and her trust in my would have been shattered. It would have set us back about 6 months in training and I highly doubt she would be able to work off leash in that type of situation like she can now. (Our next step is to a class with 8 dogs, but different trainers) Baby steps always win!

[Lenajo]

The downside is that now Ski's going to jump on us, bite our feet, chew on furniture and eat rocks before we learn how to react properly.

 

There is a lot of worry and fear about using the word "no" in a dog's life. I don't find it to be a problem myself *IF* it is part of a generally balanced program of management and training. There are 4 parts of operant conditioning..i.e. training. Why limit yourself to one corner?

 

Where "waiting for positive to work" is not going to work is if the behavior is self-reinforcing to the dog. So you have to ask "Why" - is he jumping? chewing? biting? eating rocks? With jumping, ingoring will work as long as he's not hurting the people he's jumping on. (old or very young people for example). If that's the case then you need to manage - with a leash or discipline.

 

Chewing? usually means the pup lacks appropriate things to chew first and foremost. He can't pick the wrong chew item...if it's picked up and put away. Distraction will get him away from other items - but to distract you *must* *supervise* - which goes without saying. Pups out of sight are in trouble!

 

Biting? I assume you mean puppy biting. You've had good suggestions. I live in a home with a person with fragile brittle skin. We don't tolerate mouthing more than lightly from the beginning, and not that for much longer than 9-10 weeks of age. We say "no" and enforce that with tone and action. We do play without dogs - tug, fetch, handling games. They will, most dogs do, make "mouth mistakes" in play occassionally later. Screeching in mock pain, a warning "growl" is usually all it takes to remind them how to play with fragile humans. These are smart dogs -make your criteria clear and it will be fine.

 

Eating rocks? Dangerous habit. Manage by removing him and making sure he has better chew options.

 

I think you collar exercise sounds fine, as long as it doesn't become a constant requirement. (remember 4 parts to operant - don't get stuck in one corner). Other handling exercises are gentle restraining him in your arms and examining him, putting you foot on the leash for a hands free sessions of "relax and watch TV with me", etc. As you've found, if you remain calm and quiet, the pup will relax and accept.

 

There are a *lot* of books and ideas out there. A broad education is always good. Just get your game plan clear before you actually attempt anything with pup. The worst method is any method half-way followed through on.

[Jedismom]

It takes time to build trust in a dog. I've done it by providing routine and structure in their lives and consistent rules. They know what they can expect from me, my reactions, my voices and what they mean...etc.

 

If your pup senses that you don't think you know what you're doing they will take full advantage. If you don't want your dog to jump all over you, bite your ankles, destroy things, then don't allow it. There's nothing wrong with that. Don't reward any behavior you don't want with attention and crate often.

 

http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm This is an explanation of "Nothing in Life is Free" that I like. Read the link on this page for a social isolation method for more serious behavior. You've described the biting as more than play biting, or mouthing. Perhaps your vet or behaviorist can confirm that.

 

Good Luck with your very adorable pup. Those pics are irresistable. It's hard to believe from that innocent face that you have a little Cujo on your hands.

[mattinky]

My first BC "Cookie" was 5 yrs old when I got her, the man that had her was moving and could'nt keep her and I got her through a local shelter. She was very freaked out and scared when I got her and was pretty agressive towards me for several months, in certain situations she would just get really tweaked out and just freeze up - like she did'nt even know me. Nothing I tried seemed to help but in time I came to realize that she just did'nt trust me for some reason and she just had zero respect for me.

 

I certainly don't have the experience that most of you here do and in no way can I give proven training tips, just an observation about Cookie. She taught me that love and patience goes a long way, I just smothered Cookie with lots of love and ignored her when she was bad, she finally came to love and respect me and the problems ended. She turned out to be a real good dog. I think BCs can be very complex mentally and we don't always understand why they do what they do, my last dog Roxie would totally freak out if you rolled her over on her back, that seems to be a common thing so I just left it alone and out of respect never rolled her over. Be patient and give your dog all the love you can, like others have said they seem to respond very well to praise for being good as opposed to corrections for being bad, and as a dog comes to have more respect for you I think they tend to want to please you more and will do less of the things they should'nt and more of the things that make you happy, like I said; just an observation...

[Jedismom]

I certainly don't have the experience that most of you here do and in no way can I give proven training tips, just an observation about Cookie. She taught me that love and patience goes a long way, I just smothered Cookie with lots of love and ignored her when she was bad, she finally came to love and respect me and the problems ended. She turned out to be a real good dog. I think BCs can be very complex mentally and we don't always understand why they do what they do, my last dog Roxie would totally freak out if you rolled her over on her back, that seems to be a common thing so I just left it alone and out of respect never rolled her over. Be patient and give your dog all the love you can, like others have said they seem to respond very well to praise for being good as opposed to corrections for being bad, and as a dog comes to have more respect for you I think they tend to want to please you more and will do less of the things they should'nt and more of the things that make you happy, like I said; just an observation...

 

Excellent observation.

[Root Beer]

Thanks for all the responses. I understand what you mean by the term "flooding", but I didn't know it wasn't a good method. Are there side effects to using that technique?

 

It really depends on the dog. It can (read: can, not "always will") cause a dog to become more anxious, more "on edge", more suspicious, less trusting, and more inclined to be one step ahead of you to avoid the flooding experience in the future. It could (read: could, not "definitely will") cause Ski to avoid your touch more vehemently in the future, or to be inclined to use the teeth first and ask questions later.

 

Like I said, with dogs of certain temperaments, flooding can work the way you want it to. It depends a lot on your dog's temperament, and life experience so far.

 

I'll go by BAM tomorrow and pick up a couple of books. I think he does have a lot going on emotionally, and I'm not really connecting to it. The last time I had a puppy, I was a kid, and a completely different person, so I'm having to relearn how to interact with my dog.

 

And some dogs are more emotionally complex than others. The puppy you knew as a kid may have been more simple and straightforward in that regard.

 

I've asked my husband to work with me, and not use corrections anymore. They aren't working anyways. The downside is that now Ski's going to jump on us, bite our feet, chew on furniture and eat rocks before we learn how to react properly.

 

One technique that almost all "positive" trainers use for situations like this is something like a "time out" approach. Technically it's called "negative punishment" - how confusing is that?!!? But all it means is to withhold something that the dog wants in order to decrease a certain behavior. This is done with a very neutral and matter of fact attitude.

 

Teaching a dog to "learn to earn" is a component of the NILIF approach that was referenced above. Personally, I only use NILIF on a very limited basis, but I've found that a little NILIF really goes a long, long way. In it's most extreme form (which I am confident nobody here does), I don't advise it, but it is an excellent principle to incorporate into any dog's life to add structure and understanding of your expectations.

 

So, for jumping, every time Ski jumps up, you can stop and turn your back to him to effectively remove access to yourself until he stops jumping. Once he stops jumping, you can continue to move again. This is a mostly management technique - it will not likely teach him not to jump up, but it is something that you can do to manage the behavior until he has a solid "off" cue. But it is part of an NILIF approach. Access to you is earned by four feet on the floor.

 

For biting your feet, you can do the same thing. Access to you is earned by keeping teeth off the feet.

 

For chewing on furniture, you can keep him crated when you can't supervise him. When you are supervising him and you find him chewing furniture, you can, in a very neutral way, put a leash on him and have him hang out on the leash for a few minutes (with an appropriate toy is fine) or put him in her crate for a few minutes. Freedom is earned by leaving the furniture alone. I would, of course, combine this with solid instruction on a "leave it" cue.

 

Is there a rock-free area where you can have him potty and play until you teach a solid "drop it"? That would be my first choice, but if there is not, then I would try a "drop it" and trade up something for dropping the rocks.

 

Logically I can accept that there are ways to stop these behaviors without corrections, but honestly, it's hard to have confidence about it.

 

Remember, changing behavior without corrections does not mean that you don't teach the dog limits and boundaries. A big part of it is thinking in terms of what you want the dog to do, not what you don't want the dog to do. Then, the bigger part, is proactively teaching your dog what you do want, clearly and definitively, using reinforcement to communicate to the dog that her or she is right.

 

I teach my dogs "off" for not jumping up. I teach this initially using reinforcement based methods (this is a pretty quick and easy one to teach and is fun for the dog because he or she gets to jump up to play). I teach my dogs "leave it" for leaving things that I do not want them to interact with alone.

 

And there is a time and place for the word "no" once the dog truly does know what you expect of him. Personally I don't find myself saying "no" a lot, but I certainly do when I truly know that the dog does understand what is expected.

 

On a related note, what are some ways to help build your dog's trust in you?

 

1. Like I said above, clicker training. Clicker work does far, far more than teach a dog to do behaviors. Clicker work can change a dog's overall attitude toward people and life in general like almost nothing I have ever seen.

 

2. Show your dog, in certain ways, that you are not always going to force your will on him. This is extremely important with a dog who is suspicious of you. If the dog does not want his or her collar grabbed and you always grab it, you affirm the dog's suspicions and trust could break down. If you don't always grab the collar - sometimes reaching your hand toward the collar signals a game, or sometimes you turn and walk away, or sometimes you give the dog a food or toy reward and then pull your hand away, trust will build and the level of suspicion will, over time, reduce. And then you can build a cue that means "I'm going to grab your collar" and it becomes a good thing to the dog.

 

You can do this with recalls, touching the collar, access to furniture, etc.

 

You might wonder why this isn't letting the dog "rule" or "take over". It is because you are putting the things that the dog wants (being free of being grabbed, running off to play, getting on furniture, etc.) under your direction and you are, in effect, giving these things to your dog.

 

And, over time these sorts of games can build trust.

 

3. If the dog will permit it, short periods of massage. I would definitely take time to massage any dog who was reluctant to be touched. In order to avoid flooding the dog, you can do this when the dog is in a sleepy mood, or you can use treats to help the dog be more open to it. You can literally start with just 30 seconds of petting in a way your dog likes and build very slowly from there.

 

These are just my own suggestions based on my own experience with my own, and my student's, dogs - particularly the Border Collies. They aren't universal, but I've found these things to be extremely and powerfully effective for building trust.

 

Of course, trust takes time, especially when it has already broken down to a certain extent. But it can be rebuilt and when it is, you'll see some amazing things.

 

Edited: I corrected my pronouns to reflect that Ski is a boy, not a girl. If I missed a "she" or a "her", I beg pardon!!

[Chantal]

Ugh. I didn't think I'd have this much trouble this early. It's hard to muddle through all the bad advice out there about dogs. Many people say it's okay to roll a puppy, but I'm almost certain that's what started this. I'd like to try completely positive reinforcement training, but it's a complete flip from everything I've been exposed to before. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but in Tennessee there's a lot of what we call "yard dogs". These are dogs which have no purpose but to hang out in your yard, bark at strangers, follow you around when you're outside and be ecstatic when you feed or pet them.

 

There is no positive training for yard dogs. You're lucky if they know how to sit. Leash jerks, pops on the nose or butt, kicks and yelling are par for the course as corrections.

 

Retraining myself is going to be the hardest part of raising a a good dog, I think. I'd appreciate any advice you guys can offer.

 

My best advice on accepting advice would be use common sense. Read up on everything you can and make yourself as knowledgeable as possible so when the time comes around again to ask advice on your own problems, you can use what you learned to know if the advice your given is sound, or if it's just not a feasible idea in your situation

[AdmiralGonsiorowski]

You guys are great. Kristine, you have just the best explanations of things. I appreciate all the help.

 

I've been doing NILIF for things like food and toys, and going through doorways. Ski sits and downs for these things. That's pretty much the extent of it, since he doesn't come to me for petting, and has only recently realized that if he brings a toy to me I'll toss it or tug it.

 

I'm about 2/3 through For the Love of a Dog, and it's fascinating. The realization that Ski can read my facial expressions was kind of a DUH moment as to why he was seeming stressed a lot of times. Because I seemed stressed a lot of the time. It was really cool today when I made an effort to smile and try out friendly doggy body language with him, and he spent his playtime and walk with a happy little puppy grin on his face - something he hadn't done before unless he was meeting someone new.

 

Does anyone know of any videos or DVD's showing positive training interaction with dogs, or showing dog body language? My husband never had much to do with dogs, and could use something more visual to go by than a book.

[Root Beer]

Does anyone know of any videos or DVD's showing positive training interaction with dogs, or showing dog body language? My husband never had much to do with dogs, and could use something more visual to go by than a book.

 

I do recommend the Control Unleashed DVD for you guys. It's not a sit, down, stay kind of training DVD, but it really shows a very unique and totally reinforcement based way of dealing with behavior issues. I think this would benefit Ski a lot, especially as he gets older and you look to start taking him out and about more.

 

You could order this over the internet.

 

I'll have to see if I can remember any others that might be helpful.