Runzbarrel Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 Brock will be 14 weeks this week and I've been slacking on his training the last week or so because I'm getting frustrated. He already knows sit and down but that's it. He is EXTREMELY food motivated so my frustration lies in when I am working with him he gets so excited over the fact I have food he starts jumping and getting excited etc. Makes it difficult to teach stay, heel etc. lol Should I not use food because of this? He responds well to an excited 'yes' when I ask him to do something so maybe just use that and a treat at the end of a session? Any tips or advice? Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSnappy Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 The first thing you need to do is stop getting frustrated with a 14 week old baby dog. The second thing you need to do is teach your pup some impulse control - play the "no mugging" game (google it if you need to) with him and teach him that good things come to those who wait (and nothing happens to rude puppies). Third, your food rewards should be in your bait bag or pocket, not in your hand. If he starts jumping around and getting excited about it, wait until he stops and then reward him with the food. It won't be long before he figures out which of his behaviours earn him a reward and which get him zip. But stop getting frustrated with him. He's an itty bitty baby, he doesn't know anything! RDM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 "Yes" to what MrSnappy has written (although I did have to look up the 'no mugging' game since I had never heard of it). Just because BCs are super smart and you expect them to pick up training really fast, there is a downside to this super smart, excitable and hightly energetic personality - and it sounds like Brock may be this type. You may have to work more calmly -- so saying 'yes' in a highly excited voice may put him over the top. Try to find a level of voice that is happy and highly reinforcing, but not so much that it gets him too excited to focus. Use the same philosophy as you progress in your training to other rewards. My dog often goes 'over the top' when I pull out the ball so I can not use a ball as a reward in much of my training since his little brain is exploding from wanting the ball so much that he can not focus. Experiment with different reinforcers - different toys, different foods - to find the ones that work best in various training situations. IMHO, much of the reward advice I see with 'other' breeds is too energizing for a BC. Remember that with many other breeds the owners are having to work to build a drive to work (hence the high squeaky voice with 'yes', the super foods and toys), whereas with a high-drive BC, the drive is 'built-in' so your job is to harness it without dampening it. Trust me, from someone who has the high-drive, excitable BC AND a rescue mix dog who has major motivation and fear problems (I even have to coax her to eat her food because she is too worried about her environment), I much prefer the BC personality. Enjoy this time with your puppy. Jovi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 Brock will be 14 weeks this week and I've been slacking on his training the last week or so because I'm getting frustrated. He already knows sit and down but that's it. He is EXTREMELY food motivated so my frustration lies in when I am working with him he gets so excited over the fact I have food he starts jumping and getting excited etc. Makes it difficult to teach stay, heel etc. lol Should I not use food because of this? He responds well to an excited 'yes' when I ask him to do something so maybe just use that and a treat at the end of a session? Any tips or advice? Thanks in advance You might want to consider getting hold of a copy of the new Control Unleashed Puppy book. (The Puppy Book, not the original) It's all about exactly what you are asking, and more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gooddogs74 Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Food zen/it's yer choice, whatever you want to call it. The first game I think all puppies should know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChantalB Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 The "it's yer choice" game. Pretty much the foundation of impulse control. There's a million dif versions of it, but if you google this name there will be countless of video demos on YouTube as there's so many Susan Garrett followers out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runzbarrel Posted March 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Thanks for the replies. For the record I'm not so much frustrated with Brock as much as I am with myself because I didn't know a better way to work with him. I know he's still a baby and I don't show my frustration to him. He's extremely smart and learns very quickly and easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Rae Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Interesting, I never thought of "it's yer choice" as a game or ever knew it had a name, it's very close to what's mandatory for my dogs to get their food. I hate when dogs maul you for their food and it's their job to sit and wait patiently until I cue them that it's okay to eat (I put the food bowl down and stand up and say 'Eat') it's taught exactly like the video. It took Tuesday a while to understand that she has to wait for /her/ food bowl and not just any food bowl. The video did make me think it's time for more impulse control work though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runzbarrel Posted March 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 I haven't been able to watch the videos since I'm on my phone but we teach all of our dogs to 'wait' for their food. I've been working with Brock on it and he's getting better. Brock loves his food so much he alerts me when it's meal time! And that's 3x day lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rushdoggie Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Another take on the same idea is Doggie Zen: to get the treat, you must give up the treat. Shirley Chong has a good write up on this on her site: Shirley Chong Keepers As I am fundamentally an evil, sadistic person who likes to make dogs (and people) suffer <Grin!>, I'll describe the mechanics of the lesson. At the end of the lesson will be some questions; once you've done the lesson, see if you can answer the questions! I call it Doggie Zen: to get the treat, you must give up the treat. Get out a treat that is good and smelly. Cheese works well for this, as does liver or Rollover-type stuff. Fix a few pieces that are small enough for you to cover in your closed hand. Let your dog see that you have a goodie in your hand, then close your hand over the goodie and let the dog sniff, lick, nibble, etc, trying to get the goodie. Eventually, the dog will give up. When the dog turns their head away from the goodie or steps back away from it, even if it's just a temporary thing, catch that moment with the clicker and open your hand. It's important to leave your hand down at the dog's level, perfectly accessible to them. Let them have a good chance to try to get the treat out of your hand on their own. If the dog gets too enthusiastic and is actually hurting you, say OUCH!, glare at them and pull your hand up out of their reach for a few seconds. Give the dog as many trials in as many different places as you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SecretBC Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Impulse control is the basis for everything! A dog who self rewards is not only extremely annoying, but generally has no manners and is a giant pain in the ass. When my current foster puppy arrived at 10/11 weeks old she was pretty raw. She would literally *shake* at meal times because she would get so worked up over food. My hands were peppered with teeth marks because she would shark bite my hand any time treats were offered to her. She's come a long way. Consistency, consistency, consistency!!! Always ask for and expect the same response. If you allow poor behavior to creep in, it will stay. Dogs do what they find rewarding --- so if they find self-reinforcement everywhere they go, they have no reason to do what we ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenotri Posted March 13, 2012 Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 Brock will be 14 weeks this week and I've been slacking on his training the last week or so because I'm getting frustrated. He already knows sit and down but that's it. He is EXTREMELY food motivated so my frustration lies in when I am working with him he gets so excited over the fact I have food he starts jumping and getting excited etc. Makes it difficult to teach stay, heel etc. lol Should I not use food because of this? He responds well to an excited 'yes' when I ask him to do something so maybe just use that and a treat at the end of a session? Any tips or advice? Thanks in advance As well as what others have said, I always smile when someone says their puppy already knows sit, down etc at such a young age. My guess is that he knows these words when you are standing in front of him, giving a verbal & a hand signal. Does he know them if he's beside you? Behind you? While someone is running past you? next to a bowl of food? When you are 2 steps away? 10 steps away? On the footpath? At the park? In the presence of kids? Dogs? Cats? Etc. My favourite part of teaching anything is the proofing once they have a basic understanding. It is what makes training fun for me. The best bit is that you are only limited by your imagination Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runzbarrel Posted March 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2012 As well as what others have said, I always smile when someone says their puppy already knows sit, down etc at such a young age. My guess is that he knows these words when you are standing in front of him, giving a verbal & a hand signal. Does he know them if he's beside you? Behind you? While someone is running past you? next to a bowl of food? When you are 2 steps away? 10 steps away? On the footpath? At the park? In the presence of kids? Dogs? Cats? Etc. My favourite part of teaching anything is the proofing once they have a basic understanding. It is what makes training fun for me. The best bit is that you are only limited by your imagination We are actually working on different scenarios with the commands. On Sunday we went down to the park for a walk and he did obey sit and down on the trail. Working on 2 steps away etc. It's hard because of the high food drive hence why I posted the question. I have a toddler running around so he listens well (the dog that is lol) to his commands. I've taken obedience classes in the past so I know the drill with working farther away and with distractions. Just now for his lunch he sat and waited without me even telling him so we're on the right track. And earlier I had changed his collar since he got a bath this AM and I washed his other one and the buckle came undone while we were outside. Not a good thing since we live on a busy street. Thank goodness he has a pretty solid recall already! I called to him and he came running back to me. And my husband and I have worked on his recall up to 75ft away and he's right there! I just needed some advice on calming down that food drive when I'm working with him. Never had a BC that was so food driven before. Toys, yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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