KrisK Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Can someone give me a way to teach Flint a command to 'go to water'? When we finally get sheep, and I finally learn how to handle, I want to be able to send him to water. I've seen handlers in competitions do this and I think it's just the greatest thing but I have no idea of how to teach this. Thanks, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 In the summer I always have either the sprinkler going, or a small pool filled with water for Dean. When I would notice him getting hot, I would toss his toy near the water and say "take a break" (which is my "go to water" cue) and he would go to the water since he was hot. Now I can send him to water by saying that - whatever water is available. It wasn't really something I set out to train in any formal way, but once he was familiar with the cue, I was able to use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Kris, I think you could either train it like anything else (shaping) which one of my students did with her dog that was reluctant to get water. Or you can let him get water and put a command on it. I pretty much do the latter. For example, Kes is 10 months old now, and I've just started her. So I work her for about 5 minutes in the morning, and then when I stop and release her, I know she's going to head to the stock tank, so I just say "Go get water." She'll put 2 and 2 together. That's how it worked for all my older dogs too. It's sort of just a variation on what Kristine did with Dean. The only real issue I can see is if you have a dog that doesn't particularly like jumping in water. That was the case with my student's dog. So she just encouraged the behavior in stages, rewarding as she went, because she also had to get him comfortable with actually first getting in the water (a shallow tub) and then being willing to lie down in it. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Pretty sure this isn't that pressing of an issue, they'll eventually figure it out or you'll teach them to do it. Pepper doesn't like getting in the water, but after enough times of making her do it (yes, grabbing, throwing her in, and making her stay), she jumps right in. Still doesn't like laying/sitting, but if she's hot enough she will. When they're hot enough and their tongue is a mile long, they'll figure out pretty quickly that the water cools them down. #10... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SS Cressa Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 This is one of my pet peeves with Troy. If the water sourse is more then it seem 10 feet away then he wont go in. Or he will step in the shallow part and not actually cool off. And yes he is hot. Normally if i can get hcloser to the water he will drink and go deeper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 If there's a pond nearby, all I have to say is "Go swim!" amd the whole pack goes flying off to, well, go swim. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted June 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 thanks Julie and Kristine...CynthiaP wasnt' sure if Flint was the reluctant pup or not I just picked up a new pool so hopefully I can get him to just 'go'..easier than me teaching him! Cricket and Dusty won't go in a pool at all but take them to the local watering hole and they literally fly into the water Only problem there is the local pond is 7 km away which means transporting sopping wet dogs home Jaderbug...I had a dog that could not swim one iota...she damn near drowned when someone decided 'to just throw her in'....it wasn't a pretty sight..and I have no intention of doing that.. As for the 'when they are hot enough idea' why would I not try to train the dog to do this...some dogs will work themselves or play themselves to death before stopping... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Kris, does he like a game of fetch? I have been known to throw the item being fetched into the kiddy pool to encourage a quick dip (similar idea to Kristine's with the sprinkler). Once he gets used to going in the water then you can start working on putting a command to it. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaderBug Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Jaderbug...I had a dog that could not swim one iota...she damn near drowned when someone decided 'to just throw her in'....it wasn't a pretty sight..and I have no intention of doing that.. Your dog isn't going to drown in a stock tank/kiddie pool unless he/she has passed out. I certainly wouldn't suggest tossing a dog that had never swam or seen water into a deep pool or body of water... there's a big difference there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted June 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Julie, he doesn't really play fetch yet, but it's certainly worth trying Cricket, who is totally ball crazy, will NOT jump into a baby pool to save her soul...but will swim at the lake..go figure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChantalB Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 My dog doesn't like going in kiddie pools but loves ponds/lakes, swimming and wading Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 It may be they don't like the footing in a pool or stock tank. I have seen dogs slip (and be surprised by it) when jumping in or out of them, so it's not terribly surprising that some don't like it. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 Kipp is not really a water dog. He'll go in if he is going after a toy but thats about it. I sometimes coax him to go in the river if I can tell he is hot. But when we are at the barn he flies to the river when I say "go get a drink" because he knows I won't let him back on sheep if he doesn't go dunk himself in the river Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Root Beer Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 As for the 'when they are hot enough idea' why would I not try to train the dog to do this...some dogs will work themselves or play themselves to death before stopping... I had figured that the dog was already enjoying water, but you wanted to put it on a cue. I actually do teach my dogs to enjoy water in the first place. I've had a lot of success with using toys. At first we play with the toys only at the edge where the dog only need get feet wet. And we gradually more in more and more and more. Eventually the toy gets out far enough that the dog must swim to get it, but only a tiny bit. I have been fortunate to have access to an easily flowing creek with a nice shoreline to teach both Dean and Tessa. I've never done this using a pool, but if I were going to, I would probably start with just a couple of inches in the pool and gradually work with more and more. I would throw in toys, or even pieces of hot dog for a dog who is not toy motivated, just to get the dog to enjoy interacting with water. Dean has a little pool, and Tessa has a little tub that I fill with water when it is hot out. They both love lying around in them. I never really taught them to do that, though. Speedy and Sammie, who both enjoy swimming, will not go near the pool or tub, no matter how hot they are. But if I had a puppy, I would probably play around with the pool a little. I would not put "go to water" on cue until I had a dog who was willingly and happily going to water, either when hot, or when there is a good opportunity to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted June 28, 2012 Report Share Posted June 28, 2012 My dogs have always, when they've been hot enough, been willing to go into the water. The youngsters (Bute and Dan) have seen the old dogs do that eagerly (Celt hates to be hot and Megan thinks she's Esther Williams) and picked that up, and I put the command to it. Dan has always been my reluctant dog - if he is hot enough, he will eagerly get in and lie down but unless he is *hot*, he doesn't want the water. I can tell him to get in if I feel he needs it and, if he doesn't respond, I will take him by the collar and lead him in. In my limited experience, they learn fast just how good it feels and it can be more of a matter of teaching them to *not* go in (if you have a good reason) than to *make* them go in. I love watching a dog that's finished its work (or play) and enjoying the water to cool down - such fun! Best wishes! PS - My friend's Aussie did not like the water. He would get in if she made him (had to take him by the collar) and he would only stand there, never lie down, no matter how much he needed cooling off. In that case, I would keep the dog standing and splash the cool water all over the belly and especially the groin (I have to do this with Dan sometimes) to get the cooling effect that I want to see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnewe2 Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 If I say go swim my older dogs will search for water. Doesn't matter if it's a field away they will find it if I say it's out there. I taught it just like Julie said, everytime they go in the tank after getting hot working or playing I would say water or go swim if they were getting in. They just caught on. Mick doesn't like water unless he's cooling off or fetching. He won't actually swim but the command will have him find it and cool off. Dew swims cause she loves swimming. Faye accidentaly jumped in the pond when the old dogs did, it freaked her out cause it was deeper than she was tall, she figured out how to swim but hasn't jumped in again. Although at the moment in this drought there isn't really a pond to jump in. She is getting in the stock tank when hot so it's a matter of getting hot enough when we're near the pond or just maturing into a dog that has confidence in her swimming abilities. I'm not worried, either she will like it or just use it to cool off. I've yet to see a dog run on a hot day in a trial that doesn't get in the tank. Unless like Mick who won't do dirty water and finds another way to cool off. Like me helping/making him get in the dirty tank or just hosing him off. How many other dogs here are water snobs? Mick turns his nose up at dirty water....doG forbid that a dog has peed in the tank, he's just NOT getting in if that's the case. Funny little fellow. Dew could care less. Water's water! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jo&Tex Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 We bought Breeze (Flint's littermate) a 48 inch wide, 4 inch high, toddler wading pool. Breeze LOVES it and paddles around quite happily. She paws at the ripples and works herself up into huge puppy zoomies, round and round "her" pool. It cost about $12 at Canadian Tire. She wouldnt leave my soaker hoses alone in the garden so we got her a puddle of her very own. Spot will lay in it and Breeze jumps in and tackles him,leading to a splash fight. I am having great fun sitting on my front porch watching "Puppy TV". Also, my Loki is one of those dogs who will run until he seizes. We keep him tied or inside on hot days because I cant rely on him to keep himself safe. We have 2 ponds on this farm. If he is in pre seizure mode, he will run in circles around the ponds, snapping at imaginary flies, until he locks up and seizes. Ponds, haybales, our circular driveway, basically anything that he can run around in a loop, are his focus when he is having an episode. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejano Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 Can someone give me a way to teach Flint a command to 'go to water'? When we finally get sheep, and I finally learn how to handle, I want to be able to send him to water. I've seen handlers in competitions do this and I think it's just the greatest thing but I have no idea of how to teach this. Thanks, I couldn't lift the boys in and out of the tub and so taught them how to jump in (no water) onto the rubber non-slip bath mat (be sure it won't slip as one bad experience might take a long time to get over). I use a hand sprayer for bathing them so they don't have to stand in much water. The command was the same as putting them in their crates in the car "HUP" as it is up and over the side of the tub. They don't mind their occasional baths and hop in and out willingly so when they saw the tank at the trainer's it was no different - we walked over, I showed them the water and "HUP", in they went. They do love the water, following Ladybug's lead, so if your pup isn't yet fond of the water it might help to have another dog or two show him the ropes. Let him feel his way around the shore line first - a pond or a creek seemed to work best for our dogs but others I know don't mind a swimming pool - there's just no way to walk into one. "Go play" is a useful generic command for kick back, have a good time. Swimming is a great way to exercise a "bored" collie on a hot day -- we just got back from the pond! Liz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted June 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 He showed some interest in the pool so I put a ball in it...without getting in, he fished around so I'm sure that it will be an easy transition to getting into the pool. The only close access water is 7 km from home but it's deep on shore so introducing him to that may be a bit difficult. However, Cricket and Dusty dive right in so he may just follow... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jexa Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 Rudder has been very hesitant overall about the whole "water" thing, which I hate since its so darn hot here all the time. It took tons of coaxing to get him in even up to his chest using food and toys, but when his lab buddy went bounding in after his toys, Rudder went bounding in after him. Turns out he just needed someone to follow to show him it was ok. Now if only he'd do it by himself... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeri Jessee Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I taught Maggie "get a drink" and "get in the water"..bought her a cooling tub to practice at home...put her in it with just a little water at first...lots of praise...she caught on pretty quick..now after each working session she runs to jump in it without being told...we're still working on lying down in it but I think that will come as it gets hotter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrisK Posted July 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2012 Progress....he found the pool on his own and with help from a ball, he hopped right in. Anytime he goes near the pool, I say 'go to water'....and hopefully, he will associate those words to the action. Thanks Julie & Kristine..your ideas worked wonderfully! Next step...to the watering hole Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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