Dog training instruction/advice?

WalterDavis

WalterDavis

Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Messages
1,841
I adopted my dog Scout from the pound about 6 months ago (about 10-11 months old now) and he's a great dog! He is kennel trained, pretty good about only chewing on his toys, house-broke, and all-in-all fairly obedient. My only problem with him is that he gets around another dog a will follow them without a second thought:mad: I don't have a fenced yard, though I've put up a run for him while I'm at work, but I really need to get him trained as to where his territory is, and where not to go!

For whatever reason, I've never had this problem before. All of the dogs I've had since I was a kid have always just known. I'm sure part of it has been me being laid up with a broken leg all winter, so he's been hanging around with the neighbor's dog, but I'm at my wit's end! Can anyone point me towards some good reference material that will give me some specific advice on training my mutt? I've read and watched some of "The Dog Whisperer"'s stuff, and I understand I need to be the pack leader, I guess I just need to know the job description:o:p

Here's a quick pic, just for fun:D
1st hike, T2, NV 005.jpg
 
I let my dog have free run in the front yard when he was a puppy. I would just call him back when he got to a point where I didn't want him. I your dog has a hard time with come use a 20 foot or more lead and let him drag it where ever he goes. Then if he gets too far out and won't respond to come very well you can gently pull him back all while saying "come come come". It might take a while to teach an older dog, but he should get the picture when you keep telling him where he can and can not be. My dog can be out all night and never leave the unfenced front yard because he knows there are consequences for breaking the plane of the yard. Heel is another good tool. When my dog sees another dog I make him heel and obey before we go and check it out.

Here is my little black kid

PB210011.jpg
 
dog collar i used it one mt dog in a no fenced yard throw a ball across the street he stops at the border only took afew very low zaps
 
A dog has to realize that there is going to be punishment if they leave the yard to make them stay in it.There aren't many dogs that would not leave their yard to investigate something if given the choice.If you live on 100acres it doesn't make as much difference as if you live on a 1acre lot,at least until they learn that there are animals to chase then they may be gone for days.I have never cared for the inground fences or any other type of shock collar to many people use them as a crutch but they do work if done correctly.I've had a lot of dogs over the years but most were farm dogs that had the run of the place and didn't give me much trouble.I did have a Brittainy Spaniel that gave me fits,he finally ended up getting hit about 3 miles from home trying to cross a 2 lane state highway.Most of he dogs that I've had I've been able to train with the old rolled up newspaper,they really don't like to be swatted with a newspaper,the trick of it is,you need to catch them doing something bad.That won't always work,it works best on a dog that is a little more aggressive,if you dog is shy or passive sometimes it just makes them afraid of you and then it doesn't work.I have a Jack Russell Terrier right now,she's 5yrs old and listens very well,when I was looking to get her,people that raise them told me it couldn't be done with that breed but if her and I are in the yard she won't leave the yard except to go to the field in back or on one side to hunt for mice but I always keep an eye on her,if I can't,I put her on a run and she's fine on it.If she's in the yard with anyone else for very long,she's on the run also because while she does listen to other people pretty good,she knows when they aren't paying attention and can get into trouble.When she was young,I had trouble with her wanting to chase the neighbors goats,she doesn't even do that anymore unless she's in the yard with someone besides myself.
 
Take your dog to a good obedience class. Or get a good book on teaching obedience yourself. Your dog needs to know the basics - sit, down, stay, come. They are pretty easy to teach.

A good way to get your dog used to staying with you is to tie an approximate 6 foot lead to your belt. The dog goes wherever you go around the house and yard. He will learn to watch you, because once you start on the move, he is gonna have to jump and turn and watch you to keep up or the lead is going to be yanking on his collar.

It won't take long for him to just remain at your side. Once he has that part down, and knows what how to sit and down on command, you can start putting him in a down-stay. I worked on this with my 3-year old Lhasa Apso recently. He knew the down command, but would take off and race out the doggie down as soon as I gave him the "stay" and I would walk away.

I fixed him! I put down a beach towel, folded in quarters. I attached a lead to his collar and tied the lead off to a post by the door to the living room. Then I placed the dog (Mongo) on the towel and gave him the down-stay command. I always use a hand signal along with my verbal command, so that eventually I can use just the hand signal.

I walk away. Of course Mongo is going to jump up and try to run off. But he can't go to far. I quietly walk over to him, and I don't say a word. I just place him back on the towel and give him the down-stay command again, along with the hand signal. After a couple of attempts to run off, he is resigned to the fact that he can't get away. So he just lays down with a deep sigh, and rests his head on his front legs. He is allowed to move or shift around, he just can't get UP fron his down-stay.

You gradually increase the time. Of course, when it is time to release Mongo from his down-stay, he is rewarded with lots of verbal praise and if I'm happy with him, a nice food treat. If your dog is food oriented, training is a little easier with a tasty treat.

On the 6th day of Mongo's down-stay training, I had been keeping him in a down-stay for 30 minutes. On the 6th day I put him in a down-stay, gave the verbal/hand signal command, but did not attach him to the lead. Mongo nailed a 30 minute down stay and never budged. Eureka! He did that every day for the next 5 days. On the 6th day with no lead, he bolted. Hey, it is to be expected. He bolted 2 days in a row. I put the lead back on for 1 day.

Now I can just put the towel down, and Mongo doesn't even race out the doggie door before I can get him to the towel. He just watches me, and then I called him over to the towel and he lays down. I give him the down-stay command and he stays. A couple of times I was on the phone and forgot to watch the clock and I remember once it was 50 minutes before I released Mongo. He had never moved off his spot.

One you get your dog trained to respond to a down-stay command or hand signal, your dog can be running towards or away from you, and you give the command and the dog should drop and go into an immediate down.

If your down knows this command, it can save his life should he be running and a vehicle or other danger is fast approaching. The ability to stop your dog and have him drop on the spot could be the difference between life and death.

You can't just teach him for 2 weeks and then walk away from the training. You should put him in a down-stay at least twice a day. You can do it when you are on the computer or watching TV or outside doing something. It doesn't matter what you are doing. If you continue to have problems with your dog getting up from the down-stay, then just attach the lead to him wherever you are gonna be. He's gonna learn. And he will get used to it.

Mongo got so good that even without the lead attached, my other 3 Lhasa Apso dogs could race past him, barking their heads off at some outside noise and run out the doggie door, and Mongo would not even raise his head. He knew he couldn't go with them.

You can have your dog trained to remain by your side and also hold a down-stay within a week if you do it twice a day. Tasty treats work wonders. Liverwurst, chicken, liver, steak, hot dog pieces - whatever gets his drooling attention.

Dogs are intelligent and they love to learn and they want to have a job to do. But first you have to get him used to staying right next to you and that begins with the 6 foot lead attachment. I had Mongo leaping on and off the couch and over footstools and around corners just to keep up with me, because I did not give him any notice that I was going to move or change directions. He just has to keep an eye on me and be aware every moment what I am doing.

Do these things, and soon your dog will not leave your side. Once he stays next to you, walk him around in your yard, attached to you by the lead for a while. He will try to leave the yard and go off to find his dog friends. But he won't get far. Reward him verbally and with a treat if you notice that he sees a dog he wants to follow but stays by your side. Your dog wants to please you, and even more - he wants that treat! Eventually when you are outside and your dog is staying by your side inside the boundaries you have set, reward him. Heck, reward your dog with praise and a treat when he does something naturally that you want to reinforce. If he lays down, immediately, and I mean within a second, say, "Good Down!" Postive reinforcement. The dog sits, "Good sit!" with lots of praise and maybe a treat. You get the idea. Reinforce normal behavior you want, and it will be a no-brainer for the dog to associate a sit or down with a treat. Gradually you wean off of the treat for every sit or down, but don't stop treating - the dog never will know which time he will get a treat. He just knows that he will get one.

None of these things will work if a rabbit races by. You can just wave bye-bye as your watch the tail end of your dog chase after that rabbit! Well, not if he is attached to you by the lead.

Try this for a week.
 
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The "Nothing in Life is Free" thought of training is basically just that - nothing in life is free. If it is time for chow, Fido has to do something before he gets to eat. Sit, down, whatever. Same for a treat. No treat unless Fido works for it.

I can hold treats in my hand and my dogs know I have them. I don't say a word. Mongo immediately goes into a down. The other 3 will sit. Nobody gets a treat if they leap up or jump against me or try to grab a treat from another dog.

My dogs also know that they must wait their turn for a treat. While it is said that dogs don't understand the human concept of "sharing," my dogs do understand that everyone will eventually get their treat. There will be no fighting, no growling, no vying for position. I give out treats randomly or maybe according to whose butt hits the floor first. My dogs learn to sit and wait for their treat.

AND... very important, a very soft and gentle mouth is the only one that ends up with a treat. No snapping or grabbing the treat out of my hand. "Gentle" is the command I use. I don't want to feel a single tooth when I treat.

If you plan to have family or friends give treats to your dog, let them know that the dog has to sit before he can be given a treat. That helps control the dog. You don't want people to be afraid of being bitten by a treat-anxious dog. Many people are very scared of being bitten by a dog they don't know. So a gentle accepting of any treat, no matter now delicious, must be the standard you set for your dog. If the dog senses an "easy mark" the dog will be all over that person and little fingers are especially prone to get caught when those HUGE canines close over a tastey morsel.

You can make or purchase a treat bag that attaches to your belt. Keep cheese cubes or chicken or hot dog pieces in it. Have it on you as you go about your daily routine at home. That way you will have quick access to the food reward for your dog.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Thanks, TJ. I sent those posts to my daughter.
Click to expand...

WalterDavis said:
Thanks all! TJ, it sure sounds like you've got this down:D You ought to write a book:thumbup:
Click to expand...

You are most welcome Walter and Esav. It is easier typed than done, however. It is pretty easy and basic stuff to do. Dogs are pack animals. Think of wolf packs. If the human does not assume the "Alpha" role in the pack, then the dog will. So you can either have a well trained dog, or a well trained owner.

Consistency is the key. And praise and treats, of course. A dog can sense a push-over human in about a nano-second and then you are toast!
 
There is already a lot of good advice here, so I will jsut add that you are correct about being the "Pack leader."
The easiest way I ahfve found to do this is to grab the dogs muzzle with your dominant hand. Some dogs (If young enough) will submit immediately.
If they are over 6 months or so you hagve to gently apply pressure to the back of the neck and quietly saying "Down" repeating it until the dog is laying down. they will wimper and cry because they are not comfortable, but it does not hurt the dog in any way.
Hold the dog in this position until they relax and stop fighting you and then for 10-15 seconds more. You may have to repeat this several times, up to a dozen if the dog is very stubborn.
Aft a while the dog will ge to the point that you tell them down and they will drop on the spot.

All dogs want to please you you need to treat them in a way that they know that you are the leader and will never hurt them.
Hope this helps, I have never had it fail on a single dog, some it just takes a little longer on thatn others.
 
Verga,

I am going to respectfully disagree with you. Being the Pack Alpha is not about physical dominance, it is about attitude. There is absolutely NO reason to physically force a dog into a down position by applying pressure to the head and/or neck.

One can very gently coax a dog into a down position with a tastey morsel and the dog is going to follow the food. Follow up the dog assuming the "down" position with positive verbal feedback and and another treat. Repeat repeat repeat.

Last week a co-worker brought her little terrier mix into the office. I happened to have a few dog treats in my coat pocket. I sat down on the floor and within 5 minutes I had her dog going into a down position on her own just by showing her the treat. I simply had let her smell the treat, then I held it in my hand down in front and ahead of her on the ground. She quickly realized that she got the treat when she lay down. She nailed it when others showed her a treat, also. It took her a few seconds to realize that these other humans wanted her to assume the "down" also, but she was very food oriented.

Anytime one has to HOLD a dog into position - that is not being Alpha. That is just pure physical dominance. Physical dominance = fear dominance.

A benevolent Alpha does not have to get physical. Mere posturing should be enough, sometimes supplemented by a quiet growl if warranted. If you ever watch a pack of dogs, the Alpha will rarely get physical. The Alpha doesn't have to. I have watched my canine Alpha male merely sit in front of the doggie door while the other 3 dogs barked furiously on the outside. They would not enter and go past him. He has also held an alpha wannabe in another room simply by laying across the doorway. The youngster barked and wiggled all over the place, but the canine Alpha male just ignored him. Of course, the Alpha canine bitch would just hop over the male canine Alpha. An canine Alpha bitch pretty much can do whatever she wants - the males don't usually mess with the Bitch. But then you human males understand that concept, don't you? :D :p

I have seen my canine Alpha male flip a pack dog over on its back (alpha roll) and straddle the dog when the dog started to get physical with him. No fight, no bite, just some growling, teeth baring, and a good talking to. Then he would walk away and the other dog would be as submissive as it could possibly be. No physical dominance - well, except for the Alpha Roll. Most humans cannot effectively implement an Alpha Roll and these are best left for canine behavioral experts and canine Alpha's to implement. Even with an Alpha Roll, the Alpha is NOT physically applying pressure to the head, neck, or muzzle. The Alpha simply gets the pack dog in a submissive position with a quick flip followed by a straddle.

Canines communicate by body language for the most part. There is polite communication and there is in-your-muzzle communication. Any good Alpha controls the pack by body language. That does not mean that there will not be any physical interaction or fights - there may be posturing and fighting for pack status - usually amongst the pack itself and less from the Alpha.

Any owner can use physical dominance and fear to control their dog. And then what you have is a dog who is afraid of you and not respectful of Alpha status. Actually, if you need to exhibit physical dominance, you aren't really the Alpha by attitude - you are just a more aggressive member of the pack.

Just my thoughts on physical dominance. YMMV.
 
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WalterDavis your dog is a Pit Bull. They are pretty much fascinated with other dogs, even if they don't fight them. They still have a very high level of interest in them. That's why he wants to follow any dogs that pass by.
I have one myself and you just can't let a pit outside free in nearly all cases. If they happened to get in a fight they won't stop and they can do serious damage to another dog, or even kill it. Your dog shouldn't be allowed to be outside on it's own. It's a breed that's been bred to fight and I think you are just pressing your luck to allow them to roam free. He's young yet , but another dog may start a fight with him and as he ages he's going to respond.
Please be careful and watch him and don't let him out unrestrained. I've had pits and hardly any can be trusted not to get in fights with other dogs. They may not even start it, but they will not stop once they become involved. This breed does not need anymore bad press.
 
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