Dog Training Discussion Groups

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Shannon

One of the more difficult aspects of home-schooling your dog is missing out on the support of the class group and instructor. Books are helpful, as are videos. But what do you do when you get stuck and the book doesn’t have an answer for your specific problem? Discussion groups to the rescue!

I’m a terrible Yahoo! Groups junkie (I should start a chapter of Dog Training Groups Anonymous) because I learn a lot by listening in on discussions about dog behavior problems or obedience or agility issues. I ask questions sometimes, too, but mostly I’m there to enjoy the discussion among dog training enthusiasts.

There’s a group for just about every dog activity out there. If you’re not familiar with Yahoo Groups, they operate much like a bulletin board forum. You can read messages individually or as a daily digest, or you can read them at the group page, forum style.

The more active lists have many experienced trainers who very generously share their insights and knowledge with the rest of us.

My personal favorites are:

Clicker Solutions
A forum for clicker trainers, CS covers everything from clicker basics to esoteric debates about learning theory. It’s not limited to dogs, either – list members also train cats, horses, rabbits and birds. When I go on occasional “email diets”, CS is usually the last group I’ll opt out of.

Ring Tested Obedience
A fairly new list, this is one of my favorites because of their unique list rules. Anyone can ask a question (the topic is focused on AKC competition obedience training), but in order to answer a question, you must have earned the obedience title that the question is about. For instance, to answer a question about a retrieve, you must have at least an Open (CDX) title. This way, all advice has been “ring tested” and has worked for at least one person in practice.

ClickCompObed
An list dedicated to training for AKC obedience and rally, using only positive training methods (mostly clicker training.) ClickCompObed is a great resource for clicker trainers who are looking for obedience-specific advice, solutions and support.

CleanRun
Agility lovers gather here to discuss agility training, trials and articles from the Clean Run magazine. The list is run by the folks at the magazine, and is full of useful advice as well as support and lots of agility enthusiasm!

DogRead
Of course I have to recommend a discussion group about books! DogRead is like an online book club for dog lovers. A new book is discussed every few weeks, with the author invited for a guest Q-and-A session. Past guests have been Grisha Stewart (Behavior Adjustment Training) and Pam Dennison (Click Your Way to Rally Obedience). The upcoming summer and fall lineup looks great, too. Group members even get a discount at Dogwise.com.

There are so many more groups, but this post is long enough. I’ll add more to my Resources page, so check back soon.

Are you on any Yahoo Groups for dog lovers? Which ones would you recommend?

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Welcome to What the Mutt? Monday

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Shannon

When I was a kid, I wanted a dog so badly that I memorized the Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds. To this day, owners of rare breeds love me because I know what their dogs are when I see them on the street. I’m also really good at guessing what breeds may have gone into a mixed breed dog. At least, I *think* I am. :)

Anyway, it’s always fun to guess! So every Monday here at the DIY Dog will officially be What the Mutt? Monday. I’ll post a picture of a mixed breed dog and give my best guess as to his/her heritage, and why I think what I do.

I hope you’ll guess too, by leaving a comment. If the dog has known parentage or a DNA test, I’ll reveal the results the following week.

First up, I’ll use my own guinea pig pup, who is my biggest challenge to identify.

What the mutt is Sienna??

Sorry about the slideshow, I have a lot of pretty good pictures of her, but not one picture that shows her structure very well. She’s 25 lbs and 18″ tall. She’s a cross between a cat, monkey, ferret and fox. Oh yeah, and a dog. Maybe. LOL. Kidding aside, my best guess is that she’s Sheltie or Border Collie mixed with a Spaniel/Poodle cross. I say this mostly because of her personality.

She’s very smart (way smarter than me) and a velcro, one-person dog, which is typical of Shelties. She’s definitely herdy – she runs in circles, not straight lines, likes to herd me when I’m running, and is very concerned with the whereabouts of all members of any group she’s with. She has a Poodle’s sense of humor (and entitlement) and hunts, flushes and points like a spaniel. Not to mention the ridiculous long coat, which is more or less Sheltie colored.

But I’ve had her for four years and I’m always revising that opinion. So I’m open to suggestions! What the mutt do you think she is?

To submit your dog (or a dog you know) to What the Mutt? Monday, send me an email with a photo or a link to a photo (better yet, several photos or maybe even some video) of your dog, and the following information about the dog:

- Name
- Age
- Gender
- Height
- Weight
- Describe the dog’s personality – laid back? Energetic? Goofy?
- How does your dog play? (Chasing, wrestling, bitey-face, etc.)
- Anything else you think might help with breed identification
- A link to your blog or website if you’d like

If you know the dog’s parents or have done a DNA test, include the results at the end of the email with a note that says **Spoiler Alert**

I look forward to being humbled by my inability to accurately identify your dog after I’ve bragged so much about my nerdy talent. :)

Posted in Uncategorized, What the Mutt? | Tagged | Leave a comment

Fun with Tracking!

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Shannon

Today we worked on something that’s quickly becoming a favorite for both Sienna and me – tracking! I have next to no idea what I’m doing, and we’ll probably never compete as she’s a mixed breed and AKC tracking tests are already few and far between for purebred dogs. Still, I’m hooked on watching my dog follow a scent trail with her nose like it’s the most exciting thing in the world to her.

I started playing around with very basic, puppy tracking over a year ago. I found this website that has a great explanation on how to start teaching a dog to track. (Start with the TD Training Part I.) I went through the basics with Sienna, worked up to having her on a flexi leash (which real tracking trainers will tell you is a big no-no) and following a straight track about 50 feet.

Then life got in the way, I became obsessed with trick training, obedience and agility, and kind of forgot about tracking. Sienna didn’t – she now uses her nose much more often, and with more apparent enjoyment, than she did before, tracking all manner of unknown critters (probably squirrels) on our walks.

When I recently moved across the street from a gigantic park with acres and acres of rolling, green, grassy fields, the first thing I thought of (in big flashing neon in my head) was TRACKING! Since I now have the perfect tracking training field right at my doorstep, I gave it another try.

Last week, I did a couple of little test tracks to see if the dog remembered. Did she ever. Nearly shrieking with joy, she rocketed the 20 feet to the article (a sock), dragging me behind on the 6′ leash. I never knew my 25lb dog could pull like that. Zoomies (with the sock) ensued shortly thereafter.

Today I did an actual, planned training session. Really, I should call it a ‘learning’ session, since I’m learning more than the dog is. I did four tracks between 20-40 feet. My article was a glove, and I used ZiwiPeak treats. Also, I figured I could trade in the 6′ leash for a 15′ long line this time (no more flexi).

On the first track, Sienna bolted forward so fast she caught me off guard. She covered the 15′ of slack line in seconds (I wish I had a stopwatch, and yes I need to teach this dog agility) and hit the end before I was even aware she was moving. D’oh. Didn’t dampen her enthusiasm too much, fortunately.

The second track was 90 degrees to the previous one, as I thought I’d go in a large square. This time, she ran it about 3′ to the right of the actual track. At which point I realized which way the wind was blowing. Oh. Guess I should take these things into account.

Third track wasn’t too memorable. I again went 90 degrees on the third leg of the square, going into the wind this time (on purpose).

For some reason, on the fourth track I stopped going in a square. I think I got distracted by the wind thing, and wanted to work into the wind again. So I laid the fourth track parallel to the third. I made two mistakes this time. First, I didn’t go far enough away from the other track. Worse, I walked from the start of the third track to the start of the fourth track, then walked the fourth track, then circled the dog, walking right over my previous footsteps before I started her. So of course, she followed my path back to the third track and tried to run it again. Double d’oh.

What did I learn today? Many things.

1. My dog is actually tracking, not just running to where she thinks the glove is. Cool!

2. I should only do three tracks per session. My brain can’t handle more than that, and Sienna was getting tired by the end of it.

3. I should bring a notebook and record stuff, like how far I went, which way the wind was blowing, what happened, etc. You know, I think I read that in a tracking book once. Nothing like learning by experience!

4. Longer breaks in between. I can review, and the dog can chill out.

5. Note which way the wind is blowing…yeah…

6. Make the tracks further apart than you think they should be. In fact, go to an entirely different part of the park for each one.

7. When the dog starts running, I start running. That way I can let the slack out and GENTLY add tension when she gets to the end of the line. Less jolting for both of us that way.

8. Ziwipeak treats aren’t her favorites.

9. I don’t know but I might as well make this a top ten list…

10. Tall grass + small dog + zoomies = hilarious. Someday I’ll get a video of Sienna doing the weasel war dance. My dog is part ferret.

Posted in Adventures of Sienna, Uncategorized | Tagged | 4 Comments

Word.

Posted on March 30, 2012 by Shannon

Thanks, uh, dawg.

Posted in Spam That Makes Me LOL | Leave a comment

In which I try to decipher Sienna’s treat preferences

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Shannon

Recently, I re-stocked my treat cupboard. I now have quite a selection of yummy training treats. I usually rotate them, or make a “treat trail mix” for Sienna, but a post by Reactive Champion inspired me to give Sienna a little test to see which treats she likes the best.

I used some Stella & Chewy’s, some Zukes, and some Evo Small Bites kibble. As Crystal suggested, I compared two treats at at time, offering one in each hand. My thoroughly scientific method ;) involved three trials of having the Zukes in my left hand and the Evo in the right hand, then three trials of the opposite.

The first three times, Sienna took the Zukes. The second three times, she took the kibble.

I tried randomly switching hands for three reps. Again, she always took the left-hand treat.

Maybe my method needed some adjustment…I tried again holding both hands together. Same result. Then I put both treats on the floor about 4 inches apart, with again the same results. Hmm…I tried again with the treats closer together. On the last test, Sienna sniffed the treats and ate the Zukes first each time.

While I’m still mostly in the dark about her treat preferences, I did learn a useful fact about Sienna:

My dog is weird.

Well, I already knew that. The useful thing that I didn’t already know, is that she is very highly attuned to patterns. It only took her three repetitions to figure out that the good treats were always in my left hand. After that, she didn’t need to think about it but automatically went for that hand.

This probably explains why I had so much trouble the other day getting her to focus on an object that was in front of me…she’s been very heavily reinforced for training while facing me. Apparently, more heavily reinforced than I was even aware of.

It also sheds some light on how she was able to learn a completely new trick (put your head down) after watching another dog learning it for less than one minute.

I’m probably a lot more predictable than I thought…

Posted in Adventures of Sienna, Dog Training | 2 Comments