Dog Training Tips from Pett - Behaviour.

Jumping up Teaching your dog not to jump up at people is part of teaching him ‘good manners’ Sadly it is often us as people who teach our dogs to jump up in the first place, because we love our dogs so much. Because of this it is vital if you have a puppy that you start teaching him not to jump up from the very beginning. Your new puppy! You need to start teaching your new puppy not to jump up at you from the moment his first puppy paw comes through your door! The fact that our pups are so small and very cute often means we allow them to jump up at us when they are small. Be aware of this and make sure all members of the family know not to allow this.

If when you approach your puppy he jumps up at you turn around and step away quickly. If he then moves around to the front of you and tries again turn again and ignore him. There is no reason to shout or push him off if his front feet land on you, just stepping away will be enough to communicate to him that it is not acceptable. When your puppy has stopped trying to jump up at you (this will happen very quickly!) move your hands down to him and make a fuss of him. The message you are communicating is that good things happen only when he has all four feet on the floor! If this is done consistently and by all members of the family and visitors you will have a puppy that will not even try to jump up at people in a short space of time.

Adult Dogs
To teach an adult dog not to jump up can often be difficult as they may have already learned that jumping up brings about a reward for example attention. The most important rule in this case is to be consistent in your approach to teach him not to jump up. If you and the other members of the family and visitors are consistent and follow the steps below your dog will learn that jumping up at people brings about ‘no’ reward.

· Never make a fuss or cuddle your dog whilst he has his front feet on you.
· When you approach your dog ask him to sit (if he knows how to sit) if he tries to jump up, turn away quickly and step away. Do not shout at him or push him down.
· If he then runs around to face you and tries to jump up again turn around and step away from him again.
· Repeat this until you can turn and approach your dog without him trying to jump up at you.
· Do not expect him to stand there too long at first, just a few seconds of standing still or sitting is fine. Move your hands down to him quickly and then make a fuss of him as much as you like. If he likes tit bits offer him one as a reward.
· Do not get him so excited that he reverts to jumping up all over again when you do fuss him.
· Ask all visitors and friends, even people you meet when you are out and about to approach in the same way. Some people don’t seem to mind dogs jumping up at them. It is worth explaining to them that you do not want your dog to be encouraged to jump up.
· Always be aware of when your dog is learning to jump up. For example when someone is playing with him.

I have heard of many ways to stop dogs jumping up some I consider to be totally unacceptable and unfair to dogs. There is NO REASON to shout, push or knee a dog to teach him not to jump up.

Walking on a loose lead
Before we start...equipment you may need…

· A lead! I prefer to use a four foot or slightly longer lead. This ensures you have enough lead to enable it to be loose when your dog is walking next to you. Chain leads are hard on your hands so consider your own comfort when choosing a lead. Flexi leads have their use for when you want to give your dog a bit of extra freedom; they are not particularly useful though whilst you are training your dog to walk nicely next to you.
· Collar– A soft and secure collar should always be worn by your dog. Check the collar and lead each week for wear and tear!
· Headcollars - Haltis and Gentle Leader headcollars can be useful for ‘persistent pullers’ A puppy however rarely needs one of these. Speak to one of the training team if you are unsure if you need a headcollar. Choke chains are NOT allowed at Pett-Behaviour Training Classes.
· Harnesses– There are a range of harnesses that can be obtained, some are specially designed to stop dogs pulling. I have never yet found a harness that will prevent a dog from pulling. This is probably the reason sled dogs wear harnesses; they actually give the dog more bodyweight to pull with!!!

Puppies!
It is important to be aware of situations where your puppy is ‘learning’ to pull on the lead. This could be for example when you have stopped on a walk to talk to someone and your puppy might be pulling to say hello to another dog near by. In a situation like this it would be more appropriate to ask your puppy for a sit and reward him for doing so than to let him learn how to pull.

Why do our dogs pull?
Let’s think about this for a minute! A dog cannot pull on his own; they can only pull if there is something to pull against. Therefore if we refuse to pull our dogs will not be able to. Dogs will do what they find rewarding, a reward can be anything that the dog wants at any particular time. When you take your dog for a walk the reward he wants is for you to take another step forward, therefore if he pulls and you take another step forward he is getting rewarded and will pull more.

How to teach a dog to walk nicely on a lead.
· Consistency is the key to stop your dog pulling on the lead. The first thing to remember is the walk starts as soon as you decide you are going for a walk. If when you clip the lead on and your dog starts pulling you like a train before you even leave the house you need to stop and stand still or even unclip the lead and go and sit down, ignore him until he has calmed down and then start again. He will soon work out he is going no where if he is pulling you!
· Once he remains calm and you are on your way with the lead loose you need to be watching for when the lead is tight. As soon as the lead is taught you need to stop and stand still. Either bring the dog back next to you or wait till he corrects himself and the lead is loose again. Then you can move on again.
· Do this as many times as is necessary. You are communicating to your dog that pulling forward doesn’t achieve anything as when he does all progress stops!

Be patient!
As you can imagine this takes sometime especially in the beginning as your dog will be trying to work out what you want from him. If however you are consistent and follow this guide you will be rewarded with easier walks and a calmer dog. If on the other hand you only do this on some walks and not all you will be communicating to your dog that he needs to try to pull on each walk to see if “he is allowed to pull today!”

Give your dog the maximum chance of getting it right!
When we teach a dog to sit we first try to do it where there are no distractions and then build up to harder situations. When we are teaching them to walk on a loose lead we seem to expect them to get it right in a difficult setting (like on a walk) straight away! Set up some situations such as walking around chairs in the garden to make it easier for him to understand in the initial stages. When out on a walk be unpredictable, keep changing directions to encourage your dog to keep watching you. There are many reasons why a dog pulls on a lead, please ask one of the training team if you are having difficulties with this aspect of training.

Rewards
You may be thinking “why do I need to reward my dog, surely he should work for me out of love and respect alone!" But why should he?
Ask yourself - would you go to work if you did not get paid?
If you put in extra effort, say doing overtime or taking on a difficult task, you may hope to be rewarded in some way.
If your dog works hard he deserves more than a pat or kind word, though these are important too!

Initially training is done with a treat in your hand, this does not mean that he will refuse to work if you don’t have one. Your boss does not have to place your wages on your desk to ensure you will work; usually the promise of your wages is sufficient! The Clicker is your “promise” to your dog. The sound of the Clicker tells your dog a reward is coming.
At first you click with the reward in view but, in time, he will be confident enough in the sound of the Clicker and he does not need to see the reward.

We also expect different rewards for different sorts of work and this is the same for your dog. You need to work out what rewards your dog prefers and how he values them.
E.g. He may quite like cat biscuits (C)
He may love cheese (B)
But he may adore sausages (A)
So if he responds immediately to his name in the house when there are no distractions—then he gets a click and (C) reward. If he responds to his name in the garden where there are interesting smells then he deserves a click and a (B) reward but if he responds immediately to his name while in the company of other dogs then he definitely deserves an (A) reward.

Suppose you are teaching your dog to sit and sometimes he is a bit slow but
sometimes he sits quickly-a quick sit
deserves a jackpot! Your dog’s jackpot may be several titbits instead of one.

When people play the lottery they hope they will win the jackpot but they know they may get a smaller prize or they may get nothing at all! Your dog will give maximum effort in the hope of winning the jackpot but he will also accept that he won’t win every time, this is known as random reward and can be used once a behaviour is consistent. Your dog may lose confidence when you first try this but will soon realise that because you did not reward does not mean he got it wrong. He will learn to give his best effort in an attempt to guarantee a reward. Random rewards actually increase the chance of a behaviour reoccurring. Like people, dogs can become lazy and will offer minimum effort if rewarded every time.

Liver Treats
1 Lb Liver
1 clove of garlic (optional)

Bring to the boil in a little water, adding garlic if you like! (Your dog will love it)!
Simmer for about 5 minutes until cooked through.
Drain on kitchen paper and cut into small pieces.
Spread on a baking sheet and bake at about 150°C for about half an hour.
Turn off oven and leave until cold.

PS it smells pretty awful!
It doesn’t keep very well, so freeze what you do not need in small parcels for future use
We do not want podgy doggies so make sure rewards substitute part of his normal diet