Proofing….
Sunday, February 5th, 2012 Posted in training | No Comments »I've mentioned that I'm taking a class with Rush. I'd describe it as chaotic, but that's not right. More like.... as busy as a really crowded trial. Yesterday we finished with an exercise to work on good stays. All ten of ...
Training recalls
Friday, February 3rd, 2012 Posted in training | 1 Comment »I took Rush and Dancer to the Delta this morning for a nice off-leash walk. They both took off at a dead run as soon as I took off their leashes; Rush ran as fast as he could in a ...
Recovering from vacation
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012 Posted in training | No Comments »I left the dogs with the world's best poodle sitter for two weeks and went to Hawaii. I know, tough life. It was wonderful, but of course I came back to dogs who could best be described as the equivalent ...
Proofing Waits
Sunday, January 22nd, 2012 Posted in training | Comments OffIf one is proofing bread dough, one is letting it rise (which, I suppose, proves that the yeast is growing well); if one is proofing dog behavior, one is making sure that the dog understands what is expected of him ...
Training
Sunday, January 15th, 2012 Posted in life with poodles, training | 1 Comment »Poodles being as smart as they are, I've found that I need to have a training project in mind for each dog. Even Elly, who is now eight years old, spends her spare time thinking up mischief if I don't ...
End of the fear period?
Sunday, January 15th, 2012 Posted in life with poodles, training | Comments OffYesterday, Rush was all about the cuddling. He slept in my lap while I read; he slept in my lap while I watched TV. Having a fifty pound puppy in your lap might seem like a bad thing, but he's ...
Training accomplishment of the day (well, yesterday)
Monday, January 9th, 2012 Posted in training | 1 Comment »I took Rush up to the Clark County Fairgrounds, where they were having an AKC trial I hadn't entered. I went as things were wrapping up on Sunday afternoon. I was able to walk Rush twice around the outside of ...
It’s not all about the testosterone….
Sunday, January 8th, 2012 Posted in training | Comments OffYesterday was Rush's first puppy agility class, with Dana Stillinger at Best Friends Agility School. There were eight dogs there (I think it was eight, it was busy, anyway). There was a tunnel and some hoops. There is a homework ...
Operant dogs….
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011 Posted in training | 1 Comment »The word "operant" in the context of dog training, means a dog that actively tries to figure out what you want as soon as you bring out your clicker and treats, and then tries to give you what you want, ...
Enthusiasm
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011 Posted in training, trials | Comments OffI started to write a post about how I trained Rush to go to yet another foot target, but in between the first sentence and the second sentence, I went to the bathroom and when I came back I realized ...