30 December 2014
16 December 2014
Wordless Wednesday #67 - Christmas Elf
Be sure to enter our giveaway for $200 PayPal Cash!
Using the giveaway widget below, you have eight entries for the $200 PayPal cash drawing. In addition, by visiting all of the participating blogs linked below, you get even more chances to win. One grand prize winner will be chosen from the sweepstakes on each blog. Be sure to enter on all of the blogs for the most chances to win. Happy Holidays and may the odds be ever in your favor!
15 December 2014
Monday Mischief #53 - You Shall Not Pass
Mr. N is not big into toys and he normally leaves other dogs' toys alone. With Sage though, he is merciless about stealing her toys. He'll even wade into water which he normally avoids to make sure the stick/ball/other item doesn't make it to shore without him.
Be sure to enter our giveaway for $200 PayPal Cash!
Using the giveaway widget below, you have eight entries for the $200 PayPal cash drawing. In addition, by visiting all of the participating blogs linked below, you get even more chances to win. One grand prize winner will be chosen from the sweepstakes on each blog. Be sure to enter on all of the blogs for the most chances to win. Happy Holidays and may the odds be ever in your favor!
14 December 2014
BW Sunday #70 - Santa's Sleigh
Be sure to enter our giveaway for $200 PayPal Cash!
Using the giveaway widget below, you have eight entries for the $200 PayPal cash drawing. In addition, by visiting all of the participating blogs linked below, you get even more chances to win. One grand prize winner will be chosen from the sweepstakes on each blog. Be sure to enter on all of the blogs for the most chances to win. Happy Holidays and may the odds be ever in your favor!
12 December 2014
FitDog Friday #57 - Making Time for Training
Mr. N and I work on training every single day (mostly because he needs it!). I attempt to do something new most days but at the very least, we review something he already knows every day. It takes literally a minute or two and since he has to work for all his food already, it doesn't take extra time. He gets two snacks a day (we were advised to give him small frequent meals because he has a bit of a delicate stomach) so snack time is usually training time for us.
The secret to training regularly is making it part of your routine. I don't wake up thinking oh we should train this at such and such time today. I just cram it into small slivers throughout the day. For example:
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| Practicing his stay and perfecting his photo pose |
- Brushing your teeth- down stays
- Commercial breaks - learn new trick
- Before dinner - leave it
- Waiting for the microwave - review old tricks
- Cleaning the living room - work on retrieving items
- Waiting for the laundry - mat work
- Folding laundry - go to bed (Mr. N loves sleeping on fresh laundry if we don't tell him otherwise)
- Waiting in line - practice various paw behaviors (high five, shake, fist bump, cover eyes)
- Watching TV - grooming time (brushing fur and teeth, cleaning eyes)
- Walks - impulse control, greeting other people and dogs politely
- Anytime your dog is doing something else - recall (once your dog is ready for distractions)
We do not do all of the above tasks in one day but I mix it up and Mr. N gets reinforced for good behavior and we proof old behaviors.
I also have clickers all throughout the house (which the boyfriend is not fond of) so I'll pick one up when I'm moving to a different room and do some shaping with Mr. N if I'm thinking about it.
He likes training time because he gets treats and attention and praise and if I ask him if he wants to train, he'll dash out of bed and wait at our usual shaping locale (in the living room, by the kitchen).
We haven't worked on anything particularly exciting lately although I do want to get him a skateboard and I think we might try to work on the hot dog retrieve during the holidays to give him something to do.
When and what do you train with your dog(s)?
And be sure to enter our giveaway for $200 PayPal Cash!
Using the giveaway widget below, you have eight entries for the $200 PayPal cash drawing. In addition, by visiting all of the participating blogs linked below, you get even more chances to win. One grand prize winner will be chosen from the sweepstakes on each blog. Be sure to enter on all of the blogs for the most chances to win. Happy Holidays and may the odds be ever in your favor!
11 December 2014
A Huge Holiday Giveaway!
What with Christmas shopping, all the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales, and various holiday events, who has extra money in their pocket to spend this time of year? Mr. N doesn't have any pockets but he has a solution to your problem (much like women's clothing, dog clothing doesn't really come with functional pockets).
A fellow blogger suggested we pool our resources to make someone's holidays jollier. So eight pet bloggers have banded together to give away $200 in PayPal Cash to a lucky winner (anywhere in the world where one can get PayPal Cash).
A fellow blogger suggested we pool our resources to make someone's holidays jollier. So eight pet bloggers have banded together to give away $200 in PayPal Cash to a lucky winner (anywhere in the world where one can get PayPal Cash).
Using the giveaway widget below, you have eight entries for the $200 PayPal cash drawing. In addition, by visiting all of the participating blogs linked below, you get even more chances to win. One grand prize winner will be chosen from the sweepstakes on each blog. Be sure to enter on all of the blogs for the most chances to win. Happy Holidays and may the odds be ever in your favor!
Cascadian Nomads
No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to those 18 and over with an e-mail or mobile number that PayPal recognizes as able to accept the $200 prize in US funds. Participating bloggers are not responsible for PayPal issues with or delays in prize fulfillment. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Thursday, December 11, 2014 through Friday, December 19, 2014 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by Random.org and notified via email. Winner will have 24 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Promosimple's privacy policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, YouTube and PayPal do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participating bloggers paid an entry fee to cover the cost of the prize.
No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to those 18 and over with an e-mail or mobile number that PayPal recognizes as able to accept the $200 prize in US funds. Participating bloggers are not responsible for PayPal issues with or delays in prize fulfillment. Void where prohibited. Giveaway will run from Thursday, December 11, 2014 through Friday, December 19, 2014 at 11:59pm PT. One (1) winner will be randomly selected by Random.org and notified via email. Winner will have 24 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Participants must read and agree to Promosimple's privacy policy before entering and participating in this promotion. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+, YouTube and PayPal do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participating bloggers paid an entry fee to cover the cost of the prize.
09 December 2014
06 December 2014
05 December 2014
FitDog Friday #56 - Tryon Creek State Park
We had been meaning to visit Tryon Creek State Park which holds the distinction of being Oregon's only state park within a major metropolitan area for quite a while. We finally visited a few days ago. The parking lot was full but we barely ran into anyone on our hike. Despite the map, we made a few bad turns so we just meandered.
Mr. N enjoyed being the tallest in the group and getting a squirrel's eye view.
We didn't actually see any squirrels but there were a few places that the dogs sniffed intently.
The trails are mostly flat so it wasn't particularly strenuous. Sage desperately wanted to jump into the creek but it's forbidden to protect the steelhead trout. So we told her to climb a tree instead. Mr. N made it up halfway and then I had to give him a boost.
He was not impressed with the lack of squirrels.
The park is known for trilliums so we're planning on going back in the spring when they bloom.
02 December 2014
01 December 2014
Rewarding Your Dog Appropriately
Welcome to December's Positive Pet Training Blog Hop hosted by Cascadian Nomads, Dachshund Nola & Tenacious Little Terrier. Our December theme is rewards but any posts about positive training are welcome.
Every dog has their own hierarchy of rewards. The majority of dogs find food enticing but there's also toys, petting and praise, and life rewards (being allowed to sniff, play with other dogs, going outside etc).
Mr. N has a lot of prey drive. When we do lure coursing, there's no need to reward him for a successful run. He finds chasing after the bag itself highly satisfying. Usually the problem is getting dogs to leave the lure! For dogs who are highly prey motivated, they make fur tugs. Sometimes if Mr. N is being good and if I'm in a situation to do so, I'll let him go chase squirrels/rabbits/birds.
When I trained Mr. N to walk on a loose leash when we first adopted him, I trained him using the "be a tree" method. We would just stop whenever he pulled and sometimes walk in the opposite direction. I didn't train him to walk nicely on a leash using food because he would have eaten his weight in food (we stopped... a lot!) and I didn't want to be bending down every five seconds. Instead, he was rewarded with being able to walk forward and sniff.
It took two frustrating weeks but now he walks very nicely. He still sometimes has trouble controlling himself around horses though. But we see horses so rarely, it's not worth trying to train separately.
Some dogs really love toys but Mr. N has never had that much toy drive. He likes to play with toys on his terms on his time. He enjoys trying to steal Sage's toys though. I'd like to try training him with a food jackpot toy sometime.
We mainly train using food because it's easy and reliable. Mr. N has high standards and will only work for at least medium value treats. He will not work for kibble or biscuits or fruits/vegetables reliably. He gets small, soft treats (like Cloud Star, Real Meat, or think!dog) for clicker training and freeze-dried treats, cheese, liver and various meats for more difficult tasks like recall and ignoring other dogs.
When you train your dog with rewards, they love to work. I was clicker training Mr. N in the living room, and the boyfriend interrupted to ask a question. I turned towards him and was answering when Mr. N picks up the clicker and slams it in my hand. And looks at me as if to say, "this is my training time and you should only be paying attention to me!"
I guess when we expect our dogs to solely concentrate on us during training and ignore distractions, they expect the same courtesy!
Next month will be the one year anniversary of our positive pet training hop. Please join us on January 5th to share training ideas and goals as well as entering to win an anniversary giveaway.
Every dog has their own hierarchy of rewards. The majority of dogs find food enticing but there's also toys, petting and praise, and life rewards (being allowed to sniff, play with other dogs, going outside etc).
Mr. N has a lot of prey drive. When we do lure coursing, there's no need to reward him for a successful run. He finds chasing after the bag itself highly satisfying. Usually the problem is getting dogs to leave the lure! For dogs who are highly prey motivated, they make fur tugs. Sometimes if Mr. N is being good and if I'm in a situation to do so, I'll let him go chase squirrels/rabbits/birds.
When I trained Mr. N to walk on a loose leash when we first adopted him, I trained him using the "be a tree" method. We would just stop whenever he pulled and sometimes walk in the opposite direction. I didn't train him to walk nicely on a leash using food because he would have eaten his weight in food (we stopped... a lot!) and I didn't want to be bending down every five seconds. Instead, he was rewarded with being able to walk forward and sniff.
It took two frustrating weeks but now he walks very nicely. He still sometimes has trouble controlling himself around horses though. But we see horses so rarely, it's not worth trying to train separately.
Some dogs really love toys but Mr. N has never had that much toy drive. He likes to play with toys on his terms on his time. He enjoys trying to steal Sage's toys though. I'd like to try training him with a food jackpot toy sometime.
We mainly train using food because it's easy and reliable. Mr. N has high standards and will only work for at least medium value treats. He will not work for kibble or biscuits or fruits/vegetables reliably. He gets small, soft treats (like Cloud Star, Real Meat, or think!dog) for clicker training and freeze-dried treats, cheese, liver and various meats for more difficult tasks like recall and ignoring other dogs.
 |
| I hate bending down umpteenth times so I've trained Mr. N to lean on me/or other people for treat delivery |
I guess when we expect our dogs to solely concentrate on us during training and ignore distractions, they expect the same courtesy!
Next month will be the one year anniversary of our positive pet training hop. Please join us on January 5th to share training ideas and goals as well as entering to win an anniversary giveaway.
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