Hurry Up!

Sometimes if I take too long taking pictures, Mr. N sticks his tongue out at me.

Mr. N did some tricks for a promo for a charity event and the commercial went live this week. Check it out.

 

Extreme Weather Conditions and Dog Walking

Portland weather can can be mercurial but there are a limited number of modes: raining, cloudy and sun. During our recent trip to the Midwest, Mr. N experienced all sorts of weather during the week we were there. A gorgeous sunny day with gusty winds that threatened to blow him away. An adventurous bathroom break in the middle of a thunderstorm. Rain with a twist of hail which had us stuffing him under a jacket and making a run for it. We narrowly avoided snow by a few days. 

What's the worst weather you walked your dog in? 

Au Revoir, Sage!

Mr. N's bestie, Sage is moving to California. The dogs had a final walk together and they exchanged presents (treats of course). We hope to visit them later this summer.

Who Will Rescue Me?

I'm lost at sea without a friend,

This journey, will it ever end?

Who will rescue me?
Rescue me?
Rescue me?
Rescue me?
-The Rescuers

Little Daredevil Dog

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Taken in the "misting" stage before it started pouring

Portland is notorious for rain but we've been having even more of a wet deluge than normal. Normally, it mists. But we've been getting full-out rain and it's quite miserable for the pup. We walk every day pretty much despite the weather and Mr. N comes home a soggy mess despite wearing a rain coat. He has hair not fur so no insulation at all. 

We met up with Sage this past week to let the dogs run and Mr. N was positively soaked from head to tail. Even he decided he needed a bath and he followed me into the kitchen (where I bathe him in the sink) which he never does.

It has been adding extra time to walk time because I have to get him dressed, undress him, wash his paws/legs/tail/belly, dry him, heat up something warm for him to eat, throw the coat in the washer and rinse off his leash and my shoes.

We're traveling this weekend so I hope the rain doesn't follow us. Do you have any tips to deal with walking in the rain? 

Happiness is a Warm Puppy

How to Positively Teach Your Dog a Reliable Recall. Are You More Interesting Than Dirt?

Are you more fun than dirt? Think of all the competing distractions for your dog's attention: food, people, other dogs, squirrels, all the good smells in the dirt. Can you compete with that for your dog's attention especially with they are off-leash and they don't have to listen to you when they don't want to?

In the photo above, Mr. N is ignoring the other people and dogs and the Chuckit to come running back to me when I called him. He loves running after dogs who are chasing a Chuckit ball. We achieved this by:

1. Never using a recall for anything unpleasant. Nail trimming, baths, etc. Mr. N finds leaving the park really hard so instead of telling him to come, I will tell him to wait and catch up with him and put his leash on and treat.

2. Always, always rewarding check-ins. If your dog decides to pop in and check in with you, reward! You want them to think that coming to you is a good thing. Especially of their own volition

3. Practice makes perfect. We practice recall regularly at all levels (low to high distractions). Mr. N's favorite might be when I call him randomly across the house and share tidbits from cooking in exchange for him zooming over.

4. Punishment is not the answer for not listening. If Mr. N doesn't listen, the fun ends but I do not yell, scold or use any form of physical punishment. 

5. Don't call them if you think you won't come. Unless you're at least 90 percent sure they will come back, don't call your dog. You'll only weaken the cue. Mr. N's recall is good around just about everything else... but horses are a little iffy. If I see horses, I'll put him back on leash as a precaution. 

6. Your dog should think they hit the lottery for coming back. Lots of high value treats or whatever else they find intensely rewarding. Mr. N prefers "human food" in the form of meat and cheese. 

7. Work your way up from small distractions to big. Practice indoors first and then once they're reliable there, practice outdoors with a long line and add more distractions as they progress.

8. It's helpful working with another dog who has a reliable recall especially if the other dog is young and impressionable. I started teaching a friend's puppy how to come on cue by having Mr. N do it with him. 

9. Switch to a different cue if yours is tainted. If your dog is blowing you off the majority of the time with your current cue, start fresh with a new one and train from the beginning. I haven't actually switched cues but a friend has and Mr. N comes to her dog's new cue as well as his normal one. If I had to switch, I think I'd pick "zombies!"

10. Just say the cue once. Don't repeat yourself over and over. If I think the environment is particularly distracting, I'll say it while running in the opposite direction and making high-pitched noises and Mr. N will usually come chase me. 

What have you found effective in teaching a reliable recall? 

Welcome to First Monday's Positive Pet Training Blog Hop hosted by Cascadian Nomads, Tenacious Little Terrier and Rubicon Days. Please share your responsible pet owner positive pet training tips by linking a blog post or leaving a comment below.  Our theme for this month is recall but any positive reinforcement training posts or comments are also always welcome. The Positive Pet Training Blog Hop goes all week long. Our next hop will begin Monday, April 4th and continues for a week. The theme for April is training for safety and emergencies for National Pet First Aid Awareness Month.

Hounds and their Noses and Meeting up with My Life with Dogs PDX

After what seemed like forty days and forty nights of rain, there was finally a clear spot in the forecast and we headed to 1000 Acres to meet up with another blog friend. My Life with Dogs PDX brought her dog Sherman to hike with Mr. N. He is always thrilled to go running about with new dog pals. 

Sherman was a little shy at first but he warmed up to Mr. N and the two of them were playing chase in the meadow after a while. We took more of the wooded trails than usual to avoid the large groups of dogs congregating on the busier trails. 

Then we went down to the river and far from getting cleaner, the dogs just got dirtier. The dogs found a particular spot in the mud that must have smelled entrancing because they both took turns rolling in it. Mr. N in particular looked like Pig-Pen afterwards. More dirt than dog.

Mr. N went home to a well-deserved bath. He says hanging out with hounds is great because they find the stinkiest smells!

Swaying With The Wind

Actually I have no idea what was going on here!