Three words: It snowed AGAIN. That means no class AGAIN. Lilly and I feel cooped up this winter. It’s driving us both batty. So, I have just a couple things to report.
I’ve tried before to instill a LOVE for the frisbee or tug rope by using high-value food with the clicker and by pairing one or the other with the all-important BALL that Lilly loves so much. I replied to a comment last week about this, but I’ll reiterate here one key thing to know about Lilly.
She will NOT play in front of other dogs. She will chase them while they play. But, she will not fetch the ball or play in any way if other dogs are around.
So, building a stronger play response that is dog-proof may prove key to our agility performance anxiety … since agility is essentially play (or at least I hope it is).
Weather and wildlife factors have kept us inside so much lately that I’m working on play training using the Give Me a Break concept from Leslie McDevitt’s book, “Control Unleashed.” As a side note, here’s a link to her new website which recently launched.
To use the method, I toss the frisbee, say CATCH IT, when she does I say YES (her marker word) or click and give her food. I do that maybe 5 times, then I take the frisbee, say BREAK, and sit in a chair to disengage her.
The goal is to get Lilly to engage me. In this case, grabbing the frisbee from my hand to restart the game. And, on the very first try, she indeed did.
So, 5 more tosses. BREAK. 5 more tosses. BREAK, etc.
She got VERY excited about the frisbee. So, before she pooped out on me, I put it away.
Then, I got out her tug rope. I have trained her in the past to TAKE IT and to TUG, but she’s never been one of those crazy tugging dogs. She does it because I ask.
So, this time I asked for TUG, then jackpotted her for it. That means I gave her 5-10 high-value treats in quick succession. Then, I said BREAK, took the rope and sat down. Again, she reengaged me by grabbing the rope.
I’m going to keep doing this for a while, then I’ll try introducing Ginko into the room. Then, later, maybe with our new training buddy Pitsch nearby.
I’ll have Tom hold Ginko because he’s famous for just barging up and stealing toys from Lilly. That could be part of the reason Lilly won’t play in front of other dogs. Ginko takes toys from her all the time. Generally, though, they are low value toys. If she has THE BALL, then she will bare her teeth and growl him away from her. In these situations, Ginko almost always plays the benevolent leader. He lets her have her way. He turns away from her. BUT, if he’s had enough of her crap, then he stuffs her whole head in his mouth. Or, he’ll give her a look that says ENOUGH.
How do I know? Because Lilly will go from full on snarl to major kissing fit in a half second, when Ginko lays down the law.
Even though she loves that ball more than others, if we’re playing fetch, she’ll always defer to him to get it. She’ll never try to beat him to the ball or try to take it away from him.
In fact, if he puts down a toy she wants, we often amuse ourselves watching her worm her way over to steal it. She moves really slow and close to the ground, hoping he won’t see her coming.
She’ll only tug with Ginko if she has a hold of the toy first. And, it depends on Ginko’s approach. If he looks like he means business, she lets go. If he seems more playful, then she’ll tug with him a bit before giving up. If he tries to entice her tug with him, she usually won’t.
I praise the pants off her for tugging with anyone. Maybe some day it’ll sink in.
Never in my life did I think I would have to teach a dog to play.
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