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Layered Rock Pattern

Lesson 2 Homework

  • Shaping Basic Obedience skills 

  • The process of teaching new skills

  • Charging your markers

  • Luring the sit, the stand and the down behaviors

  • Using our 'Good' Marker to create an implied stay

  • Continued Practice

  • Tricks, Tips & Equipement recommendations

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Below are some videos and content to help you understand the teaching process and how we teach specific behaviors.

 

I frequently get asked, why obedience? with the implication that obedience is boring or unnecessary. Many people want to move on to their frustrations and their dog's problem behaviors. Before we can address the big problems, we must first have reliable communication and reliable obedience. Once we have these two things, we can use them to teach our dogs to do obedience behaviors to replace the problem behaviors. This is significantly easier than trying to punish away unwanted behaviors.

 

We can also communicate when they are doing something naughty. What behaviors does your pup do that may frustrate or annoy you? How can you use obedience behaviors your pup knows to stop the rehearsal of the frustrating and annoying behaviors? Need help figuring it out? I would love to help. Shoot me an email or ask at our next class.

Shaping Basic Obedience Skills

This video will give you the ability to work ahead as we introduce positions (sit, stand, down) and more in the coming weeks.

The Process of Teaching New Skills

Download this PDF for step by step instructions on the order of operations for teaching any new obedience skill utilizing the process of luring.

Step #1: Charge your Markers

​Charging our markers is a way to show our dogs that it is time to work. Reward is available. This is their warm up routine. A warm up routine gets the blood flowing, increases heart rate and should activate their core muscles. Start with what they know best. 

 

Notice there is no stay command, implied stay or good marker in a warm up. We are not building duration behaviors. (Stay)

 

We want fast, correct obedience.

Push Ups are the down and stand position. 

Step #2: Teaching Positions:

  • Sit

  • Stand

  • Down

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The 3 positions covered in class are Sit, Stand and Down. 

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I put a stand between every sit and every down my dog executes until it becomes natural. I do not ask my dog to go from a sit to a down without luring the stand in between. This strengthens my dog's core, creates good form and reduces the risk of injury over the life my dog.

 

The work is worth the reward for me and my dog.​

Remember to shape the behaviors by having your dog follow the lure in your hand.

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Focus on achieving the correct behavior each time before adding the verbal cue before your lure. 

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Speak. Then Act.

Step #3: Teaching Duration In Each Skill​

Remember the steps:

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Good (then food),

Good (no food),

Good (then food),

Yes and then chase for the food.

Step #4: Continue Practicing

1. Continue conditioning your "Yes" marker.

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2. Practice straight lines with the nose push into your palm

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3. Practice building duration in the sit.

     Good (then food), Good (no food), Good (then food), Yes and chase for the food.
 

4. Don't name it until you love it. Save the verbal cue.

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4. Practice the focus exercise. Reward each rep from your face. 

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5. Add movement and chase immediately after your yes marker.

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6. Non Reinforce unwanted behaviors. Think: “Be Boring”
No means nothing. It does not mean food. It does not mean a lure. 

Recommended Equipment

  • Flat Collar for identification, normal wear and learning new skills

  • 6 foot lightweight leash: Biothane or leather is our preference

  • Tug toy

  • Training Collars are valid for many dogs. What equipment we recommend depends upon the dog in front of us. We will guide you through the best match for you and your dog and then teach you how to correctly use it.

  • All dogs still need a flat collar

  • Training rewards (food initially)

Tips, Tricks & Favorites

  1. We prefer using our dogs' kibble as their training rewards in low distraction, easy situations, like at home.
     

  2. For high distraction situations (like class), we move to higher value rewards like Pet Botanics Training Rewards, Happy Howies, Beef Liver, a tug toy, etc.
     

  3. ​ I prefer to teach new skills on a flat collar so my dog is more willing to try. Remember, we are teaching the dog to follow the food in your hand, not to withstand leash pressure. The leash is a tool to keep your dog from leaving the training session. The leash is NOT a tool to make your dog to the obedience at this stage in the teaching process.

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