Thread: Dog training problems and answers

Originally Posted by el borracho

longgg whistle on high tapering off -any distance he will go down if he can here it clearly

Sweet! How'd you teach that?

Neckshot - he spelled 'hear' wrong!

Teach drop close up, then gradually further out under increasing distance and distraction, enforcing any slip ups as we go. Have a 14 month old setter here at the moment in the process of it. Some guys like the long line in the early phases, I don't have a 100m long line. Maybe ruff can share the inside info on it that I'm missing

Originally Posted by Pointer

Teach drop close up, then gradually further out under increasing distance and distraction, enforcing any slip ups as we go. Have a 14 month old setter here at the moment in the process of it. Some guys like the long line in the early phases, I don't have a 100m long line. Maybe ruff can share the inside info on it that I'm missing

Sweet, this is exactly what I am doing (no long line)

Originally Posted by Dougie

And please, please PLEASE don't burn me while I am being honest. If this turns into a conversation about how smart you are and how dumb I am, I think I might just unplug my internet for a couple of months!

I don;t think you're dumb... I think you are, like 99.9% of people seeking information on training dogs in the world today have been sold a crock of crap. In the absence of anything else what were supposed to believe? That's actually what my crusade if you want to call it that is all about. I genuinely feel sorry for people who want to make a good job of things and are sold these techniques that are fundamentally flawed. It's very real and it very big business. The problem is, having learned it people want to retain ownership of the info.

In answer to your problem. There's no magic solution.You won;t like my answer but it has to do with the basis of your training. Your authority over your dog is questionable to the dog at this distance. It hasn't started with you, there is no request to return to you. Whether you choose to believe it or not all that food training/reward etc reduces the dog view of where you sit in the hierarchy. It may be subtle but in instances like this where you cannot reward and there's nothing in it for the dog to remain and not enough respect to just comply because you have asked it to... it doesn't. There's no issue... just a dog being a dog.

One thing that might help is removing use of the "Down Stay" command. It confuses dogs. It has Down and Down stay.. what's the difference? Doesn't down mean down and not move until instructed? If so why use stay? If you've established a down at close range and then actually change the command to downstay when it at a distance all the training associated with simply down doesn't always transfer... remember these are just sounds, they are not hearing language persey.

I would address your command to just down, no matter where the dog is with an appropriate release command. Start that training over, only using down and a release at close range and increase the distance again. With a reduction in confusion it may be enough to fix it.

Don't get snarky over what i have said about food.. it's real i believe it. If you ask me a question i will answer it, and you have the right to not like it or not do anything about. I also have the option of telling you to book an appointment, which i don't do on forums unless I believe something can;t be fixed by online discourse, and even then I usually don;t charge... but, and don;t take offense, but the easiest way to get on my bad side is to take advantage of my good side... so don;t accuse me of touting for business again, I give my time and advise for nothing on here and have nothing but the reward of someone getting it right as a result. i get very little business from forums and I don;t look for it, most of the time I am trying to find people to help with dogs, not find more of them. I think that was a very cheap shot but I'll let it slide.

I am and will always be very direct, in fact many here can tell you how extremely direct and blunt I can be, trust me... I have been very nice to you.

If I typed down stay I meant that it was the action, not the command. I do not have a 'stay' command at all. Only 'do' commands if that makes sence. Down means down until I tell you to do something else which is then free!

So - what do I do?

I was afraid of that... you really won;t like this answer.. you sure you want it?

Ha ha. Make my dog into cat food and start again?

Originally Posted by Dougie

Ha ha. Make my dog into cat food and start again?

I have a Russian schutzhund / police dog book here, written in the 60s. reckons feeding your reject dogs from your kennel to the others is OK, as long as you boil them

youd need a scolding bath yeah??

Wait, I thought El B once told me cooked bones were bad for dogs? De-bone then boil?

Originally Posted by Dougie

Wait, I thought El B once told me cooked bones were bad for dogs? De-bone then boil?

dont think that was me Dougie

Originally Posted by Dougie

Ha ha. Make my dog into cat food and start again?

Nah not at all....

I am going to choose my words carefully so will reply tomorrow.. I'm too tired to be nice right now.

The answer is above, but I'll give you more insight tomorrow.

Jim, the long line works well on young dogs in the early stages but I have never known anyone I have shown the methodology too that did not break the golden rule of long lines and picked it up when the dog could see them. Renders them totally useless in the instant. they only serve a purpose if the line is stepped on. might do a video on it at some stage.

For the person who was taught to use a check chain... safest, fastest, most humane way to train a dog for these types of lessons. If used improperly, nightmare.

Originally Posted by el borracho

dont think that was me Dougie

Cooked bones are brittle and hard and if eaten could cause all sorts of dramas... splinters stuck in the gums, splinters in the gut etc etc...

Originally Posted by Ruff

Jim, the long line works well on young dogs in the early stages but I have never known anyone I have shown the methodology too that did not break the golden rule of long lines and picked it up when the dog could see them. Renders them totally useless in the instant. they only serve a purpose if the line is stepped on. might do a video on it at some stage.

You shared that one with me some time back, used it with a young vizsla I had here. stepping on that line was like the hand of god!

Yep, works well but has to be underused... over use it and they do work it out, but in the context of the "process" it sure gets them thinking with you and if you're smart you can keep them going with that mindset....