Training question...

[jenfer]

I have 2 dog training questions here, please help me if you can.

I was trying to trainig Gigi "leave it". What I was told is to put a piece of treat on the floor and give the dog another piece of treat if s/he does not touch the one on the floor. So, I put a piece of treat on the floor and Gigi actually WALKED AWAY and AVOIDED that treat. Since she DID "leave it", so I give her a reward. I am just a bit puzzled why she would walked away? Does it mean that I am SUPER SUCCESSFUL? haha...

Question 2: We are practicing "stay", some of the times she will stay, some of the times it's like I am speaking Japanese (which I wish I could) or something else that she completely ignored me. I just need to know what's the best way to do. And I plan to practice it a little bit everyday.

Any input will be great!!! Thanks.:)

[binka_nugget]

Hmm..that method of training for 'leave it' would confuse me if I was Gigi. It'd be like she's getting a reward whether she listens or not. If she leaves it, you give her a reward. If she takes it, she helped herself to a reward. I'm not sure it's the best way to teach leave it but..hey, if it works then good job!


I trained both my boys to stay with the following method:
Have the dog beside you on leash.
Tell your dog 'STAY!' and give a hand signal.
Wait a few seconds, if the dog doesn't move, praise.
If the dog does move, make an ugly sound like (UH UH!!), give a correction or anything to let the dog know that it did something wrong. Immediately place the dog back in the position it was in. I also place my dogs even further back so they know that not obeying a stay will get exactly the opposite of what they want..(to be with me).
After the dog does a stay for a satisfactory amount of time (5-10 seconds), you can start stepping out. Start with two seconds first. Then increase the time.
I find that it's more important to work on time first rather than distance. After all, you'll be closer to place the dog back in a stay if it gets up when you're 5 feet away rather than 20.



:D Good work with Gigi! It sounds like she's getting better at this obedience stuff day by day!

[edit]Oh yeah, after you have her doing stays for long periods of time and at good distances, you can start running around and going crazy (like I do haha). I test my dogs by leaving them in a stay then running around the room like a mad (wo)man, jumping up and down, throwing balls, just about everything I can think of. It's sure to test their stay just in case you need a good solid stay one day (like darting out of the house).

[Crikit]

For leave it there is actually an easier way then the way that you are trying. You start with holding a treat in your hand, show your hand with the treat to your dog but don't let her have it (closed fist best to start with), when she's sniffing it you tell her to leave it and the minute she looks away from the treat she can have it. I always say take it when I'm giving the dog a treat just so they know that they can have it.

Evntually you can work up to having an open hand with the treat on it, the treat on the floor, dropping the treat on the floor and walking Gigi past it. Leave it is also good with other dogs and stuff. Also remember at first that as soon as she takes her attention away from the treat she gets it, it can be just a glance or even if she stops sniffing the hand she can have it.

[Shelteez2]

I wouldn't correct her for not staying. If she is breaking her stay at this point in training it means you are pushing her too fast. Shorten the distance and time you are away. Start with small pivots in front of her and then back to the side. When you can do that reliably then you can pivot in front of her and take a step back. Don't start out by taking a step forward, especially with the leg that's closest to her because most dogs use the motion of your leg as a cue to start walking.
If she does get up I would just not say anything and place her back where she was and leave her for a way shorter time then you tried to.

Also one other tip is that everytime you add distance decrease the ammount of time you are away.

Hope this helps and good luck!

[ParNone]

One thing that I'd add that I haven't seen anyone mention yet, is you need to step back to the dog and give the reward while they're still in the "Stay", then give a release word, like "Okay". The key is giving the reward while they're still staying, not after the release or after say calling them to you, so that they'll think of "Stay" as a good thing. Also, use a happy voice to give the command, "Stay", like you would with "Come". I know I had a tendency to use a stern voice with that command, which makes it a dreaded thing for the dog, until my agility instructor pointed it out to me. Again, gotta make Stay a positive thing for the dog.

Par...