natetrack said:
Nice work with the dogs. My (puggle) needs to learn drop, but other than that she is pretty good. We are going to be getting a 3 yr old chocolate lab/chesapekee cross this weekend. I am going to get that book just in case.
Easy to teach, unless your against using food/rewards. Food rewards are always faded out and replaced w/ real life rewards, ie... petting verbal praise dog toy walk time play time or anything the dog sees as high value.
If you want to teach this becuase of thievery(usually is when clients request it) you must undertsand this 1st!. No dog repeatedly performs a behavior that is unrewarding. Nor will they waist time and or energy acting out a behavior that they get nothing out of. Thievery is a direct link to attention getting behavior. ie. I get no attention when I'm lying down and behaving(most people think that's what's expected, so don't bother him & let him be rather than calmly praising him) So Fido learns to act out, much like I did as a child. Dad was gone at an early age, so the only way I knew to get him to appear was to do something so wrong until my mom would say,"I'm calling your Father!! Exactly what I wanted
Negitive attention is always better than no attention. In fact, whats the one thing our significant others can do to send us a message that we messed up baaaaad! The cold shoulder, right? Why becuase it works. Yell at me, talk to me, something! But don't just ingnore me! Therefore, if Fido steals wifies under garment and runs through the house,he knows he'll get attention, in addition to Fido thinking he's in charge. After all he started the game and you all followed. Nah nah nan nah nah, you can't catch me... You're the leader, leaders don't follow or chace, we lead!
Punishment for this behavior is still attention. If it's not life threatening to Fido, and or the product has no real value, stop showing him attention for that behavior and watch how quick that behavior becomes extinct,this works w/most unwanted behaviors. No attention or reward equals a waist of time and energy. If it's a chewing or destructive behavior, then it's linked to either stress or a release of pent up energy. In which case we interupt the unwanted behavior and replace it with a more appropriate one. ie.... puppy puzzle, Kong w/kibble or treats in it, a rope for dogs chew toy or tennis ball "here do this instead". THIS IS NOT BRIBERY! These are all the same techniques employed to train the Loins Tigers Bears and Dolphins, it's a science.
teaching drop;
Break up dog treats/or food into
PEA SIZE bites( it's much easier to wean a dog off of Pea size treats than a chunk or whole biscuit). I recommend Natural Balance Beef roll if your against human food. It's actually dog food, but is seen as a treat in the eye's of Fido. San Diego Zoo feeds to to the all their conivores as their mainstay diet. Found in any Petco or quality pet store. I'll attach a pic at the end.
It is easier if you wear one of those cheap cotton carpenters nail belts or treat pouch. Reasons; dog may drop object while your reaching for the treat on the counter and lose interest. W/o out large pocket you may drop tid-bits on the floor while training "FREEBEES" in fido's eye's, why work when I get the off the floor for free. If you use your regular pockets, you may wake up with holes in them, if you know what I mean. Never mind forgetting you still had treats in your pants pocket and then run your pants through the washer & dryer #-o
At first use something you know he/she will readily put/take in their mouth. No need for a leash unless they will run/walk away once the object is taken. If so, attach a leash and let it lie on the floor and step on it. Not so to restrict movement, just to prevent them from walking away. Put a treat in your finger tips, place it on Fido's nose (say nothing at this point) Fido will drop the the object(if not the treat your using is not higher in value than the object) Up the value if need be. Be patient! Wait for him to drop the object. As soon as he does, praise with only these words... GOOD DROOOOOP! Reward him w/the treat immediately. Make sure you're not telling him to drop at this stage, you're are simply teaching what drop will mean. You want to label the action(DROP) not the act of holding. Repeat this leasson until Fido starts spitting the object out before you even have the treat in hand. Then it's time for the next stage.
Only work with this once or twice a day for 5 to 10 minutes max! This shouldn't take to long for the both of you to get to this stage under a week I would say. When you reach this stage post it up and I'll move you to the next stage.
Have fun and don't get upset if somethings not working. If it becomes negative neither one of you will want to take part. Alway end these sessions on a positive note, meaning always end the lesson when Fido has performed the task correctly.
As I said, any questions or problems at all, just post up and I'll reply.
Have fun!
