Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

Una and I have been practicing, and I thought she was doing really well until we went to obedience class.

As soon as we arrived, she got all excited. But this time, with me using the leash techniques and telling her "quiet" when she barked, she settled down quicker.

The instructor, who came over and greeted us with treats at the beginning of class, commented that Una was doing much better. Then she gave her a treat and told her what a good doggie she was. I think she was also trying to see if Una would jump on her, which she didn't.

She was definitely doing better than one of the dogs that arrived, dragging its owner behind. The instructor walked over and took the leash from owner. While talking nicely to the dog, saying, "It's not polite to drag people across the room," she gave her several pops on the leash until the dog stopped pulling. Then she handed the dog back, who behaved much better. I had to smile.

We started out by reviewing what we did last week, walking on a loose leash around the gym. Una was not doing as well as she had all week on our walks; she was trying to sniff the floor, sniff people's bags, et cetera. One of the assistants came up to us and said that I should walk faster and make Una pay attention. "Your dog is walking you," she chided.

So I picked up the pace and started actively giving her tugs on the leash when she lagged behind. I also praised her when she did well. Another assistant came up and remarked, "Look how happy she is when you talk nice to her." I looked down and sure enough, Una was smiling a big smile. I told her again how good she was. Una grinned broadly. She listened better after that.

Then we began a new command, "Down." It's what The Gryphon and I were previously calling "Lie Down" with Una, but "Down" is simpler and easier to hear and understand, so we're changing the command. We're also adding a hand signal, which is a closed fist, sweeping out in front of the dog, basically indicating what she's to do with her front legs. That also seems to help. It's also a good way to "bribe" her with a treat: you hold the treat in that fist while doing the "Down" motion and she naturally follows.

She did very well during the class, but I know she needs work on this, because we've never worked on it consistently.

Next we worked on "Sit and Stay." You start by standing next to the dog and saying "Stay." Then you step immediately in front of the dog and say, "Stay," using the hand gesture of a palm with fingers closed, sweeping down in front of the dog's face. You wait for about 15 seconds — we'll be doing a minute by the end of the class — and then return to their side and say, "OK."

The "OK" command is supposed to release them, so if they don't move, you tug their leash and start walking.

Una did extremely good with this one, even in front of the instructors. I was really proud of her. She's been good with the "Stay" command lately. Ever since I started the class, I've had her sit and stay at the top or bottom of the steps when I'm going up and down. This reinforces the idea that I'm the pack leader and go first. It also has the side benefit of preventing her from running past my legs and making me fall on my tailbone again!

Then we worked on "Come." Again, we started small. The idea was to wait until the dog was distracted, which is easy in a class full of dogs. As soon as she was looking away, I'd say, "Una, come" and then back away from her briskly. You could talk nicely to her but not say the command again. When she reached me, I was supposed to praise her or give her a treat.

Una did very well with this one, too, but it's another command we haven't worked on consistently. We'll have to practice this one, as well.

I think one of the things to remember is to give the command "Come" in a cheerful voice so the dog wants to come towards you. The instructor also noted that, when dogs are first learning this command, you shouldn't have them come to you and then do something they don't like, such as trimming their nails.

Then she talked about a problem behavior that applied to many other dogs in the class but not Una: biting and mouthing. It's something that puppies do a lot, but I honestly can't remember Una ever doing it much. She was far more interested in chewing on other things when she was a puppy. But she learned that she didn't enjoy getting yelled at whenever I found destroyed items on the carpet. Instead, she liked being praised when I come home and found a nice house.

The instructor said that if you had a sensitive dog, and she pointed to Una — at which point, Una barked once, as if to underscore the assessment — if they bite or mouth your hand, you say, "Ouch!" and act wounded. You put the dog down immediately and ignore it for five minutes.

The funny thing is, that's one of the most effective punishments I've ever used with Una. When I was still using her crate, I'd put her in the crate for a period of time: 5-10 minutes or longer, depending on the infraction. She got no attention while she was in there, which she hated. It did work with many of the behaviors I was trying to correct, such as peeing on the carpet or chewing on things.

If saying "ouch" doesn't work, the instructor recommended pinching their snout and saying "No bite." If that doesn't work, she said you could pinch their gums towards their teeth. She demonstrated the technique on a couple of bitey dogs, such as the puppies. It seemed to have the desired effect.

She did caution that some dogs really hate having their snout pinched, and it drives them crazy. If your dog does that, she recommended spraying them with a water bottle instead.

And she showed how to keep a dog from chewing a leash. You grab the leash in the middle and pop the leash out of their mouth, saying "No bite." She demonstrated on one of the leash biters.

Una was getting restless, as if she knew that this topic didn't apply to her. While most of the older dogs sat or lay down next to their owners, Una got fidgety and started whining. I had to reinforce the "Sit" command I'd given her by pushing her butt back down.

She also started scratching her neck, which must be from allergies. Una gets dry skin, especially at certain times of the year. We put olive oil in her food to try to help, and she gets special food that's supposed to be good for her skin. I know it can't be fleas, since she's up to date on her flea and tick medication. But I felt like the assistants kept looking at me and whispering to each other. I imagined them saying, "That poor dog has fleas. No wonder she's fidgety."

At the end of the class, we received our homework sheets, which spelled out the training techniques for "Down," "Sit and Stay" and "Come." We are supposed to practice them this week, and I've already started, as well as demonstrating the techniques for The Gryphon so he can practice it with her, too.

I have noticed a difference with Una. Last week she pretty much pulled me out the door at the end of the class, and this time she was much better. One thing I've noticed: it's easier to get her to behave when she's at home, free from distractions. So it's good to practice things in class, with plenty of other dogs as a distraction. If she'll listen to me there, eventually she'll listen to me everywhere.

More Musings on Una's Obedience Classes

Copyright 2005 by Alyce Wilson

Musings Index

What do you think? Share your thoughts
at Alyce's message board (left button):