Question about training

[Rowstymitt]

Hello Everyone,

Forgive me if there's another thread somewhere already about this - I looked briefly but didn't see anything. I'd like to get Siri to some obedience classes with the eventual goal of doing therapy with her. The reality is that I probably won't be able to do this until summer. She's been with us almost two months and she turned two in November. I'd like to start doing some training with her but don't want to really do anything that I'll have to undo later, LOL. Are there any books or DVDs you can recommend that would help us with some basic obedience until we can attend classes? She already does sit and down pretty well, and she's learned to wait for me to tell her it's okay to eat, and she is starting to heel. We are still having some indoor potty issues, I think she spent her first two years in a kennel so that's understandable, I guess - but she has improved greatly in this area. I'm trying to take her out as much as I can into different situations so she is more socialized but she still is shy at first with new people. Thanks for any direction you might be able to point me in.

 

[merrymutts]

Sounds like you're heading down the right path. Socialize as much as possible and interject some basic Obedience commands whilst you're out & about.

 

[sendchocolate]

dogstardaily.com has some great videos that show what to do. Pat Miller, Ian Dunbar, Patricia McConnell and Karen Pryor...cannot go wrong with ANY of their books for training. Patricia McConnell has a good, short book on training in like 8 weeks, I cannot remember what it is called. But it is excellent. Also, do a google search for NILF...Nothing in Life is Free. That helps, too.

Poppy is about 90% trained. Now we are having issues with her about 2% of the time when she knows she shouldn't do something (like lunge for another dog to play behind a fence) and just cannot quite stop herself. That, and playing too hard with other dogs at the dog park. And, well, listening to me at the dog park without me having to grab her collar. But I figure that is an advanced thing...we keep working.

 

[PromisedLandNewf]

Flame away but Cesar is the master. His latest book "Cesar's Rules" is great with tons of info from him and the above mentioned trainers. "Be the Pack Leader" is a must have too.
Judi Adler has a book on early care and training that is great too.

 

[janices]

Janice Gunn has good set of videos
http://tntkennels.com/
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTA346

Whatever, I don't recommend anything that Cesar does. A lot of his methods are outdated as far as pack mentality and dominance theory.

Kathy Davis has a book out "Therapy Dogs - Training Your Dog to Reach Others" that you may want to look at too.
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTH121

 

[PromisedLandNewf]

Read his books and then tell me that. Anybody that has spent time watching dogs or raised a litter
will recognize that he knows exactly what he is talking about. Judi Adlers book on early training mirrors several of his ideas.

 

[Connie w Tuck]

I like Cesar too. But I also like the New Skete Monks. And Judi Adlers Books are great. I still pull it out to find something. She has a great Dog Shampoo Recipe in there.

 

[PromisedLandNewf]

The cool thing about his book "Cesar's Rules" is he traces the history of 'dog training' and interviews the who's who of dog trainers. He surely does not criticize anyone and is a great example of keeping an OPEN mind and learning from many sources. But I wholeheartedly agree that a trained dog is not always a balanced dog and you will only ever be able to fully trust a balanced dog.

 

[Rowstymitt]

Thanks everyone - apparently there are several great training gurus out there! I'll have a look.

 

[Ivoryudx]

keeping an OPEN mind and learning from many sources

Yes, and that goes with all the training links offered here.

Nobody should ever read just one persons training, or study one technique. Not even Cesar has all the answers. What works for one dog may not work for the other.

 

[newflizzie]

Yes, and that goes with all the training links offered here.

Nobody should ever read just one persons training, or study one technique. Not even Cesar has all the answers. What works for one dog may not work for the other.

Well, and I have found after all these years that different dogs may need different approaches or methods, so it's good to read a variety and do what's best for you and the particular dog you are training.

 

[PromisedLandNewf]

I have to say Cesar does have all the answers LOL. For his purpose anyway. He is NOT a dog trainer but a people trainer and educator. I don't think you can critize him until you have read his books. His tv show only barely scratches the surface of what he's about.
Patty if you only get one book to start with I'd go with Judi Adler because it is Newf specific. It;s called Early Training and Care or something similar. Even though your girl is 2 you can still use all of the info.
www.sweetbay.com
Look to the left of the page.

 

[R Taft]

"The mind is like a parachute, for it to work it need to be open"

Personally if I start a dog from scratch I like to use Positive reinforcement, negative punishment.......Like a lot of the people mentioned

With some of my rescues i have had to use some Positive punishment and such to. But the one thing I fear to be used by Joe Average is the Alpha roll, because it can all go so terribly wrong.
People should always have to remember that Cesar Milans timing is impeccable. And that most people do not have his timing or his read of a dog. He also work with dogs that have usually crossed the line.......That is why his methods can go wrong sometimes with people who do not understand dogs, terribly wrong.
I like Patricia McConnel, Pat Miller, Karen Pryor, Ian Dunbar and such. because there is more room for mistakes made by the average home trainer. It will just not have such great effect if you get it wrong.
I like positive reinforcement and I love how it allows the dog to develop and think for itself Ronnie

 

[NewfLove]

We started training Darcy for pet therapy as soon as we got her at 9 weeks old. Having gone through Delta's evaluation recently (on Darcy's 2nd birthday), I would concentrate now on a very consistent leave it, sit, wait, and stay - whichever commands you use for those. The "temperament testing" (Delta doesn't like to call it that) was the easiest part for our Newf to pass. The challenge was getting her to follow those commands Every Single Time. Good luck!

 

[heather pluciennik]

I'm still reading and learning about my girl everyday. I had a book in my hand a year before we even found her. Never ending learning process of training, testing, and health issues. Never a boring day with a newf around!

 

[sendchocolate]

"The mind is like a parachute, for it to work it need to be open"

Personally if I start a dog from scratch I like to use Positive reinforcement, negative punishment.......Like a lot of the people mentioned

With some of my rescues i have had to use some Positive punishment and such to. But the one thing I fear to be used by Joe Average is the Alpha roll, because it can all go so terribly wrong.
People should always have to remember that Cesar Milans timing is impeccable. And that most people do not have his timing or his read of a dog. He also work with dogs that have usually crossed the line.......That is why his methods can go wrong sometimes with people who do not understand dogs, terribly wrong.
I like Patricia McConnel, Pat Miller, Karen Pryor, Ian Dunbar and such. because there is more room for mistakes made by the average home trainer. It will just not have such great effect if you get it wrong.
I like positive reinforcement and I love how it allows the dog to develop and think for itself Ronnie

I agree totally. I do like much of what Cesar does, but I don't like his under-the-radar use of e-collars, and I don't agree with him about refraining from affection with a dog. Yes, I do think you need to give affection when the dog is calm, so I learned that from him a few years back.

I used to love the Monks of New Skete, but read they recanted a lot of what they said, especially about dominance theory.

For Poppy, the positive training works best. Rewarding good behavior and ignoring or replacing bad behavior. She does sometimes push the boundaries, but clear, firm limits are key for this girl. She is not submissive, definitely confident, and I think if I hadn't learned from the above trainers and the wonderful people here on NN, she and I would not be as close as we are now. I don't see it as a "dominance" thing as much as "I'm a teenager, I am gonna push the limits." I have a 12 year old son...I get this mindset, quite well. And I guess it could be dominance, if you think of it as a 12 yr old also trying to assert his dominance...but I just choose to think of it in less...adversarial terms. Make sense?

This post is too long, but it is raining outside, my husband is at a computer conference with my 2 oldest kids, Poppy is sacked out on the floor, and I am trying to entertain myself.