[nagdu] Improving House behaviors

Danielle Antoine singingmywayin at gmail.com
Sat Aug 2 17:44:49 UTC 2014


Oh I haven't been on the list for so long. So tami you got a new pup?
What happened to Mitzi?


On 8/2/14, Tami Jarvis via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Julie,
>
> We do "swap" around here, which sounds like your "trade." I also do a
> lot of saying "yours" and "mine" as I am presenting a chew toy in place
> of my shoe, blanket, book, whatever. I've never had the dogs bring me
> other things to trade, but I might see if I can extend the method into
> something of a retrieve. Well, I guess Mitzi was heading that way, but
> then I decided to try a method using x number of repetitions and lost
> any hope of retrieval with her. She still plays some of the fun games
> she invented trying to figure out what I wanted, so it wasn't a total
> loss. /lol/
>
> This is the first time I've done a specific go to place, though I guess
> with Mitzi she had a place that she went to. I just didn't think of it
> the same or try to train it. /lol/ I'm doing it on purpose with the new
> pup, so it feels like training this time.
>
> Tami
>
> On 08/02/2014 05:55 AM, Julie J via nagdu wrote:
>>   This is going to sound a bit crazy and maybe it doesn't work on all
>> dogs, but for Monty it worked like magic.  When he was younger he loved
>> soft fluffy things, well he still does, but at least he's over the
>> destroying them phase.  He would also steal food.  So I used the trade
>> method.  He'd grab something that wasn't his, I'd call him to me or got to
>> him, tell him to give, take the object and then trade him for something
>> appropriate.  It might be one of his toys or a piece of his kibble.  In
>> the beginning I would trade for fairly high reward stuff.  Then later I
>> toned it back to just his regular kibble.  One day he brought me a slice
>> of pizza and dropped it on my foot so he could get a piece of kibble.   He
>> didn't take a single bite out of the pizza.  I was amazed.
>>
>> Eventually he stopped picking up things alltogether.  I did worry that
>> this method would teach him to bring me all manner of random things, but
>> that phase only lasted for a short time.  I really have no scientific
>> explaination of how this method works, but Monty is super good around
>> food, shoes, and whatever else is laying around.  when I broke my foot I
>> tried to teach him to retrieve my shoes and other items.  He was extremely
>> reluctant to pick up anything that wasn't his.  I stopped trying to teach
>> him a formal named retrieve.
>>
>> go to your place, like Nicole suggested also works.  I also would call
>> Monty to me when I suspected he was about to get himself into trouble.  I
>> could then offer praise, pets and a toss of a toy to reward him ffor
>> coming, instead of correcting the bad behavior.  Eventually he stopped
>> trying to get into things and spends a lot of time beside me.
>>
>> HTH
>> Julie
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>>> >On Aug 2, 2014, at 12:36 AM, Nicole Torcolini via
>>> > nagdu<nagdu at nfbnet.org>  wrote:
>>> >
>>> >Okay... I am sure that others will have more to say, but here goes.
>>> >    As various people have said on the list, you need to be proactive
>>> >instead of retroactive. First, if you do not have a way of showing him
>>> > where
>>> >he should be, I would recommend getting a towel/blanket or a dog bed.
>>> > Train
>>> >him to go to that area on command (e.g., call it blanket). Reward him
>>> > for
>>> >going there and staying there. Give him lots of rewards and praise for
>>> > going
>>> >to his blanket. Whenever he gets up off of it without permission, send
>>> > him
>>> >back to it and reward. Okay, now you have somewhere to put and send him,
>>> > so
>>> >onto the next step. Tell him to go to his blanket and stay. Phrase and
>>> >treat. Get some human food and walk slowly toward the couch, telling him
>>> > to
>>> >stay the whole time. If you hear him get up, put the food back and send
>>> > him
>>> >back to his blanket. Eventually, he will learn that being on his blanket
>>> > is
>>> >more rewarding than trying to eat your food.
>>> >
>>> >As for taking things, I would recommend not using the word no. No does
>>> > not
>>> >have any meaning to a dog. No. No what? As much as possible, try to
>>> > keep
>>> >things out of his reach. Does he know drop it or leave it? When he picks
>>> > up
>>> >something that is not his, tell him to drop it, and then tell him to go
>>> > back
>>> >to his blanket, rewarding him for doing it and possibly giving him one
>>> > of
>>> >his toys. You could also try just outright distracting him with one of
>>> > his
>>> >toys without even telling him to drop the object that he stole. Also,
>>> > make
>>> >sure that his dog toys are not stuffed animals or fabric like. Will he
>>> > pick
>>> >up stuffed animals and clothes if you are monitoring him? If so, you
>>> > could
>>> >do a training session. Does he chew on the items that he takes? Does he
>>> > have
>>> >plenty of toys of his own? Do you think that there is a reason that he
>>> > finds
>>> >your things enticing?
>>> >
>>> >I know that others will have more ideas, but these are my thoughts for
>>> > now.
>>> >
>>> >Nicole and Lexia who does not kidnap stuffed animals
>>> >
>>> >-----Original Message-----
>>> >From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Julie
>>> > McGinnity
>>> >via nagdu
>>> >Sent: Friday, August 01, 2014 10:07 PM
>>> >To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
>>> >Subject: [nagdu] Improving House behaviors
>>> >
>>> >Hi friends,
>>> >
>>> >I feel a little ridiculous even asking some of these questions, but my
>>> > dog's
>>> >house manners are not acceptable to me.  I've only had him for too
>>> > months,
>>> >so maybe I'm expecting too much out of him, but I hope not.
>>> >
>>> >First of all, if I eat a snack or a meal while sitting on the couch, he
>>> > is
>>> >all over me.  I tell him to sit, and nothing happens.  At that point, I
>>> > want
>>> >to put him on tie down, but I also don't want tie down to be a
>>> > punishment.
>>> >I do not currently have a crate and honestly don't have the funds to buy
>>> > him
>>> >one right now.  The other thing is that I want to deal with the problem;
>>> > I
>>> >want him to be able to lay down by me while I eat a meal or a snack.
>>> >
>>> >The other problem is that he picks up stuff-clothes, stuffed animals,
>>> > stuff
>>> >like that.  He does it sneakily, but even when I've found him taking
>>> > things,
>>> >he has not learned.  I tell him know and put the thing away, but he is
>>> > not
>>> >learning that this is not ok.
>>> >
>>> >Any suggestions?  Sometimes I feel like when I take something away from
>>> > him
>>> >or give him a command, it doesn't even register in his head that I'm
>>> > telling
>>> >him to do something or telling him he can't have something.  BTW, he
>>> > listens
>>> >well when we do obedience, and his guide work is great.  But I have
>>> > high
>>> >expectations when it comes to house manners, and I want productive ways
>>> > to
>>> >work on them.
>>> >
>>> >Thanks guys!
>>> >
>>> >--
>>> >Julie McG
>>> >National Association of Guide dog Users board member,  National
>>> > Federation
>>> >of the Blind performing arts division secretary, Missouri Association
>>> > of
>>> >Guide dog Users President, and Guiding Eyes for the Blind graduate 2008
>>> > "For
>>> >God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who
>>> >believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life."
>>> >John 3:16
>>> >
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>>> >m
>>> >
>>> >
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