[nagdu] Update, Trouble with Tugging

[Dudley Hanks]

Being "old school," I like to use positive reinforcement without food as
much as possible, and having worked a number of large GSD Guides, tugging is
something I've had to deal with a lot.

The method I use is simple:

Whenever my Guide starts to tug, I simply flick my wrist forward so that the
pressure on the harness disappears almost instantaneously.

If your Guide is tugging hard, the sudden lack of restraining pressure will
cause your Guide to momentarily lose its balance, so it will have to pause
briefly.

That's when I say, loudly and cheerfully, "Good boy!"  Or, "Good, Girl!"

This method was shown to me by Brad Hibbard back when I was learning to work
with my first Guide Dog, Bonner.  Brad is currently the director of GDB's
training program

It was a little easier to do back then, as the harnesses had some slack
built into the handle attachment where it joined to the main harness via an
"S" link, but, with practice, it is possible with the modern positive
connection harness handles.  You simply have to add a bit of a forward push
of the forearm.

If my Guide is particularly energetic, I call out "Halt!" every thirty or
forty feet and follow-up with a sit command.  Then, I simply let my Guide
sit until he or she is still.  Then I give him or her a good boy or girl, a
pat or two on the head, and ruffle the fur on his or her neck a bit.  Then I
say "forward," and we're off again.

Sometimes, it can take a while to get where you want to go using this
method, but it encourages your Guide to be calm cool and collected, and
demonstrates that tugging simply ends up taking longer.

It also turns a negative experience into some good bonding time.

The main thing to think about from a handler's point-of-view is not to let
stress creep into your voice.  

If you are calm, cool and collected, and you encourage that behaviour in
your Guide, the two of you will eventually find that perfect pace.

Good Luck,
Dudley, with Michener

On 10/11/14, Kristen via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> Hi, all--
>
> Last time I posted here, Corvette was unwilling to jump out of
> cars, becoming one with the car floor and not budging at all. I
> am delighted to say that, with the suggestions of many list
> members here (especially Raven), he is getting out of the car
> perfectly almost every time. It took lots of practice and praise
> with the clicker at different locations, but our accomplishment
> feels so rewarding. Clicker training works wonders!
>
> However, maybe someone here can think of more solutions than I to
> a smaller issue we're currently having: This mostly happens when
> he is unfamiliar with our surroundings or sees any car (it
> doesn't have to be ours) and wants to jump in. He immediately
> begins looking for our car among parked cars, even when we're
> nowhere near it. Corvette will tug forward or to either side if
> he's in a hurry, making me drop the lead and pull him back by the
> leash. I make him do puppy situps (sit, down, sit, down...) to
> refocus his attention on me. Within a few minutes, though, he
> will revert to pulling me again to bolt to wherever he wants to
> go (usually, anyplace where he knows he will get to lay down) at
> the time, often not watching out for whatever is ahead of me.
> Sometimes, I think it is just that Corvette is skiddish and
> unsure of where we are. I try using the term "easy," which he
> knows means to slow down after a few situps, then clicking and
> rewarding when he goes slower, but that is usually only a few
> minutes or so until his attention is unfocused on our current
> task again.
>
> I'm looking for a better way to set up this situation during
> obedience routines to practice. However, he is fine when we pass
> the car in our driveway, and I say "leave it." He does, and I
> reward. It's not bad at all at home because he's familiar with
> the surroundings and knows where we're going and what to expect.
>
> Any suggestions to correct this using positive reinforcement? (I
> would like to mention that he will not take a treat on the lead,
> which I am happy about after reading recent threads about food
> refusal problems. I would like to keep it this way with him.) He
> is a "soft" dog and lives for praise/love, which worked well
> after clicking to get him out of cars. I've tried a simple leash
> correction after the refocusing, but it seems not to last long.
> He does use a halti at all times.
>
> Thanks in advance for any advice!
> --
> Kristen
>
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