Jan 2 first day of 2nd phase of FF (ear pinch), Daisy was shown and eagerly held the wooden dowel,
with a wide nylon collar in three fingers and the thumb/index finger pinch she wanted no part of
the "game" of hold, applying what appeared to be just the right amount of pinch she sat for about
20 seconds before grudgingly deciding to open her mouth, pressure off and repeated about six
times with her still resisting for a short period, however, when the buck was taken and pressure
off she seemed to make a connection, no negative effects afterwards (happy and bouncy)
note: The pinch was hard enough to get a slight whimper the first time. She did not on the
rest. She did not try to throw herself, pivot her head or spin, I had debated about when
to start FF because Daisy has shown some signs of submissive peeing. Also, she has
started to lay down occasionally when asking her to sit while putting meds on the eye
problem. Her attitude was basically 1) That hurts. 2) I don't like it. 3) When are you
going to stop. 4) OK, I'll open my mouth and take that ^&^$% "thing". 5) So, I guess that
was the right thing to do. 5) I get it, but I still don't like it. 6) So you're telling me that
was good. Huh?
note: twice a day sessions will not be a problem with her, she is not a worrier and handles
pressure similar to the manner in which Taffey did (although Taffey tried to bite me
early on), Daisy deals with new things very well.
note: excellent start and the right read (she is ready for the second phase) less that 3 minutes
(evening session): Daisy has some "grit", She grudgingly did the "light switch on and off" routine,
but does not like to yield readily. More pressure on the pinch was needed tonight. She got a little
"glassy eyed" on a couple of pinches, then on a couple of more she looked right at me as if to say
she was "not happy" about any of this (more like a glare). However, when finished she was fine
and upbeat. She is much more resistant than Taffey was in terms of sitting there and taking it, and
that could be because Daisy has kind of a spoiled streak to her. Taffey wants to please all the time
while Daisy "wants to only when she wants to".
She's a bit more independent when there are choices. FF will take care of that attitude. She's been tougher than either Taffey or Kooly were on
day one. Very little if any hints of avoidance other than wheeling off the sit position a couple of
times and so far fairly easy to keep a steady grip on the collar and ear. Tomorrow that may change
(don't be caught off guard). less than 5 minutes
note: Trying to make sure and use minimum pressure to get the correct response resulted in
some adjustments from the morning to the evening session. In the evening, she gave me
the "Is that all you got...look?"....but at the same time seemed a bit confused. It was
necessary to let her know there could be more pressure. As the light slowly went on, I
was able to back off slightly. Once it is clearer, I think for her it will take less pressure in
a few more days. (We'll see.)
note: Before the sessions started, she would eagerly take the buck in her mouth with no
command and without hesitation...it was fun. However, if I pinch her ear she will take it
only grudgingly. She is not taking the easy way out. The first step "Open your mouth
when the pinch is applied and the pressure will stop" has been introduced. The first day
read seems to be indicate she is in the initial stages of learning to turn off the pressure by
making the correct response, but it is far from a clear concept yet. There is much more
mental impedance to overcome.
analysis of first day - excellent start with a mentally tough little girl (that is ready for the process)
Jan 3 (morning session) - nothing unexpected, ear pinch duration was less and some lunging forward
with restraint noticed less than 5 minutes
note: she is turning off pressure, but "fetch" is clearly not an established command
note (in retrospect): because she is smart, it is clear now after 2 days that she was taking
the easy route which in her mind was not a forced effort
Jan 4 did a (midnight session) of FF, everything went fine and she fetched off the floor - this is too easy
(morning session) (10:00 am) again too easy and agreeable, so I switched objects - aluminum can
flat out refusal unless more pressure was applied, even then she was not buying it and gritting
her teeth (the read was she was doing it earlier because she wanted to and the pressure was
more of a non-related nuisance in her mind), the aluminum can was a negative object to her and
the pressure became more than just nuisance - now getting refusals even though she knows what
she is supposed to do as demonstrated by finally reaching with an open mouth for the object
note: she was angry, sullen, tried to wrestle and turned her head in avoidance
(less than ten minutes)
note: she has no trouble holding and retrieving as we spent almost four weeks working on
this, she will learn how to turn off pressure, but it must be perceived pressure, today
was the first time she became aware of heavy pressure (with no out.....except the
proper response) - she did not like it
note: Daisy is very smart, but if she were human, Daisy would be a severe manipulator as
indicated by her constant need for attention. She still thinks the world revolves
US and it is 40/60 with her holding the strings
I
once heard an excellent trainer say this about his precocious young pup (when training officially
started)........."The honeymoon is over!"
(evening session) switched back to wooden dowel less than five minutes
note: upbeat, less pressure (ear tender?), got quick light switch routine all the way to the
floor, was almost too perfect, so stuck an aluminum can in the mix, more hesitance,
but she took it, upbeat afterwards, excellent progress (not false),
note: Each session begins with better results than the previous. This seems to correlate
well with the confine/train/confine approach. The theory behind this dog training
concept is well rooted in classroom teaching.....the first few minutes of a new
"thing" (after some rest) is the most effective time for learning to occur. Efficiency
drops off quickly thereafter, also, the idea of confining afterwards tends to avoid
diluting the lesson of the session. This is a powerful tool to use in dog training.
One significant theory about memory is that events that occur when high levels
of adrenalin are in the system are more ingrained (last longer). So the question
begs, when is a dog most excited? The answers are when he first interacts with
you, when something excites him (live birds for example) or when something
perceived as traumatic occurs. The last of these needs to be avoided if at all
possible and diluted immediately if it does, but then again not always. FF?
This suggests fun bumpers first will cut into the urgency of using the critical early
minutes for something more important. However, it might be a way to stimulate
a flow of adrenalin. Do fun bumpers at the end enhance what was just completed
or dilute the lesson? If the lesson ends poorly the use of fun bumpers is a standard
method of ending those kinds of sessions. This suggests they tend to dilute the poor
either by diluting or causing the adrenalin/memory of fun bumpers to over-ride the
"bad" event. This then suggests that fun bumpers at the end of a really great
learning session might be the wrong thing to do. Just ideas to consider.
By making each training session an efficient, effective interval and reducing the
impacts of lesser "events", this approach can have a dramatic impact on the overall
progress and attitude of the dog. The two things to capitalize on are the fresh,
uncluttered mind at the beginning of a training session and excitement to deepen
the memory. The results will be maximized learning with depth to the memory.
The key is to "see and feel" what is happening to the dog from his perspective. Is
his mind fresh? Is he excited? Is his attitude positive? Is he physically up to the
lesson? Are the necessary skills in place to perform? If the answer to all of these
is yes, effective training will take place.
Remember to assess readiness. Know when to stop. Decide on the proper finish.
Be concise with the pre-planned lesson and flexible once underway. Praise will
induce excitement, but can't be continuous and many times is unnecessary.
Use the "bullet" wisely.
Jan 5 (morning session) wooden dowel - much more resistance today, less pinch, and she decided to
become very vocal today (nice to be inside with no one else in the house), no attempts to deal
with her choice to vocalize because 1) she has a tendency to be naturally "yappy" and 2) it was
her way of pleading her case, it really wasn't a severe pinch that was causing it, the dowel at
distance in front of her is good, lowering it near the floor is going to take time as she really
refuses to look down to locate it (kind of like, if I can't see it, than I don't have to fetch it), she
has, also, developed an aggravating technique of suddenly diving on the dowel and then letting
go of it just as quickly, met that at the pass with a slower release of pressure making sure she
had it first
note: today's lesson was not an easy go and she is not a happy camper & in a fighting
mood, however, afterwards she was cheerful and upbeat (about five minutes), the
evening session should prove interesting
note: the carpeted "game room" is in the process of being changed to vinyl flooring,
the temporary lack of carpet has helped tremendously as Daisy is having a very
difficult time getting traction to spin and fight which she was attempting today,
unplanned stroke of genius
after school Noah threw Daisy four 75 yard marks at the ball diamond - Wow is she on fire! Kind
of reminds me of Taffey more and more (no retrieving issues, but very much manic)
puppy read: the red flag is up - wait for her mind to sort things out - her line manners will be the
indicator (right now she is totally too excited) Taffey as a pup was telling me this but I didn't
see it or address it (In the long run "it" will catch up to me again if I don't listen this time around.)
note: continue OB lessons every day, with longer sits, quiet voice commands and
a go slow focus (remember - train a fast dog slowly)
(evening session) backed up a bit and kept it simple & short (less than five minutes)
note: excellent session, body language when entering the FF area showed zero
apprehension, only a couple of mild vocalizations, understood the switch on
and off with less pressure. still lunging from the sit position for the dowel, some
nervous mouthing at first which disappeared with a slower pace and quiet hold
reminders, she tried a couple of times to just go get the dowel before a pinch,
but that didn't work so she gave up on that idea, dropped dowel down in height
a bit and she was looking for it instead of pretending she had no idea where it
went, now understands fetch with resistance, happy with tail wagging
afterwards, Daisy is a very confident and resilient pup
Over view: Daisy has now had four full days of the pinch phase (hold started November 15th and
was phased in very slowly as just a small part of her OB lessons) tomorrow the wood
dowel will be phased out and a 2" bumper takes its place (any negative ideas about
the initial FF lessons will be left with the wood dowel), when we go to the floor in a
couple of days the "Kwick Bumper" will be phased in. She has used the KB a lot & it
makes the "floor/no hand" step much more fair (only one target & a better hold)
Jan 6 (morning session) - switched to the 2" bumper, slowed everything way down to a crawl. Daisy
wanted the bumper immediately, so by taking a few seconds between presenting the bumper
and pinch we sorted that problem out, she is lunging for the bumper on a mild pinch and with
restraint she still "jumps" the bumper, toward the end of the lesson she was waiting for this
as I varied the cadence, we did five on the ground, the first two she dropped or spit out right
after grabbing them, but she was immediately pinched to those and commanded to hold, the last
three were solid, charge on pinch with heavy restraint, dove on bumper and came up with a
good, solid hold each time, still a bit "whinny" at times, but not nearly as bad as that one day,
the pinch pressure does not have to be "convincing" today only "existing". What that means is
she can differentiate "no pressure vs. some pressure" without having to use heavier pressure.
note: excellent session, the rules and routine seem to have been well clarified
note: not sure of how to deal with the lunging on restraint for the bumper, it is a
violation of the sit command, decided it was not an issue at this time (a "pick
your battles" choice), then again "fetch" is a release command
(about five minutes)
(evening session) - reviewed the transition to the ground using a "Kwick Bumper", went
well, maintained slow, steady pace and threw in a couple of "freebies", still trying to
anticipate, but less of that and she is fetching off the ground without any problem when
the bumper is a yard away (actually diving on it), great attitude during and afterwards
(less than five minutes) five full days of phase 2 (ear pinch) with a total of 11 short sessions
Interceptor
