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| Jack showing off his Sit! |
Jack is so comfortable with the routine of Ronda bringing him here and heading out for the day he's showing no serious separation anxiety. He is still a bit worried when she leaves, but he stands tense but quiet watching her go and then turns and follows me into the house. Once he's in the house he's ready to start his day and get going on his breakfast.
Since we have such a wonderful sit developing and I want to include to other positional stances - Stand (Brace) and Down (Flat). Using the three positions allows me to quickly practice each and get Jack into the game for the day. Jack is learning Brace and Flat now - he's almost got Flat, but we are having issues on Brace and thus I will be doing some research this week to see how I can best teach that important position.
Today's Lessons:
Zen
Jack is working on Level 1: Step 3 Zen. In this step Jack is asked to wait five seconds before I click and drop the treat I am holding in my open hand right before his nose. As I build up Jack's understanding of Zen I start by offering Closed Fisted Zen and see if he remembers from the day before if he's to keep his nose away from my hand, today he didn't. I had expected this.
We started with Step 1 and built up to Step 3 over the course of several lessons. Each time we review the earlier steps Jack's understanding of Zen improves and becomes stronger. Jack will continue to work Level 1 Zen until he's got it in his sleep.
Sit
Jack is working on Level 1: Step 3 Sit Comeafters. Jack has already done the Comeafters for Steps 1 & 2. I build them into the training as we teach the concept from the start. Those Comeafters ask that I teach Jack in a different room and in a different location. Jack has been taught Sit in my living room, kitchen, office and bedroom - this covers that part of the Comeafter, but even better he's been taught in different rooms in his owners house also, thus the idea that only I ask for such a silly thing has been taken out of the overall picture for Jack. The Comeafters also ask we change directions or add or take away the leash when working. I have been doing all of that and more while working Jack on Sit as a cue.
I have changed the picture for Jack many times, but what I haven't done is some of the other positions I could be in for Jack to recognize and truly understand Sit as a cue. Jack needs to see me and Ronda on our knees, on our belly's and backs and hanging off of a bed and sitting on a counter and ... well you get the idea. Now it's time to define that Sit is the action of his putting his butt to the ground no matter my or someone else's position and no matter what direction we are facing him. This week we'll finish defining Sit and continue our progress to completing Level 1 Sit.
Down
Jack is working on Level 1: Step 2 Down. For Jack the cue is Flat and I've been teaching him that verbal cue for several days now. I have also been teaching him the hand cue, which started as a big movement and has quickly become a quick and minor movement on my part. My problem with Jack and the Down cue is he is willing to stay in a down for an indefinite period of time - thus getting him to stand or sit quickly for the next down is slow going. The number of repeats I have managed with this cue in comparison to sit is very low. I need to focus more on this behavior as a whole and find creative ways to get Jack to stand and try for the next down.
Part of it is his down in itself. He has a lovely Sphinx down when he desires to do it, but mostly he has a "I am here for the duration" down in which he throws his hips off to one side and lays in total comfort. This second down is harder to get up out of and thus spends more energy than Jack is willing to spend to chase a treat across the floor. I have tried a suggestion of luring him into a stand by placing the treat along his neck and forcing him to kick back with his back feet and stand, but he'll roll on his side and flop to his death when I try - clearly I am doing it wrong. I need to problem solve the number of repeats in order to improve the overall behavior.
Jack will continue to work on this behavior.
Field Trip
Today I took Jack with me to Hunter Vet Clinic to weigh him and Max and pick up Attitude's medication. This visit was designed as a socialization visit where he would get lots of loving and treats by all of the staff and get a chance to visit a vet office without anything bad happening to him.
Jack was curious and nervous when we entered. I had him do a sit in the front lobby and fed him treats and then took him to be weighed. Jack is not worried about the scale and stepped right on it. He weighs 59.2 pounds at this time. While I was weighing Max, Jack was held by a vet tech who loved on him and reassured him he was okay. Jack was okay with being held and did fine.
When we were done another dog came out of the exam rooms and needed the scales, so Jack, Max and I went into the exam room where Jack was warmly greeted by one of the vets and two of the vet techs gave Jack loads of treats and love.
Jack was calm and happy by the time I wrote my check for the medication. He laid down beside me and relaxed while I talked with the vet tech and paid. He was calm and happy when we left. This was a very good and positive event for Jack today.
Observations
Jack is a fairly bold boy who just needs a couple of minutes to take in his world and decide he's ready to deal with it. New sights and sounds and smells do not bother him and he's got no problem with men in hats or beards. He is good with new people and very gentle. He enjoys meeting people and I have seen him stand at my gate and wag his tail as the children stand across the street while he watches them. Jack is an amazingly calm and gentle soul that I love working with.
He is not destructive in the car when left, though he thinks he should be allowed to drive. I stopped at Costco on the way home and left him in the car. He's not ready for a Costco trip at this time. When I returned he'd wrapped his leash around the arm rest in the van and was sitting in the driver's seat. Otherwise, I had no damage to my van when I returned.
Jack is good with other dogs and animals. Ronda reported that Jack licked and loved on Raider, her grey cat who believes she's another dog, and accepted when the other cats in the house told him to back off when he poked at them in curiosity. He's met Victoria over here and after her initial "leave me alone" hunch up he's ignored her, even when she's walked right past him.
He's smart and willing to learn. Poodles, as a breed, don't finish growing their brain until they are 3 years of age, which means Jack has a lot of mental maturity to go. He's at a perfect age to pick up his basics and advanced skills. His curiosity plays well into training him. When working with Emma today he picked up the pencil I set at her feet after he saw I was rewarding her for noticing and touching it with her nose. He gladly gave me the pencil when I offered a kibble for it.
He's food motivated. He loves to eat and works hard for his kibble during the day. Some of the lessons he's not joined because in his Poodle mind he doesn't understand why he should do them. Once he does see the benefit of following my cues he's quick and fluid with them. He's a joy to train.
I look forward to training this week and seeing Jack discover that Flat pays as well as Sit and Zen.
Level 1
| Zen | Target | Come | Sit | Down | |
| Step | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
Level 2
| Zen | Come | Sit | Down | Target | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Focus | Lazy Leash | Go To Mat | Crate | Distance | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jump | Relax | Handling | Tricks | Communication | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Level 3
| Zen | Come | Sit | Down | Target | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Focus | Lazy Leash | Go To Mat | Crate | Distance | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jump | Relax | Handling | Retrieve | Communication | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Level 4
| Zen | Come | Retrieve | Target | Relax | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Focus | Lazy Leash | Go To Mat | Crate | Distance | |
| Step | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Handling | Communication | ||||
| Step | 0 | 0 |
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