13 Months: Training - Day 19

Jack at Haute Paws Grooming.

Emma had a grooming appointment first thing Friday morning, so I fed her and Jack their breakfasts in their bowls.  I placed Jack's bowl beside his crate so he'd have to almost touch it to eat his food and Emma's food just inside the crate so she'd have to put her head into it to eat her food.  This was to help her and Jack feel more comfortable with the crate itself.

Jack at first paced and wandered about the house with clear signs he wanted to eat, but the closeness of the bowl to the crate bothered him.  He just didn't want to be that close to that item in fear I would stuff him into it and shut the door.  I accepted that it would take him a moment to override that feeling and decide to eat; in a few minutes Jack went to his bowl and ate.  It was after that he wasn't as worried about the crate in the kitchen.

I, unfortunately, did have to crate him again so I could run Emma to her appointment.  He wasn't happy with this and I hoped it wouldn't put him back too far regarding approaching the crate for his mid-day meal.

Jack before grooming at Haute Paws Grooming.

Today's Lessons:

Crate

Jack is working on Level 2: Step 1 Crate.  In this step Jack is asked to enter his crate without luring him into it.  Jack is not there.  I can get him to enter without protest by leading him in with his collar, but that is not what this step asks for.  I decided to work a bit on shaping to get him to enter the crate, but he wasn't fully getting the idea and wouldn't really make an effort to go into the crate, so I went to a form of luring also.

With the shaping I got Jack to look at and touch the crate door, opening and gate with his nose, but he wouldn't put his head into the crate and would lay beside it and not get up.  I worked him four times this way, but never got to the point of his exploring the inside of the crate.  To aid in this, I started to toss treats into the crate and reward him when he turned to come back out and then let him come out of the crate.  In short order he was going into the crate, as long as a treat was tossed in.

Why did I give up on the shaping?  At once point he jumped up and ran away from the crate and sat with clear signs that the crate was causing him stress.  I stopped after getting him to come to me and do some Level 1 Behaviors (Sit and Target) near the crate, but decided I needed to turn the crate into something far more furn that it has been since we started.

To do this, I went online and found Crate Games by Susan Garrett on YouTube.  I started some of those games with him and will continue them.  I ended our luring session by placing the last of his lunch in the back of his crate and walking off.  He entered the crate to eat it, though he left his right hind foot outside of the crate, and was relaxed when he exited the crate.  I will continue this type of feeding and play with the crate to improve his outlook about it.

Observations

Jack is progressing nicely with his training.  This weekend he'll be groomed and Ronda will learn more about how to manage his coat.  Between his play with Emma and his play at Ronda's house his ears have become horribly matted, even though both Ronda and I try to brush them out daily.  We are hoping with the grooming to remove those mats and clean up his face so he doesn't have gooey tears in his eyes all the time.

I'll post his pictures of before and after his grooming - it was a huge difference and I have to thank Haute Paws Grooming for how amazing Jack looks.

Level 1

	Zen	Target	Come	Sit	Down
Step	Completed	2	2	3	2

Level 2

	Zen	Come	Sit	Down	Target
Step	1	0	0	0	0
	Focus	Lazy Leash	Go To Mat	Crate	Distance
Step	0	1	0	1	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