(VICT) Re: New member and I clicker
- From: "Jo Clayson" <joclayson@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <vi-clicker-trainers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 15 Apr 2007 07:39:47 -0400
What would you like to do with your dog that the dogs in schools are not
trained for?
Interesting question. I've never had a dog from a school, and though I know
a few people personally that have, I'm not really familiar with specifically
what behaviors are taught, or not taught.
Things I teach my dogs:
Tricks: shake hands, roll over, choosing the correct hand in response to a
question, speak, etc. Both my dogs and I have fun with these. Teaching a
trick is a good way for me to try out a different training method....if I
really goof up and my dog doesn't do a perfect "play dead" it's not
potentially life threatening for me or my dog. Also, if my dog has been
distracted and needs to focus back on me, tricks are often a good way to get
that focus back. Simply because they are tricks and fun, there isn't the
tension in my voice that so easily communicates to my dog, like when I might
tell her to "leave it" , "quiet" or "sit". A dog that does a few tricks can
also delight other people, and help those who are hesitant or a bit fearful
around dogs.
Search & rescue: though we are not part of a search team, I want my dogs and
I to be able to work together in this way. I live on 29 acres of land in a
rather remote area with thousands of acres of undeveloped land adjacent.
Should a guest here, or a hunter get lost, or should I be injured and folks
are looking for me, I want my dogs to be able to assist in the initial
search.
Agility - we don't compete, but do this at home for fun, physical
conditioning, and for building teamwork, self-control, and physical skills.
"go to the bathroom" - take me to a public restroom . For a dog with a keen
sense of smell, this seems to be a fairly easy task.
Find my stuff: When we are away from home I may have a duffle bag, back
pack, jacket , bucket of tools, etc that I set down. Usually I know where
they are, but sometimes I forget, or am "bleary brained" with chemical
exposure and it's handy to have my dog take me to my stuff.
Go to the car: as I don't drive, and ride with many different people, and
some of the families have more than one vehicle, I sometimes can't remember
what vehicle I'm looking for or where it is parked. Kita does fairly well
already in small parking lots. Zoomer could even find the vehicle in a very
large lot. It's also been handy for the driver a few times who forgot where
they parked!
There are probably others. Often my dogs have figured out something on
their own that is helpful to me, so I reward and encourage it.
Jo
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