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First beg. OB class last night--Need some major work.

904 views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  Luvbirds 
#1 ·
First off, I will never bring the kids again. Major distraction to everybody, dogs and human. They had agility equipment there that was way too much temptation for the kids and Jordan just wanted to play with them and the dog that sat the closest to the equipment when they were playing.

The trainer went from dog to dog and asked how Jordan did on the leash and I told him he was pretty good for a beginner and the only problems we had was pulling during distractions. So, he used him for an example and I was proud he didn't pull but when the instructer put him into a sit after the walk Jordan started getting ancy and obviously fearful of the instructor. He was unsure of the instructor so he didn't follow commands and the instructor was a little concerned about this turning into fear aggression if not put in check.

I take him places often but not often enough so I'll have to pick up on that much but when I do he is typically well behaved meeting people if I tell the adults to please start petting on the chest and then they can move to the head. It is a slow progress.

I need to find a way to have strangers work with him and be able to touch him anywhere so I'm thinking the best way would be to touch/treat train him. The problem is finding different strangers to be able to do this and actually take the time this requires, not just a quick meet on the street or in the parking lot.

The other suggestions were for everybody there and if they didn't have a crate they were told to get one which I completely agree with. He says when somebody comes to the door to crate them until they are well behaved with company. This is something we've been trying different approaches to since we got him. He is territorial and barks and growls at company and we started out with treats outside the door and having company give him treats while he acts calm with them when they come in. That wasn't working because he wasn't acting calm so we changed our approach a couple weeks ago. When somebody comes to the door we have him sit and we sit tight to his body while keeping him in his sit and then let him smell, get treat and go back to a sit. Usually by then he has had a couple treats, gets to know the people aren't a threat and he'll go on his merry way. So, my question is do we crate him until we're further along in his training and he has his sit/stay or down/stay or continue with what we are doing? This is the one thing I didn't get to ask the instructor before we left.

All in all I think we'll actually make something out of this little boy. He was playful to be expected but I was proud of his behavior when he did behave. He got along well with the other dogs and respected the older dog that didn't have interest in playing. He was friendly with the owners and did wonderfully until the instructor got a hold of him.

Any suggestions?
 
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Discussion starter · #8 ·
Thanks for the great ideas. I didn't realize I may be making him uncomfortable by being too close during greets. I do believe that may be the case though. We are working on the sit/stays so I'll use that as sit/stay practice too and encourage guest to ignore him.

Jordan is 25 weeks now and I've seen a lot of improvement with just me working with him at home and around the neighborhood, parks and stores but my goal of course is CGC which is a far cry from where we are now. I would feel like it is such an accomplishment to take this little boy all the way there.

I do think with him it is a confidence issue. I think that the improvements we've made so far though are a good sign that there is only more room for improvement.
 
Discussion starter · #10 ·
Thanks. I haven't been using a leash but I think that will be my first step instead of using the crate. I'll also talk it all over with the trainer to be sure that we can be on the same page.

The OB class he instructs is geared towards meeting CGC criteria and he says that that is our goal. His profession is training dogs for households with handicap, autistic or traumatized children and breeds labs for that purpose, most he contributes, selling only very occasionally.

With the barking at the door, if he does not respond to my command to stop (I use "thank you" and if he doesn't stop right away I tell him "that's enough"), is that when I would crate him and/or if he does not maintain his sit? Will this help with his stranger anxiety as far as the people who want to touch him?

I loved the article, very well put and easily understood and definitely nothing I would have though of even though I do try hard to keep my dogs from being "rude".
 
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