# Sticky  Puppy Journals/Blogs



## GatorDog

Borrowed the idea from another thread. I thought this would be a cool place for those raising puppies to post what they might be working on and some picture & video updates as they grow!

I can start with Carma. She's now 11 weeks and her most current weight at the vet (on Monday) was 14.2 pounds. I'm not concerned about her growth or anything, but I am so curious to know how big she'll get. I'd love her to stay as small as her dam (55lbs or so). Her sire is a smaller male as well, so I'm assuming the chances are higher because of that. I don't have any idea is 14lbs is small for an 11 week old puppy or not anyways..

As far as obedience goes, we're working on puppy heeling, focus, rear end awareness, recall, spinning, sit & platz and a few other random fun things. She recently made me bleed for the first time when working for dinner..Little shark. I'm hoping to start tracking in the next week or two once it really warms up with the sun and we get some grass back. With the food drive she has, I don't foresee it being any problem. 

House & crate training are coming along nicely, and now I just need to find a good balance to controlling her water intake without her acting like she's dying of dehydration. She's still picky about her kibble, but loves pumpkin so that helps entice her and helps her poop too. She chews through toys/treats like a little monster. Loves the antler I got recently, so I'm hoping it'll last a little longer than the rest.

A few videos, from most recent to a few weeks ago.




















And a couple photos

Training 3/10/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


Training 3/10/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3/12/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

Here's the link to our blog - Sharp Shepherd | Life with my dogs & a training blog

Please post with your pups! Tell us what you're working on & update us as they learn and grow!


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## MilesNY

I hope more people post here! I would like to hear more people's training updates. My little girl comes home in two weeks and I can't wait to get started with her.


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## GatorDog

MilesNY said:


> I hope more people post here! I would like to hear more people's training updates. My little girl comes home in two weeks and I can't wait to get started with her.


I thought it would be a good idea! Sharing with each other could give us new ideas to work on with our own pups.


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## mego

Lara: 13 weeks / 28.2 lbs last vet check - healthy, ear infections gone.

For the past several weeks Lara's been working on sit, down, get up, paw, crawl, wait, her name, targeting, and manners. Completely housebroken, even in other peoples houses. Tested this by showing her the backdoor while at a friends, she had to pee so went to the door about an hour later and scratched and whined until I let her out. No accidents in 2 weeks, minimal ones the week prior, my fault.

Seeing a lot of solid understanding on the wait concept. I set her food bowl down, put her in a sit, and make her wait until the release command "okay". Same for doors, crossing streets. We also practiced this while approaching one of her dog friends today for self control as well as people she likes.

Today we worked on introducing placing her paws on an object and remaining there in preparation for heel rear movement and we worked on sitting when I stop while walking on a short leash.
Tomorrow morning we are going to the Schutzhund club nearby for an evaluation and more socialization. Wish us luck!


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## Carriesue

Ollie(long coat) - 6 1/2 months old, somewhere between 50-55lbs and adult coat sloooowly coming in.

Ollie's training is coming along nicely, we are attending two different classes a week now both held outdoors so GREAT for distraction training. We're still having some focus issues because he's not super food or toy motivated so I'm always on the search for new and exciting training treats.

So far he knows sit, down, shake with both paws, touch, down/stay, sit/stay, look, find it, go get it, leave it and wait/stay. I practice NILIF with him, we also practice sitting and staying when I open a door, before he's allowed into the car, etc. He's very smart and pics up on things quickly, he learned the concept of down/stay in about 5 minutes... I don't know why but he really loves working on stays! His recall is becoming better and better, before and after his training classes I'll take him out in the field and work on recalls and stays. His biggest issue right now is excited barking at other dogs while on lead.

I'm looking into various sports right now, he had his herding instinct test done which he passed and he really, really loved it! We're going to get an IPO evaluation done soon but I'm also going to look into agility too... I can only do one sport so just dipping our toes in, seeing what he enjoys the most. If I had my way it'd probably be herding but it is very expensive so I'm not sure how its going to work out yet.

Are we allowed to keep posting here? I'm sure I'll have more on training especially after I get my new camera? 

Video of him growing and some from his herding test as well





IMG_0331 by Carriesue82, on Flickr

Untitled (2013-02-25 02:48:51) by Carriesue82, on Flickr

Untitled (2013-03-05 15:17:02) by Carriesue82, on Flickr


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## GatorDog

Carriesue said:


> Ollie(long coat) - 6 1/2 months old, somewhere between 50-55lbs and adult coat sloooowly coming in.
> 
> Ollie's training is coming along nicely, we are attending two different classes a week now both held outdoors so GREAT for distraction training. We're still having some focus issues because he's not super food or toy motivated so I'm always on the search for new and exciting training treats.
> 
> So far he knows sit, down, shake with both paws, touch, down/stay, sit/stay, look, find it, go get it, leave it and wait/stay. I practice NILIF with him, we also practice sitting and staying when I open a door, before he's allowed into the car, etc. He's very smart and pics up on things quickly, he learned the concept of down/stay in about 5 minutes... I don't know why but he really loves working on stays! His recall is becoming better and better, before and after his training classes I'll take him out in the field and work on recalls and stays. His biggest issue right now is excited barking at other dogs while on lead.
> 
> I'm looking into various sports right now, he had his herding instinct test done which he passed and he really, really loved it! We're going to get an IPO evaluation done soon but I'm also going to look into agility too... I can only do one sport so just dipping our toes in, seeing what he enjoys the most. If I had my way it'd probably be herding but it is very expensive so I'm not sure how its going to work out yet.
> 
> Are we allowed to keep posting here? I'm sure I'll have more on training especially after I get my new camera?
> 
> Video of him growing and some from his herding test as well
> Ollie 6 days to 6 months old - YouTube
> 
> IMG_0331 by Carriesue82, on Flickr
> 
> Untitled (2013-02-25 02:48:51) by Carriesue82, on Flickr
> 
> Untitled (2013-03-05 15:17:02) by Carriesue82, on Flickr


:wub::thumbup: Looking good!!


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## GatorDog

mego said:


> Lara: 13 weeks / 28.2 lbs last vet check - healthy, ear infections gone.
> 
> For the past several weeks Lara's been working on sit, down, get up, paw, crawl, wait, her name, targeting, and manners. Completely housebroken, even in other peoples houses. Tested this by showing her the backdoor while at a friends, she had to pee so went to the door about an hour later and scratched and whined until I let her out. No accidents in 2 weeks, minimal ones the week prior, my fault.
> 
> Seeing a lot of solid understanding on the wait concept. I set her food bowl down, put her in a sit, and make her wait until the release command "okay". Same for doors, crossing streets. We also practiced this while approaching one of her dog friends today for self control as well as people she likes.
> 
> Today we worked on introducing placing her paws on an object and remaining there in preparation for heel rear movement and we worked on sitting when I stop while walking on a short leash.
> Tomorrow morning we are going to the Schutzhund club nearby for an evaluation and more socialization. Wish us luck!


She is too stinkin cute! Keep us posted with your schutzhund eval.


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## mycobraracr

Recon- 18lbs @ 8 weeks. 

Right now we are working on imprinting, sit, down, focus, heel, and come. He is learning his name. Potty training is going well. He already loves his crate so thats good. I also introduced him to a leash but he just drags it around for the most part. I have been hand feeding the begining of every meal and making him work for it. Also lots of rag and ball play. Also working on climatizing. He is not used to the heat here. Most importantly we have been working on socialization and our bond. So far he has been to parks(kids play ground equipment), two different training fields, multiple houses, agility equipment hights, grates, lots of different noises, gun shots and..... So far so good. This guy is awesome!


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> Recon- 18lbs @ 8 weeks.
> 
> Right now we are working on imprinting, sit, down, focus, heel, and come. He is learning his name. Potty training is going well. He already loves his crate so thats good. I also introduced him to a leash but he just drags it around for the most part. I have been hand feeding the begining of every meal and making him work for it. Also lots of rag and ball play. Also working on climatizing. He is not used to the heat here. Most importantly we have been working on socialization and our bond. So far he has been to parks(kids play ground equipment), two different training fields, multiple houses, agility equipment hights, grates, lots of different noises, gun shots and..... So far so good. This guy is awesome!


Sounds like a big guy. Pictures next time!!






Carma's doing well. If anybody has suggestions for nice gloves to use when working with food, let me know. I need something that I can use and still grasp the pieces of food with and move my fingers in. She bites the **** out of my hands, so I borrowed a friend's batting gloves for yesterday. 


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

Legs!!

3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

I can not stack her. She really doesn't like being held still...She needs lessons from Aiden. I can not believe how much taller she is!!

3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3.17.13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


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## mycobraracr

Recon turned 9 weeks today. So far working on same things. Focus and body position are really clicking. I can't even walk around the house without him in a decent heel position looking right at me. It has to be gentetic because I'm not that good. He seems to be getting used to my routine. His energy level is sky rocketing. That's making training really nice. Today I took him into a trampoline and some other things and he did great. He is progressing nicely. I can play with the clatter stick while he chases a rag around and he doesn't care about it at all. I even touched him with it and he didn't change his grip. Still was just tugging away. He's doing so well that it makes it hard not to rush things. Tonight I'm going to introduce a "place board" so I can start some rear end awareness. 

Gatordog, Carma is coming along very nice! Looks like every video she is 10 times better than the last. Great job! At this rate you will have her ready for her 1 by 6 months of age and have to wait around forever until she's old enough

I don't have pictures or video of our training sessions. They are short and sweet and usually by myself so... I don't want any awkward pictures of me in my underwear working my puppy at 2am hahaha. Here is a picture I took today while we did some exploring. It's my favorite picture of him yet.


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## Cheyanna

Fiona is 10 months this weekend. Watching you guys with your babies makes me wish I could do it all over again. And get it right. The trainer said there is two problems with Fiona #1 me and #2 me. Apparently spoiling them is bad. Can't let them get away with stuff just because she is cute. A word to the wise.


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## mycobraracr

Cheyanna said:


> Fiona is 10 months this weekend. Watching you guys with your babies makes me wish I could do it all over again. And get it right. The trainer said there is two problems with Fiona #1 me and #2 me. Apparently spoiling them is bad. Can't let them get away with stuff just because she is cute. A word to the wise.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Don't feel bad. We all screw them up. The good thing is we can usually fix them with the right trainer


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## Bequavious

MilesNY said:


> I hope more people post here! I would like to hear more people's training updates. My little girl comes home in two weeks and I can't wait to get started with her.


My girl is coming home in two weeks too! I'm super excited, but kind of worried that I'll screw it up. This will be the first dog that is _mine_, so I really want to do everything perfectly lol.


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## mycobraracr

Bequavious said:


> My girl is coming home in two weeks too! I'm super excited, but kind of worried that I'll screw it up. This will be the first dog that is _mine_, so I really want to do everything perfectly lol.


Start watching training videos now. Get an idea of how you want to do things before you have the puppy. Remeber to take it slow. Rushing will always screw it up


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## Tulip

I have a 9 month old (got him at 8 weeks) AKC WL GSD. His mother was a granddaughter of a dog imported from Czechoslovakia and his father was imported from Germany. Mother was a black sable OFA Excellent and had (don't exactly remember what the title was called so I'm googling it and I think this was the one- it was something like the czech equivalent of shutz? Harder to get level 1 title there though) SVV1. She was 65 pounds. Father solid black and either 75 or 80 pounds (don't remember exactly) and had ScHH2 trial or show (don't remember) rated V or VA (forgot so much haha, I should email the breeder soon). OFA either excellent or good.

My baby was 14 pounds when we picked him up, and is now (approx.) 55 pounds! He's grown into a big boy! (compared to our Yorkie and Chihuahua!) We are planning on getting him involved in Schutzhund ASAP; probably going to visit a couple clubs next week. So far, he knows sitz (sit), platz (down), bleiben (stay), fuss (heel), hier (formal come), achtung (watch me), aus (out; drop it), off, wait, and leave it.

Here's a picture of my baby at 6.5 months old .


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## GatorDog

Love seeing all the updates!!!

Here's another Carma video. She's doing great! 12 weeks now. Can't believe how time is flying.


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## mycobraracr

We are still working on the same things. It's going really well. I have to keep telling myself not to rush things. I did with Mina and had to fix some things as she got older. I don't want to make those same mistakes. He's my first male dog and I definately see some differences at this age. All in all, he is doing great! I'm very pleased with the progress being made. Sorry still no videos or pictures. I really need to work on that. Oh! My big win for me was getting him to bark for his rag yesterday morning. I didn't think it would be difficult but I'm still happy about it.


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> We are still working on the same things. It's going really well. I have to keep telling myself not to rush things. I did with Mina and had to fix some things as she got older. I don't want to make those same mistakes. He's my first male dog and I definately see some differences at this age. All in all, he is doing great! I'm very pleased with the progress being made. Sorry still no videos or pictures. I really need to work on that. Oh! My big win for me was getting him to bark for his rag yesterday morning. I didn't think it would be difficult but I'm still happy about it.


BOO to no pictures! We sound like we are on the same schedule with the pups. I keep forcing myself not to keep asking more of her. It's so tempting though when they pick things up so quickly! I have a rag but have mostly just done some chasing on the ground. I'm so nervous about jumping into "protection work" too soon. 

Carma got a new fleece tug leash from Danielle (Fraggle Rock Collars). It's awesome and fun!

Fleece tug leash by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


Fleece tug leash by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

I am also thrilled to report that she is finally eating kibble willingly without being a pickly little biotch! I think she just hated the old food (NutriSource Grain free chicken). I bought a bag of Fromm Whitefish and Sweet Potato and she inhaled it! Hoping for no diarrhea now.


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## mycobraracr

GatorDog said:


> BOO to no pictures! We sound like we are on the same schedule with the pups. I keep forcing myself not to keep asking more of her. It's so tempting though when they pick things up so quickly! I have a rag but have mostly just done some chasing on the ground. I'm so nervous about jumping into "protection work" too soon.
> 
> Carma got a new fleece tug leash from Danielle (Fraggle Rock Collars). It's awesome and fun!
> 
> Fleece tug leash by Gator_Dog, on Flickr
> 
> 
> Fleece tug leash by Gator_Dog, on Flickr
> 
> I am also thrilled to report that she is finally eating kibble willingly without being a pickly little biotch! I think she just hated the old food (NutriSource Grain free chicken). I bought a bag of Fromm Whitefish and Sweet Potato and she inhaled it! Hoping for no diarrhea now.


Taking it slow is sooo hard haha. Yesterday I took Recon to the drag races. He did great! Lots of people of many different ethnicities and races pet him. The noises didn't phase him a bit and we even snuck in a quick obedience session in all the chaos. He did so well. His focus is intense! I swear he's looking into my soul not my eyes. I have found cheese to be his go to treat for now. He doesn't seem to care about anything else other than his kibble I guess. He will work for that too. 

We aren't really "jumping" into protection. I have just been doing a lot of rag work with him on my own. Not back tied or anything just all free play. Working on his targeting and grips. Not that I need to. This little guys is good already! I'm very impressed with him. For the most part I'm just trying to let him grow up. I can't wait until he's older so the fun can start


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> Taking it slow is sooo hard haha. Yesterday I took Recon to the drag races. He did great! Lots of people of many different ethnicities and races pet him. The noises didn't phase him a bit and we even snuck in a quick obedience session in all the chaos. He did so well. His focus is intense! I swear he's looking into my soul not my eyes. I have found cheese to be his go to treat for now. He doesn't seem to care about anything else other than his kibble I guess. He will work for that too.
> 
> We aren't really "jumping" into protection. I have just been doing a lot of rag work with him on my own. Not back tied or anything just all free play. Working on his targeting and grips. Not that I need to. This little guys is good already! I'm very impressed with him. For the most part I'm just trying to let him grow up. I can't wait until he's older so the fun can start


It's funny how excited I was to get the puppy and now that I have her, I'm so excited to keep moving forward and watch her grow up! 

I'm definitely blowing this thread up with my posts, but oh well.  Yet another update for today. 

She's doing awesome. And even though I've only had her for three weeks, I can't believe how much she's grown and learned in such a short amount of time. 

Video from today





12.5 week stack

Carma 3/24/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

And shots from throughout the last week or two.

3/23/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

So bold

3/23/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr

"Share please?"

3/23/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


3/23/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


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## CurvyOne

Gatordog, your pup is freaking adorable!!!

Huter is 19 weeks old. He's an awesome dog as long as I keep him mentally and physically challenged. 

What he's excelling at:
Recall: 
When out on hikes or out in public. Absolutely amazing with this. He can be mid chase after a dog or leaf or whatever has caught his fancy and when I call him, he immediately turns around and comes back. He of course gets TONS of praise for this. 

Impulse Control:
I have been consistent since day one with sitting before entering the house, sitting for food and waiting for release and doing impulse games with treats. I can lay multiple pieces of dried liver in front of him and he waits till I give the command "take it." Then he takes ONE piece, leaves the rest and looks at me for more instruction. Cannot be more proud of this. He impresses everyone. 

"leave it"
This comes in handy as we hike off leash. He'll get too close to an edge, too close to poison oak, too close to a herd of cows etc... I say "leave it" and he walks away 

Potty Training:
Totally good with this  In our house, in stores, in other people homes, he's potty trained. I show him a "potty spot" once, and he remembers always. 


He does good at these, but still working at it:

"Aus" and "fass"
With his tug and flirt pole he does great with these commands. I say "aus" and he immediately lets go and stares at it until either I give the command "fass" or I move.... lol. I'd like him to remain holding until the command but we're working on it . 

"watch me"
He does excellent with this 90% of the time. But if he's insecure about something or overly excited, it takes a bit more effort to get him to focus on me. 

Water:
When I got him, he was TERRIFIED of water. He still doesnt like the bathtub, but if we go to a pet store for grooming, watching the other dogs get bathed actually calms him down a bit. He used to have NOTHING to do with bodies of water and would stay clear, but now he'll splash around in ponds or shallow lakes as long as he can touch the floor. He wont swim. He's doing better with running water such as fountains and hoses. 


Marking;
He is a bit territorial.... I can keep the marking under control as long as he is introduced to EVERY new environment and new object in the house on leash. He is leashed for a while and given very clear boundaries. His freedom is closely managed right now or he will start claiming items/areas as his and mark. This is especially true with men and me. He does NOT like other men to be to involved in my space. This is not a huge problem, as he does respond to my boundaries....but I have to stay on top of it. 



Here is what he's really struggling with:

Bed Time: 

He has hit a serious stubborn streak at home. He is a typical child at bed time and does NOT want to go to bed. He wants to stay up and play. So he will flop on his back and go limp and refuse to come upstairs. this is HIGHLY irritating as he is 57lbs so its not like I can pick him up. Sometimes he can be lured with a treat. But sometimes is takes a lot of effort to get him upstairs. Once he's in the bedroom, he realizes that he is tired and he plays quietly with toys till he falls asleep. 


He herds me:
Okay so I wouldnt consider this a SERIOUS struggle, but definitely something that we're working on. When out on hikes, if there is anything he considers a possible threat he will nip at my heels/shoes to get me to stop and wait. Large groups of cows that are moving from one pasture to another is a big one. Or if there are strange dogs nearby that are playing really rough or even getting into a fight, he does the same thing. Also if we are out with other people, he is not okay with the group getting to spread out. He will herd us all together. He doesnt nip anyone else, but if I get to far ahead or behind he will nip me. The only thing that stops this is slapping the leash on him and giving corrections when he nips. Usually takes about 5 minutes and he concedes. I can then take him off leash again and he doesnt do it the rest of the hike. I've started going on hike ON LEASH first for awhile and not taking him off right away just so we get started on the right track


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## mycobraracr

GatorDog- Carma is looking great! Really nice work. My GF is no longer aloud to watch your videos as she said I need to step up my game haha. She did say she would start recording some of my sessions and take pics so I can contribute a little more. Keep posting all you want. It's motivating. 


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## KayForbes

GatorDog said:


> It's funny how excited I was to get the puppy and now that I have her, I'm so excited to keep moving forward and watch her grow up!
> 
> I'm definitely blowing this thread up with my posts, but oh well.  Yet another update for today.
> 
> She's doing awesome. And even though I've only had her for three weeks, I can't believe how much she's grown and learned in such a short amount of time.


I am seriously OBSESSED with your dog! She is so beautiful! Do you also ride horses? I saw the jumps in the background of one of your videos and was curious! I also jump! 



















I dont have any pictures from training but I am hoping to soon! She knows sit, down, come, spin, and is learning touch, paw, wave, and possibly some protection and tracking stuff. I work at kennelwood and our trainer is in love with her! She absolutely LOVES to work she can't get enough! I have been trying to work with her more at home but this stupid snow is keeping me from doing much of anything! I saw also that Carma was having problems with her stool! Stella was to for the last 2 weeks and had been tested for EVERYTHING it seemed like. Finally we changed her food to Hills prescription i/d to get her stomach on track and I am now thinking that I am going to put her on Fromm. I think that the TOTW was to rich in Calcium for her! I love seeing Carma's progress!


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## KayForbes

It looks like my pictures didn't attach! I am still getting used to Flickr! lol


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## Bequavious

mycobraracr said:


> Start watching training videos now. Get an idea of how you want to do things before you have the puppy. Remeber to take it slow. Rushing will always screw it up


Yeah I've been devouring everything puppy/training/socialization related for a couple months now! It seems like there's kind of a large gap in the training videos I've found though. They're either fairly basic "this is how you train ___" with lots of explanation or, with the Leerburg videos on youtube and even Carma's training sessions, they look way more advanced and fun but don't have a lot of explanation. I would like to do training sessions more like Carma's and the Leerburg ones, but all I'm really familiar with is the more stationary obedience class style of training if that makes sense? I suppose if I _bought _Leerburg's videos they would have more explanation, but with so much free information, it's hard to justify spending the money lol. Anyway, just watching the sessions is helpful (especially when they have the original audio hint hint  ), and I'm sure we'll figure it out as we go along


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## mycobraracr

Bequavious said:


> Yeah I've been devouring everything puppy/training/socialization related for a couple months now! It seems like there's kind of a large gap in the training videos I've found though. They're either fairly basic "this is how you train ___" with lots of explanation or, with the Leerburg videos on youtube and even Carma's training sessions, they look way more advanced and fun but don't have a lot of explanation. I would like to do training sessions more like Carma's and the Leerburg ones, but all I'm really familiar with is the more stationary obedience class style of training if that makes sense? I suppose if I _bought _Leerburg's videos they would have more explanation, but with so much free information, it's hard to justify spending the money lol. Anyway, just watching the sessions is helpful (especially when they have the original audio hint hint  ), and I'm sure we'll figure it out as we go along


I'm a fan of the Ivan Balabanov style of training. Michael Ellis is good as well. If you can get your hands on those videos that's what I would do. Also finding a good trainer to help you through is invaluable. So find a style that you like and stick to it. Most important to me is keeping it short and fun for my puppy. Carma is a great example of that. She is so happy to be "playing" with mom. Dogs hate obedience so if you can make it fun then you will do well.


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## GatorDog

I was thinking of adding either captions to the videos, or more in depth discussion in the blog as to what/why I'm doing the stuff that I am.


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## natalie559

GatorDog said:


> in depth discussion in the blog as to what/why I'm doing the stuff that I am.


I personally would like that. Your posts are inspiring to me having a pup not too much older, I wonder what others are doing and why, not wanting to 'miss' something important or that's best taught from an early age.

Blaze and I have been working on sit, down, come, stay, stand, he waits for his food and knows his name. Watched 'Training dogs with markers' and that video was excellent. Watching some other videos too. . .actually Blaze was watching with me the other day, I said good Blaze, keep learning, lol.

He starts puppy class on Wednesday, more to be around a group than anything, as they really only work on the commands above which although he is still learning, I feel I know how to teach.

How many mini session do you do with Carma per day? About how long are they?


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## Bequavious

mycobraracr said:


> I'm a fan of the Ivan Balabanov style of training. Michael Ellis is good as well. If you can get your hands on those videos that's what I would do. Also finding a good trainer to help you through is invaluable. So find a style that you like and stick to it. Most important to me is keeping it short and fun for my puppy. Carma is a great example of that. She is so happy to be "playing" with mom. Dogs hate obedience so if you can make it fun then you will do well.


Yeah when I went back and looked it was actually Michael Ellis's videos I was thinking of, although he does a lot of stuff with Leerburg (which is why I got confused). I haven't heard of Ivan Balabanov yet, so I'll definitely check him out 



GatorDog said:


> I was thinking of adding either captions to the videos, or more in depth discussion in the blog as to what/why I'm doing the stuff that I am.


I think that would be awesome!


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## natalie559

CurvyOne said:


> "leave it"
> This comes in handy as we hike off leash. He'll get too close to an edge, too close to poison oak, too close to a herd of cows etc... I say "leave it" and he walks away
> 
> He does good at these, but still working at it:
> 
> "Aus" and "fass"
> With his tug and flirt pole he does great with these commands. I say "aus" and he immediately lets go and stares at it until either I give the command "fass" or I move.... lol. I'd like him to remain holding until the command but we're working on it .


How did you teach the above 2 commands?



CurvyOne said:


> "watch me"
> He does excellent with this 90% of the time. But if he's insecure about something or overly excited, it takes a bit more effort to get him to focus on me.


How long do you expect him to hold a watch at your dogs age 19 weeks? Blaze and I have been learning watch too, he's 18 weeks.


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## CurvyOne

The "leave it" command is used whenever he is going for something I do not want him to have. Whether is the garbage in the kitchen, or a treat I've laid out in front of him. I want him to learn that I tell him what he can have and when he can have it. Lets say he is getting into the garbage. I say "leave it." If he stops, even for a moment and looks up at me, I give him a treat and say good boy. If he goes back to the garbage, I say "No" and then "leave it." Again if he stops, I give him a treat and then direct him towards something else. Eventually when I say "leave it" he'll just walk away, or come towards me. I do this during our training times, with treats to reinforce the command. Its important that you start out small, only asking him to refrain from the treat for a second or two. You want him to "win" at the game, so that he keeps playing and reinforces the command. If I wait to long, too often and he takes the treat before I tell him to, then he doesnt win and he doesnt learn the reward. Right now, even though he's doing so well at it, if he leaves something RIGHT away when I tell him to, no hesitation, then I give him all kinds of praise and treats if I have them available. He's only 19 weeks, so its important that I keep reinforcing good behavior really strongly. I dont have to give him a treat, or make a huge deal of it EVERY time, but I do for the big ones. For instance, the other day on a hike, we were with other dogs off leash. There was a herd of cows and a couple of the dogs bolted towards the cows. Huter, being a puppy, likes to copy other dogs. So he took off, even though he's never paid attention to cows before. I said "Huter leave it!" and IMMEDIATELY he turned around and came running back. And I mean, I saw his feet skid as he turned around, he responded that fast to me. When he came back, boy did I give him a TON of praise. I rubbed his chest and face and made a huge fuss about how good of a boy he was and he got a handful of salmon treats. I wanted him to KNOW that it was worth it to listen to me and he was definitely proud of himself 

"aus" and "fass" are really easy to train because puppies like to tug on toys  As soon as I pick up his tug toy, before he realizes I have it, I say "FASS!" This gets his attention and he turns around to see his tug and immediately grabs it. I say "fass" again while playing tug wars with him. Then I say "AUS!" somewhat loud, again to get his attention. Sometimes this will cause a puppy to let go, just because you said something he is unfamiliar with. At that point you can reward him for letting go, then say "fass" and entice him to tug again. Huter loves to play tug wars, so when I said "Aus" the first few times I had to physically remove the toy from his mouth, then reward him for letting go. Eventually, he started letting go as soon as I said "aus." 


QUOTE=natalie559;3243154]How did you teach the above 2 commands?



How long do you expect him to hold a watch at your dogs age 19 weeks? Blaze and I have been learning watch too, he's 18 weeks.[/QUOTE]


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## natalie559

Thanks for the instructions on the commands- how long do you think they should hold watch for at 18-19 weeks old? I think when I have his attention to keep from losing it I need to add 'good' in there to tell him that's what I want and to increase duration. Right now he watches, I'm quiet wanting it to last longer and I lose his focus and then I think he it must confuse him as he gave me what I asked but I didn't reinforce it properly or timely. . .

Say you are teaching your puppy sit, down, stand, come, stay and watch- that's 6 commands. . .would you teach all 6 in each session, or do you concentrate on just a few? Do you think the puppy learns better one way or the other?

Also in puppy class we are suppossed to try and train a trick to do the last night of class, tricks are fun and all, but I really want to concentrate on other things- maybe teach a shake? Not sure if I can get him to spin like little Carma- Do you use an actual 'touch pad' that you or your club purchased or have you improvised with some other object?


----------



## KayForbes

Spin was probably the easiest to teach! My little girl loves it! She learned it in probably 3 or 4 days!

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## natalie559

natalie559 said:


> how long do you think they should hold watch for at 18-19 weeks old? I think when I have his attention to keep from losing it I need to add 'good' in there to tell him that's what I want and to increase duration. Right now he watches, I'm quiet wanting it to last longer and I lose his focus and then I think he it must confuse him as he gave me what I asked but I didn't reinforce it properly or timely. . .


I have Blaze sit and look me in the eyes before saying ok for him to get his food. I realized when I fed him last night that he will keep this focus on me in this situation very intensely so when we trained watch this morning I put the treat on the floor in front of him and told him to leave it, got that extra command in there, then told him watch and he looked very well at me, I kept saying good, good, good, then marked with yes, waited a moment and slid the treat towards him to take. I think this worked well for increasing the duration of the watch for us.


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## Bequavious

Roxi came home today!!  So far all eliminations have been outside, so here's to hoping the rest of her training progresses in a similar manner lol!


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## dgray

Bella is 11 months old (omg when did that happen??). Somehow despite my horrible training, she has turned into a WONDERFUL dog. I couldn't be more happy with her. 

We train with our breeder once a week. She barks and bites a sleeve but doesn't hold on to it. She immediately drops it and runs to you lmao. 

We are working on focused heeling which she does great most of the time. 

She's obsessed with playing with foot long pieces of garden hose. OBSESSED.

Her drive is incredible and she amazes me every day with how smart she is. 

We are currently battling fleas between her and the three cats. And she has been sleeping in our bed for about a month now as opposed to her crate. 

Here's some pics 


































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## CurvyOne

natalie559 said:


> Thanks for the instructions on the commands- how long do you think they should hold watch for at 18-19 weeks old? I think when I have his attention to keep from losing it I need to add 'good' in there to tell him that's what I want and to increase duration. Right now he watches, I'm quiet wanting it to last longer and I lose his focus and then I think he it must confuse him as he gave me what I asked but I didn't reinforce it properly or timely. . .


This depends completely on the puppy. Its important when training that the puppy "wins." If you wait too long that the pup loses focus, then you cannot reward him for completing the task. If he seems to only hold it for 2-3 seconds right now, then get that down REALLY REALLY well. Trying it out in higher distraction areas but only for 2 or 3 seconds so that he "wins" and gets rewarded. This raises his self esteem and desire to keep focus and try harder. Then very gradually expect longer. I hold my finger to my nose when I say "watch me." This gives him another indication that even though I only said "watch me" once, I still expect him to stay focused. The task isnt over yet. Then I remove my finger and give my release word. 

Huter can hold a "watch me" for about 30 seconds at home with little distraction. About 15 seconds at home with high distraction and only about 5 or 6 seconds out in public. REALLY high distraction, such as barking dogs or children running around I can get him to glance up and make direct eye contact but then he's back to watching. I reward for every single little bit of progress. Even a glance, on command, in a high distraction public place is better than what he was doing two weeks ago. Progress is progress. Eventually I'll ask him for more. 

He gets bored working on one command too many times in a row....typical child attention span. So we work on about 4 different things in a session. I just try to take cues from him. Again, I'm challenging him to work hard, but I dont want to ask too much because if I push him harder than he can handle, it will break some of his confidence and desire to work. Its important, especially at this age to keep it fun and rewarding.


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## Bequavious

Ok so it's been a couple of days now, and we're mostly working on surviving. Turns out my husband's lab was an exceptionally good puppy, so my expectations were a little skewed as far as sleeping through the night is concerned. Last night I only got up twice, though, and on my schedule so I was able to ignore her mumblings and cries for attention without any accidents in the crate. Life during the day is a bit of a trial as well, since the lab is not really good with her. He's not aggressive/possessive _at all_, but he really wants to play with her and hasn't learned how to do it gently yet. Then when he _is_ being good and ignoring her, she'll come up and try to initiate play herself only to run away crying when he responds :headbang: So for now we're keeping them separated (unless we're actively trying to teach Cole how to play more nicely), and the only problem with that is whenever I try to work or play with Roxi, Cole goes crazy. I guess we never thought to socialize him to us playing with another dog and leaving him out *sigh*

On a brighter note, Roxi has started to be more interested in food, so I've been luring her into sit and down. Of course her attention span is almost non existent at this age, and she's surprisingly independent. Also talkative


----------



## mycobraracr

Recon is 11 weeks today. His bark and hold is a little dirty and his call out sucks so we have a lot of work to do on that. Haha I'm just kidding. He is doing really well. Still working on the same old stuff. Just working it in new places. Every place I can stop and do some focus work and just keep him engaged with me we do it. His eye contact is awesome! We started introducing distractions and just keeping him focused on me. He is figuring out positions, so I started to introduce commands. He's doing well with potty training. Won't mess his crates at all. His ex-pen is still hit and miss though. Rag work is going great! Grips are hard and full and he is getting fast! His energy level is really coming up. He will give me a few barks if I hold the toy away. I'm also working on him coming back to me once I let him have the toy so I can cradle and calm. He is doing well. Will carry and just relax once he has it. I'm really starting to like this little guy. Things are coming along so nice.


----------



## natalie559

Great updates on the pups!

Okay, so here is Blaze at almost 20 weeks :lurking:. Tell me what you think, constructive criticism welcomed- what more should we be working on, what can I improve on, what are we doing well??

I see that one time I rewarded for down when his elbows weren't all the way on the ground and as far as the down position he knows what it means, but if I just say it and don't lure it it takes him longer than I would like to do the command. I want to keep him enthusiastic. At what point do you stop the lure and just wait? Is the delay in downing with command only no lure due to him still really learning what I am asking? Does the quickness come with more repetition? Also I needed a bait bag, didn't have one handy. 

Another thing I need to concentrate on is really making sure I get the sessions in everyday, if I had done sessions everyday multiple times I think he'd be further along, we've really just been bonding and socializing and are currently trying to find a club to join to work with a group of people with similar goals. He started a puppy class last week but that's mostly to be with a group of dogs, he did great other than some initial barking.

Oh and last week at 18.5 weeks he weighed in at 41.5lbs.


----------



## mycobraracr

Natalie- Nice job! A couple things I would do different. On the downs, I would reward in the position. Not release him right away to the reward. Not yet anyway. He is slow because he is unsure of what you're asking him. I also start out by rewarding the position because I don't want the dog anticipating the release. That way I will have a reliable down stay for later. On his stand, I would bring his rear end up instead of luring forward. That way he can stay in a heel position when given the command. Again, really nice job! That's just how I would do it. Good job on your excitement and staying engaged.


----------



## natalie559

Thank you, I really appreciate the feedback!



mycobraracr said:


> Natalie- Nice job! A couple things I would do different. On the downs, I would reward in the position. Not release him right away to the reward. Not yet anyway. He is slow because he is unsure of what you're asking him. I also start out by rewarding the position because I don't want the dog anticipating the release. That way I will have a reliable down stay for later.


I watched the leerburg video, 'Training your dogs with markers' which I really enjoyed. In the movie they teach to have the dog moving to get the rewards, says that keeps them more excited and engaged. Also taught to teach that the word yes is like the clicker, it takes a mental picture for the dog that what they were doing when you said yes was correct- also teaches yes as a release word, teaches to use good as a duration word.

So knowing that should I just not say yes, say good good, yes then reward or different?



mycobraracr said:


> On his stand, I would bring his rear end up instead of luring forward. That way he can stay in a heel position when given the command.


How do you bring up the rear without the forward movement? They showed me what you saw in puppy class last week, we've only been doing stand since then. I haven't really taught stand before. . .


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## mycobraracr

natalie559 said:


> Thank you, I really appreciate the feedback!
> 
> 
> 
> I watched the leerburg video, 'Training your dogs with markers' which I really enjoyed. In the movie they teach to have the dog moving to get the rewards, says that keeps them more excited and engaged. Also taught to teach that the word yes is like the clicker, it takes a mental picture for the dog that what they were doing when you said yes was correct- also teaches yes as a release word, teaches to use good as a duration word.
> 
> So knowing that should I just not say yes, say good good, yes then reward or different?
> 
> 
> 
> How do you bring up the rear without the forward movement? They showed me what you saw in puppy class last week, we've only been doing stand since then. I haven't really taught stand before. . .


 
I'm going to attempt to describe how I do it without sounding like a.... 

So for the down, I always do it in motion. So while luring the puppy forward, I will apply slight pressure on the nose and the puppy "folds" into the down. I like this better then them dropping but then crawling elbows forward. Once in the down I praise (yes/good) and reward the behavior. Then I release (okay) into big excitement keeping the puppy engaged. As the puppy gets better, I make it hold the position longer and longer. As the puppy gets older I will introduce speed by using a tug/ball on rope and make it a game working the dog in a higher state of drive. 

For the stand I will either use my hand foot or leash to bring the rear of the dog up. Front paws don't move at all. Once dog is standing I will lure head straight and push slightly on the shoulders a couple times (creating an opposition reflex). Reward behavior and or release into excitement. 

I hope this makes sense. I will try and get some videos with recon today. I am going very slow with him and haven't really introduced words yet (I'm going the let him be a wild beast until around 1 route with him). Just remember there are a million ways to train this stuff so find a method you like and ignore the rest of us.


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## natalie559

Thanks for the explanations, they do help, would love to see your video when you get a chance!


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## Bequavious

Blaze is looking so good! I love reading about how everyone else is doing 

Things have really been settling down for us. The two dogs are getting along _much_ better, and I like to sit out on the back patio in the mornings and let them do their morning sniffing  Roxi is learning super fast! She's nailing sit and down and we're starting watch me and some lured heeling. None of it's on command yet, as I'm just starting to get the hang of the more active training style and want to make sure my timing is right. I want to introduce stand, but I'm not sure how to do it. The way I learned is how Blaze is doing it, but I'd rather have her front feet stay in place like Mycobraracr was talking about (I hope you'll post a video!).

As far as socialization, she went to the vet on Monday (not super exciting, but she did meet new people!). On Tuesday a bunch of my friends were having a trivia night, so I took her to meet everyone. She's super great about being calm and relaxed when she's held which I wasn't really expecting. Then today we went and hung around outside of the neighborhood amenity center cause I was trying to introduce her to some kids. A couple kids did come pet her, but she also saw a man with a leaf blower and a lady with a stroller 

Anyway I'm trying to take her somewhere new most days, but I'm not sure if I should be trying to train/keep her attention or just let her explore? She's really pretty focused on me at home (not all the time cause she seems to be pretty bold and independent), but is (obviously) less so when we're out and about. How much should I be trying to keep her attention and how much should I let her learn and experience new things somewhat on her own?


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## GatorDog

Well I suck at taking video now that we're outside, but I promise I'll get one this weekend. The weather has been pretty great for upstate NY, so we've been training outside as much as possible. Still doing the same type of stuff. Introduced the balance ball and "back up", both commands coming along great. We also started doing some puppy scent pads in tracking and she took to it really well. 

I can't believe how big she is getting.  14 weeks already

4/4/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


4/4/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


4/4/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


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## mycobraracr

I tried making a quick video in my living room last night. The problem is, it looked like a quick video in my living room haha. It doesn't really show what I was trying to explain. It was kinda dark and I have dark furniture with a black puppy so you can barely see him. Sorry! I will try again today perhaps.


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## GatorDog

Got a new video made over the last week or so. Carma just started doing obedience on our field now that the snow has melted, so we have a whole new set of distractions to work through. Her legs also grew like crazy recently so her coordination is completely off, lol. She reminds me of a baby llama.

Carma vom Oz Haus - YouTube


4/6/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


4/5/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


4/5/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


4/5/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


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## mycobraracr

I finally got some pictures today. Yay! Sorry still no video but here is some pics. He's 12 weeks old.


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> I finally got some pictures today. Yay! Sorry still no video but here is some pics. He's 12 weeks old.


He looks huge!!!! And handsome too!


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## mycobraracr

Thanks! He is huge! I like smaller dogs so go figure I would end up with the big one 

I'm having trouble getting to turn on the touch pad. He gets on it easy and does turn a little but... I'm thinking I'm doing it wrong. Any suggestions?


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## natalie559

Recon is a stunner! Look at that bone and love his black color! So glad you posted pictures, you two look great!! 

No suggestions from me on the turning on the touch pad, still trying to think of what I can use for a touch pad!

Blaze and I have been working on less luring and more proper positioning, like standing without moving the front legs like you mentioned. Also have him more forward on his 'heel' so he is more in line with my leg. Working on watch from heel position too and he's got shake on command.

One question on the down position- I was watching where Michael Ellis teaches to keep the shoulder in the same plane where you do the positions basically only moving the rear. I taught Blaze differently not knowing what I wanted, where he crawls forward for his down. What type of down do you train?

Meeting a working dog group in my area soon and am really looking forward to that!


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## mycobraracr

natalie559 said:


> Recon is a stunner! Look at that bone and love his black color! So glad you posted pictures, you two look great!!
> 
> 
> One question on the down position- I was watching where Michael Ellis teaches to keep the shoulder in the same plane where you do the positions basically only moving the rear. I taught Blaze differently not knowing what I wanted, where he crawls forward for his down. What type of down do you train? QUOTE]
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> I train the down while the puppy is moving then with a treat I put slight pressure on the puppies nose causing the puppy to drop his front first followed by the rear. The pressure on the nose is very gentle and in a back and slight down motion. Here is a video of my GF working Heidi. This is the end result. Heidi down out of motion - YouTube
> 
> Nothing really new on Recon. Working on a lot of the same things. I did start teaching a send out. Other than that still trucking along. He is doing great! He has already out grown his puppy crate and is in a big boy crate. The last couple days have been cool and his energy level has been very high. I'm loving it!


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## mycobraracr

Recons new toy . It didn't even phase him. My pitbull on the other hand ran away so fast! Hahaha. I will try and get video later.









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## mego

mycobraracr said:


> Thanks! He is huge! I like smaller dogs so go figure I would end up with the big one
> 
> I'm having trouble getting to turn on the touch pad. He gets on it easy and does turn a little but... I'm thinking I'm doing it wrong. Any suggestions?


I had to get a handful of treats and let her eat out of my hand while I took my other hand to push her butt to the side because regular luring wasn't working. So I move my hand to the right while my dogs eating and push her butt in the right direction too. After a minute or two she started understanding. Reward for seriously like one or two steps in the turn though until they understand

I didnt start turn until my dog realized that her paws need to stay on the touch object to get food, she was just trying to walk off of it at first\

Also, mine hates when I lure with my hand, if I hold the treats by my belly and use my body (I walk in a circle facing her) she turns to stare at me, but if I move my hand and try to get it that way she just tries to eat them lol


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## mycobraracr

Started Recon on the A frame today. He loved it! 

Recon on the A frame 1 - YouTube

Recon on the A frame - YouTube


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## jessac

Have been catching up on this stuff. My blog is stitchedinthyme.blogspot.com. I usually post our hiking pics there, but now that we've started agility foundations, I'll be taking some shots of that too.


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## ghost/moroni/utah

*Puppy barking at night!!!! HELP!!!!*

My husband and I just bought a 10 week old german shepherd, had him for two nights and he barks like crazy!!!!! We keep him in a wire kennel, he can see through, no bottom, no top...we keep it in the garage. We try to keep him up late 11 pm ish so that he will be tired. The first night he was barking like we were killing him, the second night we put a bark collar on him, and he barked less, but still alot about every two hours. But my husband eventually gives in and sleeps in a lawn chair next to his kennel and he sleeps just fine. 

Is it separation anxiety? do you think it is a good Idea to keep using the bark collar at night? 

Once he wakes up, in the morning we bring him inside and he is with us the entire day, at home or outside playing with kids.... any suggestions?


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## jessac

ghost/moroni/utah said:


> My husband and I just bought a 10 week old german shepherd, had him for two nights and he barks like crazy!!!!! We keep him in a wire kennel, he can see through, no bottom, no top...we keep it in the garage. We try to keep him up late 11 pm ish so that he will be tired. The first night he was barking like we were killing him, the second night we put a bark collar on him, and he barked less, but still alot about every two hours. But my husband eventually gives in and sleeps in a lawn chair next to his kennel and he sleeps just fine.
> 
> Is it separation anxiety? do you think it is a good Idea to keep using the bark collar at night?
> 
> Once he wakes up, in the morning we bring him inside and he is with us the entire day, at home or outside playing with kids.... any suggestions?


He's just not used to sleeping alone. Can you crate him in the bedroom? I think (esp since you said he sleeps fine when your hubs is next to him) that if he was in your room, he'd sleep better, bark less and your husband would sleep better...I can't imagine a lawn chair is comfortable. 

It's not seperation anxiety. He just wants to be with the pack. I'd take off the bark collar for sure. Why can't you bring him in?


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## ghost/moroni/utah

We haven't brought him in because of the potty issue. Maybe if we got an enclosed crate, he would do better with the not going to the bathroom. Or maybe we could do potty training pads?


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## jessac

Very few dogs will go where they sleep, that's why crating works. Get a crate just big enough for him to stand and turn around in. He'll curl into a little ball and sleep just fine, but he'll whine for you to let him out if he has to go. It might take a while to sleep through the night with no potty breaks, but he'll probably stop barking/whining faster and at least your hubs could sleep in the bed. One to two potty breaks beat sleeping in a lawn chair, I think. Give it a shot. Our pup woke up to potty for a few weeks, but stopped crying after a few nights.


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## GatorDog

New training video of my favorite girl. Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day to be outside.


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## natalie559

What a cutie!! How did you train the back up?


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## GatorDog

The more recent videos (one or two are reposts from a different thread)











And this is from last night (new!)


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## lyssa62

hey OP -- you wanna come to iowa and help me...that's awesome work there with Carma...great job and loved the videos!


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## mycobraracr

Alexis- I love this video! She's looking so good! You're doing a great job with her. 

Carma 5/15/13 - YouTube


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## Carriesue

Haven't posted in awhile - Ollie is coming up on 9 months now and is 24 inches at the shoulder and last weigh in April was 63lbs. Is that small for a male his age? Doesn't much matter to me, just curious.  

Well he's no Carma but here goes... We're getting ready to start our third OB class, this one at my local GSD club and is taught by a husband and wife who run an IPO club nearby. This is an ongoing class(not the typical 6 week course type) which runs all the way through beginning to advanced, I plan on going every week well indefinitely.  We are not doing IPO, well at least not ATM... We kind of stumbled into herding and he enjoys it SO much I put any IPO plans on the back burner and may wait to do it with my next dog.

He's had two instinct tests done by two different instructors and we've had one lesson so far. He is a natural and I've never seen him so focused and having such a good time as when he's in a corral with sheep. He's got great instinct already at 8 months to keep the livestock together, is super responsive to the stick and my instructor told me he'd be ready to start beginner trials within the year. Herding is a great sport which requires quite a bit more work and thinking power for me and my dog then I ever imagined but its why I'm falling in love with the sport even more... It requires such great teamwork and nothing quite like seeing a dog out in a field doing what it was originally bred to do. He's got some amazing herding dogs on his dams side including the first GSD in the US to win an all breed herding trial so I can't wait to see how far we can go! We are starting with sheep but eventually may also train with cattle.

Our current issues - well he's going through a bit of an adolescent fear reactive stage towards dogs when on lead but we are working through it and at the herding seminar we recently attended he didn't bark not once. As soon as he saw the sheep I think he knew he was there to work! So far he doesn't seem super driven to work when we're doing obedience training and I'm struggling to find something to motivate him as food doesn't seem to be doing it, he seems to prefer tug so I've been focusing on that trying different toys. I recently ordered a new tug and ball on a string from Leerburg to try, wish me luck.  I still can't walk him on a flat collar in public, that has been our biggest struggle - he is a very head strong little independent thinker which I mostly attribute to his age and the fact that he still has cojenes. We will get there all in good time, he has been an amazingly fun puppy to raise and has the most solid temperament of any dog I've ever had... Nothing phases this little brat. 

Some recent pics

Self stack by Carriesue82, on Flickr


Untitled (2013-05-16 03:04:15) by Carriesue82, on Flickr


Touch pad work by Carriesue82, on Flickr

Totally zonked after his day at the herding seminar

Untitled (2013-05-18 04:13:29) by Carriesue82, on Flickr


Untitled (2013-05-19 10:16:48) by Carriesue82, on Flickr


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## GatorDog

Another video! My camera was lost for a little while. 

We are progressing to using the reward under the armpit and so far, it looks good. It's crazy to think that she'll be six months in a little over a week and it's so nice to start seeing a glimpse into the bigger picture. All the little foundation type things that we've worked on for so long are really coming into play. I absolutely love her turns and rear end awareness.






Her tracking is coming along nicely as well. We are doing three linked scent pads with two serpentine legs in between, up to about a little over a hundred paces. She drags me to the scent pad like a lunatic, so we'll have to work on that in the long run. Otherwise, I love her intensity and pace.


6/11/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


6/11/13 by Gator_Dog, on Flickr


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## mycobraracr

Very nice job! You guys are doing fantastic! 

I have backed off with Recon a lot! He is maturing so slow and it's killing me! He isn't mentally capable of much yet. Plus, he's huge(over 60lbs at 21 weeks) and is having a hard time controlling his body still. I never had issues like this with my females. Recon is my first male and WOW what a difference.


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> Very nice job! You guys are doing fantastic!
> 
> I have backed off with Recon a lot! He is maturing so slow and it's killing me! He isn't mentally capable of much yet. Plus, he's huge(over 60lbs at 21 weeks) and is having a hard time controlling his body still. I never had issues like this with my females. Recon is my first male and WOW what a difference.


Holy cow, he's huge!!! Carma hasn't even broken 40lbs yet! I've got to see some pictures of the man. 

I feel like boys are much goofier for a longer time. Carma is my first female and she is much more physically and mentally mature for 24 weeks than Aiden was at 10 months lol.


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## mycobraracr

We introduced Recon to blinds this weekend. He's running them like a pro! Well okay more like a puppy who's learning but he's doing great! He was blowing me off during obedience yesterday and today, so he's back to working for his meals. Things coming along slowly but surely. 

GatorDog- I will try and get some pictures soon. My GF was going to yesterday while we were running blinds but she forgot.


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> We introduced Recon to blinds this weekend. He's running them like a pro! Well okay more like a puppy who's learning but he's doing great! He was blowing me off during obedience yesterday and today, so he's back to working for his meals. Things coming along slowly but surely.
> 
> GatorDog- I will try and get some pictures soon. My GF was going to yesterday while we were running blinds but she forgot.


Awesome! I introduced Carma to them a little bit. How do you train your puppies to run them?


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## mycobraracr

GatorDog said:


> Awesome! I introduced Carma to them a little bit. How do you train your puppies to run them?


 
I had someone holding Recon close to one side of the blind while I teased him with his favorite toy. Then I ran to/around the blind and dropped the toy in front of the blind. Then I quickly ran back to Recon and held my arm out and gave the command. Then I ran with him to get his toy and around the blind then big play on the other side. I did this a couple times then ran him towards the blind and I ducked around meeting him on the other side and big play. Is this making sense? I don't feel like I'm explaining it to well. I will get video for you. I'm going to practice with a trashcan at my house.


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## GatorDog

mycobraracr said:


> I had someone holding Recon close to one side of the blind while I teased him with his favorite toy. Then I ran to/around the blind and dropped the toy in front of the blind. Then I quickly ran back to Recon and held my arm out and gave the command. Then I ran with him to get his toy and around the blind then big play on the other side. I did this a couple times then ran him towards the blind and I ducked around meeting him on the other side and big play. Is this making sense? I don't feel like I'm explaining it to well. I will get video for you. I'm going to practice with a trashcan at my house.


Yeah I think I get what you're saying. Video would be awesome though!!


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## mycobraracr

I just was given some pictures of Recon from training over the last couple months and thought I would share. 

Running blinds

















Rag work





Puppy pics


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## GatorDog

My puppy is so grown up now  Time for an update!






I am also making a set of mini blinds today! Exciting!


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## GatorDog

Carma ran her first set of 6 blinds tonight. Proud of the little fuzz!


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## REDMEN

Just stumbled on this thread as my pup just turn 12 wks this week and bumping around the site for motivation/encouragement/inspiration. Sadly enough I think this journal makes me feel like the worst kid in class, so far behind. 

Carma looks great, like the head of the class. Renco, dang...what a beef cake! My Lil guy is 25 lbs and has been going to private lessons since 8 wks at local SCH field. This is my first GSD and it is a little getting use to. My trainer is forcing the hand and requesting that I be more interesting and engaging with my boy so I really need to work on it. So far he has been very good but gets bored of me quickly and I thought it was a puppy thing until I see Carma's old videos. Sadnesss, I need to work harder.

Please pray for me! Keep up this journal for it is very inspiring to say the least.


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## GatorDog

Update!

Carma now runs all the blinds on the field at full distance!





And an updated obedience video from yesterday. Really happy with her


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## KayForbes

GatorDog said:


> Update!
> 
> Carma now runs all the blinds on the field at full distance!
> Carma; Blind Search 12/3/13 - YouTube
> 
> And an updated obedience video from yesterday. Really happy with her
> Carma 12/3/13 - YouTube


She is so perfect!

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## Wolfgeist

GatorDog said:


> Update!
> 
> Carma now runs all the blinds on the field at full distance!
> Carma; Blind Search 12/3/13 - YouTube
> 
> And an updated obedience video from yesterday. Really happy with her
> Carma 12/3/13 - YouTube


Wow, she looks fantastic and is super flashy. Looking forward to hearing about your first trial with her!


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## GatorDog

Wild Wolf said:


> Wow, she looks fantastic and is super flashy. Looking forward to hearing about your first trial with her!


Thanks! I can't wait to get started.


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## Diesel7602

This is perseus. He is 8 weeks today and weighs 17 pounds. So far a very smart land shark. Just started puppy classes and one of his home work is to met at least 100 people. The class is more about socializing, since I was told puppies starting at 8 weeks have to met as many people/ animals in such a short time to be able to have a good temperament. Perseus is going to be my son's service dog since he has autism. so my plain is for perseus to be a well about good dog out in public. 

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