# Basic Obiedence



## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

So this is part brag, part story, and part, how do I do this....


The first night of classes were last night and everything went great. We are actually taking them with Natalie and her pit mix Sasha. Dakota was generally well behaved, and an owner with her spaniel kept remarking how much focus he had on me. And asked what treats I used. When I showed her the hot dogs and cheese sticks cut up goes...."Oh I only have these things that look like meat " I had to stop myself from laughing, hmm...real meat (kinda), vs by-products, glycerin, and corn. I was nice though and suggested she get some chicken hotdogs and try those next week. and they even end up being cheeper than treats. So I will see how that goes. 

Anyways, on to the bragg! Dakota was very attentive and considering my lack of experience he did very well doing everything I asked. People kept remarking how well behaved he was. I think it may have had to do with another GSD in our class, who is about 8 months old and whined and barked the whole time. 

We were able to successfully do a sit, a stand, a down, a heel, and focus. The only problem I have is he likes to look at me and so his but will end up at a 90 degree to me. The instructor told me to use my left hand and guide him down, but the moment I touch him, he stands back up. Any other tricks? I thought about using our hallway, but we need more practice in distracting areas. 

Dakota also gets anxious in the beginning on class and whenever he is introduced to new dogs, Before the class we were walking out side and came upon a puppy, we went up to greet were more in a side by side manner and Dakota still was anxious since the hair on his shoulders stood up. He was nice to the dog and we then parted ways and he was fine. Then when we first got in to the classroom (a large farigrounds building with 5 different classes set up by show gates) he got very anxious and started to lunge and bark, So i had my treats then and after getting his attention and making him focus he was fine. Too anxious for sitting, but he at least walked with me all the way to the end where our classroom is. As we were waiting a lady came over and thought it would be great to have our dogs mingle. Well she has a very submissive rotweiler mix puppy. She went down on the ground, rolled over and when she came back over again she urinated. Well Dakota was nice, but thought it was a good idea to try to hump her... Not allowed abviously, so I corrected him and he got off right away.

So my requests. I want a dog that doesn't sit with his butt out, doesn't get nervous by puppies, can walk into a new place and be okay with it and can be confident without trying to tell every other dog he meets that he is better by humping them. And I would liek to know how to achieve this. Would socializing him more help? new places? Is it ever too late for puppy style socialization?


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## GregK (Sep 4, 2006)

> Originally Posted By: GSDSunshineThe only problem I have is he likes to look at me and so his but will end up at a 90 degree to me. The instructor told me to use my left hand and guide him down, but the moment I touch him, he stands back up. Any other tricks? I thought about using our hallway, but we need more practice in distracting areas.


Find a fence line at a local park.


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## Bama4us (Oct 24, 2009)

I took Bear to his first day of his Manners 101 class yesterday also but it sounds like you had better luck than I did. He started barking the moment we arrived. He was fairly calm while the trainers taught, but his focus was more on the other dogs than on me. I may have to try hot dogs also. When everyone started to leave he converted back to barking again, but with only one other female dog in class, he didn't try to "court" anyone. You and I both have probably spent alot of time socializing our dogs, but maybe it was just the new surroundings, or just the breed, that made them be so vocal. My trainer told me not to correct him, but to toss a treat or two for him to chase. He scarfed them down while barking, made no difference at all. Maybe our next class will be smoother.


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

Distraction work comes later. First use a barrier like a hallway to stop him from swinging his butt out. This is the video of Ike doing some hallway training. You can see without the hallway he would definitely swing out. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK7vNlOdjvk

Dogs need to taught they have a butt. They know where their head is and where their front legs are but the other half is a completely different story.
Perch training is very good for that. There are a couple of good threads recently on this topic.

Also, if you are already getting good eye to eye focus when you heel, then you can start walking circles, counter clockwise. This will stop the dog from getting too far ahead of you.


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

Jason, That was a great video. I noticed that Ike stays in the smae place when he sits. 1/2 the time when Koda sits, he his front moves to his back and he ends up behind me. Do you know how to fix that too? lol I have been taking a step back, but that isn't exactly a solution.


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## Zisso (Mar 20, 2009)

Jason
Thanks for sharing that! Gives me some ideas of work I can do with my two. Also, gotta say for once I think I have a longer hallway than someone else...haha! And it doesn't sound like kitty was happy...LOL


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

My cats think the only thing lamer than dogs is dog training.


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## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: GSDSunshineI noticed that Ike stays in the smae place when he sits. 1/2 the time when Koda sits, he his front moves to his back and he ends up behind me. Do you know how to fix that too? lol I have been taking a step back, but that isn't exactly a solution.


I believe the best way would be to move forward yourself and make him catch up to you. If he is behind, get him attention, take one step forward and see if he will catch to you or not. If he does and actually gets in the right sitting position this time (right by your left leg), mark/reward. If not, take another step. You see in the video some times Ike will be in some weird goofy positions. I don't correct him or tell him "no" (he is too young for that) I just start moving and get him to going again. I only reward what I like. The goofy, sloppy stuff gets nothing from me. I just pretend I don't even see it.

Also, I like to keep the delivery of the reward consistent. From the heel position, it will always be from my left hand, parallel to my body (not in front, not behind - in other words, I am not reaching out to give him a treat), right above his head. After awhile he learns that's where the yummy stuff comes from so it pays to get in that position. Same with the front sit. I only feed him with the reward press tight against my tummy and he knows that now so you see him always trying to get closer and closer to me in the sit because he knows if I am going to feed him, that's where it will happen.

But keep in mind I'm a novice so maybe more experienced people have some better suggestions. I actually posted the video in another section because I was looking for pointers and helps myself.


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

That's a GREAT video, Jason.









Notice how Jason swings his hand back then forward to bring Ike back into position (at 34 and 52 seconds). This is an important move, so watch how he's doing it. What you'll be able to do, if your dog gets out of position, is use this arm swing hand movement to get your dog back into position. 

Somewhere else on the forum, someone asked about how to train your dog to heel on the right side. This is how you'll do it, but with your right hand (so don't forget this trick)

I train much the same way. The only thing I add to that is I train (separately) a touch command, where they learn to touch their noses to my hand. Whenever I put my hand out and tell them Touch, they look for my hand and bring their nose in. It's great for helping them on a heel -- if they get ahead of me, then they will back up to where I put my hand, which is at my hip. And it's also useful for focusing them when there are distractions. I can put my hand in front of them, and then draw my hand (and therefore their heads) away from the distraction and toward me, where I then work on a Focus. http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=35064&page=1#Post35064

If I just ask a young dog for a Focus and he's keen on something else, it's almost always NOT enough to get him to turn his head, but if I give him something else to focus on (my hand) and draw him away, then I've got him.

To teach a Touch, you can either simply put your hand out flat, kind of bop your dog on the nose and give him a treat, which kind of works ok, but takes longer to train. But a lot of trainers teach it this way. Or, you can train it (the way I prefer) by putting a small bit of jerky type treat in between your index and middle finger, but down by your palm, and showing your dog your open palm. When he brings his nose toward your palm, open your hand just enough to give him the treat. Repeat often, with both hands. Then, when he seems to get it, fade out the lure and let him Touch, then you reward with the opposite hand.

The first training approach is more passive. Dog does nothing but gets rewarded. The second, the dog has to seek out your hand to get the reward. That's why I like it better. 

Once you have a dog that understands a touch command, you can use your open hand to move him around. If he's too far forward or too far back, just put out your hand and move it where you want him to come. You won't have to use your leash to guide him or have to manhandle him again.









One more thing about hind-end awareness -- young GSDs do take quite a while to get it. Mostly, they move their front legs and the rear legs follow so anything we can do *on the ground* to help them realize they actually have rear legs that can move independently is a big help. If you have a ladder (I especially like metal extension ladders) lay it on the lawn, leash up your pup and slowly lure him through. A helper is very useful, because he will almost certainly try to hop out the other side. Make him walk through the openings. 

If you live by a school that has tires for the football team, use those. You can buy or make a wobble board (the Agility section has instructions on how to make one). You can get a 2x12 (12 ft long) plank at Home Depot and toss that on the ground and let him walk on that... Anything that is very low to the ground and forces him to move his back end *consciously.* All of these are great for improving the neural connections in his brain; they'll help with obedience skills like heeling, and if you ever want to work him in in agility or other sports, he'll be far ahead of the curve. 

Finally, in response to your last question, no it's never too late for socialization. I think that dogs should continue to get out and go to new places, meet new people and experience new things their whole lives. It keeps their brains sharp, builds confidence and makes their bonds with their owners stronger. The experiences should be positive ones in new interesting places -- not the same old places, which are familiar and therefore comfortable. So get out there and have fun!


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Jason...that was a great video!! Thanks for sharing that!!


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## GSDSunshine (Sep 7, 2009)

Okay, so I'm going to post a video in a minute, and you guys can critique me. He is trying to sit, but end up behind me and then his neck is so long and he is so tall, that he can reach the treat right by my side without even scooting forward.


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