# Huh? Duh....



## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

How can I get faster obedience when I say "platz?. Lately Stella just looks at me when I say platz....like I am speaking a foreign language (well, tecnically I guess I am) I could use a quicker response to other commands as well. She was doing good with a decent response time up until just recently. Now she just looks at me. Eventually she will lie down, but in her own good time.


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## Jovi_Girl (Dec 4, 2012)

Hmm. Do use a reward system? 


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

Any chance you keep repeating the same command over and over? I use to do that until our trainer pointed out ever so tackfully (NOT! ) that the command was: *Sit*, not:
"Harley sit... sit... come on sit,..._sigh_, sit,...waving hand giving hand signal, sit,...sit..."

That was the same day the trainer taught me to say the command once and give a correction if Harley didn't respond. (because he already knew what sit meant) Correction wasn't phsically abusive. If he was laying down I slid my foot into his front paws, made him jump up to a sit. If he was standing I took one step towards him and pulled up on the leash, down he went into a sit. Other option was to hold a treat over his head, that also brought him to a sitting position. (he was young at the time) In all cases, I couldn't repeat the command more than once. No idea if any of this was politically correct, but it worked. 

What does your trainer say?


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

I only say it once. Then we look at each other. She knows what it means. I can of course lure her down but I don't feel she should need a lure anymore. So I guess a correction is in order. What would be an appropriate one to use if she doesn't platz quick enough. Oh and it has nothing to do with distractions. She is doing this even in the house.


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## zivagirl (Jan 5, 2013)

katdog5911 said:


> I only say it once. Then we look at each other. She knows what it means. I can of course lure her down but I don't feel she should need a lure anymore. So I guess a correction is in order. What would be an appropriate one to use if she doesn't platz quick enough. Oh and it has nothing to do with distractions. She is doing this even in the house.


Sometimes 'lather, rinse and REPEAT' is necessary. If whatyou're doing now isn't working, it's time to change your position. Don't think of it as your dog's getting one over on you, but more as a refresher course. At some point, she has determined that she doesn't 'really' need to obey.

Your mileage may vary.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Are you doing some drive building before you begin the session? I find if I have a toy and get the dog excited with tug then begin, we have more enthusiasm. Food is great for teaching positions, but toys are best for keeping the engagement and enthusiasm. After giving a correction, it's good to get the dog back in drive before you begin again.
Look on Bridget's website for video clips or friend her on fb, many more vids there.


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## Lauri & The Gang (Jun 28, 2001)

How old is she? Sometimes as puppies mature into dogs they go through phases where they seem to totally forget what they used to be rock solid on.

Like Jane said - it really helps to build up the drive (excitement) for obedience.

Mauser absolutely goes CRAZY for tennis balls. I use a ball for almost all his training. I have a TB on a string and I swing it around and get him all hyped up then I give him the command. He has learned that the faster he obeys the faster he gets his ball.

When I'm first training a behavior I use the reward as a lure to get them into the position I want.


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## DunRingill (Dec 28, 2007)

How old is this dog? 

And how was this exercise taught? 

What do you do when your dog FINALLY responds? Reward? what and how? 

I don't stand around and wait for the dog to respond. Dog hears the command, and there should be a response. If not, then "assist", where the assist is determined by the basic temperament of the dog and how well your dog understands the command. This is definitely NOT a one size fits all situation. 

The dog should be in drive FIRST.....but that's no excuse for not complying.


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## Franksmom (Oct 13, 2010)

I'm working this same thing right now with Frank for our Drop on recall in the open ring. 
What I did is start with him walking next to me I say "Down" if he doesn't instantly down I correct with a pop down ward on the leash, as soon as he downs I treat and praise, He picked up really fast that the faster he down'd the faster the treat came and no correction, from walking I gradually moved up to him running next to me same thing, being next to him puts me in a good spot to correct or treat as needed. It's really helped his reaction time to the command. Now we've moved on to off lead (with just a pull tab) and he downs while I keep walking. Next step is him downing when running towards me. Baby steps all the way but consistent on only 1 command and instant correction or treat as needed. 
When I say treat I do not mean luring him down in anyway, he downs fast, I treat fast.
I also never totally wean off of treats or rewards when a dog does a command, I know some say you should, and I do space the treats out further and further as the dog is trained, but I still surprise them with treats now and then even if it's just the fact that they sit quietly when I come into a room, everyone needs praise for doing a good job even if it's a routine thing. I feel like it helps keep their manners sharp. 
How Old is your dog?


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

Stella will be 19 months in 4 days. I don't know what the heck is going on. Today it took me almost an HOUR to get her into the house from the yard. She didn't care to come in, so she didn't. Needless to say I am not happy. 
I agree that obedience is better when she is pumped up but sometimes I just want obedience without having to play a game! Or lure her with a treat! I am getting tired of feeling like a vending machine. I certainly am fine with treats when she is first learning a behavior but at some point I would like her to just obey. Not saying she will never get a treat again, but Platz, sit etc is basic stuff that she knows. What good is all the training if it doesn't translate into real situations?


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## Capone22 (Sep 16, 2012)

I agree. At some point she learned she can ignore you. Back track. Long line when she's outside. Corrections when she ignores you and ramp up your rewards for a bit. Then start back in mixing up when she gets rewarded. After one sit. After 1 sit 1 down, after a stay for 2 min, stay for 10 mins. Etc. she needs to learn ignoring isn't an option.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Obviously she's not respecting you....time to step up w/ NILIF and possibly some crate time before and after your training sessions. I like to crate afterwards so the dog can process, especially if it's a learning session. Always, always end the session on a good note, even if you are frustrated, do something simple and end it then. Corrections are fine IF the dog understands what you're asking, but when you begin the session after that correction, get the dog back into drive so enthusiasm is working to the benefit of both. I like to tease my dog up with a ball on string or tug, and ask for behaviors right off....not when we are heeling along. Then I add in the positions randomly during the training session. My dog isn't a flashy sport dog, so I do what works best for his personality. 

And remember to reward when the dog is in position, from that position or have him drive into the reward...make the dog give you effort always!


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

Amazing what a piece of liverwurst will do.  
Went back to basics last few days. Made up a little "platz" game with her the other day....I run around the house away from her. When she "catches" me, I tell her platz and she gets a treat. Seems to have helped her remember what it means. Today she is the queen of platz. She was uber responding this morning.... I had her platz, which she did pronto, but then she would sit up so she could platz again.....and get some of that liverwurst... 
I remember a similar problem with sit a while back. Just had to keep making her sit here there and everywhere until it became habit. Guess that platzing will be our next default move.....


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## RowdyDogs (Nov 12, 2012)

Glad to hear it's going better. Just some things to consider, to make sure none of these factors are at play or to help others who might be reading this and having a similar problem: 

IME, often when the dog's reaction time slows, it often has something to do with the owner. It could be a lot of different things though. You might need to do more "refreshers" for motivation--any dog, no matter how old, needs occasional fun and motivational training with lots of rewards or otherwise a really good reason to do obey you even when they'd rather not. I might only have a super-fun obedience session with my older dogs once or twice a month and just expect obedience the rest of the time, but they still get those sessions.

It's kind of like getting an unusual reward for your performance on a normal work project. You would have done the project anyway, but when your boss calls you in and praises you and gives you a token of appreciation (even if it's just something small like free movie tickets), you're likely to approach the next project with renewed enthusiasm. Dogs need that motivational stuff too, and maybe a little more often since they're not getting a paycheck for obedience. 

It could also be that you phased out rewards too quickly. When you're establishing a behavior, you start by rewarding heavily each time, then you start doing smaller rewards but still consistent ones (food or toy rewards, that is), then you start making the food/toy reward inconsistent and gradually phase it out for the most part. Sometimes if people go through that process too quickly, the dog loses motivation and their obedience decreases.

As others have said, it could also be something in your body language or timing. Someone already mentioned saying the cue more than once, which is a common problem (which I saw you don't do too ). Other things I have seen are things like teaching the command in a firm voice, "PLATZ!" and then expecting the dog to respond to a more casual quiet "platz," without training the dog to do so. Body language can also be an issue. If you taught the dog the cue while standing close and facing her, you may have to teach her that it still means the same thing when you're sitting down, turned partially away, etc. This is a problem I ran into a lot when I first started training my dogs, so now I routinely teach my dogs to respond to the command in a variety of tones and with me in a variety of postures.

Or, it could be nothing to do with you and she simply hit an age where she took a couple of steps back. I think that's a pretty normal thing in training animals. We tend expect a logical progression, but in fact often you wind up hitting plateaus, or your dog takes a step or two back for no apparent reason and you need to build them back up, etc. The nice thing is that if you deal with it promptly and correctly (as it sounds like you are), it should just be a minor hiccup.


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

Hmmmm. Never really thought about tone of voice or my position when I give her the command. Things to pay attention to in the future. Something else I noticed- when I tell her sit, she will sometimes change where she is facing before she sits. Same with platz.


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