Before you watch this video please go read my previous blog post on How to use commands correctly.   It will help you better understand what I am doing and why.

This video will focus on how to work with a shy dog by building interest in training, learning how to get the dog eager to interact, and then shaping behaviors.   My end goal is eye contact, held for a few seconds at most.

It is very important with a shy dog to have a quiet body and voice.  I am speaking loudly to the camera, but I am making sure I am not looking directly towards Lina while speaking.  When I interact with her I keep it happy, sweet, and calm.   Eventually, the dog will gain enough confidence to feel comfortable in what they are doing, thus less likely to revert to submissive behaviors.   For now, I keep it very low key.

I’m going to attempt to video many of our training sessions over the next few weeks.  Some I might post as trick training or obedience shaping, but mostly I want to journal her progress.  She is 300% better than when she arrived and gains confidence every single day.  It would be neat to have a record of her progress and show how it was done, as well as noting any stumbling blocks we hit and how best to move forward.  Dog training is fluid.  You have to be willing to try something else if one concept isn’t working.  There is no one right way to do anything in this world.   If you ask 5 dog trainers how to teach a dog to do the weave polls, you will probably get 5 different answers.   Channels, weave-a-matic, 2 by 2, guide wires, etc all will teach weaves.  Some teach a better understanding, like 2 by 2, but you really need a higher drive dog for the method to work.  If your dog is lower drive and not very toy motivated, channels x guide wires OR channels x weave-a-matic or weave-a-matic and guide wires might be a better method.   My point is, you need to find what works for each dog.

The best dog trainers are always learning new things.   I started a Nose Work class with Jazz.  Why?  Because watching a dog use its nose is awesome!  Also I wanted to see what training method was being used to teach the sport and why.  I will train Jazz as directed by the class and only use their methods while in the class.  When I train River and Lina, we will see if I stay the course or try a more structured method of shaping.  I do not believe one method rules them all.   Neither should you.  If you feel a trainer or training method is not suitable, dump it and look for another way.  Remember, there is always another way.

~Becky