Movies
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1. Contact
Today we are going to teach the puppy that contact is rewarding. When the puppy looks at me spontaneously, I reward it in different ways.
When the puppy looks at me, I give it a toy to play with.
You can give a treat from your mouth. If you do, you will have a dog that seeks a lot of contact with your face/your eyes.
If the treat is given from your hands the puppy will concentrate more on them because that is where the treat is.
Be sure to give attention to the puppy when it wants to follow you when you are outside. Good dog! Praise the puppy when it follows you.
2. Passivity
When the puppy is anxious I sometimes choose to hold it tight and not let it go. I hold calmly but firmly until it relaxes.
I will let go as soon as the puppy is calm. It will learn ”When I am calm I am let down and can run freely”.
If you have a lively puppy it is very good to hold it with gentle hands for a little while, and let go when it is calm. If you let go when it struggles to get free it will learn the opposite ”When I struggle I get free”.
3a. Spontaneous behaviours – Lie down
Usually I try to put words on what the puppy does spontaneously. When it sits down I say the word ”Sit!” exactly when the bottom reaches the ground. If the puppy lies down I say ”Lay down!” in the very moment it lies.
We are going to look at this little puppy and see if she wants to lie down. I want her to think for herself, all of us learn very fast if we have to find the solutions on our own, and so do puppies. The puppy tries to get the treat but she doesn’t get it until she lies down spontaneously. I open my hand and give the treat.
3b. Spontaneous behaviours – Sit
We are going to look if the puppy does something spontaneously.
It sits! I say ”Sit!” exactly at the same time as the puppy sits down. Puppies learn very fast, be sure you do not train for too long. If the puppy does something 1 or 2 times it might be enough for that time.
3c. Spontaneous behaviours – Come!
When the puppy comes to you by itself you say ”Come!” ”Come!” I praise her very much when she comes.
3d. Spontaneous behaviours – Stop biting hands!
We are going to teach the puppy not to bite our hands. Exactly when she takes a step backwards I open my hand. She will learn ”When I stop biting and take a step backwards, the hand will open and I will get a treat!”.
4. Emergency signal
We are going to teach the puppy to listen to an emergency signal. If the puppy loves food, it is very good to use a whistle signal when it gets food.
I give a signal before food. I give the same signal when the puppy is eating. You can do this training 2-3 times a day for three to four months. But, you can only use this signal when it is an emergency.
If your puppy isn’t food orientated you can use an extra nice food, here I use a Swedish ”meatball”. I roll it on the ground.
You can also use a ball if it loves to play with balls. You can use a special ball which you only use with the whistle.
5. The puppy’s name
Put a treat in your mouth. When the puppy is on its way to get the treat I say the puppy ́s name, ”Maya, Maya, Maya…”This will teach the puppy to pay attention to my face when I say her name. If I hold the treat in my hands, she will seek my hands and look at them instead.
6. Come!
I call ”Come!” and after that I run away from the puppy. One person holds her and lets her go when I run. I call ”Come!” several times when I run.
When the puppy catches up on me I praise and reward it.
7. To handle a puppy
This film shows how you can make a puppy get used to being handled. I look at the paws, the ears, the teeth and so on. I am generous with treats, but I only give them when she is completely calm.
You start this training early in the puppy ́s life, and after a few months you don’t have to give any treats. It will become a natural part of every day life.
Remember to give treats ONLY when the puppy is calm, and don’t let her go when she struggles. All rewards are given when she is calm.
8. Stay!
Stay is a really important word. You need it on many different occasions. I say ”Stay!” in a stern voice. I wait until she is calm, when she is I say ”Okay!”
I train until she waits even if I praise her and say ”Good dog!” It is the word ”Okay!” she has to wait for. You do exactly the same when you are going out of a door. The puppy has to to wait for you to say ”Okay!”
9. The word ”No!”
We are going to teach the word ”No!”. I will be very resolute. It doesn’t matter if the puppy sits or stands. I am going to drop a treat, and prevent her from eating it by saying ”No!” in a bass voice. In this film she is very fast, I have to do it once more.
I use my hand to show her that she can not get the treat until I say ”Okay!”
I praise her when she waits, and say ”Okay” when she is allowed to take the treat.
10. To greet
We have already taught the puppy how to sit and stay. Next step is to teach the puppy that it has to be calm before it can come forward and say ”hello”. I will reward the puppy when it has all four paws on the ground.
Say ”Okay, good…good dog. Good dog – greet. Good dog”
11. On the leash
We are out, training the puppy to be on the leash.
The most important rule is:
When the leash is slack the puppy can move forward.
As soon as the leash is pulled tight it means STOP!
You have to be consistent and always do this. Only when the leash slackens you let the puppy move on.
12a. To activate I
12b. To activate II
12c. To activate III
Puppies love to be activated, they love balance training and this kind of training gives them a good self confidence.
Here we will teach the puppy to step up on a stone. Entice with a treat and give rewards when one paw is up, when two paws are up and so on. Praise in a ”light” voice.
Do exactly the same with a stool. Start praising when the puppy looks at the stool
To hand over – ”Can I have a look? Thank you!”The first thing we do is teaching the puppy to put its head in my hand. When it does I say ”Thanks”. Take a brake after 3 or 4 times.
As soon as I hold my hand in front of her she lets go of the toy. I say ”Can I have a look, Thank you!”
When she lifts the toy I will say the same thing, and put my hand under her chin. Then I praise in a light voice, ”Good dog! Good!”
I put down different things on the ground, when the puppy lifts them I put my hand under her chin and hold a treat nearby her mouth. She will let go of her toy, and at the same time I say ”Can I have a look? Thank you!”
You can vary this exercise by giving a toy instead of the treat.
13. Beckham tricks
1. Close a door
2. Turn on the light
3. Flush the toilet
4. Turn around on a stool
5. Bring the telephone
6. Play Domino
7. Clean up the toys
8. Sharpen his nails (like a cat)
9. ”Now I am tired”