Trick of the Week: Perch

I was working with Bayleigh on a shoulder stall today. Though, I admit that I didn't watch any of the videos so I don't know if what we're doing is considered a proper shoulder stall. She does jump onto my shoulder though and I think it's super cute.

Edit: I went back and watched some videos and we are doing the same thing. Yay!

Fourth training session on the peanut.

I love Gabby.

Oh you are such a baby. C'mon Squash would look SO ADORABLE perched up on your shoulder like a parrot!!

Ha! Nice idea. I might have to give that a whirl!

A friend of mine is working on a foot stall with her dog. She's made crazy fast progress with her 50lb dog -- I think it took her about 4 sessions to get to where she is now. She's a very accomplished trainer and her dog picks new things up like crazy, but I thought her method was really interesting and wanted to share it here.

She shaped Hero to perch on her shoes before she ever put them on her feet, and then gradually increased the height. Pretty inventive.

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That's a great method. I like it. That is A LOT of dog to hold on your feet though! She's going to get a good leg work out! Very impressive.

I wonder what the upper limit on dog weight is for foot stalls. lol. Depends on the person too I realize, but since most of us are women that don't look like we bench 200 lbs... lol. I will personally feel very accomplished if I can get a back stall with close to 60 lbs.

I have thought about targeting the shoes for a long time but kept doubting the logistics. Thanks! We'll have to try it now!

I like how she did that with the shoes on her. I've seen/heard people doing it with props and putting shoes onto different objects and having the dog target that but I never thought it was that great idea. I like though how she had them on her because that allows the dog to still get used to the movement and actually getting onto a person rather than putting it on a stationary object and then having to transfer it over to a body.

I had the dogs get onto a stool and then put my legs up and then started shaping them getting onto my feet. The shins helped as a bridge between that because they already had the idea that this was something that involved getting onto me.

So I would just mark and treat for front feet and then for shifting their weight forward, then for picking up back feet and so on. Just be careful about what you mark for and not rewarding digging at your feet. I don't know if it's common or just my dogs but both kept offering dig on my feet and a few missed marks on my part had them doing it with gusto. And I'll tell you, nothing like fighting them with that to tire you out.

I think I could probably do a dog that was in the low 50s. I'm not sure how much bigger though. Traveler in the low 40s and I feel like I could probably do a dog bigger than him but not 100% sure. I've got small size 7 feet but I think once the dog gets it that's not really that big of deal, but the training part is brutal.

Getting smaller!

Kili is picking up on it so fast!! Isn't it funny too how when you start having them get onto things your whole world starts becoming "hmm, bet my dog could perch on that..."

Ha! Yes! I'm just looking around the house and clinic being like "what can she perch on?

One thing that I don't know how to deal with yet, but may just come with time, is how to convince her to try to JUMP onto stuff instead of climb. It's like it doesn't occur to her. She jumps into the truck, onto the couch, onto the bed, onto the agility table... but ask her to get up on a chair... and she puts her front feet up and then attempts to lift her back feet high enough to climb on. Most of the objects I've used so far are low enough that I get why she climbs. But when I've asked for chairs or even high chairs... she either climbs or attempts to climb and then gives up. lol. JUMP! You're a dog.

I've noticed the more comfortable they get with it the easier jumping gets, but it can take time for them to be fully confident that what they are jumping on isn't going to go flying and that they know how to put their feet.

Getting mine amped up helps too, when they're really going for the toy or food and I ask for an up on something they are more likely to fling themselves at it.

And, there is the fact that she's not exactly a short dog So things my dogs jump onto because it's easier than stepping onto are things that are just easier for her to step onto. I think once she's more confident and you can find things that are that right inbetween height (like a table! Because I do like encouraging people to have their dogs all jump on tables so that everyone can have bad mannered dogs like mine!) of not too tall and not too short it will come. But you can tell from the video's she's still figuring out why this stupid human is having her do this weird thing.

Can I just say too how tickled I am with everyone in this thread? I love that everyone from the small dog owners to the not so small dog owners are doing SO awesome.

Yes, and it's hard to find things that are really stable for her too. I often have to hold the objects because they DO tip when she tries to get on them... or off them. And swiveling computer chairs aren't exactly motionless! ha ha. She's definitely still figuring it out. She's not like "Oh, okay, BAM! I'm perching" but she is like "okay, got my front feet on, now I KNOW I have to get my back feet on too... just hold on".

Seriously though. It took her a LONG time to jump into the truck. I think she was 7 or 8 months old before she figured it out. It was super annoying. lol

Today I briefly considered using the cat tree.


GUYS.

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You're crazy and I love it.

I'm experimenting with Boone (70 lbs) and I just don't think I can do a foot stall with him. I'm going to try a few different things, but I don't think I'll be strong enough to hold him up.
I do have a shoulder stall with him. (Kneeling, not standing.) And I just taught him a shin stall today, which I can do. But I think a foot stall might just be pushing it. lol

Sloan is almost 60 lbs, she doesn't really trust me with the foot stall work and I don't blame her. lol We'll see how far we come but she definitely will be pushing the limit if we can get it.

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Sloans shin stall progress.

Here is where we are with teaching a shin stall today:
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I also included his back stall, but he's way out of practice. I'm going to have to rework his positioning because he kept putting both back paws on one shoulder.