So lots of you know about my struggles with Astro. As wonderful as he is, and I do love the heck out of the little snot, he's a hard dog to work with. Loses motivation easily, if he's corrected in any sense whatsoever he either shuts down or escalates back, resource guards, shoots off like a rocket off lead and has no natural inclination to stay near people.
Well, I went to a 5-day BAT seminar recently and I feel like it was borderline lifechanging. I know that sounds cheesy and stupid but seriously, Astro is so ON POINT now that I'm back.
To give the context: Everything about BAT was so relaxed. The new form of BAT involves you following your dog - no matter where it goes (obviously not into a road, and not if they charge right at the trigger, but generally you do follow), keeping the leash loose, and watching for signs that the dog is about to go over threshold. It's all about being as unobtrusive as possible, letting the dog make choices, and using the least amount of intrusion necessary to keep the dog safe and relaxed. There was a lot of emphasis on not pressuring dogs, not getting in their space, and not influencing where they want to go if you don't have to, and literally just letting them check everything out and gather information. Very
"stop micromanaging the dog," micromanage the environment instead as much as possible. It involved treats at key points but even there, there wasn't a whole lot going on.
I tried to absorb it all, came back, and since then Astro has been on fire. Over the past few days he has:
1) Had amazing recall. I mean amazing, he can be in the middle of doing one of his favorite activities and he gets whiplash running back to me if I call him. I actually trusted him to drag a line behind him in my parent's yard! I know that might seem so insignificant to someone with a dog who cares about people and sticks close, but Astro has NEVER offered to stick close by on his own, he's ALWAYS preferred to dash a mile away as soon as you give him a single inch of freedom.
2) Offered close heeling for extended periods of time on walks, with eye contact (!!!!). Not because I cue it, just because he's checking in (!!) and wants to work (!!!)
3) Specifically run up with high value things, with eager and soft body language, trying to get me to trade or take it from him. This dog was a RGer at a young age over everything from sticks to his own leash!
I can't believe it. It's so surreal, it's like I have a totally different dog. I was already quite a "soft" trainer before. I stopped using verbal corrections and no reward markers awhile back because I found that it dampened his already extremely tenuous desire to work for people. But it still wasn't enough, and now that it's 100% No Tension, Not Ever, he's so...willing. We've finally reached the point where HE seeks ME out to do stuff.
I truly am glad I got him. He has taught me so much. What 99.99999% of dogs will let you get away with, he will not, and obviously that's frustrating as sin but I am learning to be so much more patient and thoughtful. If I let myself feel - not say out loud, not act on, just THINK - "this dog is so annoying, why isn't he doing what I want?" for even ONE MOMENT, he says "screw you" and runs off to guard something, and I'm finally starting to count that as a blessing, because he's turning me into the kind of trainer I want to be whether I like it or not :rofl1:
Anyway, here's a slightly old pic, because I know how every thread is better when there are pics
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Well, I went to a 5-day BAT seminar recently and I feel like it was borderline lifechanging. I know that sounds cheesy and stupid but seriously, Astro is so ON POINT now that I'm back.
To give the context: Everything about BAT was so relaxed. The new form of BAT involves you following your dog - no matter where it goes (obviously not into a road, and not if they charge right at the trigger, but generally you do follow), keeping the leash loose, and watching for signs that the dog is about to go over threshold. It's all about being as unobtrusive as possible, letting the dog make choices, and using the least amount of intrusion necessary to keep the dog safe and relaxed. There was a lot of emphasis on not pressuring dogs, not getting in their space, and not influencing where they want to go if you don't have to, and literally just letting them check everything out and gather information. Very
"stop micromanaging the dog," micromanage the environment instead as much as possible. It involved treats at key points but even there, there wasn't a whole lot going on.
I tried to absorb it all, came back, and since then Astro has been on fire. Over the past few days he has:
1) Had amazing recall. I mean amazing, he can be in the middle of doing one of his favorite activities and he gets whiplash running back to me if I call him. I actually trusted him to drag a line behind him in my parent's yard! I know that might seem so insignificant to someone with a dog who cares about people and sticks close, but Astro has NEVER offered to stick close by on his own, he's ALWAYS preferred to dash a mile away as soon as you give him a single inch of freedom.
2) Offered close heeling for extended periods of time on walks, with eye contact (!!!!). Not because I cue it, just because he's checking in (!!) and wants to work (!!!)
3) Specifically run up with high value things, with eager and soft body language, trying to get me to trade or take it from him. This dog was a RGer at a young age over everything from sticks to his own leash!
I can't believe it. It's so surreal, it's like I have a totally different dog. I was already quite a "soft" trainer before. I stopped using verbal corrections and no reward markers awhile back because I found that it dampened his already extremely tenuous desire to work for people. But it still wasn't enough, and now that it's 100% No Tension, Not Ever, he's so...willing. We've finally reached the point where HE seeks ME out to do stuff.
I truly am glad I got him. He has taught me so much. What 99.99999% of dogs will let you get away with, he will not, and obviously that's frustrating as sin but I am learning to be so much more patient and thoughtful. If I let myself feel - not say out loud, not act on, just THINK - "this dog is so annoying, why isn't he doing what I want?" for even ONE MOMENT, he says "screw you" and runs off to guard something, and I'm finally starting to count that as a blessing, because he's turning me into the kind of trainer I want to be whether I like it or not :rofl1:
Anyway, here's a slightly old pic, because I know how every thread is better when there are pics
