October 9, 2016

Fall Trick Training Progress


With winter close on the heels of this beautiful fall weather, I'm breaking out the props and the clicker in preparation for trick training to keep The Ginger Sisters occupied when the nights get cold and dark. Ruby has been working hard on several new tricks and Boca will try anything if it means she gets more food! I'm so proud of how far Ruby's 'hold' trick has come. The last time we shared our progress, she was ever-so-patiently persevering through my klutziness and through trial and error I found the toys that are easiest for her to hold. The fact that one of them happens to be a bouquet of flowers is just too adorable for words.

We are in the very early stages of a new trick, which I'll call "toro" but isn't quite ready for a cue yet. The idea is for Ruby to run through the towel like a bull would (for the record, mock bull fighting is the only type I condone). You can see a short session in the video below - I love how Ruby is always adding her own flourish, such as the spin.



The next video is a fairly long session working on "hold," and it was our second session this evening as my phone ran out of memory and stopped recording the first time. I know this trick takes a tremendous amount of balance and core strength and am so delighted by Ruby's obvious enthusiasm. I use luring more than I usually do with her to help her find her balance.



Boca impressed me tonight with the most coherent version of "roll over" that we've ever had. Up until this point (probably our fifth serious session) there has been a lot of random thrashing around, pawing my hands and general shenanigans. The less luring I can do, the better with her, because she is entirely too food motivated. I was questioning whether or not Boca really understands clicker training but I think tonight's session shows that it finally did "click!"



Watching the videos after the fact I can see how much fun both girls have with trick training - it really is a wonderful way to bond with and increase my communication skills with my girls. We will have to see what other amusing things we can come up with this winter! 


This post is part of the Positive Pet Training Blog Hop, hosted by Tenacious Little Terrier and Rubicon Days. The hop happens on the first Monday of every month, and is open for a full week - please join us in spreading the word about the rewards of positive training! The next hop will begin on November 7th and the theme is Indoor Activities and Games.

8 comments:

  1. Very very cool! Always great to meet another R+ trainer :D love the tricks and am interested in this blog hop concept! excited to connect with you!

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  2. My biggest struggle is that Monte is not food driven. like ... not. at. all. And if we try to use a toy or praise ... eh looks at you like "seriously?". Training has been ... interesting. Luckily he wants to please so sit, stay, heel, and other basics came well. It's doing tricks that he just will not do.

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  3. Such a fantastic idea. I really like the clicker training idea and have done it with medium success for cats as well.

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  4. Tricks are amazing! We do them a lot during the winter, too! It really helps them be more relaxed and mentally exercised! Your girls are doing absolutely awesome! :)

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  5. Oh my gosh, those tricks are so cute! I love that photo of Ruby holding the bouquet. I think Sophie might be able to do that, because it is a position she normally sits in when she wants attention.

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  6. How cute! They are making great progress and I love the tricks they are learning. Keep up the great work :-)

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  7. This is such a cute trick! We need to work on Mr. N's hug.

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  8. That's one thing I love about looking at the video afterwards, you can really see how much fun they are having. That's the best part of trick training! I love that "toro" trick, I want to do that one with Luke too. Both of your girls are doing so great!

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