Staying to Play - A Surprising Training Discovery

Although this weekend's outdoor activites were thwarted by yet another spring snowstorm (I referred to yesterday as Gray the First), I was able to get in a fun Frisbee game with Ruby before the green was whited-out again. I've been incorporating the long line and flying disc into any outdoor training with Ruby, because it's the one thing I've found that she finds highly motivating, even in the presence of her many triggers. Recently, we even had a great experience with two different dogs being walked around the perimeter of the lawn we play on, where Ruby briefly looked at the dogs and then returned to obsessing over her Frisbee. For a dog so reactive she knows the sound of the doors of the places where dogs live opening from inside our house, this is huge. It was around that time I decided I needed to order the things (Booda's TailSpin Flyer if we're being specific) in bulk from our favorite online retailer. They are magic!

Springing Forward Into Optimism

Trying to fall asleep last night at an earlier hour than usual because I knew the time change would be taking its toll on Monday morning, thoughts and conversations from the weekend coalesced into something thematic:  

 

Take the leap, spring ahead, trust in what you don’t know. 

Before turning off my light, I had just read the first few chapters of Relaxed and Forward, a collection of horse training essays written my friend Anna Blake. We share the idea that training is about relationship, and that's why her training book is less how-to and more meditation. We had dinner together Friday night and discussed the life-changing magic of the long-line and flying disc for Ruby. Earlier in the month I wrote about using the long-line for recall training but we’ve been doing much more goofing off than training. The interesting thing is…goofing off is working wonders.

Walking Together, Walking Apart and Finding Your Dog's Motivation

Although the photo above shows me walking both dogs as I so often do (my dad was the cameraman here, and if he joins us he walks Boca) but my goal for Walk Your Dog Week (October 1st-7th) was to do more one-on-one walking with The Ginger Sisters. I think they appreciate the focused attention, and they are two very different dogs with very different needs and motivations. 

This weekend I spent some time with Ruby and Boca individually. Ruby's solo walk was more of a solo play session using her long line and flying disc, but there is nothing she finds more rewarding than chasing, fetching and tugging, so I used that to our advantage to burn off some energy and also strengthen our bond through play. I've actually never tried using her long line with her flying disc before - we used to take it to the dog park or ball field but I decided to give it a whirl and it went spectacularly! Her line is only 15 feet and I now that I know how well this works, we have a 30 foot on the way. Being the paranoid helicopter dog parent that I am, I was sure to attach her little safety line (a toy dog coupler) from the base of the snap on the long line to her harness ring. 

I threw her disc gently so it wouldn't sail too far and then prepared myself to run as well so she didn't hit the end of the line. Ruby had a blast and even caught the disc mid-air a few times which is a big deal for my cautious, careful girl (she reminds me so much of myself in gym class, dodging the volleyball). After she caught it she would run gleefully in circles and even toss the disc up for herself to catch again. It filled my heart with joy to see her having so much fun. After she was sufficiently tired, we continued on a short walk around the neighborhood. You'll notice there is only one loose leash in the picture...I like to think less that Ruby pulls and more that I don't walk fast enough for her. The long line gave her room to explore and sniff while also coming back to me. Since Ruby will never be an off-leash dog, I need to utilize this tool more often to give her increased freedom. 

Boca is my easygoing, ambling girl. Individual walks with her are a pleasure; unless she is trying to snag a chicken bone off the ground she is always strolling at my side, mouth open in a smile, tail wagging. For her solo walk, I took along a pocketful of treats. Food is still the number one motivator for my former street dog. One of the things we struggled with in our beginning obedience class was a sit in different positions. Boca's tendency was to pivot and sit facing me rather than at my side. I was surprised to find that in our day-to-day informal walks and work on sit in the house, Boca has naturally picked up sitting at my side! She was eager to earn some tasty treats as we meandered around the neighborhood practicing that as well as some short-distance recalls. Since walking with a reactive dog (Ruby) requires constant vigilance and what I like to call "Defensive Dog Walking" skills, it's a wonderful break for me to be able to simply wander at will and not dart around the corner if we happen to see someone else coming. 

As the days grow shorter and colder, I know it will be harder to maintain my commitment to walking my dogs separately, but I'd like to make a point of doing so on at least one weekend day. Ruby would like to hone her skills as a disc-catching terrier and Boca clearly enjoys her snack-sprinkled saunters.

This post is part of the Positive Pet Training Blog Hop, hosted by Cascadian Nomads,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! 

New Tug Toys for Ruby Mean New Training Tools

 Tug toy haul from the dog show.

Ruby lives to tug. She knows the word tug and she knows how to spell it, too. I've started chanting "OMG it's time for T-U-G" after supper. She knows where all her tug toys are kept, in the downstairs coat closet. Although it took some time to ensure that our tugging games did not result in finger loss due to over-enthusiasm, I have never subscribed to the myth that playing tug creates aggression. We use games of tug for indoor exercise, trick training, impulse control training and bonding. Tugging is a valuable reinforcer for Ruby since it is one of her most favorite things.

Last year at the big cluster dog show, I got her a tug toy at a vendor booth that was located next to the flyball demonstration area. That tug lasted almost a full year with use several times a week (rotated with other toys) and so my annual dog show visit this year included a mission to stock up on more. 

I ended up buying three tugs from that same vendor: a tennis ball on a stretchy pull, a colorful braided fleece and a squeaky blue fur. I debated getting her one of the tugs made with real rabbit fur but settled on the synthetic instead. As I was standing in line to pay, I heard a din of barking and thought at first that some dogs were in a fight - then I realized it was just the flyball dogs' pure, unadulterated joy. Satisfied with my purchase, I went over to watch flyball for as long as my ears could stand.

I couldn't resist one more toy at a booth in the agility arena: the one that looks most like something out of Fifty Shades of Grey, which is actually made of recycled rubber liners from milking machines! There was a time when my shopping sprees meant new shoes or trendy fashion accessories - now it's a bag full of dog toys that makes me happiest, knowing how much fun Ruby gets out of them.

So far we've tested out all four - Ruby took a while to show interest in the rubber one, but Boca likes it a lot. I think the fleece one is Ruby's favorite by far, and it would be so easy to make my own using a tutorial like this. Ruby is getting better at her release ("drop it") and I am incorporating more complex asks into our games, such as a string of cues or longer wait times. As we reserve tug toys for supervised play, I am fairly certain these new ones will keep us tugging and training through 2015. 

Do you play tug with your dog?