Smartypants

Some training updates: Potty training is not going well, but super low temperatures here in MN have made what is difficult nearly impossible. So I won't talk about that now. I also won't talk about the fact that he is easily startled into barking frenzies by odd noises, especially at night, but also on TV or outside the house. Being woken multiple times throughout the night by a barking dog is not fun!  I am thinking this is due to insecurity, and am hopeful that it will be something we can do something about. These things make me sad about the things he might have gone through in the year(s) before coming to us, and reminds me that he is a puppy mill survivor with mental damage.

When Ozzy arrived, I was worried about him learning commands--he'd never been taught a thing in his life. So, let me give an update on what the little dude has learned already! He knows 'sit' and 'kennel'. And he surprised me this week by putting his little paw on my hand when I said 'shake a paw'! I had been working with him when he was in sit, putting my hand on the floor, palm up, and holding a treat down under my thumb in my palm. I rewarded him if he touched my hand, even by accident, with his paw. The other day, I went to put my hand on the floor and he pawed it before I could set it down! Tried again--same thing! Wow! He does it consistently, and even varies what paw he offers! :)

And...he has 'down' figured out! (Those of you who have a dachshund know that this is challenging since they're already so low and close to the floor.) I had to gently and playfully tip him over a few times. But he is understanding that command, too! Oh, and he's good at standing 'up' onto raised hands. Brett and I try to play 'Ozzy, come!' at least once a night. We sit on opposite ends of a room and reward him for running to each of us. Everything he's learned has been through positive reinforcement.

I've been watching Youtube videos and refreshing myself on the 'marking behavior' technique. I think I'm a slower learner than Ozzy is--I sometimes forget to say 'YES!' the moment he does what I'm asking him to do. (I tried this technique when we first got our doberman, Bella. I never stuck with it...looking back, I think I hadn't found the right high motivation treat for her when we tried it. Definitely going to give it a go again using Chuckit balls--her favorite things in the world...) So we are all learning and re-learning here.

I'm worried that Ozzy will be a plump little sausage with all the treats he's getting! But the running back and forth, and hopefully warmer temperatures for some walks soon will be helpful. And by then, he'll have trust and know about rewards. I've still yet to find the "it" thing to motivate him besides food...Today as we worked and learned together, I didn't have it in my head that he is a fragile puppy mill dog. He is learning so well, it's easy to forget. It's a complete joy to watch him learn to be a dog.

Learning is tough work! It tires a guy right out! :)

Learning to Communicate: Kennel Training

When Ozzie first arrived at our home, he was reserved and super mellow. He still is. Trying to figure out something to motivate him to teach him is a challenge. Of course, treats/food work. We have a bag of Zuke's crunchy naturals and blueberries that we've used. The rattle of a container or crinkle of a package will have him running for a treat. He knows 'sit', but not reliably yet.  I use the command with a hand gesture and try my best to reward him with praise or a treat the instant his but hits the floor. He's learning! The command that we've been working on that gives me the most hope is 'kennel'.  We keep the kennel door off when we are home. We want him to learn that the kennel is his safe, private place and that he won't mind being in it when we are not home.

The first time I worked on the 'kennel' command with Ozzy, I positioned myself sitting in front of the kennel. I already had his attention since he knew I had treats, but the word 'kennel' was new as far as I knew. I threw the treat into the back of the kennel with a sweeping motion and said 'kennel' at the same time. He watched the treat go in, and sheepishly reached in--advantage dachshund: he could keep his back feet outside the kennel and still reach the treat in the back!--but after a few tries, he went all the way in and turned around. He still wanted to be back out, but I met him with praise and ear scratches when he came back to me. We repeated this maybe 5-6 times, and ended on a successful try. I try to end lessons with some verbal cue (and should probably add a gesture).

The next time we worked on 'kennel', I sat in the same place using the same gesture. He willingly went in for the treat. Toward the end of the lesson, I kept the treat in my other hand and asked him to 'kennel', gesturing inside as if I had thrown a treat in. In he went! And when he turned around, I praised him and gave him the treat, trying to give him some scratches and love before he came back out.

The next time we tried--he went right in, turned around and sat there. Boom! Goooood boy!!!!! New challange, he now understood that going in = treat. He didn't want to come back out! So, now we had the opportunity to add 'come' to the training. Win, win! :)

Right now, I still need to physically be touching or gesturing inside the kennel for him to understand what I want.  My plan is to vary my distances/locations within reach of the kennel and work on command/word recognition without the gesture. When he gets that, I will try moving further away from the kennel. Ozzie's success and consistency will determine the speed that this will happen.

This one lesson has given me so much hope. He CAN learn commands! He IS smart! And, although I'm thinking it could be just food motivation at this point, I have hope that he does have the drive to please.

Side notes: we never use our kennel as punishment.
Apologies for the shakey photo. Hard to get a picture, give command, get a still moment and reward all at the same time!