As my Aussie pup, Izzie, has just turned 14 months old, I find myself looking back and wondering where did that first year go? The cute little ball of wiggling fluff and needle sharp puppy teeth is no where to be found. And in her place now stands a full grown (sort-of) dog that fits in with the rest of my pack like she was born to live in our household. This past year seriously was a blur! And of course I have to ask myself...Have I taught her all the skills I had planned? Was her socialization solid enough to prepare her for her future as a performance dog? While only time will tell, I think I can safely answer "yes" to that question.
So what skills does a "performance puppy" really need? Of course, a performance puppy is still a puppy so all of the regular puppy stuff is the first priority. House-training and house rules, management to prevent the development of problem behaviors while the preferred behaviors are being installed, basic obedience, impulse control and of course, lot's of positive socialization. But beyond those things...what?
Being somewhat of an obsessive person, I have made list upon list of skills and behaviors to teach a performance puppy. With that being said, I can pretty much summarize my long, long list into 3 most important things:
Attention Work starts with clicking any offered attention and paying up for it! I never nag or pester my pup for her attention, instead I wait patiently for it. For example, we get out of the car to head into the training building. But before we move away from the car, I stand perfectly still, keeping the leash short enough that she can't find entertainment "out there" and wait. Eventually she looks up at me. Click/Treat! Now we can explore the area and head into the building. She learns that she gets all the things she wants by looking to me. After repeating this same scenario every place we go, it becomes automatic...a default behavior. Regardless of what excitement is going on around us, we never progress anywhere until pup gives me attention.
Toy & Game Playing is obvious in importance to all of us dog sport fanatics. Toy play and chase games bring out the prey drive in our pups and typically speeds them up. Toy play is great for teaching impulse control and rules for play, such as get it, drop it and teeth on skin ends the game. Toy play can also get the pup so aroused that it's difficult for her to keep her "thinking cap" on. This is useful information and something we can work on! Tugging, chase me, fetch, etc. all make playing with mom super fun and super exciting. This has been one of the more difficult lessons for Izzie. She will tug like a maniac, chase and fetch BUT if treats are around, toys are dead to her. This is still a work in progress. While there is nothing wrong with rewarding her with food, she is a "foodie" after all, I do want to be able to have the option of using toys as a motivator or reward for her, as well. Little by little she's getting it!
So what skills does a "performance puppy" really need? Of course, a performance puppy is still a puppy so all of the regular puppy stuff is the first priority. House-training and house rules, management to prevent the development of problem behaviors while the preferred behaviors are being installed, basic obedience, impulse control and of course, lot's of positive socialization. But beyond those things...what?
Being somewhat of an obsessive person, I have made list upon list of skills and behaviors to teach a performance puppy. With that being said, I can pretty much summarize my long, long list into 3 most important things:
- Attention Work
- Toy & Game Playing
- Trick Training
Attention Work starts with clicking any offered attention and paying up for it! I never nag or pester my pup for her attention, instead I wait patiently for it. For example, we get out of the car to head into the training building. But before we move away from the car, I stand perfectly still, keeping the leash short enough that she can't find entertainment "out there" and wait. Eventually she looks up at me. Click/Treat! Now we can explore the area and head into the building. She learns that she gets all the things she wants by looking to me. After repeating this same scenario every place we go, it becomes automatic...a default behavior. Regardless of what excitement is going on around us, we never progress anywhere until pup gives me attention.
Toy & Game Playing is obvious in importance to all of us dog sport fanatics. Toy play and chase games bring out the prey drive in our pups and typically speeds them up. Toy play is great for teaching impulse control and rules for play, such as get it, drop it and teeth on skin ends the game. Toy play can also get the pup so aroused that it's difficult for her to keep her "thinking cap" on. This is useful information and something we can work on! Tugging, chase me, fetch, etc. all make playing with mom super fun and super exciting. This has been one of the more difficult lessons for Izzie. She will tug like a maniac, chase and fetch BUT if treats are around, toys are dead to her. This is still a work in progress. While there is nothing wrong with rewarding her with food, she is a "foodie" after all, I do want to be able to have the option of using toys as a motivator or reward for her, as well. Little by little she's getting it!
Trick Training is a very broad category that I lump many, many important skills into. Most importantly, it teaches a puppy how to learn, how to try new things, how to experiment with their environment, how to use their bodies. I teach tricks to help overcome any potential "issues" that may crop up. For instance, by the time Izzie was 4 months old she was showing signs of sound and motion sensitivity. While she could happily move around on a wobble board, sudden movement startled her and sent her tearing away. Certain sounds had the same effect. Teaching her to target objects with her paw and then transferring it to cabinet doors, drawers and any other things that move and slam helped her get past her fear. "Slam it!" was now a fun game that earned Clicks and Treats! The first time I put the target on the cabinet, she tapped it ever so softly. When the cabinet barely moved, she bolted! I had already clicked the instant her paw touched the cabinet so after bolting, she raced back to get her treat. Raising criteria little by little, she now will happily SLAM the cabinets by hitting it hard with both paws and stand there wiggling as she waits for her treat.
Body awareness, balance and strengthening tricks include pivoting on a disk, getting all four feet inside a small bowl, sitting pretty, backing up, balancing on discs, wobble boards, and hopping on and off planks. Stretching (or "take a bow"), paw raises and my favorite rear leg lift trick "What do boy's do?" are all great for body awareness, as well as a few laughs!
Agility-specific skills such as sending to objects, circling objects, going through and under objects are also shaped as tricks. After shaping pup to get on an object, I then shape 2 on 2 off contact behavior by waiting to click as she exits the object and her front paws hit the ground. There is really no limit to what skills can be taught by way of tricks. And most importantly...it's fun!
While initially I thought that we were behind in our agility training, I've been amazed at how quickly it is all coming together thanks to our solid foundation!
So beyond the puppy basics, what skills do you teach your performance pups?
Body awareness, balance and strengthening tricks include pivoting on a disk, getting all four feet inside a small bowl, sitting pretty, backing up, balancing on discs, wobble boards, and hopping on and off planks. Stretching (or "take a bow"), paw raises and my favorite rear leg lift trick "What do boy's do?" are all great for body awareness, as well as a few laughs!
Agility-specific skills such as sending to objects, circling objects, going through and under objects are also shaped as tricks. After shaping pup to get on an object, I then shape 2 on 2 off contact behavior by waiting to click as she exits the object and her front paws hit the ground. There is really no limit to what skills can be taught by way of tricks. And most importantly...it's fun!
While initially I thought that we were behind in our agility training, I've been amazed at how quickly it is all coming together thanks to our solid foundation!
So beyond the puppy basics, what skills do you teach your performance pups?
"I'm a big girl now!"
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