This blog is going to be about training dogs. It is my experience with training. In it I will discuss what I do on a daily basis and try to measure my progress toward my goals - keeping in mind of course that often times, my goals and my dogs goals are quite different.
Soo...what the heck is training anyway. Wikipedia says: Obedience Training usually refers to the training of a dog and the term is most commonly used in that context. Obedience training ranges from very basic training, such as teaching the dog to reliably respond to basic commands such as "sit", "down", "come", and "stay", to high level competition such as agility, competitive obedience, or herding.
I don't find that enlightening. I'm not really an expert in dog training. My dogs however, are masters of human training. My blog is going to be about my adventures in trying to learn from my dogs on how to effectively illicit intended responses . I feel what this means is that my goals for their behavior is going to blend with their goals of getting resources.
I'll begin today by introducing the characters you will meet during the time I maintain the blog. I have four dogs:
Rocky: The Rock of our little band. He is protective of our home and of us. Definitely can depend on Rocky in a dark alley. We nicknamed him Eeyore. He is the grumpy guy in our house. Definitely a pessimist, his favorite thing in the world is fresh apricots off our tree second only to a specific squeaky ball we call "puppy crack," and of course, we can not forget his love of splashing water.
Maddie: The Sweetness in our pack. Maddie is my most accomplished trainer. She could teach courses on manipulation. If Rocky has something Maddie wants, she will pick up something that she doesn't want and start to play with it. She will toss it in the air, pounce on it, getting closer and closer to Rocky. She will increase her intensity and just when Rocky can't stand it any longer, she will toss the toy in the air close enough that Rocky will drop what he has and pounce on it. Maddie calmly walks over and gets whatever Rocky had (what she wanted in the first place) and leaves Rocky standing there with a toy in his mouth nobody wanted anyway. This works EVERYTIME. There is definately something to learn from this.
Tazz: My Shadow. My blue eyed brown eyed nutball. Tazz has a busy mind. He is always wondering what other dogs/humans are doing and forgets to focus on me. He is also a very good trainer. He has trained me to feed him, to give up when he acts like an idiot, and to reduce my training criteria when I shouldn't. But Tazz has taught me a great deal more than the negative. He has taught me that ego has nothing whatsoever to do with dog training. It is best to leave it at home in a box and not bring it with out when working your dogs. He has taught me that patience is the most important criteria of training.
Fin: The baby. Why oh why you ask did you get a fourth dog? Hmm. I think that is like asking "why'd you eat all of that?" I couldn't help myself. Fin is now 12 weeks old and is definately the baby. She is a spitfire of energy and is showing signs of the kind of trainer Maddie is.
You will find alot of Fin in this blog as much of the "training" that will be undertaken by me in the next couple years will be focused on Fins development. Rocks Maddie and of course Tazz will also be featured as I'm always trying to teach new things to all my dogs.
During the next few years, I'm hoping to share humor, drama, and perhaps a few words of wisdom along the way.
That's it for Aug 15 2007. Vici
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