An upsetting setback, canine first aid, therapy dog requirements and bonding time with Knightley

1 year 2 weeks 3 days old

So, there's been a bit of a setback in getting the new pup. As I've been struggling with a migraine on and off for a week or so now, I sent her an email instead of phoning the breeder again. Email did seem to be her preferred contact method on her website anyway. I didn't anticipate a problem, I had offered to put a deposit on the pup, so she knew I really wanted one of them. In my experience many breeders are rather poor about returning emails, so I rather assumed she had got the email but hadn't returned it. Anyway, I finally get a response from her today saying she has already let people pick puppies from the litter and there aren't many males left! So much for first choice. She said she'd been away at a show over the weekend, hence not getting the email. But that doesn't wash because I sent it well before the weekend. I'd also told her I couldn't choose until I temperament tested at 7 weeks when we were on the phone, and yet she went ahead and let people choose at 5-6 weeks of age. Very shortly after we talked actually. GRRRRR. I tried not to respond with an angry email but I was very upset. I don't think I was too rude at least!

Knightley snapping at the water from the hose. We've changed
our routine a bit since his diagnosis and since his symptoms are
becoming still more obvious. We spend a lot more time playing in
the backyard, and our walks are shorter so that if he looks like he's
tiring we can come home quickly. He loves the bite the water game.
Is this a dog that should be put down?!?!

Maybe it's for the best. I didn't get a 100% good vibe from her, especially when I told her about how bad Knightley's hips were.... she said "you know what you should do with that dog?" and I said.... "what??", and she replied, "you should put him down now." Pretty final huh. She thought that he would never really be happy as he'd always be in pain to an extent. Talking to my hubby later he made a good point which I should have thought of at the time and pointed out to her, that I'm always in pain but should I be put down?? Knightley may be showing a lot more symptoms, but he still has a LOT of fun, and is a very very happy dog. I wouldn't even think of putting him down until that completely changes.

So, now it's back to the drawing board. I gave a golden breeder/golden showing steward a ring earlier this evening who lives here in Canberra and we had a really good chat. There's a possibility of a litter way up to the north (Taree - for those Aussies), even slightly further north than we went for Knightley, although it may be slightly quicker on faster roads. But instead of having the pup in 2.5 weeks time, it'd be more like 3 months as the litter isn't even born yet. It may not even have enough males to get a good choice. I had a really good talk to the Canberra woman though, and she is going to ask around the golden networks for me and see what litters are coming up. I am acutely aware that every month more I have to wait is another month without that increased independence I was beginning to glimpse. It's just so very annoying.

On the other hand, it means that we won't be going away this coming weekend, and there is a pet first aid and CPR training session that I would like to attend. There is really only one organisation that does this training, it only happens once every six months or so, and I've watched this date come closer and closer. I was quite annoyed when I realised that the testing of the puppies was going to stop me from going. No longer I guess. I'll see if I can register for it tomorrow. I think that people who own working dogs who have a higher chance of being hurt because they are out in public more often should know a bit more about dog health care, especially first aid/CPR. Also, because I feed raw - and the new pup will be on raw from day 1 - I'd like to know how to clear obstructions etc, just in case. I am careful to feed big chunks of food, rather than little things like chicken necks which are quite dangerous for all but the most tiny of dogs, as they can rather easily get stuck and be choked on. But very very occasionally a dog can choke on a bigger bit. Or even a toy. So that's another reason why I want to go.

Several days ago I looked up a bunch of info about training Knightley as a therapy dog and getting certified through the Delta Society Australia. He looks like he'd do great on all the temperament testing part, and pretty well on the skills section. However, he needs to be able to heel perfectly in just a fixed collar and lead, and also come on first call with other dogs around in a new place.... and I think those two things are his biggest challenge at the moment. Just because he so wants to be with other dogs/people he pulls too much, and won't come to me in case I take him away from the exciting place lol. Other than that we would be fine. So I know what we have to work on in the next 6 odd months before he is old enough to take the test. I never did do enough recall (come) training with him from day 1. I really needed hubby's help with that one, to play what Sue Ailsby calls the "Come Game". It helps fix come in the dog's mind as the greatest most fun thing ever throughout every level of training. Knightley is good about coming to me if there are relatively few distractions, but we continue practicing with distractions. He's too friendly for his own good!! All the sociability training I've done with him will stand him in very good stead for those parts of the tests.... like being patted by 4 people at once, being patted by someone very clumsily, being bumped into, walking through a crowd, having someone throw their arms around and yell in a very loud and upset voice right in front of him and so on. All that early public training will pay off. I have been doing loose leash work with his fixed collar on and he is pretty good outside .... until a dog turns up, or a bird, or the postman....... *melodramatic sigh*

My beautiful furry boy only a couple of days ago. He's been lying
down outside chewing eucalyptus sticks a lot recently. I think it's
because his 1yr wisdom teeth have been coming in, and sticks are
quite soothing. I also have a sneaking suspicion that he quite likes
the taste of eucalyptus, and at least it makes his breath smell
quite nice!

Knightley and I are spending some good time together bonding at the moment. I am quite aware that sooner or later we will be getting that new puppy, so am making the most of my lovely loving Knightley. Also, because I've been pretty unwell with migraine, fever, and lots of joint pain, I like to have him on my lap for the comfort. Not that much of him fits on my lap anymore!! It really doesn't seem like that long ago we brought him home... and yet one just has to look at that great big furry beast to know time has indeed raced on! He is becoming an extremely furry golden, and still has a couple of years until his coat is fully grown to its maximum length. It remains beautifully soft from his raw diet and regular brushing (the brushing in attempt to slow down the rain of fur that goes EVERYWHERE... especially on any black clothes we are tempted to wear!).

He's a good boy, my Knightley, and continues to pick up things for me in the home. I just miss him terribly when I go to the shops and he never comes along for a training run anymore. His hips are making more and more clicking noises, proof of his hip dysplasia if I needed it... and while he doesn't seem all that uncomfortable I know I am doing the right thing by having him take it easy. It's just very difficult to lose the independence I just began to glimpse.....

Must find that new puppy!!!

Knightley's assistance dog permit, public transport, strides towards loose leash

9 months 1 week 4 days old

Working on sit stays outside. Inside these things are easy - outside

Well FINALLY today, after about 11 sporadic months of investigation, calls to different government departments, agencies, various call centres and more I finally hit upon the right person for the question. I had been trying to find out how to get a public access permit for Knightley here in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT, a region somewhat like a state that surrounds Canberra, the capital city of Australia), which is not exactly organised when it comes to assistance dogs. The only mention on the internet of assistance dog access in the ACT is to mention that to get no holds barred public access here your dog must have a permit. So this time I hit upon the right person after like five call transfers and half an hour on hold. All I need to do is when Knightley is fully trained is completely document his training (videos would be helpful apparently), get signatures from any trainers who may have helped me, and get a letter from my doctor saying that I would benefit from an assistance dog. Then I send it into Domestic Animal Services and they assess my training, and they hopefully give me the permit.

My beautiful Knightley, definitely growing up with a very
male Golden Retriever profile. You can see his yellow ACT
tags on his collar. He will get special assistance dog tags if
given the permit.

I will do it properly as if with a program, and keep a full training journal, as well as do the videos. I won't start keeping the journals for maybe another two months, until he is 11 months old. As there is no official format for this application, I will let both IAADP (International Association of Assistance Dog Partners) and ADI (Assistance Dogs International) be my guide, in terms of training standard and training amount. Both IAADP and ADI recommend a minimum period of six months of training, and I can see Knightley being mature enough at 17 months, so I shall start officially training in two or so months, and Knightley's status in my header will change from "Puppyhood" to "In Training". In my mind he will start being a Assistance Dog in Training then. In North America, where assistance dogs are called service dogs, they called them Service Dogs in Training, but you often see the acronym SDiT. You don't actually see ADiT for some reason. Anyway, back to the topic at hand.... the recommended number of training hours overall is 120, of which 30 hours should be devoted to public outings. Theoretically you can count hours before the six months starts, but I will only be counting those after then. Knightley and I have a lot of work to do.

My good boy. Going well for his age but still lots to learn.

Looking at the IAADP website, the "Manners" section of assistance dog minimum training standards for public access is currently our main concern. Obviously Knightley's task training is the more important part of his training for his job, but I already have a good start on the task training, and the harder tasks can even come after Knightley has got his public access. Which is why all the public access training is so important, and not at all insignificant in its own right. Some of it is improving already, and some of it is not a problem.... but other things aren't so good. Here are the required manners in full, from here, with my comment in red.

Manners: a dog must acquire proper social behavior skills. It includes at a minimum:

A slow(!) recall back to me. Knightley tends to be a fairly steady
dog and I don't mind that, so long as his reactions to my cues are
instant. I would like a bit more dash, but that just aint my boy.
In addition to manners and task training, assistance dogs should
know basic obedience: sit, down, recall, heel, and stay.

• No aggressive behavior toward people or other animals - no biting, snapping, snarling, growling or lunging and barking at them when working off your property. (easy)
• No soliciting food or petting from other people while on duty. (no soliciting food fairly easy, but when people reach for Knightley's head, he leans towards them for pats.... so work to be done there)
• No sniffing merchandise or people or intruding into another dog’s space while on duty. (he occasionally sniffs, and he's quite hopeless around other dogs, LOTS of work there.)
• Socialise to tolerate strange sights, sounds, odors etc. in a wide variety of public settings. (easy, done this since a young age, will continue to expose him to new situations)
• Ignores food on the floor or dropped in the dog’s vicinity while working outside the home. (not good at this! he will leave the food on cue, but will not ignore on default, heaps of work here)
• Works calmly on leash. No unruly behavior or unnecessary vocalizations in public settings. (pretty good, some leash work, not unruly but barked on two occasions in public before, need to make him ok with hubby walking out of sight)
• No urinating or defecating in public unless given a specific command or signal to toilet in an appropriate place. (very good with first command, not quite as prompt with other, one time he had an upset stomach in public and whined and looked at me constantly until I got the message and took him outside, is a good boy!)

A life with this beautiful creature by your side, who would say no?
I know this is not considered a task, and you are not allowed to
have a dog with you for this reason, but Knightley makes me feel
so much more -able-, just having him with me when I am out. He
takes the dis out of dis-ability just by boosting my confidence.
Yep, I love my dog quite a lot. If he were to fail now as an
assistance dog I would be absolutely beyond consolation.,

So, I have something real and tangible to aim for now, which is great because my training has become a little fuzzy of late. I will focus on training that would be part of a PAT (Public Access Test) if Knightley was going to take one. I really like these examples from IAADPs PAT (taken once again from here).

 ( 1 ) safely cross a parking lot, (yes) halt for traffic, (yes) and ignore distractions; (sometimes)
( 2 ) heel through narrow aisles; (fairly well)
( 3 ) hold a Sit-Stay when a shopping cart passes by (yes) or when a person stops to chat and pets the dog; (sometimes flops down for a tummy rub)
(4 ) hold a Down Stay when a child approaches and briefly pets the dog; (yes but sometimes rolls over onto back)
( 5 ) hold a Sit Stay when someone drops food on the floor; (yes) hold a Down Stay when someone sets a plate of food on the floor within 18" of the dog, then removes it a minute later. [the handler may say “Leave It” to help the dog resist the temptation.] (if I can say leave it, yes, if not...)
( 6 ) remain calm if someone else holds the leash while the handler moves 20 ft. away; (yes)
( 7 ) remain calm while another dog passes within 6 ft. of the team during the test. This can occur in a parking lot or store. Alternatively, you could arrange for a neighbor with a pet dog to stroll past your residence while you load your dog into a vehicle at the beginning of the test. (NO!)

So I think I'll do some concentrating on PAT type training for a bit, to get him ready for more public access outings in a couple of months time. Our public outings have been mainly only to our nearby shops, which I have permission for. Unfortunately, I have no rights of public access until he is fully trained, so wherever I take him I must get permission first but I have found businesses to be very accommodating so far. I have taken him very briefly to our big shopping mall, to an office supply store, and we went to that factory outlet mall the other day as well (where I had my first access challenge). That's about it so far though, apart from poking our heads into my work the other day for about 2 minutes so he could get a handle on the floor.

Anyway, that is enough talk of Knightley's permit and his training towards it. Recently we have finally made some strides towards a reasonable loose leash, especially when Knightley is 'working' in his vest. It does partially dissolve under stress, but it is a good start. I have found it very hard to click and treat whilst outside while holding a leash and a crutch, so it has taken me much longer to train than I had wanted. Looking back I would have done it differently from when he was even a baby puppy. When he was a baby I would stop if he pulled, but I was happy enough to have him out of heel position. Now I realise stopping still gives the dog quite a bit of satisfaction, you really must BACK UP as it swings the dog's head away from whatever it wants to get to. If you just stop, it can stare and continue to pull to try to get to the thing it wants. Not good. Also being simply happy to have him not pulling, but not have him in heel position has created a dog who is much harder to now GET in heel position lol. I should have insisted on it from the beginning. There are SO many things I will do differently with my next dog. Poor Knightley gets to be on the receiving end of all my mistakes!

I had some unfortunate news yesterday. Our public transport service (buses) won't allow Knightley to ride until he is fully trained, not even for training purposes. I've been talking to a guy from there for a few days, as I wanted to get him on a bus before he was much older just to get him used to the motion, and lying under my legs etc. The younger the better really - once passed six months that is. But they won't allow him on there until he has his permit, which is completely daft because that means he will theoretically be fully trained and won't have been on a bus. I then had a brain wave and called the guy back and asked if I could take him on a bus while it was in the bus depot. It would allow us to practice getting on and sitting down in various different seats, and would also show the permit people that I had taken my training seriously. Still, I was mighty annoyed. How stupid that a dog has to be fully trained before it can touch a bus, but to be fully trained it should really have experience ON the bus! The world is a silly place.

On that note I shall leave you all.

Picking a puppy from a litter for assistance/service or therapy work

8 months 2 days old

Updated 13th June 2013

This is the third post in a series where I answer some of the common search queries I receive. I speak only reflecting my own experience, in this case temperament testing three litters - two to find Knightley and only one to find Apollo.

While this temperament test is intended for assistance/service puppy prospects, it would work perfectly well for testing a pet, a therapy dog, or a different type of working dog. You certainly wouldn't need to do all the parts of the tests if you were just looking for a pet, and I would only look for a puppy who scored at about the middle of the range - having a super smart dog as a pet can get you into trouble! Feel free to ask questions about adapting the test for pets or other working dogs.

Please note: This test can be used on adult dogs with a few small changes. You may have to skip the first test if the dog is large, you shouldn't clap for the recall test as adult dogs shouldn't need to be attracted like that, the food drive test is even more important as it also tests mouth inhibition (does the adult dog know not to use its teeth on your flesh?), and you'd have to do the webbing test with larger dogs on the ground. Often older dogs are quite touchy with their feet, but it may help to get down on the ground with them. Whether or not they are touchy with their feet shows how much work the previous owner has put into physical desensitisation and grooming.

You may also wish to add to the test a couple of commands - just to place the obedience/training level of the dog. Sit and down would be appropriate, and you could also test how the dog walks on a lead. When choosing an adult dog, having one that has had at least a little training bodes well for its other history.
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It was about three and half years ago I became interested in the idea of an assistance dog (we call service dogs assistance dogs here in Australia), but it took me much longer to research the practicalities of whether it would be feasible for me to have one. I eventually decided I would self train, but then it once again took me a long time to find a breeder, and then a litter and puppy I was happy with. Unfortunately Knightley (my first dog) was found to have severe hip dysplasia, so I had to go through the process all over again to find my second dog, Apollo.

Knightley, happy to lie at my feet and play with toys and get
lots of attention on the day we tested him when he was
7 weeks old. He did extremely well on the temperament test
that day, and the test has been borne out in his behaviour
since.

My experience that was finding the right breeder was important for finding the right puppy. You don't really want a breeder who is themselves quite timid and rarely goes anywhere, who mostly keeps to themselves on their property, as it seems from my experience that they can pass it onto their puppies. Find a breeder who has the puppies inside at least some of the time so from a young age they can get used to different surfaces. Also, it is important that they have people over to socialise with the pups, preferably children and men as even fully trained assistance dogs can be challenged interacting with them. Find a breeder who is likely to produce confident puppies so that you won't waste a trip going to see a timid litter

I have put together my own temperament test, which is a bit of a mixture of the Volhard test (which I see as quite outdated), the PAWS Working dog test and of my own devising, and all given a specific slant for public access work, which I've rather immodestly labeled as the DAD temperament test (downunder assistance dog). I ran it all past some very experienced assistance dog trainers who thought it was right on the mark, and I used it to select both my boys, who have both turned out to have wonderful temperaments, perfectly conjusive to acting as a working dog. You can read about my experience with the first litter I tested here, three puppies all of which I rejected. I wanted a male, and apparently *one* of the females in the litter had a confident, outgoing temperament, but that was not a good outcome for a litter of 6. They were extremely timid pups compared with the second litter of 11 puppies I looked at, 8 of which were male. The final litter I tested (from which Apollo came) was even more outgoing. The breeders put a lot of effort into raising those puppies and it really showed in the temperament test. Apollo was kept with his litter and mother until he was nearly 10 weeks old, and this turned out to be a very good thing. He learnt excellent bite inhibition and didn't ever nip us as a puppy, and learnt to get on with the other adult dogs the breeder owned. However, if the breeder isn't particularly proactive in their socialisation of the litter, it may be worth still bringing the pup home at 8 weeks so you can start the socialisation process. In Apollo's case he was better off remaining with the breeder for an extra couple of weeks.

Knightley doing the retrieve test with the breeder (after I had
done it too), very nicely I might add!

Anyway, here is the temperament test I used. I found sometimes you didn't need to go further than the second or third test with some puppies, because it was completely obvious that the puppy was unsuitable. A very experienced trainer once told me that the purpose of temperament testing was really to discount the puppies you didn't want, rather than the puppies you wanted. I found it quickly became very obvious when a puppy wasn't suitable. Deciding if a puppy was quite good enough is then up to you really, and that's where the scoring can come in handy, especially when comparing two puppies.

If possible do this test when the puppy is 7 weeks old, and get the puppy when it is wide awake as it will give a better performance. Try not to tire it out - if you are keen on it and want to do all the tests you may need to come back on another day. Little puppies need lots of rest!Taking a helper with you is recommended. You will want to prepare a temperament testing kit (see what to take further down the page).

DAD (Downunder Assistance Dog) Temperament Test

1. Lap Test

Lift the puppy onto your lap and simply stroke it. Note its posture and other body language carefully. Does it relax confidently on your lap and enjoy the stroking? Or does it crouch nervously and just shiver? This tests sociability. It is particularly important for Psych Assistance Dogs and therapy dogs.

Great ----- Relaxes on your lap, gives eye contact, curious OR climbs up towards your face to investigate and solicit attention 3 points
Good ----- Relaxes on your lap 2 points 
OK -------- Stands on your lap, loose and unafraid 1 point
Poor ------ Crouches on your lap, may tremble OR struggles to get down 0 points

2. At foot Test

Lift the puppy down to floor level at your feet. Make sure you are in a secure room or in a puppy pen for this one. Continue to pat the puppy as it is by your feet. Once again, watch its body language carefully. This tests sociability, independence and confidence. Once again this test is particularly important for Psych Assistance Dogs and Therapy dogs.

Great ----- Stays by your feet, enjoys the interaction, body loose 3 points
Good ----- Stays by your feet for a while, explores but comes back 2 points
OK -------- Stays briefly, off to explore showing independence 1 point
Poor ------ Moves away from you and cowers in a corner OR stays cowering against you, doesn't enjoy the stroking, body tight, possibly shivering 0 points

3. Recall/Come Test

Get your assistant to move the pup two or three metres (6 to 10 feet) away from you and call it to you - if the breeder is with you, ask what they use to call them for food time. You can clap or do anything else to help get the pup to you.

Great ----- Comes to you with little hesitation 3 points
Good ----- Takes a lot of encouragement, but comes 2 points
OK ------- Watches you, starts towards you, doesn't come whole way 1 point
Poor ------ Completely ignores you 0 points

4. Towel game Test

This is partly as a sight test, partly to test willingness to play which has been linked to trainability. You'll want to put aside or acquire a couple of ratty towels for use on your dog, so use one of these for the test. I tied some wool yarn around one corner of the towel and used the wool to drag and twitch the towel. The idea is to have the puppy in the middle of the floor, and then put the towel in front of him, making it twitch and dart back and forward. This is really testing something called prey drive, how much a dog wants to go after little creatures and toys that resemble creatures in the way they move or how they look. For an assistance dog you don't want a dog with a particularly strong prey drive, but you do want one that is curious.

Great ----- Is curious, immediately grabs it, holds on and tugs 3 points
Good ----- Watches, eventually interacts with encouragement, may hold on 2 points
OK -------- Watches, is at least interested, may want to play 1 point
Poor ------ Is particularly aggressive towards it OR is scared of it, cowering, trembling OR ignores it 0 point

5. Paper ball/small ball retrieve Test

For me, this was an incredibly important test, as one of the main tasks I wanted both Knightley and Apollo to do for me was assistance retrieves. The test seems to have worked - both were pretty good at doing a trained assistance retrieve at the age of only 9 months. For this test I simply get an A4 sheet of paper and screw it up into a ball, then throw it just a short distance directly in front of the puppy. Assuming he goes after it, I then call him, and really encourage him back to me with the ball. If he makes it, I gently take hold of the ball in his mouth and give it a gentle tug, keep up the praise and if he gives it to me I hold a praise party! For the second litter I tested I also had a small nylon ball to use, as well as the paper ball. That worked well too.

The early ability to retrieve has been very strongly linked to successful assistance dogs of all types, as well as retrieve being a necessary skill for most mobility assistance dogs.

Great ----- Will pick up ball, bring it back and let you have it 3 points
Good ----- Will pick up ball but drop it on way back OR will pick up ball but not return to you 2 points
OK ------- Will chase ball but not pick it up 1 point
Poor ------ Watches ball but won't chase OR ignores ball 0 points

6. Squeaky toy interest Test

This test looks at curiosity and is a basic hearing test as well. A dog that is curious is often a good learner. I bought a little puppy toy specifically for this test that was a rope circle, but stuffed with a squeaker inside. It stood the test of time, even after the stuffing and squeaker were gone it remained a favourite toy for a long long time! I would have the pup on the ground and wait until it was looking in another direction then suddenly squeak the toy. Once the pup has reacted, squeak it again. If you are looking for a detection dog, or a police dog, these 'play' tests are very important.

Great ----- Immediately turns, on next squeak comes to investigate 3 points
Good ----- Immediately turns, but takes lots of squeaks to investigate 2 points
OK ------- Turns, upon more squeaks is curious, but doesn't come 1 point
Poor ------ Ignores the squeaking for whatever reason 0 points

7. Tug interest Test

This can be an important test for those wanting to train a mobility assistance work who will need to do lots of tugging (opening doors etc). While there is a lot of difference between a play tug and a controlled trained tug, this will at least give you an idea of the pups willingness to have things inside its mouth and pull at the same time. For this test I used the squeaky toy that was half rope and just right for a little puppy to tug. Very important for detection/police dogs.

Great -----  Immediately interested in playing, will latch on and tug 3 points
Good ----- Pup will hold on, will tug a bit but lets go quickly 2 points
OK ------- Interested in playing but doesn't know quite what to do 1 point
Poor ------ Not interested, ignores it 0 points

8. Hearing sensitivity/audio startle recovery Test

For this test I use two soda cans, and hit the two ends together pretty firmly and loudly. Have the pup on the ground in front of me, and wait until its head turns away from you, then bang the cans together. You are watching firstly to make sure the puppy easily heard the sound, and secondly whether it was afraid and how quickly it recovered from being startled. It's ok if it jumps a bit if it recovers quickly.

Great ----- Turns interestedly, may jump, comes to investigate 3 points
Good ----- Jumps a lot, recovers quickly, returns to what it was doing OR turns briefly (enough that you know the pup heard it), then ignores it 2 points
OK ------- Jumps at noise, slowly recovers, returns to what it was doing 1 point
Poor ------ Jumps at noise, may whimper or hide OR jumps at noise and may have aggressive reaction 0 points

9. Food drive Test

I am sort of assuming your dog is going to be clicker or at least positively trained by putting this test in here. Clicker training is the most common way these days to train complicated behaviour chains for assistance tasks, and it is very useful if the dog is quite food driven! For this test I would recommend using something like a small chunk of raw meat or a soft commercial liver treat - something that is going to be particularly tasty for the little puppy. Hold the treat between two fingers, so the puppy can't get it but can taste it.

Great -----  Anxious to get food, works at it with tongue for a while 3 points
Good ----- Keen to get food, licks but gives up fairly quickly 2 points
OK ------- Notices food, may sniff and lick a bit but not too bothered 1 points
Poor ------ Not interested 0 points

10. Clicker Test

This is partly assuming once again that you may be using a clicker, but it is really just checking aversion to strange noises. The clicker makes a rather high frequency clicking noise that some more sensitive dogs have problems with. Obviously a dog doing public access work has to be ok with all sorts of sounds, so this makes sure that the dog is ok with a sound that it may be hearing a lot of in the future, but also tests acceptance of new strange noises. Hold the clicker behind your back (clickers are very cheap, but if you don't have a clicker, try to find something that will make a fairly loud high pitched noise to test the pups) and click it several times in a row.

Great ----- Pup turns, tries to find where noise is from, not bothered 3 points
Good ----- Looks up, but returns to what it was doing 2 points
OK ------- Ignores the sound (only ok if pup passed the other hearing tests) 1 points
Poor ------ Flinches from the sound, is uncomfortable in some way 0 points

11. 'Weird' public behaviour Test

In the course of their working lives, assistance dogs, therapy dogs and other types of working dogs will come across many different types of people. You will want your assistant to simulate a member of public being upset and getting loud and physical. So get them to throw their arms around a bit and yell, standing in front of the puppy. Watch for its response. This tests reactions to a loud voice, and reactions to strange physical movements.

Great ----- Is interested in what assistant is doing, wags tail 3 points
Good ----- Isn't bothered, may watch a bit 2 points
OK ------- May be a little put off, but once it stops recovers quickly 1 points
Poor ------ Is scared or anxious, flinches from the loud voice or waving arms 0 points

12. Umbrella/visual startle recovery Test

This is once again something that a dog will come across in public a lot, and tests the puppies ability to recover from being visually startled. It is the visual equivalent of banging the soda cans together. It is fine for a puppy to be scared of something, what is important is how quickly the puppy recovers from its fright. Have your assistant stand at the distance of maybe 4 - 5 metres (12 - 15 feet or so) away from the pup (think of them walking towards you on a street, about to open an umbrella), and then very suddenly open the umbrella towards you and the pup. Try to not use an umbrella with a spike on the end anywhere around little puppies - it just isn't very safe. Watch the puppies response when the umbrella is opened.

Great ----- Pup little startled, recovers quickly, wants to inspect umbrella 3 points
Good ----- Pup very startled, recovers quickly OR pup isn't much bothered 2 points-
OK ------- Pup very startled, takes a while to recover 1 points
Poor ------ Pup scared OR pup has aggressive reaction, perhaps barking 0 points

13. Gentle webbing pinch Test

This can be an important test for dogs that are going to be mobility assistance dog, as they are likely to spend a fair bit of time in harness, doing all sorts of tasks that dogs definitely weren't born to do. Some of them may at first be a little uncomfortable for the dog until it gets used to the task, so it helps if the dog isn't particularly sensitive. This is also important for therapy dogs, who may have to be ok with clumsy, uncomfortable or even painful touching from older persons and children. Have the pup on your lap and gently hold one paw in your hand. You may need to be gently persistent as dogs don't like their feet being held. Gently separate two toes and hold the webbing between the toes (like we have at the base of two of our fingers) between thumb and forefinger. Start with just gentle pressure and slowly increase the pressure. You should practice on yourself first until you do it the same every time so that you an accurately compare puppies. Stop as soon as the pup squirms away. Important test for therapy dogs.

Great ----- 7 - 9+ count before puppy squirms/responds to pressure 3 points
Good ----- 5 - 7 count before puppy squirms/responds to pressure  2 points
OK ------- 3 - 5 count before puppy squirms/responds to pressure  1 points
Poor ------ 1 - 3 count before puppy squirms/responds to pressure  0 points

14. Concealed food Test

By ending with this test, you end with something positive and associate yourself with food in the puppies mind! If you do stop the testing at any stage as you think you have enough information on the individual puppy, try not to end it on a more 'negative' test. With this test you want to bring along a clear tupperware type lid, or a very low lying container that the pup will still be able to see through - but make sure it is completely clear so that the pup can see right through it. The idea is to put a hunk of food underneath the lid. Give the pup several pieces of food before very obviously putting a piece on the floor, then putting the lid on top. Then let the puppy do what it wants. This tests persistence and intelligence.

Great ----- Paws and licks at lid, tries to flip it, if gets food is excellent 3 points
Good ----- Briefly paws or mouths at the lid but gives up quickly 2 points
OK ------- Understands food is underneath but doesn't know what to do 1 points
Poor ------ Not interested at all 0 points 

Scoring

As you may not do every test with every dog, what I do is add up the points for the tests you have done for each dog, and then divide by the number of tests you did do, so that you get that puppies average score across the tests.

0 - 0.99 This is definitely not a puppy you want to try training as an assistance/service dog. Even as a pet it would take a lot of work to make it a happy functioning member of your household.

1 - 1.99 This puppy has significant potential and would likely make a good pet. It is probably quite submissive in nature, and would need some work to bring it out of its shell. If its average is in the high 1s, then it may be ok as an assistance dog if you were not planning on doing a great deal of public access work with it - and if it did well on the retrieve and tug type tests. A puppy in the high 1s would make a good therapy dog too.

 2 - 3 This is your target range for the type of puppy you want to train as an assistance/service dog. I would aim for as high as possible, but you also want to make sure that the pup scores highly on the tests that predict trainability as an assistance dog. These dogs would also make a good therapy dog.

To give you an idea, my Knightley scored a 2.7 on his test, and Apollo scored 2.8. Both dogs did/are going very well as ADs, although Apollo is so smart he gets into all sorts of very creative mischief. There were anothers in both Knightley's and Apollo's litters that got somewhere around a 2.5, and indeed in Apollo's litter every single puppy could have become assistance dogs.... they were such sociable and cheerful pups. Knightley's litter tended to score lower. In any litter you test there will likely be a few standouts. However, in the first litter I tested, none tested over 2, and one was below 1. In a case like that you just have to keep searching for the right dog. I would recommend not picking a dog that gets below a 2.0, but that is my personal opinion on the matter.

Summary of what to take

These are just all the bits and pieces I listed in the temperament test:

• Towel with yarn attached to one corner
• Two empty soda cans
• Umbrella
• Meat or puppy treats
• A clicker or something else to make a high pitched short sharp noise
• A squeaky toy
• A toy for tug
• Some pieces of paper to roll up to make paper balls and/or puppy sized ball
• Clear plastic lid/flat container

Keeping track

Knightley after we had chosen him. He was so very tiny!

You are going to want to keep some record of how the pups did, especially if it's a big litter! I didn't bother to start recording unless the pups did well on the first couple of tests, because if they were getting zeros and ones on those first tests they definitely wouldn't be doing well on the later ones. Try to get your assistant to do the keeping track as otherwise it's a lot to do!!

By the time I had tested the seven boys in Knightley's litter my head was spinning.... but Knightley was the last one, and it was clear from the outset that Knightley was going to be the puppy for us, without having to add up scores or anything. This was the same with Apollo, he was the clear standout of the boys, although there was a girl who was even more confident and trainable. I had never tested any girls before, and did for the breeder who had been asked to supply a suitable girl for a family with an autistic child. The one I recommended was a real darling.

Final points to consider

• Start with the right breeder, look at health clearances, try to view the sire and dam, make sure the puppies are well socialised from a young age as that will make a huge difference throughout their whole life. The more effort the breeder puts into those puppies, the less work you will have to do
• Try to find lines which have had dogs as assistance/hearing/guide/therapy dogs, or at least have participated in obedience
• Don't let your heart decide which puppy to go for, it may well mean rehoming when it grows up to be an unsuitable dog. There is no such thing as 'close enough' when choosing a potential AD or even a family pet
• While temperament testing is a very valuable tool for choosing a puppy, remember you are primarily trying to weed out the puppies that are not suitable. After then it is your choice
• Even though a temperament test means you start out with the best puppy possible, it is no guarantee that it will make it as an assistance dog. Dogs go through two main personality changes throughout their lives, so you can never be sure how a puppy will turn out. Testing just makes sure you start with the best source material possible.

If you have any questions, feel free to comment or contact me on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/DownunderAssistanceDog

A trip to the dog park, a little training, slowly getting better

5 months 3 weeks 6 days old

Well I'm still not well, but I am feeling a little better I think. I think I have been pushing myself a bit overall, and last Thursday/Friday was just the final straw, trying to balance everything. The pile has finally come falling down. Unfortunately the timing is pretty bad! I have very definite commitments at the Arts Centre I volunteer at this week, and they aren't something that can be put off. Nevermind, I will just try to minimise the hours and rest as much as I can.

The hubby and I did manage to take Mr Knightley to the dog park again for some fun and exercise, since he isn't getting his normal walks at the moment. He had a really great time, solid socialisation with both people and dogs, and is starting to develop some manners around adult dogs - one of the main reasons we are taking him there. He's learning that if he bugs and bugs adult dogs to play, they may just turn around and tell him off. Twice when we've been there now there has been a guy with two muzzled rottweilers, and the first time he bothered one of them a bit, it started to lash out at Knightley. I was certainly glad it was muzzled, although it did back off quickly. The next time he visited he stayed clear though - there was no bothering. He still needs to learn to be nice to the little dogs as well as the big dogs, although he seems to have stopped both running and jumping over the little dogs! There were two huge mastiffs, as well as an alaskan malamute this last time, and he was extreeemely polite to them, it was quite amusing to watch.

I do have to bite my tongue at the dog park though. There are people there who in my opinion are doing absolutely the WRONG thing to manage behavioural problems with their dogs..... but who am I to offer advice? Especially as from what they can see I am just the normal pet owner. I have felt like asking "and is that technique visibly improving matters?" several times though. Must control myself, although if I see those two terrified Italian Greyhounds being made to come to the park once again it will be very hard........ their owner has obviously received advice from these trainers/dog walkers who come to the park that repeated visits will cure them of their issues.... but IMO it will make them worse. Wish I could say something.... I know exactly what I would do to help the poor creatures (one of which tried to bite Knightley it was so terrified of him) but it isn't right to butt in if actual dog 'professionals' are helping her.

Knightley today on his new bed doing 'on your mat!' training.
He's such a good boy these days with his training, so quick
and willing to please. I am very proud of him!

I have officially crossed off two behaviours on my Sue Ailsby's Training Levels Level 2 'to do' list and we're working on a third. The first is a behaviour where you have a jump and a mat next to each other and using cues you ask for your dog to either jump over the jump or lay on the mat and actually get the one you asked for consistently - testing cue recognition. Knightley had no problems with that, and we have been continuing to work on getting him used to other mats, even things like cotton shopping bags.

The second behaviour to tick off is recall. For a while I have been taking Knightley out the front to do his business, which I started doing to lower his excitement levels every time he went outside the house. It has worked extremely well - going outside is now matter of fact for him and I think it has helped our loose leash training, and also helped him take treats outside. At first he wouldn't eat food outside at all because he was completely over threshold, but now he is happy to eat his dry kibble, partly thanks to taking him out so often. However, I've been feeling rotten the last couple of days obviously, so have just been letting him out the back, giving him his cue to go as he goes past me, which works well. I give him a couple of minutes, then call him back in. His response to the call in is pretty impressive, considering he can be as much as 40 metres away, out of sight around the other side of the house. Sometimes I have to call a couple of times, but he certainly does come. So considering Level 2 only asks for a 12m (40 feet) recall we are definitely able to tick that one off. We've also been doing some hide and seek at a distance of about 20m (66 feet), and he's been loving that... and the hide and seek was also on the Levels too. So recall is done too!

We did some work on the 6m (20 feet) down stay, which is further than I have been usually doing down stays, but I am taking it up slowly to the desired 1 minute. At the moment we are at 20 seconds, which isn't bad. He didn't once break his stay today, so that is great. I want him to think that stay is never to be broken. If your dog is breaking stays often then you are doing stays that are either too long, with too many distractions, or too far from you. Take it slowly, and whenever you make something harder, re-teach the whole behaviour. We haven't done much stay work outside, so when we finally do go outside I will be starting from 1 second standing right next to him - without a cue. Only once he has grasped what I want will I add the cue again and then start making it harder - slowly. If you can set your dog up for success in his training - like me taking his stay training slowly so he doesn't break a stay - then he is much more likely to succeed in the end. If I had jumped up to 10 seconds straight away, then he would have likely broken, and then I would have been fighting the idea that he can break a stay if he wants for much much longer.

It is very important with clicker training - and probably all dog training - to always set your dog up for success by keeping it easy at the beginning. You can increase the difficulty of a behaviour once your dog understands later. Make it as easy as possible for you dog to succeed in training every new behaviour. This is such an important thing to remember, as well as behaviour re-teaching - which I sometimes forget about too and just expect Knightley to do a 1 minute wait outside because he can do it inside even though he has never done it outside. Then I get annoyed when he doesn't do it..... and then DOH! it hits me that I needed to take a few minutes to explain it again. Unfortunately that little mistake will put Knightley backwards. So make sure you re-teach your behaviours whenever you change anything like difficulty, distance, duration, place, surface or distractions.

Anyway, hopefully the posts will be a little more frequent once again now. I swear my body picks the worst times to collapse in a heap! Over and out from me.

Knightley is disrupted and distracted!

Well, updates and training may be a bit sparse for a couple of days. My brother is moving out of this house into his own after quite a few years of living with me. My husband joined us in this house a little over a year ago, and as of tomorrow it will just be us two. That will be both nice, and a little weird. I've got used to having the brother around!

Knightley knows there is something serious up, there has been a lot of commotion recently... especially today getting ready for the movers tomorrow morning. I am planning to leave him in his fabric crate in my room (will soon have a much bigger room!) with Through A Dog's Ear on the stereo to help keep him calm and drown out some of the noise of the people who will be in and out of the house. For those of you who don't know Through A Dog's Ear, it's classical music for piano that has been specially arranged to keep dogs calm and relaxed and works very well. I'll just keep it on loop and that should at least help a bit.

I'll be helping with the move, and then I'll be off to my volunteer job... so it's going to be a long day. I'm already feeling rather tired out and quite migrainous. Cross fingers for me all the commotion doesn't bring on a migraine.

Knightley and I didn't get much time to train today, but we did do some loose leash practice, which is still badly needed, sigh..... I put a small pile of treats and kibble on the road outside our house (we live on a very quiet street) and practice walking Knightley back and forward past it without having him pull. I had to do a LOT of c/ting to have a chance of keeping the leash loose. He didn't do too bad. After slowly slowly coming closer to it with a loose leash, I gave Knightley his cue to go ahead and eat the food. It's a good way to teach loose leash, but he kept on getting distracted by what was going on around him - a person in the distance, a bird, a motorbike etc.

We also did some relax, trying to get closer to the 1 minute relax, 1 minute excited, 1min relax, 1 min excited and so on that Knightley and I need to get in the bag for Level 2 Relax to be finished. He was pretty hyped up with all the furniture and box moving though, so we couldn't even get to 20 seconds, which was his previous baseline. I put some good time in working on it though... pushing him to relax when he truly is excited is good practice.

There were quite a few recalls - until he was becoming disruptive and trying to 'help' a little too much, and had to be crated, much to his very evident and audible disappointment, lol.....

That was about it for today for structured training, although I always do random bits during the day, throwing in sudden downs, always requiring sits for virtually anything he wants (I subscribe to the Nothing In Life Is Free school of thought, where anything he wants comes at a price in that he has to do something for me first before he gets it).

So updates we likely be short and to the point, not only do I have some moving to help with, we have a lot of house reorganising of our own to do because of this, as my brother is taking a good chunk of the furniture with him. We are taking advantage of the fact and will be switching things around a bit - and getting a big bedroom with ... wait for it.. STORAGE SPACE! Anyway, this is me going to much needed sleep. Catch ya later.

Working hard on Loose Leash, Relax, Backing up and Recall

5 months 3 weeks old

So, I want to finish Level 2. Back in Sue Ailsby's original Levels, there were 7 Levels... but now in her new revised Levels, there are only 4. So passing Level 2 in the original Levels wouldn't have been much of a milestone, but passing Level 2 in the new ones.... well it isn't bad at all for a nearly 6 month old pup.

We worked on his problem areas today. Loose leash remains an issue. He is pretty good inside. If he feels pressure on his collar he will move towards it without much of a thought. It is rare it even gets tight. So inside, it is going well. As soon as we go outside, and distractions start rearing their ugly head, problems start cropping up. We do ok on a hard surface. For the final step of the loose leash section in Level 2, Knightley has to walk past a treat that is slightly out of reach without pulling to try to get to it, both inside, and outside. Just not there yet. I hope our loose leash training isn't going to hold us up. One of my problems is simply the fact I find it hard to click/treat often, which is one of the keys of loose leash training. With the leash and clicker in one hand, and crutch in the other hand, plus the crutch hand also giving the treats.... I find it very hard to click and treat often. If I could do the normal training set up it would be so much easier to keep up fast treating. I often go without crutches inside, but I have pretty much done all the work I can inside and still see any improvement. The place we need to work is outside, where I need need the support because I can't just lean on some furniture if I need propping up.

This is the area we walk every day. I took this photo very
early this morning, when Knightley and I were having a lovely
walk and meeting lots of other people and dogs. He gets so
excited when seeing other dogs.... the idea of ever having a
loose leash around other dogs seems like a pipe dream.

I think one of our issues with loose leash is I deliberately chose a puppy that wasn't physically sensitive for his future as an assistance dog. On the odd occasion that I have stepped on his tail, he hasn't yelped or anything, he's just looked at me and moved uneasily. I did a gentle paw pinch test during my temperament testing of his litter to find puppies that weren't sensitive (desirable for a mobility assistance dog who will wear a sometimes uncomfortable mobility harness), and Knightley is definitely NOT physically sensitive. So I think a slight amount of tension on his collar he barely feels. I have to give it quite some significant tension before he notices it. Maybe I do need to take it back inside and work with tiny little collar pulls and c/t that when he moves. Try to get him noticing those small sensations, because he doesn't seem to be noticing them at the moment, especially once we get outside. On our walks we use the Freedom Harness we bought a while back, which makes pulling much harder for him - if he really pulls it completely turns him around to face me, because it's a front attach harness. However, he can niggle at it.... not really pull hard like with a collar, but not really loose leash either. So I have been stopping when he starts niggling, which is what clicker trainers call negative punishment - ie you take away the good thing (in this case, walking), and when he loosens the tension by coming towards me, I start walking again. The idea is he realises that every time he starts trying to pull a bit, he doesn't get anywhere faster, in fact, he stops.... so he stops trying to pull entirely. Obviously when it comes to pulling Knightley is a bit of a bone headed dog, because while the idea is obvious, Knightley doesn't seem to like this idea. He does so love his walks though, that I put up with the small niggling pulls he does in his Freedom Harness, in favour of focusing on getting absolutely no pulling in his collar. If I didn't walk Knightley at least once a day he'd turn into a raving lunatic dog.

Actually, the other reason loose leash is so hard for us, which I haven't mentioned yet, is I walk very slowly, and that is the hardest for a dog to keep loose and be patient. It was always hard with my previous dog Clipsy in his early training. I can't just say "hey, ok, that's good enough, I'm a special case so I've passed Level 2 now yay!!"... I really do have to just plug away at this, even if it holds up progress. At least everything else will become polished if that's the case.

Knightley happy and excited on his walk this morning. He
does excited very well! I do a lot day to day that focuses on
turning him into a calmer dog, including Karen Overall's
Relaxation Protocol.

We did several sessions of practicing Relax today. For the relax behaviour the dog lies on his side with his legs sticking out to the side, and must be floppy and actually relaxed. For the final part of Level 2, Knightley has to be able to relax for 1 minute, then be excited for 1 minute, then relaxed for 1, excited for 1 and so on. You get the idea. Knightley gets excited easily, especially if there are yummy treats being offered (and to think, this is the puppy who wouldn't take anything except for roast chicken.....), so that part of it is easily done!! Doing a relax for a full minute after being deliberately excited is a bit harder. Especially if he has to do it again and again. So today I tested him to see where we were up to, and he could do about 20 seconds of relax after being deliberately excited, without getting restless. So that's our starting point. Tomorrow I'll work on increasing that to 25-30 seconds... as much as I can really without him losing interest and sliding backwards instead of progressing. I did actually test his relax today by picking up his foreleg from the floor just a bit and dropping it back down.... let me tell you, he is definitely floppy. It was rather amusing.

We started working on the 'back up' cue yesterday, and he grasped it very quickly. I started by luring it. I got a treat and slid it from his jaw line towards his neck, so that he backed up a couple of steps in order to try to get it. I quickly click/treated that, and repeated it maybe 6-7 times. I then stopped using the treat, but still used my hand in the same place, and since he had got used to being rewarded for stepping back, he continued to step back. He was a bit all over the place though, not going directly backwards, so I made a bit of a chute between my knees and our coffee table, lured him part way through, and then did the same motion to get him to go back. That made him go directly backwards nicely. We did that maybe 20 times, and I wasn't having to actually touch his head anymore, he knew what I wanted. I then stopped clicking after a coupled of steps back and just waited. He had a bit of a teenage tantrum for a while, barking at me... basically saying "YOU BLOODY IDIOT... HAVE YOU JUST GONE BLIND?!?! CAN'T YOU SEE I JUST DID WHAT YOU WANTED??!! WHERE ARE MY TREEEEEATS??!?!?!" I waited the tantrum out, and sure enough eventually he shut up and tentatively took a couple of steps back. I clicked and gave him a jackpot of treats. He really knew what it was about then. I started putting the cue to it then, "back up", by saying it as he was doing it, then c/t'ing as normal. Then we left the session there. Today I revised a bit with the chute, but then we took it to the middle of the room, and he definitely knew what I wanted, was backing up a good 6-8 steps. What a fantastic puppy to learn that so quickly. Now I need to proof it - ie re-teach it in different rooms, on different surfaces, outside, with distractions... and then we can say it is officially learnt. The only thing left to do then is to back it better, so that he can walk further backwards faster, and to use it in day to day, and for tricks... like walking up stairs backwards.

Our final focus for today, is the same thing we have been focusing on for days... our recall. I have been calling him to me unexpectedly for days, and giving him big rewards. It's definitely paying off. His recall isn't rock solid yet, but it's so much better than a week ago. I need to try to remember to also make it fun, not just give a great treat. Knightley seems to love it when I laugh, and he tends to be a funny puppy... so I'll try to have some funny times when he responds to a recall... as well as stuffing him full of yummy treats.

Speaking of treats, I got some new ones in the mail today, which I had ordered off ebay. Knightley LOVES them. He could smell them loud and clear through the packaging when they were delivered and tried to 'help' me unwrap it. It was his lucky day because one of the bags of treats inside had torn and when I opened the main package quite a few treats fell out. My furry little vacuum cleaner did a great job sucking them all up! At least I've found some great motivation for training, but he seems to like them so much he can't concentrate and just barks at me, or jumps up on me. Mental note: must must do something about that jumping up problem.

For everything other than being a disruptive vacuum cleaner, Knightley is doing just great and Level 3 is just around the corner....

So much in Level 2 but nearly there!

Zen

5 months 2 weeks 6 days old

Well, we are getting kind of close to finishing Level 2 of Sue Ailsby's Training Levels. We have a little more work to do, but compared to the HUGE amount of training contained in Level 2, we are close. The photos in this post come from over the last three months of training since Knightley was a little baby pup. Here's where Knightley and I stand.





Zen = complete, can leave treats alone on the floor in front of him for 1 minute.

Focus

Focus (eye contact) = complete except for using it through a car window which should be simple to polish off

Come

Come = not complete, we are getting a lot better, in a controlled environment he is good, but the final steps are coming 12m (40 foot) and proofing it everywhere. He is good at home, but on public grass I can't hope for more than a 75% response which isn't good enough.

Down

Down = not complete, but very nearly there, just have to do final steps that ask for a distance of 6m (20 feet) stay for 1 minute whilst walking around and talking, also being able to step over him and do it with kids around.

Sit

Sit = complete


Lazy (loose) leash = not complete, great inside at all steps involved but needs more work outside. Fine on a hard surface, but on grass he gets distracted.


Target = complete

Go to mat

Go to mat = complete, although may need a refresher







Tricks = not complete, have started training a new trick, should be finished and proofed soon

Crate

Crate = complete in his day to day crate, not complete in his portable crate



Handling = not complete, all complete except for the fourth step which is allowing clippers, pills, thermometers and toothbrushes. Need a little more work there.

Distance

Distance = complete 




Jump = not complete, nearly all done, just have to introduce him to some new jumps, then make put a mat and jump side by side and ask for cues one by one to test cue recognition

Relax

Relax = not complete, nearly done, just have to make sure he can go from excited for 1 minute, then relaxed for 1 minute, to excited for 1 minute etc. We've done it for less time but haven't pushed it to 1 minute.



Communication 2 = not complete, have only just started this one, Knightley will back up on cue, will move out of my personal space, but won't move out of my personal space automatically to my left yet, he doesn't yet know how to untangle a leash from his own front leg, nor from a pole if he got tangled in one. Of everything, the most work to be done is here.

Homework = not complete, I have to list 10 reasons a dog might not "obey a command".

It's actually really good for me to summarise it, so I am very clear what I have left to do.


While I am rather close to finishing, the last minute of doing all the little bits to finish may take longer than I expected. Normally you are expected to do everything in order, but that was not so much the case in Sue Ailsby's older levels, which is what I started Knightley on first. So that's why I'm a bit all over the place. Level 3 I will follow through as she suggests.

Looking ahead at Level 3, I have been doing a surprising amount of it already - quite as an accident though, simply as a consequence of pushing Knightley just a bit further on my own. For example, Level 3 sit is made up from mostly teaching your dog to go from a down to a sit then doing it at varying distances from you. We've done LOTS of that, so that will be very easy. Zen 3 is to wait to go through a door until the dog gets an invitation - we do that already. Focus (eye contact) starts with holding eye contact for 15 seconds, we can do up to 25 seconds with no problems. If you've been reading my blog much you will already know I have already been doing Level 3 retrieve - more than half of the steps involved - and I don't think it is going to be all that hard to polish it off. The amount of distance we were doing for the 'distance' behaviour was already Level 3 standard when I thought it was Level 2 (book is written all in feet and I'm very much a metres girl!) Also, some of Communication 3 we have already done, like paw targeting. So I have a headstart for Level 3, when I fix these last outstanding Level 2 behaviours.

I'm proud of my puppy. Myself too actually, as this is the first clicker training I've done, and it appears I'm not bad at it.