training
A Creative Solution Kitty Lee explains how, after a number of failed efforts, she inadvertently came up with an unorthodox way to train her “perfect puppy” not to bark at other dogs This article is the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) Australia’s winning entry in our Geek Week 2020 Writers’ Competition.
T
hree years ago, I decided to become a professional dog trainer. I’d been teach ing obedience classes at the local dog club and fostering rescue dogs since 2012 but I’d never had a dog of my own and I was pretty sure that was a requirement of being a dog trainer. So I started looking for a puppy. I was very specific I wanted a sable working line German shepherd. In my years of fostering German shepherds, most of them had come to me with all sorts of anxiety, aggression and health is sues. So I was determined to find a wellbred, well socialized puppy from health and tem perament tested parents. I wanted this dog to be my business demo dog, I wanted to do ALL the dog sports, and I was also hoping he’d have the temperament to be my psychiatric as sistance dog.
course, he had made a little bit of improve ment. He was able to acknowledge my exis tence and follow simple cues. I committed to bringing him every week to train around other dogs and show him I was more fun. But circumstances conspired against us. Dog clubs here in Australia go on a two month break during December and January. This year, February and March were dominated by fires and the air was too thick with smoke for out door activities. This was followed by floods (welcome to Australia!). I recall one weekend where nothing disas trous was happening, so I cleared my calendar, ready to finally get a chance to train only to find out class was canceled because the show grounds had been hired out for a Tiny Homes Expo, of all things. © Kitty Lee
Perfect Puppy For two years, I searched for my perfect puppy. Finally, in August 2019, I found a breeder with a litter that checked all my boxes. I brought home my dream puppy, Jazz, at 9 weeks old. He was perfect. He was environmentally confi dent, adjusted to things easily, settled when needed, and worked enthusiastically for both food and toys. Everything was great. Except one thing. The first time he saw another dog at 10 weeks old, he barked at him. Every time he saw a dog on the street, he barked at him. Puppy class was a nightmare. He spent entire lessons lunging and bouncing at the end of the leash, trying to go towards the other puppies and completely ignoring me, no matter what treats and toys I had. Now, of course it’s nor mal for a young puppy to want to play with other puppies. But the intensity and persist ence with which he fixated on other dogs at such a young age sent alarm bells ringing through my head. What do a demo dog, a sports dog, and a service dog have in common? They all need to be able to focus on their human around other dogs. I needed to get on top of this, and fast. I signed him up to a second puppy class at my local dog obedience club. By the end of the
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Whenever Jazz sees another dog on walks, his guardian starts a fun game with the water gun. He now looks at her as soon as he sees another dog, waiting for the game to start
BARKS from the Guild/January 2021
© Kitty Lee
Impulse Control In the meantime, I worked hard on impulse control behaviors, teaching Jazz to recall off a thrown toy and down while chasing the hose. This was the only activity he enjoyed almost as much as playing with other dogs. We did nose work, mat work and practiced default calm settles. But still, every time we saw a dog on a walk, he would start pulling and lunging and barking. I simply couldn’t get enough distance on our narrow suburban streets to work with him. I learned to manage the behavior as best as I could. Attempts at emergency Uturns usually resulted in me dragging a writhing, barking crocodile backwards down the street. So when I saw a dog approaching, I would cross the road. As the other dog went past, I would drop treats between Jazz’s paws as fast as he could eat them. He would eat each treat mechanically, eyes glued to the other dog, oc casionally still managing a bark in between treats. Sometimes, he would refuse the treats, and I would just have to hold him by the collar until the other dog was gone, whining like an agility dog at the start line. It was like he was in a trance. Nothing I said or did could break his stare. He wasn’t anxious or fearful. His problem
