How embarrasing!

I took Olive to another obedience class last Sunday. She catches on quickly and seems to impress even the instructors. On the other hand, she tried several times to snitch a few treats from the next dog. After all the fuss I went through to put together a variety of treats she would like, including grilling some chicken. I told her she should consider herself lucky: not every dog person grills chicken just for their dogs!

During training the instructors asked each human whether their dogs would be ok participating in a free play time at the end of the session. I was quick to say how great Olive is with other dogs (so they tell me at the doggie day care place). I spoke too soon. So what does Olive do? She runs and finds a tennis ball, then comes and pesters me to throw it for her, ignoring the other dogs. When she showed signs of guarding the ball, the instructors asked me to take her out. I was so embarrassed!

I actually should have seen it coming. At the dog park Olive will be polite to other dogs but when other dogs want to play with her she will look at me as if to say “can we go chase tennis balls now?” I did hear one of the instructors say something about Olive “being a border collie”, and said something to Olive about being “a bit bossy”. Well, no one ever said that partnering with a border collie would be a bed of roses (not that I ever regret it or doubt that she is one of the best things that could have ever happened to me).

On Wednesday I went to an endodontist for a root canal. What fun! Actually the procedure went fairly well, better than I had expected, though I would hardly call it a great way to spend a morning. On the way home I stopped at a pharmacy to fill the antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medicine that the endodontist prescribed. Wouldn’t you know that there was a line of some five geriatrics in front of me, and every one of them argued with the pharmacist about something or other. It delayed me about an hour. When I finally got home I immediately took Olive out for a walk, had a can of liquid meal replacement I bought at the pharmacy (I did not feel like chewing anything), and tried to settle down, though I was not in the best of moods. Olive seemed to understand that. There was no pestering though she did lay at my feet and got up to check on me from time to time. I was much better today and Olive was back to pestering me to throw her ball, take her for walks, etc.

Good to be back to normal!

Star Pupil

Sunday was Olive's second "Family Dog" class at "Tails U Win". I am happy to report that she catches on fast. The instructor "borrowed" her at one point to demonstrate walk etiquette, and thanked me afterward that my dog made her (the instructor) look good. Now if only I could get Olive to make ME look good.

Most of what is being taught is pretty basic: sit, lie down, responding to her name, behavior Olive already knows. We started on using hand signals, some of which Olive already seemed to know. At least she followed my signal to "lay down" (I pointed to the floor in front of her), though it took me a bit of trying to get her to catch on to "sit". There I didn't know what signal she might have been taught previously, so I made a circular motion with my hand to indicate her rump should go down. We were told to make the hand signal, then give the verbal command if she didn't respond. After a while a dog will associate the hand signal with the verbal command. Sure enough Olive caught on after a few tries. Imagine her thoughts in dialogue with me as:

Me: hand signal for sit.

Olive thinks: I don't know what that means.

Me: "Sit!"

Olive thinks: Well, why didn't you say so?

After several tries, Olive realizes "oh, I guess that hand motion means sit".

My only wish was that I had practiced hand targeting with her a bit more. That is where after getting her attention I hold out my hand flat near her. The object is that she should turn to sniff my hand and follow it if I move it one way or another. This is a stepping stone to getting her to follow me in a walking situation. She follows my hand, I click the clicker and reinforce with a treat. Even before the class started I had been working on "with me" (what some would call "heel") with some success. At first I tried to use "heel" as a command and got little response. Somehow I started using "with me" instead and got a much better response. Since then I have been using "with me" exclusively. I can see where hand targeting would be a help in firming this skill up.

For training treats to use at the class, the instruction to the humans was to bring five different kinds of treats and a hungry dog. I gave Olive her usual breakfast Sunday, but nothing else that day until class time. For treats I brought a small amount of her usual food (Blue Seal Active Dog Formula), cut up a "Dentastix" treat into small bights, bagged a handful of small dog biscuits that a friend had given us, bagged a handful of "training treat" pellets that I picked up in the grocery store, and cut up some leftover grilled chicken from the day before that I packed in a small plastic container and brought to class in a small cooler with an ice pack to keep it cold. Olive eagerly went for each of all five treats, though I think she liked the chicken best.

Now our task is to practice what we did last Sunday until our next class on the 25th.

Bath Time!

I found out what a "bully stick" is. You don't want to know!

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This afternoon will be Olive's first day at the dog training class. Last week, as I mentioned, was for humans only.

This morning I went to church and then for breakfast with my dad and nephew; my sister and brother-in-law are away for the weekend. After getting home I immediately took Olive out for a walk, figuring that she would need one after being in the house for about three  hours. While walking she suddenly started rolling in some grass. I gave it little thought, as she often does that. Shortly afterward, however, I noticed a putrid smell and realized it was coming from my dog. Then I noticed some yellowish substance over some white parts of her coat. When we got home the smell was even worse. I gave her a good brushing, which seemed to help, but the smell was still strong. With the obedience class tonight the last thing I wanted was to bring a foul smelling canine to the first class.

Fortunately some friends whose dog recently died had given me a box full of dog supplies. Among them was a bottle of deodorizing dog shampoo. I had never given Olive a bath before--she had a bath at the kennel when I left her for a week last July, and I brush her daily, but she is for the most part a clean dog and baths never seemed urgently needed. This time, however, I knew I had to do something.

I read the directions on the shampoo bottle, then filled my bathtub with lukewarm water (I was careful not to make it hot). Not knowing what to expect, I changed into swim trunks and nothing else. That turned out to be a good move.

Getting Olive into the tub proved a challenge; she was very reluctant, though not defiant. I finally got her in and wet down the affected fur areas with an old plastic cup. Once I got her in the tub she was surprisingly cooperative. I messaged the shampoo into the yellow areas. It took a bit of work, but it seemed that the foul stuff, whatever it was (I probably don't want to know), was washing out. Finally I figured I was at the point where it was going to be the best we were going to do so I rinsed her off as thoroughly as I could. It wasn't a full bath, but I didn't want to push things.

Getting her out of the tub was a good deal easier than getting her in. I simply said "OK, we can dry off now" and she jumped out. I dried her off as best I could with an old towel, then cleaned up the bathroom. Olive is downstairs right now drying off. There is still some of the smell, but I believe the situation is much better than it was before the bath.

Well, now I have an idea of how to give Olive a bath. I will try to give her one every few months, or when she really needs one as she did today.

OK, I will have to watch her when we go for our next walk and keep her away from the spot she rolled in this morning, I am hoping that no one at the class tonight will go "Ew, what's that smell". Stay tuned for a report on Olive's experience with obedience class.

Olive starts school

Last night there was an orientation session for those humans who will be bringing their dogs to the obedience class at "Tails U Win". The place was not hard to find, next to a restaurant called "Adam's Mill", an establishment with a local reputation as a place for fine dining that has me utterly baffled. Well, in past decades in the same town there were "Willy's Steakhouse" and "the Marco Polo" that also had reputations as fine dining establishments that similarly baffled the least demanding clientele. But I digress.

While waiting in the parking lot for things to get started, I spotted a woman with a border collie! Of course I had to introduce myself as a BC person, and found that she was the instructor. That was reassuring to know that the instructor knows border collies.

This session was clarified as "for people only--do not bring your dog". Of course, there had to be someone who missed that boldface notice and the email to that effect a few days ago and showed up with his dog. He seemed like a nice dog though a bit hyper. Staff was gracious and took him (the dog) to another area. I felt sorry for him (the dog, not the human).

Much of the session dwelt on the basics. Dogs on a leash, don't feed your dog before class, bring treats, a properly fitted collar or harness, bring a bed or mat for your dog to lie on. We were each given a folder of handouts and a "clicker". Some homework was also assigned. Much of the assignment is introducing the dog to the "clicker", a device that makes a snapping noise similar to the little tin devices many of us had as kids. We were instructed to click whenever our dogs exhibited desirable behavior, then reward. For example, if we command "sit" we should click the instant her rump hits the floor, then praise or give a treat. It seems that dogs soon take the clicks as affirmation of good behavior. A handout outlines the "name game" that we should play with our dog some ten times per day over the next week. We say our dog's name one time only and click immediately as he/she turns to look at us. As soon as we click, reward with small pieces of treat, praise, part of her dinner, toys, games, or anything else the dog really likes. I tried it with Olive a few times last night after I got home and she took right to it.

The rest of the homework consisted of reading the material in the folder and thinking about long and short term goals. After class I stopped in their store and picked up a treat pouch that I can wear on a belt during class. In the folder was a coupon for a free "bully stick" with a purchase over $5. Since the pouch cost well over $5 I took the stick. I am not sure what is in it, but a bully stick is a long stick for a dog to chew on. It looks like a stick one might find in the woods, perhaps made of rawhide. Olive took it right away and has already done some work on it. I will ask next time what it's made of, but I am certain that it's ok for dogs, since it's sold as a dog treat.

Now this morning a spring broke on my garage door, so I am waiting for the garage door service company to call me back and schedule someone to come out and repair it. Olive helped by barking at me from the house as I looked at the door and tried to figure out what happened. OK, one of the goals is to get her to stop barking when I command her to.

Stay tuned for more adventures in obedience class.

The "Dog Listener"

Last night a “dog listener” by the name of Pat Wright gave a talk at my local library. The library anticipated that the talk would be so well attended that reservations were required to attend. I applied, but found that the talk was already full so that I was put on a waiting list. Yesterday afternoon I got a call that there were enough cancellations that I could attend. The community room at the library was indeed full, but I took a sugar cookie (I had to skip dessert to make it there at 6:30, so didn’t feel guilty) and found a seat.

I had no idea how much I was doing wrong, according to Ms. Wright. I’m sure that there are other dog experts with ideas that might differ to some extent, but her talk centered on four behaviors of a pack leader that Ms. Wright urged us dog people to emulate. According to Ms. Wright, most or all problems with dogs stem from confusion over who is in charge.

1. Pack leaders always eat first. According to Ms. Wright, before feeding our dogs we should always eat something ourselves in front of the dog. That signals to the dog that we have taken our share of the “kill” and now the lower ranked pack member may take what’s left. My routine has been to get up in the morning, take Olive for her first walk, come back home, measure out her breakfast into her bowl, then prepare my own breakfast (oatmeal, eggs, whatever). According to Ms. W I am putting Olive in charge of the food and ceding authority as pack leader. In addition, Ms. W recommended taking the food away after a certain amount of time if the dog did not eat it all. In fact, she recommended removing the bowl altogether and storing it out of her reach even if she ate all of the food; in a dog’s mind, the bowl is part of the kill, just as the bones are in the wild. In the wild, if the dog does not eat right away and walks off, something else (another dog, some other animal) will take it.
   
   
   This morning I made sure to eat my own breakfast before giving Olive hers. She seldom eats before mid-morning anyway, so it was not much of a change. In fact, I’m not even sure she noticed. Taking the bowl away is something I am more reluctant to do, as I don’t want to force her to eat if she doesn’t feel right. Olive usually finishes her breakfast by supper time, but sometimes will leave a nearly full bowl past noon. I might start by removing the breakfast bowl at noon, and the supper bowl at bedtime, though she usually eats her supper within an hour or so.
   
   
2. Pack leaders come and go as they please without any hellos or goodbyes. According to Ms. Wright, if a dog goes crazy greeting her human when the human comes home, she is expressing confusion over who is in charge. To make a fuss over the dog (“hi, Fido, did you miss me? Kiss, kiss, kiss) is to reinforce that confusion. The better thing to do is to first do whatever needs to be done, then attend to the dog if she needs to be walked or whatever.
   
   
   Olive doesn’t usually go crazy when I get home. She usually stays in her bed in an alcove under the window near the top of the stairs while I am out, and calmly comes out to see me when I get home. Nevertheless, last night when I got home last night I took care of a few items before taking her out for her late night walk. Again, not much of a change; I’m not sure Olive even noticed.
   
   
3. Pack leaders protect the pack. While we may think we are taking a pleasant walk through the park, in the dog’s mind we are out in a dangerous place. Remaining calm and reassuring signals to the dog that there is nothing to worry about. If the dog starts barking and we start shouting “stop barking! Be Quiet”, in the dog’s mind we are joining in with her barking.
   
   
   This is a bit more nuanced, so that I want to read one of the books Ms. Wright recommended to see what I might improve on. Only rarely does Olive bark at other people or dogs. When she does bark unexpectedly, I can usually calm her down in short order.
   
   
4. Pack leaders take the lead. We should be deciding where and when to do things, not the dog. Ideally, when a human walks a dog on a leash, the leash should form a “J” between the human’s hand and the dog’s collar. When a dogs pulls at the leash and jumps around, she is not sure who is supposed to be leading.
   
   
   Again, I will need to read up on this. I am hoping that the upcoming obedience class will provide ways to establish myself as the leader. Even as I am writing this Olive is pestering me for a walk. Well, I think I could let Olive choose where to poop (as long as it’s not in the house).

Ms. Wright was a student of and English dog listener by the name of Jan Fennell. The book Ms. Wright recommended is “The Dog Listener” by Ms. Fennell. I only hope that the book is better laid out than Ms. Fennel’s website, which is cluttered, confusing, and disorganized!

Finding an Obedience Class

I have not given up on getting Olive into a herding class at Nutmeg Farms, a training facility not far from Hartford that uses real sheep. I decided, however, that a more basic obedience class would be a better first step, then perhaps we will go to Nutmeg in the Spring.

My town's parks and recreation office listed some dog training classes in its Fall brochure. One, titled "Dog Focus", sounded like a good one for Olive. The class description indicated that it was for dogs who are obedient at home but seem to forget everything when out and about. When we are out for walks Olive gets so focused on squirrels that she is oblivious to everything else. My commands, as well as oncoming cars (!) are completely tuned out while she stares at the squirrel she is engrossed with at the moment. I was looking forward to taking Olive to that class on Wednesday mornings and expected her to do well.

Unfortunately, last night I got an email notice that the class has been canceled. I called this morning about another class called "Out and About with your Dog" that was scheduled for early Wednesday afternoons, and was told that was canceled as well.

I did not want to waste this Fall as far as dog training goes. An internet search brought me to an organization in a nearby town called "Tails-U-Win" that I have heard good things about. I registered Olive for a basic "Family Dog" class on Sunday afternoons beginning October 4. So Olive and I will be going to school together.

I was especially happy to see the name of a woman named Sue Sternberg in their website. I knew Sue some years back when she was the fiddler for the New England contra dance band "Wild Asparagus". I haven't seen her in quite some time, though I did hear that she was a highly regarded dog expert and had left her career as a professional musician to pursue a career in dog training. To my knowledge, Sue is now living in upstate New York, so it is unlikely that she will be at any of the classes, but apparently "Tails-U-Win" uses some of her methods. I checked a box to receive Sue's newsletter.

So soon Olive and I will be off on a new adventure at dog training class. You can be sure that there will be a lot about it in this blog.

At Play

Olive loves to chase after her foam rubber Frisbee (I call it “saucer” when I want her to get it, as opposed to her “ball” or her “kong”). Several times I demonstrated to people how she would catch it while attached to her 26-foot long leash, although Olive has never shown any inclination to bolt. About two months ago I considered that when we went to the local dog park I would take her off leash and let her run. She generally kept close to me and was very good about coming to me when I called her. I decided to try taking her off leash in the wide grassy field behind my townhouse, keeping her leashes handy just in case. I have to confess that I was not surprised that she stayed reasonably close to my back deck, focusing on the saucer and behaving quite well. Since then I often bring her out back after our periodic walks during the day, let her loose to chase the saucer, and have had no real problems. Only once did she run off; when a rabbit ran across the field near us she took off after it. Even then she obeyed when I yelled at her to get back and never was out of my sight. One of my neighbors marvels that she is so well behaved that I can let her loose. I am not sure whether I am technically violating the association rules at my complex, but no one has complained yet. She is clearly under my control. She seems to like that she is able to run and jump in a manner that she never could when she was on the long leash. Border collies require a great deal of exercise, and I am glad to have found a way that seems to satisfy that need.

Some friends brought Olive a “kong” toy, a somewhat conic hollow rubber toy that I can put food in through a hole at one end, about an inch in diameter. It’s a challenge to the dog to figure out how to get the food out. Olive seems to love the challenge, and is learning how to shake the food out. Most mornings she delays eating her breakfast, though she usually eats it eventually. I find that putting a small amount of her dry dogfood in there and sitting with her while she tackles the challenge of getting the food out stimulates her appetite. She will empty the toy, then look at me to see if I will refill it, which I sometimes do. After the second fill, she will often go over to her dish and eat what is left there. This seems to have become a sort of morning ritual for us. I had heard of kong toys, but it took someone buying Olive one to really get her started on it and make me see just what a hit it is with her.

Another morning ritual is brushing her with a soft wire brush. She loves being groomed like that and will lay still, except to shift positions as if she is saying “could you get this side?” It makes for a great bonding time. We do it nearly every day.

It amazes me how many people around my complex now know Olive. Some will even come out while we are walking by to play with her. Most have no idea who I am, but they know and love Olive!