On Fri, 11 Jun 2010 15:22:12 -0700, Phyrie wrote:

"Dogman" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 9 Jun 2010 20:29:44 -0700, "Phyrie"
wrote:


The dog trainer we hired way back when brought over a lunging whip. We
tied
a hunk of fur on the end and Kiba went nuts for it. You could get some
serious exertion/exercise out of him whipping that thing around the
yard. We were also taught how to "give it" as once he caught that
critter, NO WAY
was he interested in giving it back. Very good motivator for coming
"here"
and has been used to good effect at the nice neighbours where Kiba
heads for
treats and pets if he gets out of the gate! However, carrying a 10
foot lunging whip around is about as handy as your poles! LOL!

Dog trainers usually call them flirt poles, and they're fun to use.
http://www.bestdogkennel.com/product/TR-FP

Tip: Schoen should make/buy one for Muttley, to see if he has any prey
drive.

--
Dogman

I pulled out the lunge whip today, for the first time in a very long
time, to show you Kiba's prey drive, as compared to the other dog in the
clip. It's two days since my last facet joint injection, so I'm a little
sore, and not moving well, but you get the idea. I sewed a couple of
raccoon tails together to make a lure for the end of the whip. Kiba is
not very happy that I'm now in the house posting the video. He really
likes the raccoon tails!

We are in my back yard, and I quickly discovered the full length of the
whip was far too long for me use in that small space. And I'm awkward,
and graceless, so try to ignore the big lady in the middle, OK?

http://s694.photobucket.com/albums/vv306/Phyrie/Kiba/?
action=view&current=CIMG3591.mp4

Phyrie

Kiba has a neck problem and you play tug-of-war ?

Should you want to strengthen his neck muscles
you'd better talk to your vet about it.
--
thedalpal

"Phyrie" said in
rec.pets.dogs.behavior:

http://s694.photobucket.com/albums/v...e/Kiba/?action
=view&current=CIMG3591.mp4

That was terrific - way more drive than my friends' CKCS.

--
--Matt.

"sonofdog" wrote in message
...
Kiba has a neck problem and you play tug-of-war ?

Should you want to strengthen his neck muscles
you'd better talk to your vet about it.
--
thedalpal

Kiba doesn't have a neck problem. He had a herniated disk in his back,
about where a dog "tucks" if he's frightened, near his tail. He's just fine
now, thanks.

Phyrie

"starcat" wrote in message
m...

"Phyrie" wrote

I pulled out the lunge whip today, for the first time in a very long
time, to show you Kiba's prey drive, as compared to the other dog in the
clip. It's two days since my last facet joint injection, so I'm a little
sore, and not moving well, but you get the idea. I sewed a couple of
raccoon tails together to make a lure for the end of the whip. Kiba is
not very happy that I'm now in the house posting the video. He really
likes the raccoon tails!

We are in my back yard, and I quickly discovered the full length of the
whip was far too long for me use in that small space. And I'm awkward,
and graceless, so try to ignore the big lady in the middle, OK?

http://s694.photobucket.com/albums/v...t=CIMG3591.mp4

Phyrie



I've said it before, and I'll say it again - that Kiba is an adorable
little dog! I love how attentive he is to you, and it looked like he was
having a great time.
Thank you! We like him too.

Phyrie

"sighthounds & siberians" wrote in message
...

Heh - I enjoyed watching that. Your little guy sure is keen for those
raccoon tails.

I have something like your lunge whip with plastic on the end, for
lure coursing training. I intend to take the big puppy (who turned 1
last week!) outside this weekend to see if she has the plastic gene.

Although Kiba really likes the raccoon tails (I found a whole box of them on
eBay), when the trainer first brought it over, we tied Kiba's Santa hat (the
only fluffy thing I could find!) with a few treats in it to the end. He
went for that fine, too.

Phyrie

"Dogman" wrote in message
...
I thought you did great, kiddo! You have a monster on your hands!

See how easy it is to transfer that drive to a tug-of-war game? That's
*exactly* what Schoen should be doing with Muttley. And you can get to
retrieving from there pretty easily too. Just start throwing one of
those raccoon tails for her. When she brings it back, throw the other
one. Rinse, lather, repeat. Then eventually wrap a small piece of a
tail sround a retrieving bumper (it has a string on it, so you can
toss it farther), and throw that for her too. She doesn't have the
greatest release yet, but she's getting there. I couldn't hear what
you were saying when she was seated in front, she barked, and you
looked like you rewarded her with a treat. So were you working on her
"Speak!" command? Or was something else going on?

Anyway, nice job!

--
Dogman

Thanks! Kiba play "fetch" very well too. He will fetch to exhaustion if I
let him. He does push a bit still on release, but he's TONS better than
when we started. It was some battle of wills to get him to willingly let go
of that fur at first. I wondered if that slip of mine would show on the
video! I was going to give him a treat for playing nicely, and I happened
to give it just as he barked, so it looked like a reward for the bark. That
was his "do it again" demand, and I put my finger up to my lips, and told
him to "Shush". He has been taught an "indoor voice" and we "shush" him
when we don't want a bark, but don't mind a vocalization. We give him a
"whisper" command, with a finger to our lips, and he "talks" instead of
barks. Shush and Whisper are pretty interchangeable, I think.

Phyrie

"Dogman" wrote in message
Nothing gets past me, kiddo.

But seriously, you're doing a fine job. And Kiba is magnificent!

He obviously has a *lot* of potential.

Your problem with "release it" or "drop it" is probably related to
your playing tug-of-war with Kiba, and a good example of why that game
is strictly verboten in competitive retrieving circles. It just sends
mixed messages to the dog, and since retrievers are graded on the
"softness" of their mouths, we don't ever want to do anything that
might encourage them to grip anything too hard, or to not quickly
release it on command. You needn't worry about any of that stuff, so
feel free to keep playing tug with Kiba if you want.

But here's a few ways to get a better release:

http://www.dobbsdogs.com/library/retrievers/rj19.html

Use a wooden dowel (a sawed off broomstick is fine) or dumbbell (pet
stores usually have training dumbbells). Don't use the raccoon tail at
first, a "valued" object, for training. If Kiba won't release the
dumbbell (never get into a struggle with him over the dumbbell!), try
sticking your index finger into his mouth behind the dumbbell and
press down on the back of his tongue, or try blowing into his nose, or
offer him a treat, or offer him another object, e.g. his raccoon tail.
Or, as a last resort, hold the top of his muzzle with one hand, and
*rotate* the dumbbell towards the back of his mouth with the other,
which will usually make him open his mouth a bit, then quickly remove
the dumbbell. But do not make it into a struggle. Go about it
matter-of-factly. And don't do this training on any day you've played
tug-of-war with him. Wait a day or so.

And forget about the corrections part. You'll get a good-enough-for
government-work release without any.

I was going to give him a treat for playing nicely,

That wasn't a good time to offer him a treat.

and I happened to give it just as he barked,

Proving once again that TIMING is everything.

Heh.

All in all, though, a fine job!

--
Dogman

That blowing in the nose trick works great. I've used it on Remy with great
success. It doesn't take blowing very hard either - just a soft whisper of
a blow. I've never tried the pressing down on the back of the tongue, but
that's a really good tip too.

On 6/9/2010 11:32 PM, Phyrie wrote:


"Matt" wrote in message
...
"Phyrie" said in
rec.pets.dogs.behavior:

As fun as this is, I'm sorry to admit that the cat food IS
grain-free... 75% meat and 25% fruit and veggies. 12 out
of the first 16 ingredients are named meats (or fish).
It's a high-end product made in Alberta, Canada. Spyder
also supplements her diet with an almost daily bird as
well.

In another post, I see that you feed Origen to Kiba. After
Rocky, it's what I switched Maybe to. I think that it's a good
food for a moderately-to-highly active dog.

--
--Matt.

It IS a good food, but has been relegated to treat status, as I'm
rawfeeding as of March. Kiba's allergies are much more under control
since we started. Neither my vet nor I can explain it,

Here is your explanation. Dogs are carnivores. You were feeding your dog
species inappropriate food. Now you aren't. Even Orijen which tries to
mimic a natural diet, falls short by adding 30% fruits and vegetables.
Those contain sugars that dogs don't need and can cause itching.

Their 6 fish variety does not mimic a natural diet in any way. Dogs
prefer red meats and need the iron and zinc in them among other things.
It also has rosemary in it which causes convulsions in some dogs.

Does it really make sense to cook all the nutrients out then add them
back in? All kibble does that.

as we are pretty
sure that Kiba's major triggers are environmental,

Even if they were environmental, by feeding raw your dog has better
health and can fight off things he could not if fed cooked to death fish
with fruits and vegetables in it. And it not even whole fruits and
vegetables they get but what is left over after producing human foods
like pea fiber. It's just a cheap filler.

but I don't care if
it's explainable, I'm just glad he's not being driven insane with itching.

Phyrie