I have to share - and I'm planning to get this on video this week (I need to charge my camera), but I'm so excited to say that the pup is starting to click as far as touch training. o_O!!!!!!!!

For touch I use a binder clip. I put that on a dishcloth in the kitchen and hung it on our stove so it was right in front of Jacks and Bertie at a good level for both of them.

And without me guiding him at all, the pup was actually nosing the clip. On his own. I'm so proud of the little noodle head!

Because we were just working in the kitchen this evening, I did the usual kitchen doodles with scoot fronts (without using the front word), scoot sits in heel position (without using the heel word), and right pivots (again no other command other than "scootch"). I was guiding him a lot with my hands, but I was really pleased with how neatly he was working with me.

Almost makes up for the fact that it's taking so long to get him excited about retrieves (still a work in progress).

*** I'm sorry I'm posting so much and being a thread hog. It's just a lot of fun going from Jacks who is routinely good when we train that sometimes there's nothing new to report day to day... and then with the pup he is at that stage where he is just absorbing so much.

And yes, I even get excited about the tiny victories like him slapping a paw out on command.

My mom was laughing at me in the background while I was training "touches" with the dogs - primarily because I was talking to them and explaining what we were going to do next. Both dogs were sitting side by side and watching and listening. Jacks listens to everything I say (he really does) and Bertie is starting to watch and pick up new words. Bertie knows "toy" now. <- See what I mean getting excited about very little things?

I didn't want to get carried away with the touch training, but am thinking about introducing other targets (paper plates or margarine caps on the floor loaded with a treat) to help with the "sending" part. Maybe this week. It may help him with the retrieves too.

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Always loved, never forgotten, all our previous boys -

I get so excited over the teaching phase too. I remember the first time my first dog ever retrieved the dumbbell on her own, I called everyone I knew to tell them!

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Jodie

AJ's Maiden By the Sea CDX RE (Annabel - retired)
Mud E Paws UDX OM2 RE OBHF (Conner - retired with 28 OTCH points)
Sunfire's Flying Head Over Heels UD BN RA (Flip)
And the odd one of the family - Colby Jack Teeter Smack CDX GO RA (Colby - Lhasa Apso)

Last night we had quick, fun sessions: It was damp, foggy and raining lightly so some stuff was outside where I set up gating while other stuff was inside. No jumping due to slippery conditions. No agility for same.

Faelan: outside under the light: Go Outs (nice), signals (very nice; a slightly wide about but otherwise very nice). Moving stand for exam (perfect) . Pivots. Then inside we did scent articles, off the board but in a familiar location - very nicely done

Towhee: outside under the lights: Heeling (need to work our abouts & fast more), recall (very nice), down & drops at side( much improved - almost straight now ), stand for exam (perfect) and I introduced return to heel from a distance.

Casey: Heeling, recalls, Go Outs - fun & attitude which we had

Brady: all inside. Start of left & right (about baby stretching) by touching hip he is to turn towards - he loves this new game. 1 or 2 steps of heeling alternating with strutting (right side heeling). Sitting at side. Sitting from stand. Sitting from down. Down from stand/fold back down. Stand from both down and sit. Baby recall. Sit in front. Wobble board. Travel plank. This sounds like a lot as I type it but including tug breaks it was about 7 minutes. Time to start tugging on wobble board I think.

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Golden moments shared with
Casey, Faelan, Towhee & Brady too !

and forever in my heart, my golden Bridge boys
Rowdy & King

I had another teaching squee moment yesterday evening when I figured out the "easy button" for Bertie as far as gathering his focus and cueing him that a sit is coming.

I'm not sure if people on here also have been paying attention to the threads on some of the training groups on facebook? There was somebody who posted a video showing foot cues as far as teaching heel position.

My initial reaction was a "yes, well I do something like that but using my hip instead because my dog isn't supposed to be looking at my feet anyway".

But then while pacing back and forth with Bertie yesterday I was giving that video more thought, particularly as I'm transitioning to less guiding and more expectations as far as the pup knowing what we are doing and sitting when I stop vs me telling him to sit each time or luring him.

So as mentioned before he is automatically sitting when I stop walking and I do not have to tell him to sit anymore. He will sit.

But when I stop with my hand flat to my hip (holding a treat, when he does 3 sits in a row I flip my hand away and drop the treat straight down to him), this pulls Bertie forward or sideway out of heel position. So I have to do extra guiding (footwork or even a finger luring him in) to encourage that straight sit in heel position.

I switched to putting my hand lower, like to the side of my leg or knee. And this drew his focus to me doing the half step and then foot plant cue for sit. And it was awesome to see him switching gears from prancing to tucking his butt in perfectly straight, sticking his chest out, and looking up at me all without me saying anything or luring him with a treat finger. o_O!!! I practiced those sits several times, and each time I got the same results.

So long story short, I realized that even though Bertie like Jacks will probably have his head up by my hip when he grows up.... his head is NOWHERE NEAR that spot right now. So watching that video got me thinking about how I went too quickly from having a hand out and luring a sit to holding my hand to my hip. Because even though he doesn't need the treat lure anymore, he still needs some kind of focal point that doesn't pull him out of heel position.

One really fun thing we also did yesterday was teaching "hurry up abouts" - basically training him to drive into the about turn.

Another happy happy brag too.... I'm still working on bringing out his inner-retriever with retrieve games various times every day. Yesterday was the first time I had two breakthroughs....

1. After we came from our puppy-walk, I walked him over to where he left his favorite toy (red bone stuffy) in the yard, picked it up and did a "take it" give to him. And then I encouraged him to "bring it in".

He carried his toy the entire way into the house!!!!

I know part of this is him really getting to that age where he's playing with toys now vs just chewing on them. But by golly it was nice seeing him bring it in the house properly.

2. Yesterday was the first time that I lined him up towards a toy a few feet away (something that was just there, hadn't been thrown, etc) and told him to get it.... and he DID. I was so excited - especially since I was stressing out about him not being a natural like Jacks.

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Always loved, never forgotten, all our previous boys -

LOL - a further reason I wait for heeling Head position matters and under stress they regress, so I just wait until they are taller.

My field trainer also mentioned this morning how Brady is beginning to look like a dog, not a puppy So far, no gawks just a well balanced pup pup - hopefully he won't go through the uglies (Faelan and Casey did not)

__________________

Golden moments shared with
Casey, Faelan, Towhee & Brady too !

and forever in my heart, my golden Bridge boys
Rowdy & King

*can't comprehend this!* Heehee. As I said, I absolutely love training heelwork with the bubba. Or heelwork is my favorite anyway with all my dogs.

He's being a gremlin at the moment (his usual 11-midnight burst of energy that involves chewing-playing-pouncing around growling at all his toys-chewing on Jacks, climbing on Jacks, pawing Jacks in the face, stealing Jacks bones away, needing to go outside for potty every 10 minutes practically....

But I'm still floating and gloating over the fact I'm getting a pretty decent unofficial heel with him even off leash (that flat hand lower on my leg works).

And he was retrieving tennis balls with gusto just a short while ago! He's starting to "get" retrieving! <- This is the one who made me nervous because he was showing signs of taking after our Sammy who wanted nothing to do with carrying things around in his mouth unless it was to chew on them. *is happy*

You know this means you need to show pictures!!

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Always loved, never forgotten, all our previous boys -

I dont really start teaching heeling until they're older - like six months. And then I teach it piece by piece. Sits are one of the last things I put in, months after they start their first initial heeling steps.

I signed up for a show n go Saturday. Looking forward to it.

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Jodie

AJ's Maiden By the Sea CDX RE (Annabel - retired)
Mud E Paws UDX OM2 RE OBHF (Conner - retired with 28 OTCH points)
Sunfire's Flying Head Over Heels UD BN RA (Flip)
And the odd one of the family - Colby Jack Teeter Smack CDX GO RA (Colby - Lhasa Apso)

And Flip heels very nicely going by those videos which you posted here... so waiting 6 months harmed him not.

What do you mainly focus on in those first 6 months? Or do you (Jodie and Sharon, and others if you want to share)... have favorite things that you really build the foundation for early?

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Always loved, never forgotten, all our previous boys -

Kate, my focus is varied since I do agility, obedience & field. But there are a lot of common elements that can be taught while the pups are growing.

First steps are wanting to work & be with you (play; physical, toys, praise, food); learning it is safe to explore & try things, manners (waiting for food, doors, sitting for attention), impulse control (crate games), baby attention/choosing - its yer choice etc

Body awareness: ladder work, pot work, wobble boards. jump bumps/natural obstacle; going over, under, through things. Weaving through your legs, stretching. The travel plank, once they are 8 months or so I start on the teeter.
Targets: hand targeting, object targeting etc.

While my dogs don't start jumping until after 14 months, they do learn shadow handling (front crosses, rear crosses, left, right etc). They also use jump bumps - 1/2 of a PVC pipe that started as either 4 or 8 inches.

Sits, downs, stands, set ups on the left, the right and through my legs
Getting the pup to leave you (tossing food, going around things like pylons etc)' getting the pup to come back to you.

There really is a lot of foundation work that you can do - I do feel the need to tell you that I know people who start standard obedience from day 1 - it is a preference one way or another I think. I have seen 10 week old pups being taught heads up heeling from pretty distinguished people.

ETA: If you will be using the 'motivational pop', early puppyhood might be a good place to introduce it, light pop followed by food or play etc

__________________

Golden moments shared with
Casey, Faelan, Towhee & Brady too !

and forever in my heart, my golden Bridge boys
Rowdy & King

Thanks Sharon. Is there a reason why you wait so long to start obedience work?

I enjoy teaching heeling practically from the start - as I've already established. But I find myself getting overwhelmed going over all of the things I take for granted with Jacks and trying to figure out when to start with Bertie.

Like I started right pivots and abouts with him, but am dreading teaching the left pivots, backs, side steps, finishes, distraction training with watches, moving stands and moving downs, jumps.... o_O

Even things like changes of pace.... o_O

And the hideous take/hold/give initial steps for dumbbell training.

And while I have started stay/wait training (the 5 seconds next to him) and I've done scoot fronts with Bert-Bert, I'm not sure as of yet how or when I started more formal front training. And then there's the sideways fronts, angled fronts, rally fronts from heel... all that which Jacks does easily.... o_O

With Jacks I remember he was slightly older (5 months? 6 months?) when I went ahead and taught the swing to him. I taught it with a gotcha-boot-leash-pop. I think he was almost a year old before I taught the right finish, etc...

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Always loved, never forgotten, all our previous boys -