Thanks everyone for the kind words.
QUOTE(mannequion @ Jan 8 2009, 04:53 PM)
Mind to share how you training her ?
Sure.
There are a few concepts i learnt from my experience with previous dogs and books. It is imperative in my opinion to truly understand them in order to train.
Now Kimi isn't perfect so i'm not a master trainer or anything but these are strictly in my opinion.
CONCEPTS:
A. There is one leader of the pack and the leader of the pack should be YOU. i can't emphasize this enough because if your dog thinks you're just a member of the pack, then you won't get an easy time to get her to listen.
Example: Remember the dog you had. You were the one caring for her, bathe her, feed her, etc. However, there is one member of the family, like your dad or mum who the dog seems to be very "afraid" of. You see, in the dog's mind, you're not the master. Your dad or mum is! If in any case, the dog is at all, even once, aggressive to you, then you are not perceived as the leader of the pack yet.
B. Positive reinforcement ONLY.
This means that there will not no punishing physically, AT ALL! Basically, get her to do the right thing, by design or coincidence, and reward it IMMEDIATELY and ENTHUSIASTICALLY!
If she does the wrong thing, and you catch her in middle of the act, say NO strongly and only once. If any time has passed, like 5 minutes or so, after the wrong act, ignore it and don't make a fuss.
it will not understand what you are saying NO too because it can't relate it. Some dogs can but most dogs won't.
C. Dogs cannot understand humans. Humans can try to understand dogs.
This is very important. I find myself sometimes trying to logically get my dog to understand human concepts but that's crazy. They won't. We have to think like a dog.
Example: Say you come home from work, and the dog has chewed some furniture. Now by concept B, time has passed, and there's no use reprimanding it now. It won't relate. The problem if you do punish her, it will relate to the fact that when you come home, she will be punished!!! Not what you want.
So if you think like a dog, why would she chew on furniture when she has other things better to chew on? Well, maybe because she's bored and has too much energy. Or maybe there are too little things to chew on. Equally, if you don't want her to chew on item A, then you have to designate items B and C to chew on instead.
Basically, if you say one thing is wrong to do, we must show her then, what is the right thing to do.
D. Your dog is committed to make you HAPPY!
This is by far the most crucial. Everything she does, right or wrong, is because she thinks it's going to get some reaction from you, and attention. She might be coy and do bad things when you're not looking but maybe it's because you hardly spend enough time playing with her or exercising her. So she's trying to get your attention.
E. Be consistent!
F. A happy dog is an obedient dog.
Here is how i trained Kimi on a few things:
1. Potty training
Ok this wasn't easy at first. I didn't get a good sleep for 2 mths when i got her because i was dedicated to "catching" her in the act. Remember concept B? Well i can't cry over spilled milk.
Accidents will happen. When that happens, and you didn't catch her in the act, put her somewhere else where she can't see you. Then only clean up the mess. Get rid of the smell. DON'T let her see you clean up otherwise she will think it's a sure fire way to get you to get on you knees and touch the floor!!!! This relates to C as well right? cos they don't understand what we're doing. Also, the worse thing that can happen is next time she poops outside the area, she will eat it up because she's afraid you will scold her when you see it!!!! Not what you want.
Try to catch her during the act, if she is about to, quickly carry her to the right place. Now she won't do it sometimes because you just startled her. It's ok.
Usually after meal and water, play with her for 10 mins or so. Then she will start sniffing.
Lead her to the right area, try not to carry because she needs to learn to find the right place. keep her in there and keep repeating a command like "Do it" until she does it.
If she does do it, give her a treat and praise her.
I find it easier, if you take her on a leash outside the house where she can pass. When she does it, keep repeating the command, Do IT Do IT... once she's done, praise and reward her.
After a few weeks, she will understand what is Do It and what she will get if she does the right thing. Now back in the house, take her to the area and ask her to Do It. She will hopefully relate and try to do the right thing to make you happy!
Another easy way is to get a her a small cage that fits just enough. There will be not much room for her to pee or poop. By default, dogs don't defecate where they sleep. Put her in when you go to sleep at night. Don't worry about it barking or yelping, you have to bear with it and eventually it will stop once she understands there is no respite whatever she does. She'll just have to understand that she will only get to go out when you wake up in the morning.
So once you wake up, open cage, carry her to the desired area and tell her the command to pee/poop. As usual, praise excitedly when done. In a very short time, you train her bladder control, which is very useful for going to places, traveling, etc., as well as potty/command.
2. Sit, stand, stay, etc.
The key is to establish a reward/praise and "NO" system. Don't overuse NO. They must be used only critically to give them the power over the dog.
Keep bags of treats in your pocket but don't let her see them.
Once she is keen to do the things that will make you happy and she gets a reward, then it's just a matter of repeating the process for these commands.
Remember, don't say NO after the event. You must try to time it IMMEDIATELY or DURING the ACT.
3. Heel
This is quite simple. Use a retractable leash. Keep it short so she is forced always on one side. Keep trying to get her to keep on the correct side. Get her to sit and stay. Then start walking and say "Heel!". Reward her if she does. If not, just tug the leash so she walks.
One thing, when she's not doing the right thing, and you say NO or/and tug the leash, don't make eye contact. Look away.
4. If you dog goes into her cage/kennel/hiding place/etc., NEVER forcefully pull her out. This place is the one place she feels safe so do not violate that need. If you must, coax her to come out slowly and gently. Otherwise leave her alone.
That's just some of the things i did. If there are specific things you want to ask my opinion on, i'll be glad to share, if i know.
This post has been edited by h71y6: Feb 12 2009, 10:52 AM 
Jan 8 2009, 04:49 PM
Quote
0.0394sec
0.43
7 queries
GZIP Disabled