First Obedience Class...

...for O and Moo went really well.  Ori loved everyone and every dog and Moo actually did very well and didn't go after any of the larger dogs.  People asked all sorts of questions about Ori and it was an opportunity to share about mills and rescue. 
We joked that Moo loved class because she got to eat lots of cookies and do things she already knows how to do (sit, look, down, and shake).  I love that Deb lets us put a plug in for rescue and fostering as most of the dogs there are some sort of cock-a-poo or young puppy that probably came from a pet store.  Molly is the oldest dog there at 11.5 yrs.  There's 1 Bichon who is 7 and then O comes next at 4.  People were pleasantly surprised with all Ori could do despite missing a leg.   She's such a ham bone and she ate ALL the attention up! A few ladies got a kick out of Nick saying "don't tell her she's missing a leg, she doesn't know!"  but it's true!

It was fun to have Nick and the girls there.  Nick and I swapped dogs back and forth and at 1 point I looked over and Nick had 2 girls sitting and staring intently at the yummy treat in his hand....  I love our little family!

Both girls are sacked out sleeping.....it's such a tough life!

I Want to Add to the Beauty....

Parker and I walked to our last basic obedience class this evening. I was listening to my ipod with one of my favorites, Sara Groves. Sometimes I crave certain artists and songs and tonight was definitely a Sara night, Add to the Beauty CD to be specific. As I was listening to "Add to the Beauty" a few profound thoughts hit my mind. Regardless of what I am doing or what I need to do in life, I want to always add to the beauty and not take away from it in this world. There is so much ugliness and I just don't want to have any part of that. Directly related to the dog world, I want to create an environment where our dogs want to do well and want to thrive. I want my home to be safe and loving environment to every one and every animal that walks through these doors. I want my attitude to add to the beauty while working with these dogs. Unfortunately for me, that is not always how it goes. But God is good and He gives us new days and His strength and dogs who also extend grace...(ha, that's a funny concept to think about, dog's giving grace, but it's true!)

Parker did very well tonight. It was almost like he was showing off, because he was MORE consistent at obedience tonight than he is in general. Of course, in his defense, I fed him 1/4 of this meal and took the rest with us, so he was hungry. It worked out well minus a small issue at Tink's bowl this evening. It was my fault, I let him out of his crate too early...he must have kicked Tink away from her bowl with a growl. I came in yelling. He almost went after me, but then thought better of it or I ordered him to his crate too quickly...? Not sure, but his "crate up" was solid even when he was hungry! I don't put him in there as a time out too often, but sometimes I need a break and in this case I needed to see where Tink was and how she was doing. Of course she was fine. Parker and I had a little heart to heart and then we were fine again.

Oh I digress...anyways, Parker greeted every dog at obedience with a wagging tail. Now I had a good hold on him, but still, no sign of aggression or fear. He had one of the best "heels" while walking this evening. His sit, was impeccable; he sat beautifully while a tween greeted him and while an adult greeted me.

I still have to wonder what types of dogs he has issues with. I haven't been able to typify them yet. We met a lab mix of a dog, Baron, in the parking lot earlier this afternoon and Parker snapped at him a few times. He met a Rottie and a Portugese Water Dog mix this evening without any issues. Small dogs, jumpy dogs were ok too. I'll keep looking for a trigger or pattern, but he's not making it easy to find!

He wasn't keen on me interlocking my fingers under his chin and stroking his jowls, but we'll take that slowly. We spent some time working through being able to touch all over the dog's bodies and while I know that is important, it's gravity hit me again tonight. I have spent the past month or so working on being able to do exactly that with him. I can brush him anywhere, we're working on his feet, I can rub him down, etc. It's also a really neat opportunity to spend time bonding and having fun together.

So yes, that's my update on adding to the beauty, one dog at a time.....

Add to the Beauty--Sara Groves

We come with beautiful secrets
We come with purposes written on our hearts, written on our souls
We come to every new morning
With possibilities only we can hold, that only we can hold

Redemption comes in strange place, small spaces
Calling out the best of who we are

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

It comes in small inspirations
It brings redemption to life and work
To our lives and our work

It comes in loving community
It comes in helping a soul find it's worth

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces
Calling out the best of who we are

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

This is grace, an invitation to be beautiful
This is grace, an invitation

Redemption comes in strange places, small spaces
Calling out our best

And I want to add to the beauty
To tell a better story
I want to shine with the light
That's burning up inside

So much happens....

...in one week that it's hard to fully share and give a good explanation of all that's gone on in it.

I'm not going to lie. Parker had me really nervous this week. I've spoken with several different trainers who, like therapists, all had a different perspective and way of handling Parker. I like to think that Nick and I are intelligent and well trained people and we have been listening closely and learning from each person we come in contact with. We generally ascribe to a more behavioral approach to things and that is the main angle that we are using with Parker. Positive reinforcement, rewarding the behavior we want and attempting to ignore behavior we don't want are some strategies we are using. I've learned from working with people with Autism that no 2 people respond the same way to a given behavior plan. What works for one will not necessarily work for another. So we're taking an individualized approached and really working hard to study Parker and use what will work best in his individual case.

We've started controlling his food intake. I struggled with this initially, but after talking with Ed in Frenchtown NJ on Wednesday and processing through it with Nick, we've developed our own plan with Parker. Ed made it quite clear that Parker is too comfortable and full and therefore won't work as easily. Which was totally true after thinking it through. He's turned down hot dog, chicken liver, and hearts on me. He recommended that Parker work for every single morsel of food that he eats to gain more control over him. (From a different perspective, this also reinforces that people are good and that good things come from people and to be nice to them : ) He suggested 1 meal a day with lots of training.... We're still feeding 2 meals, but they are much lighter. He works for at least 1/2 of his meal by doing things: crate up, sit, down, stay, look, come, touch, etc etc. 1 or 2 pieces of kibble at a time. Then he usually gets a 1/4 of his meal in his bowl with the last 1/4 used while we're walking. Although this morning he got 1/2 and 1/2 with some on the walk as well. His heel and looks are coming along out and about now.

One of Sarah's recommendations was using NILIF (Nothing in life is free.) The main premise behind this is that the dog is expected to do something before he gets what he wants. If he wants to be petted, I asked him to sit or touch (I really like that fun one). If he wants to go out, he sits or waits before he's given the ok to go through the door way. Fortunately he was asked to do something to get something about 85% of the time anyways. Now we've just upped it to 100%. He loves to "touch" my hands and just like Sarah said, I can get him moving around without touching him : )

He works so much better being slightly more hungry. He's more motivated and actually better behaved overall. He has filled out so nicely and his coat is so beautiful that I don't feel badly about leaving him a tad on the hungry side. He wants to please and I think he is enjoying his job of working hard. I do make sure the leash is on him when we're working so if I need him to come or "crate up" I can help him following through. Generally, he doesn't need any help.

We had company over last night and I was nervous. Much to my surprise, Parker was amazing. He had no major issues with Nate, who has a full face of hair. He actually seemed to PREFER him and sat by him at dinner and kept a close eye on him, not in a nervous way, but in a companion-like way. Then Christina and Ben joined us later and again, no issues and he seemed to really enjoy Ben's company. I kept the leash on him and had them drop or hand some treats to him. Everyone made him do something before they petted him and he listened like a pro.

Parker is a morning dog. There is no way around it. He konks out on his bed in the living room (even last night with 5 of us playing games and laughing and being loud) around 9:30, 10ish at night. He's slightly grumpy at night in the way that he just wants to sleep and be left alone. But man, 5:30 am comes around and that dog is ready to bounce of the walls! He is so happy and happy and happy that it's morning time! It's a new day and he is ready to seize it with a walk and food and love and all the great things that a dog enjoys.

Ok so this is long winded and probably boring, but I enjoy it.

The Beauty of Positive Reinforcement

So, after emailing with Sarah at side by side training an looking at a local trainer's website (in the dog house) she suggested, some thoughts began to click which I think should have clicked earlier. I need to continuously motivate Parker to WANT to do what I want him to do. Duh. I need him to be excited about what I need/want him to do! Doing it once or twice and expecting him to always be excited without a tasty treat once in a while is unrealistic.

So I started to problem solve one potential issue, his growling at me at night while on the chair.

I want him to get off the chair to get outside and potty. He is perfectly comfortable sleeping where he is at. How can I motivate him to move? hmm, If I have yummy treats by the door and he gets up and comes when he is called then he gets a big yummy treat as a reward for doing what I want. And as a result, he gets what he wants, a yummy treat. I will start by getting a treat and showing it to him before I ask him to come to me. I know he is food motivated and I know what treats he likes. Theoretically he should beat me to the door in no time!

I cooked up some hot dog and chicken hearts and armed with a bag full of small pieces of treats, a leash, and a positive attitude, Parker and I went down the street to McCracken's to have a positive experience! Once out of the car I showed him the treats, asked for a sit and look a few times in the parking lot and off we went.

Systematically we went. Once through the door, Parker, Sit, look! Good-boy! give treat. Up first aisle, Parker, sit, look (longer pause) good-boy! give treat. We avoided the group of people at the counter at first...too many men with facial hair. The place cleared out and Dave, one of the men that works there offered to help us out a little. I let them know up front, we're working through men with facial hair issues and he was ok with that. He let Parker come to him. No body language that showed fear or uncertainty. I treated Parker with a nice "good-boy" and Dave moved away. Dave came around Parker a few more times while we were there without any issue or hint of fear or aggression. Parker received lots of praise and treats during the whole experience. He was well behaved, attentive, and polite!

He did manage to pee on the floor though : ( I watched him go to pee and tried to get him moving... all i succeeded in doing was have him pee on the floor rather than the display. So we cleaned it up and kept on rolling.

We picked up some Zuke's mini naturals so I can have treats strategically placed around the house so I can catch him being good and reward quickly and effectively. I love the hotdog, but it needs to be refridgerated (ok, so I hate the crap that is in hotdogs, but I love the results I get with the dogs when working with it....the positives outweigh the negatives in this case...plus I don't really want to pay 8 bucks a package for hotdogs without perservatives...I'll wait til they're on sale : )

So that's my positive outlook. Let's keep him motivated to do what I want him to do, give him the training and consistency so he knows what I want him to do, and stay loving and kind to this little bugger!

I am so proud of how his was in public today! Go Parker!

Parker, Obedience Week #2

So we survived our second obedience session tonight. The weather held out and we were able to walk over and back and stay dry! He was quiet as a church mouse with the other dogs this week. A few chicken noises and whining when a big dog came near or when the group congregated together for the first time. A marked difference and noticed by all who were there.

I shared our experience with Parker and Don this past weekend and fortunately we had 2 men with dog experience and facial hair around to help work with Parker. Bob works with prison dogs and/or big Rotties and walked us through a few different experiences. Parker was ok with him initially but when Bob leaned over towards him and invaded "his" space, Parker began to bark and show agitation, to the point that when Bob turned around to walk away, he would have gone after him if i let him. We practiced with Parker sitting and snacking on a treat in my hand while people came up to greet us and shake hands. Parker did very well with both Bob and Ron during this experience.

Bob seemed very knowledgeable and was very patient working with us. He seemed to agree that he thinks Parker was hit or abused in the past judging by his ducking and body language when Bob entered into his space. He is fearful but once a person turns around he perceives the fear as gone and acts all tough which one possible reason why he then goes after the back of someone's legs like he has done with a few select people. I say and think, once he learns to trust and learns that all his basic needs are met with love and care, the fear, through work and diligence, will slowly decrease. I've already seen marked improvement here in the house. And while Tink is a very different dog, once she knew she could trust, life changed for her and she blossomed.

Parker is currently sacked out on "his" chair. He really is such a good boy. It's hard work fostering and not falling head over heels for these guys!

Parker Starts Obedience School

So Parker and I started obedience with GEARS at the Etown fairgrounds last night. True to form, he was a nut case with the other dogs initially. I thought the walk to the grounds and around the grounds might help, but not as much as I was hoping. Fortunately he's a quick learner. It didn't take more than 3 sprays of the bitter apple and he was quiet as a church mouse for the most part : ) He settled down as the rest of the class (9 others) settled too. (There are some cute puppies there too!) He likes his order and routine, and 9 other chaotic dogs did not help his need for a sense of order.

His sit, sit-look, down, and even spin are coming along. He really wants to please, and now he is learning what he can and should do in order to please his people. I'm not sure if he thought it wasn't ok to look humans in the eyes but last night when he was given permission, he sure got good at it quickly! This crazy boy is going to make someone a good companion some day soon!

Here are some more pictures from a few evenings ago. I can't wait to see how he improves over the next few weeks and some consistent practicing!

Pretty down

I love his wild eyes : )

Look at that face!

Notice Tink in the background...?

Belly rub please!!!

Tink Graduates from Basic Obedience

If all of you could have seen the transformation that took place in this little girl from week 1 to week 4.... you would smile as only Tinker can make you!!! Her confidence is even stronger! We got out of the car and she ran around that field, and ran, and ran, i wasn't sure if she was going to stop!!! Hehe, Her sit and stay, down and stay, sitting for a greeting, and come are beautiful!!! Heel is doing pretty well and she's learning how to "take a bow." She also decided she wanted to greet every dog tonight and did so peacefully (and briefly to keep it that way!) She really loves having a job and doing it well! She went through several agility tunnels at the end of the session like a pro tonight too!

Here are some pictures that we took while we were working on sit stay and down stay : )

sloppy old lady sit

good to the last lick

I'm staying

Aren't I beautiful?!?!

You really want me to stay?

Still sitting....

I'm so proud of this girl

We're planning on taking the second level of obedience in June and i am currently looking into taking a class to have her certified as a therapy dog as well as to take her CGC exam. I'm really excited and she really appears to really enjoy it! So onward we go!

Tinker the Smartie Pants

Tinker once again did excellent in obedience class on tuesday. She not only excelled at the sit-stay, but also the down-stay, hold and come : )
Nick and i have been working with her at home too and she is so much fun! She's definitely putting the little pups to shame. As soon as she hears "stay" while she's down she shifts her weight slightly and gets comfy : ) So cute! We're thoroughly enjoying class and her confidence seems to be blooming just a little bit more too! i can't believe there are only 2 classes left! Then hopefully onto advanced and then her CGC test!

Everybody loves the Tinker doggie: Tinker starts Obedience Class

In my effort to have more fun in life, I decided to sign Tink and myself up for basic obedience training. (not sure if that equals more fun for her, but thats another story). ANYWAYS, tonight was our first night and lets just say not only did she do very well, every body loves her!
The class worked on (introduced) sit, sit and look, down, down and look, leave it and shake. Tink and i worked on sit, down, and shake. She did excellent sitting and laying down on a cold concrete surface (i'll be bringing a blanket next week : )
She was nervous at the beginning with all those puppies yipping and barking, but she did settle in after we started and she started working.
People just couldn't believe how confident she is and what a sweetheart she is!!! I'm not even going to imagine how many treats she had! Between training and people giving them to her because she is cute, she had more than her fair share! (she will be getting 1/2 rations of dinner for the next several tues nights!)
There was one other BT there, more "poo" crosses than i care to mention, a stocky boxer, rotties, and the most unique, a rescue great pyranese, basset hound mix!
We had a lot of fun tonight and i look forward to three more weeks of fun, learning, and of course doting on my baby girl.