Boogie's blog

Training homework & the week in review

March 6, 2010 at 7:01 am 2 comments

Today, I started a “Clicker-training checklist” using www.joesgoals.com – isn’t it amazing what you can do on the internet!

This is so I can keep track of which and how many games/sessions I have done with Boogie; and which ones need more practice.

It’s quite depressing  when you count the RED marks which are all Boogie’s “over-threshold” incidents. As Sarah reminds us, the more he practices these behaviors, the more reinforced/ingrained they become. 😦

Clearly we need to do MORE sessions of everything, and there are so many games/exercises to cover! Each session is on average, under 5 minutes, except for the Follow Me/Loose-leash (heeling) stuff which I incorporate into our longer walks.

The main sessions/games:

1. Charging the marker (“Click” or “Yes!”)
2. Name recall (“Boogie!” for eye contact; “Here!” for come) Such an easy and great little game. Boogie is becoming much more reliable in coming when called. Wes and I practiced this tonight – it was really cool! Boogie ran around the apartment from person to person.
3. Follow Me /Loose-Leash walking – I need to do more of this, especially outdoors with minor distractions. I haven’t been marking and treating as often as I should.
4. Quick U-turn cue (“Let’s go!”) – Our first session today – indoors and outdoors. My treat delivery was a bit sloppy (it’s hard to deliver treats while walking) but Boogie responded really great! Another one I must do more often.
5. Look at that! – Needs more practice.

I also need to keep track of how many treats Boogie is getting with each session because I don’t want to overfeed him!

Entry filed under: Training.