Page's agility foundation training

It is winter, and we've had snow on the ground for more than a week. My equipment is inside in pieces being stored, and it's been too cold to work VST. So, one of my winter projects is to work on Page's agility foundation.

When thinking about Page's training, I have reflected on my other dogs' training. I think I'm good at teaching my dogs handling and jumping. This is due to my foundation in the sport of agility through Linda Mecklenburg's Awesome Paws system that I learned through seminars and camps as I was beginning the sport. It was solidified through years of classes at Wild Weavers of Ohio and with private lessons with Jennifer Crank of Incredipaws.

After struggling to communicate weave poles to Devon, I found the 2x2 weave pole training method. I took Susan Garrett up on the challenge of 12 poles in 12 days, and Devon was weaving 12 poles in 9 days. She was right! This was an incredible way to teach weaving to a dog, and I will use it for training weaves in the future.

But so far I haven't been happy with the way I've trained my dogs' contacts. So my goal for Page was to have amazing contacts (as well as the handling, jumping and weave pole skills my other dogs have).

I knew I wanted a 2 on 2 off contact for the dogwalk and teeter. I like the results from the nose touch method, so I taught a nose touch to Page. But something wasn't translating in my brain until Lise Pratt (Page's co-breeder and owner of Suffolk Nassau Agile Paws) and I talked and she pointed me to a series of articles in Clean Run's October, November and December issues. These articles made it all click!

The series "Training a Two-on, Two-Off Contact" by Rachel Saunders put the nose touch and the 2 on, 2 off together for me. Rachel says in the introduction she had a nagging issue with the nose touch, and I did too. Her issue was why teach the a nose touch when you would eventually fade it. And while I see her point, the nose touch does give the dog something to do at the end of the board and it keeps the dog's head straight.

But my nagging issue came with transitioning a nose touch to a 2 on, 2 off. I couldn't figure out how the dog was supposed to figure out what they did with their nose translated into their feet on the board. And Rachel helped me out by saying she teaches the 2 on, 2 off and then adds back the nose touch. Yippee! That was what I needed to hear!

Page and I are now off and running on teaching her contact performance. (BTW, I already know how to proof her contacts because I have Rachel's Bridging the Gap dvd which I also like a lot!) He's a video clip on Page's 2 on, 2 off work. I'm at the stage where I need to take it on the road, which I was start doing Saturday. I also want her driving to the position on the travel board with me being in various positions. But so far I'm really happy with what I have.

I'm also doing a lot of plank work with Page. I took several articles written by Tracy Sklenar in Dog Sport Magazine on building a confident dogwalk and teeter and I've been working through the suggestions I found.

One of the big "ah-ha" things I've found is getting the dogs comfortable on the boards. Devon and Page both have outstanding proprioception (thanks in large part to Gaylan's puppy raising system). Even so, Page is the first dog that I've done this much plank confidence work with, and I love the results. Hoping on and off and turning around on low boards has given Page confidence on them. And when she has slipped off, it wasn't a big deal. She jumped back on!

I'm now working the up side of the board to a table. You can see the turns and the hop on/hop off we do, plus the racing up and down the boards. This is one of my aluminum dogwalk boards and it moves and makes a lot of noise since it's not braced below, and Page has no issues with it. I'll continue to work entrances from various angles on this higher board (I've already worked entrances on a board to a lower table and she did fine).

Finally, I've worked on the teeter. Also in the Clean Run October and November issues are two good articles on teeter training by Jen Pinder. I've used the two table method in class to teach the teeter, and I liked it. These articles update the method, and they dove tailed nicely with the 2 on, 2 off articles because both authors train the contacts the same.

What I did do differently is work the Bang Game first, before I had the 2 on, 2 off performance. Because the Bang Game was so unsuccessful with Devon, you can imagine my apprehension at teaching Page. I know this is the best way to teach the dogs; and I know Page is a completely different individual than Devon. But I was a little tense the first time I asked Page to do this game.

Page was fine with the Bang Game. The first few times she pushed the board down, my aluminum teeter made quite a racket. Page's ears flattened against her head, but that was the only sign of stress she gave and she jumped right back on the teeter again! Below is a clip from our last training session on the Bang Game. At the beginning of the clip, you see a very naughty Devon escape from the expen when I asked for Page. This is funny because I know Devon isn't really volunteering to bang down the teeter!

The next steps for Page are doing the 2 on, 2 off on the end of the teeter and then starting with the progression of the two tables.

Page is actually progressing more quickly through the contact work than I expected. She is also working on some recalls to heel and recalls to heel through standards in the various positions for the Awesome Paws Handling System. She's learning collection out of tunnels (and boy does she blast through tunnels). And she's learning control and stays with tug games.

I'll end this post by telling a story that shows how much Page loves to work. When I trained in the building yesterday, I worked Devon first. Page hates to wait her turn, and it's good for her. When I was finished working Devon and getting ready to step up Page's session, I realized I forgot the video camera.

So I let Page out of the expen, we left the building and we headed back across the yard. We got all the way back to the deck and I was opening the back door when Page realized we were going inside. She got a horrified look on her face, turn and bolted off the deck and raced across the back yard. She didn't stop until she was in front of the door to the building, and then she turned back to me with this crushed look on her face as if to say, "But MOM! You FORGOT to work ME!! I didn't get MY TURN!!"

Page would not come back to the house for anything but continued to stand at the door to the building waiting (I swear she was stamping a paw she was so irritated). I went inside and got the camera and came back out to work her. She was so happy that we were going back out to the building. What a work ethic!

"I'm Page and I'm here for my training time!"

I haven't blogged much about Page's Tuesday night beginner obedience class. We're enjoying it a lot. There are only four dogs total: a Dobe, a Weim, a Sibe and Page. All but Page are adult dogs and much bigger than her, but she fits right in with her attitude!

This week was an introduction to agility equipment. We walked in the door just as the class was starting. Page took one look at the ring with equipment she recognized, and she headed right for it! You could tell she thought this had been done all for her, and her alone!

Once I got her headed to the seating area, it was the same as the previous weeks. Alicia sets up two chairs for each team. One chair is for your training bag, and one chair is supposed to be for the trainer. But in my case, I stand and Page sits on my folding chair. As Alicia reminds me, I'm the one who clicked and treated because I thought it was cute! I must say I'm impressed that Page will jump up in any metal folding chair and sit, even if it is slick and she keeps sliding backwards!

Once we were released out to the equipment, Alicia took the two newer students to the back to work with them individually. The other woman in the class and I have more experience so she knows we can work on our own. Alicia had a ladder, plank on the ground, stool to use as a perch, barrel for a chute, two jumps (just the standards and no jump bar) and a plank angled up to an 8 inch table.

I headed to the first "station" which was the ladder. Page trotted through the ladder and then immediately turned and headed for the plank on the ground. It's agility isn't it? You go around a course don't you? I really put a cramp in Page's style when I explained she had to repeat the ladder and couldn't move on quite that fast. Apparently I'm not going to have a problem with her being handler focused with obstacles on the floor! She was all about "conquering the course!"

Page did a great job working on all the equipment. I must confess we aren't doing as much in the building on foundation work with all the tracking lately. I need to get back to working her regularly on obedience and agility foundation. However she hasn't missed a beat!

After we did all the equipment, I brought her back out of the ring to work on other things. I got a tug toy out and we started working stays with releases to tug. As we tugged, the toy came out of her mouth - an as it did a puppy molar flew through the air, too! Only a couple more puppy teeth to go!

So that's a recap of this week's training class. Page really enjoys them, and I'm going to be disappointed to see them end in a couple of weeks. Who knows what I'm going to challenge her with next!

Updating Page's recent tracks

The day after Page certified on July 5, she did a TDX track. It was 500 yards long, aged 1 hour and 45 minutes. I gave her two articles on the track. She did an amazing job with the track; but for the first time in her little career, I saw her stress. She stressed at each article. She froze over the articles, then either walked away or started eating grass around them.

Seeing the stress, I didn't force the issue with the articles. I didn't ask what she had found; I simply walked up and picked it up and told her to track again. Once I picked up the article, she relaxed and started tracking again.

I had been saying that I would work the article game with her to solidify those indications, and it looked like this was the time. I gave her a day off, then spent Wednesday and Thursday last week working the article game.

I'd love to report that Page immediately understood what she was to do and everything was perfect ... but she's a puppy and that's not how the story went. I laid out a line of articles, put on her harness and let her loose. She found the articles, but after a sniff, she went onto the next one. So I started standing on the tracking line, not allowing her to move forward. This didn't make her happy, but she finally showed some interest in the article. Once she did, I clicked and treated. Hummmmm ... if this earns me treats, maybe I'll pay more attention ...

So over two days I got her downing on the articles and nose touching them. I decided this was good enough for now. Ideally I want her to retrieve the articles. This is Devon's indication, and for retrievers I prefer it. However, Page has always volunteered the down, so I'm allowing her to do that. I'm wondering what will happen after she's through force fetch and if she'll start retrieving the articles then. Only time will tell!

Free Friday training

The kennel club offers free member training on a couple of Fridays a month. Today was one of those days. I was able to go up early in the day, and I had the building to myself for 2 hours. What a great way to spend a Friday afternoon!

After I ran the boys, I brought Devon in for a couple of agility sequences. The course that was set up was the same one she ran this week in class, so I did some sequences that we didn't do earlier this week. Devon was very strong in her weaves, and I was pleased with her work.

After I ran Devon, I let her stay crated in the building while I trained Page. I have done some work with Page putting her through standards here at home, so I thought I'd do that in a new place. They also had the 8 inch table out, so I thought I'd play with that, too.

Devon has an automatic down on the table, and I really like it. I've been planning to teach Page the same thing, but she was slower in learning the down than Devon was. But now that the down is coming along very well, I decided to try the table today. Yes, I know I should really teach things at home first, but why worry about silly things like that!

The clip below is the second session that day on the table. You can see she picked up the concept in no time; she's very smart. I pushed the session way too long; but she was so stinking cute, I couldn't help it. This pup just makes me laugh all the time! BTW, the protesting in the background is Devon. She is jealous when her sister works!

Next we worked sending Page through the standards. I was really glad to work this here on different jumps and with the cone and other distractions. The next time I'm able to work in the building, I'll add in the wings on the jumps. I'm very proud of her work here. And as a side note, I set the camera on the 16 inch table, and Page jumped up on that one to do her automatic down, too!

The final agility exercise I worked on with Page was a tunnel. Once again I should probably introduce these things at my place first, but the tunnel was handy and she volunteered to go through it! The next time someone comes here to the house, I'm going to have to have them help me put Page into my tunnels.

Page also went into the obedience practice ring to work her walking on a loose leash, sit, down, and leave it. She's finally getting the leave it concept, which is good.

After Page's session, I brought Devon back out for some obedience work. I think her obedience is coming along very well. She still sits a little wide from me, but she's very straight and her gait changes are beautiful. Below are two clips from her obedience session. The first is her "get close" where I'm asking her to work close beside me in heel. The second is just some heeling practice.

I had four tired but happy pups on the way home!

Page's latest training clips

Since I had the camera out, I taped some additional training this morning. I really do like taping these training sessions, because it shows me what I'm doing wrong. 

This first clip is of "set ups" or a left finish. The goal is to get the dog in heel position as if you are going to start a heeling pattern. You'll see I'm moving my hips and knees when I'm moving her into position, which I don't like at all. I love what Page is doing, and it's so sad I don't have lean over to give her a treat anymore! She's getting bigger!

Here is Page's backing. She's doing a nice job; now I need to add more distance with her.

Here is Page's accordion or fold-back down. I also had the tug toy in my pocket, so we got to see she's almost as steady on a down as she is a sit stay! Good girl!

That's some of what Page has been working on. Maybe we'll get more on tape later in the week.

More Crate Games

This post is by request from our friends at AgileGold and Tails of Gold. We have been working Crate Games with Page, and I really like what I'm seeing. 

The first thing you'll see in this clip is that Page is sitting in the crate, and she doesn't release until I say, "OK." I'm also glad you can see the distraction of the tug toy. Page loves to tug, but she loves the crate even more because she gets food in there. Here's our first session of the day with a release to the tug toy. BTW, this tug toy was made especially for Page by our friend Rachel Humke. Rachel made sure to use Raspberry colors!

The thing I was really pleased with is how well Page went back into the crate. We need to work more drive into the crate, which I haven't worked. You can see there is very high value in the crate for her. I got the Sheepy Tug, which is Page's favorite tug and this was a higher value than the other tug. I think this value will change as she gets older.

Finally, I wanted to see if the stays we got in the crate transferred to stays out in the open. You can tell by the video below they did transfer. Frankly, I'm thrilled that I got this much stay with movement and distractions of playing with a tug toy and a 12 week old puppy!

Busy day

Today was another busy day of training for Devon and Page. We started with a morning training session in the building. These sessions include obedience and agility foundation and tricks for Page and obedience for Devon. 

Page is really doing a nice job in her training, and we'll get video soon. Devon's obedience is also very nice. We're still perfecting her heeling, fronts and finishes, as well as teaching the Open exercises. 

Today we had an extra added distraction in the building. I know I have a small mouse issue in the building, and I recently cleaned up the building and put training toys in plastic bins. The building isn't totally critter proof, so I'm never going to eliminate mice, but I'd like to control them. 

This morning, halfway through Page's session, a mouse darted out from behind a piece of equipment leaning against the wall and ran along a side rail to a hiding place behind a post. It caught my eye and I watched it until it stopped. Then I looked over to the expen, and Devon saw it, too! We both watched it's progress to the back corner of the building, then along the back wall. 

I put Page up and got Devon out. She really wanted to go find that mouse but worked with me anyway. This was actually really good distraction training for her. When the mouse made its way along the opposite wall, Page saw him, too. Even though I appreciated the distraction training today, I guess we need to get some bait out there.

The dogs napped after their breakfast while I attended my Pilate's class. Then it was home to change clothes and the girls and I were off again. Devon did a wagon wheel drill while Page commentated then watched quietly from her crate in the van. After realizing this was Devon's time, when I looked back, Page was sitting intently watching. 

After Devon's drill, it was Page's turn. Page did a 55 yard track which included a two-lane blacktop driveway. Page really likes the tracking game, but I can't say she really understands what she's doing yet. She does understand once she has her harness on what she's going to do and she looks for the start flag. When she sees it, she races to it and pounces on her start article. Today she even gave me a down on the start article!

This was the third time Page has been asked to do non-veg. The first time shouldn't even really count because I had to abandon the track before we got to the non veg. Page wasn't tracking that day. Her second non veg was a one lane gravel driveway. This was difficult for her and I had to remove three rocks from her mouth as she made her way across. 

Today's non veg was much better. Page was tracking pretty well when she got to the curb. She found the piece of food on the curb and then did classic back and forth transition scenting along the curb. It was so interesting to see Page work the curb just like a big dog would. However, because of her inexperience she never ventured out into the pavement. I finally pointed to the pavement and she started transitioning again. After helping her once more, she finally went across the pavement into the grass where she found her glove.

After our "work," we went to check out a woods we'd been given permission to use. It was a little walk back to the woods; unfortunately it was too wet for us to walk in. On the way back, I let both girls off leash to run and have some fun. Then it was back into the van to the park.

I knew going to the park around noon would be risky since it was Saturday and there would be more people out (and dogs aren't supposed to be off leash). But it was cloudy and drizzling, and I hoped it would keep people away. We were able to get a 15 minute woods walk in, which was good enough. Both girls had a good romp and were tired and happy when they got into the van.

Back at home, I made lunch and Page looked tired hanging around the kitchen. Finally, she got up and stood in front of her crate in the kitchen. I opened the door for her, and she went inside and laid down. This was a first! She actually asked to go into her crate, yippee!! I was so excited I took a photo, which made her sit up to look pretty. Oh well, at least she got in by herself!

We had one more training session in the building (without mouse distractions) before dinner. Then we called it an evening for snuggling with mom on the sofa (for Devon and Connor) and chewing on bones for Page. I think Page is now dreaming of what she's going to do tomorrow, and Devon's trying to find that mouse!

Page's first trial and kudos for Devon

Because Page's birthday is two days before Devon's, she is having some "hand-me-down" experiences. I can already see many of Page's firsts will really be repeats of what Devon did three years before. I'm sure as the girls get older, Page will chart her own path. But in our first 16 weeks, Page is taking the road first traveled by her big sister. 

This weekend is the White River Golden Retriever Club's Specialty. I'm the Rally Chairman for the Specialty, so last night I set up two crates in the obedience/rally building for the girls. I really didn't expect Ms. Page to last very long in the building. You know these Game Birds have a reputation for expressing themselves, and LOUDLY! 

Our morning started out in the usual way with a training session before breakfast. Page is learning some new things, like sitting up (beg/sit pretty) and spinning. She's also working on sitting at my left side and touching a target. Devon's training session included Excellent Rally exercises ... that's foreshadowing of things to come! Much to my surprise, she knew how to do the Halt, come front, finish signs. I wonder when she learned that? And with only two tries I taught her a rough moving stand, which was enough for me to do a walk around.

Upon arriving at the fairgrounds, the girls took a quick tour of the Indiana Collie Club Agility trial to say good morning to friends before we headed to the building. Page was elected "marketing specialist" for Rachel's tug toy business, and she headed out with a puppy tug in her mouth. Devon of course had to "help" with the puppy tug and the marketing.

In the obedience/rally building, I included Page's towel, bone and "Raspberry dog" toy in her crate. Page settled in and watched the activity around her. Pretty soon, she snuggled up with "Raspberry dog" and fell asleep. You can see a photo of the girls in their crates at the trial at the top of this entry (Page was asleep until I got the camera out).

Just like in their puppy pen, Page loves to have an extra large stuffed toy in her crate to sleep on. She has "Raspberry dog," a large children's toy made of chenille with Raspberry colored ears and feet in her traveling crate. This toy helped her make the journey to Indiana. And in her crate in the bedroom she has a bright green alien toy.

I was so impressed with Page! At 11 weeks, she was content in her crate in the obedience building from 10:45 a.m. to after 4 p.m. Devon came out to work at least three times, and Page never made a sound - even when Devon was in the ring! This is much better than when we're working in our own training building!

Devon was not entered in today's trial. However, it crossed my mind earlier this week that we only had one Excellent Rally entry. Someone would need to honor and run the course for that dog. I put it out of my mind until last night, when I got to thinking of the folks who would be around the trial and helping. Unfortunately there was only one other person who had worked their dog at the Excellent level. After we talked this morning, we decided even though Devon had never done an Advanced or Excellent class, she'd probably be the better dog to run.

I told the judge I had a dog to run, and she was fine with that. I didn't mention that the dog only had an RN and had never been off leash in the competition ring before - details! I knew my dog and trusted her. I was able to warm up with all the signs we'd be using, and Devon did very well. I also took high value treats (steak) for the pre-ring warm up. Sure enough, she was blowing spit bubbles and prancing like a reindeer! Devon was ready!

I am so proud of Devon. She handled the ring experience very well. She has never done a sit/stay on leash, but she made it most of the way through the honor sit before going down just seconds before the working dog finished. Out of the ring, I grabbed 3 pieces of steak and used them on the way to the start gate. We were in the ring, leash off and the judge asking us if we were ready before I even had time to think about being nervous. 

Devon just nailed this rally course. Did I mention that she'd never been off leash in the rally ring or jumped in rally? She was complete control after the second jump into beautiful prancing heeling. The last sign was the moving stand, walk around your dog. I taught her this sign this morning. She walked one step forward before stopping, but she held her ground for the complete exercise. 

I asked the judge later if she scored me. She laughed and said she had a clipboard but didn't have any paper on it. She knew because she "went to the board" on me and marked on her clipboard. She then paused and said she went to her board three times. Since I didn't have any handler errors or repeated signs, that would have been 3 points off total. With the failed honor station, Devon would have had an 87 and won the class. Did I mention I was really proud of her?

Page had several "out" times to work, too! She went through her "tricks" of sitting, moving into heel position and sitting, standing, spinning and hand touching. I was even able to get her to touch the target. Page also remembered that she must sit until released in a crate, even when her leash is being put on. Page did a better job than most of the dogs at this, and many nearby exhibitors noticed (thank you Crate Games)!

Page's favorite "out" time was a rough and tumble play session with Luna, the Pequeno Portuguese Podengo. Luna is 10 months old, and she was great fun for Page to play with! If you ever get the chance to meet a Podengo, they are really fun! Luna is full of life! She and Page had a grand game of bitey face, puppy wrestling and chase! 

But the BEST game was when Page grabbed Luna's leash and started tugging on her! Luna had no idea how to get out of that, and since Page was bigger and the floors slick, Luna couldn't do a thing about it! Page knew she'd won this battle of puppy wills. Susan, Luna's mom, even wondered if Page could come home with them to keep tabs on Luna. Hummmm, I'm not sure if Susan knew what she was asking for, and I could tell she thought better of that suggestion later! 

Page got to watch the final runs of the Indiana Collie Club agility trial and meet a really nice Portuguese Water Dog named Whoopsie. I really like Whoopsie, and she sent a litter of puppies home a couple of weeks before Page came home. Whoopsie was all too ready to tell Page you don't nip Portie noses! What a good momma dog!

After the agility trial, Page got to get up on Dr. Bonnie's treatment table. Dr. Bonnie is great fun, and has really yummy salmon treats! However, Dr. Bonnie's no push over! Talk about maintaining criteria! Page could tell Dr. Bonnie wasn't a novice. She really made Page push to earn her rewards for "touch." And Dr. Bonnie got Page to do a fold back down ... that little trick is worth a tracking outing or two with Skye!

After Dr. Bonnie pronounced Page a "really nice puppy," we had one more training session to tackle: HORSES! We have a busy fairgrounds on the Saturday before Mother's Day. There is a Golden Retriever Specialty, an all-breed agility trial, a goat show and a horse show! I didn't get Page over to see the goats, but there was several horses still around, so we took yummy treats and headed their way. 

Page was interested in the horses and gave them long looks, especially with they turned and eyed her. But every time she stopped and looked at them, she got a yummy treat. Hey, when mom is offering treats, the world is a great place! 

Finally, after one more lap with Luna and Sheltie Beep, we headed home. You would think that Page has slept all evening. Well, you'd be wrong! After some cat naps on the way home, a quick stop at my parents and a romp with Reece, Page has been going full steam since 6 p.m. and it's now 9 p.m. She's been pulling on the daybed quilts, chewing on my chair and wrestling with Connor; she's wandering around trying not to fall asleep! I think she'll sleep well tonight!

Let the Crate Games begin!

I'm still working on trying to read Page's play moods in the house. When she's really frantic jumping and biting at the other dogs, it usually means she's tired. However, today she was wild, and she'd just gotten up from a post-woods walk nap. 

Since she was so wild, I put everything aside (who needs to pay bills anyway), and we went to the building to train. Page got a long lesson in Crate Games. I wondered how this session would go. I should have done it a week ago, but because I figured it would take me over an hour I kept putting it off. 

Page's litter has across the board been very vocal. They get it honestly from both Bizzy and Goose. While many of her littermates are driving their owners batty with their noise, my multi-day drive home convinced Page that screaming in her crate wasn't going to accomplish much.In the car, she settles right down without a peep to sleep or play in her crate.

That of course hasn't prevented her from testing things now that we're at home. I've made it a fast rule not to enter a room where she's crated when she's screaming. At night, she settles quickly and rarely protests. I get the most noise as I'm finishing my shower or if I put her in her crate while I'm eating.

For Page's first lesson in crate games, I used small pieces of turkey giblets left over from Thanksgiving to teach her to sit when the crate door latch was rattled. Page loved the treats and quickly learned to sit. However, we had to work through her control when I started the "Are you a gambler?" phase of adding in distractions with the door opening. 

Before I started Crate Games, if Page jumps at or paws the crate door, she's not allowed out. By simply not opening the door and being consistent, I've taught her not to rush the door. However, including a sit and a stay while the door was opening was a challenge for Page. She had several times when the door was closed in her face and she didn't get those yummy treats because she got up from her sit. But each time this happened, I could see the little wheels turning in her head to figure it out. 

Finally, she controlled her impulse to get up when the crate door opened. Bless her, she even started to come up from the sit and immediately planted her butt firmly on the ground again! It was as if she was saying, "HANG ON! I GOT IT!" From this point, she hung onto that sit and flew through the distractions of putting on her leash. And just like the dogs in the DVDs, she didn't want to come out of the crate at first when we moved to that phase. Once she did come out, she explored both sides of the crate, then got right back in to a jackpot! Boy did she like that!

Once I released her, it was back to the house. This time, she played quietly with her toys and bones and then quickly fell asleep for a quick after "workout" nap. When it came time for her dinner, Page sat in her crate for the door to open and her food dish to come in. After dinner, she remembered to sit quietly for me to reach for the door, but she'd pop out of her sit when I opened the door. It's that control issue again! I shut the door and let her figure it out. On the third try, she started to come up and then you could see her think, "DARN IT! I have to SIT!" and she settled back into her sit. 

Page is such a smart girl, and she works really hard to get what I'm asking of her. She's a real joy to train.

Puppy socialization and training

Today we took our puppy training on the road. We visited our friends Raquel and Angela at Silver Square. I wasn't sure if this office building was ready for Page, but it was a fun place filled with young professionals interested in everything. 

As I've come to expect, Page trotted into the building on her leash in the steady rain as I carried a large umbrella. I took down the umbrella outside away from Page, and she wasn't fazed. Inside there was two sets of metal stairs with no risers (you could see through them) with a landing between them, again little Ms. Page followed me right up both sets. 

Page trotted down the hallway which included a catwalk across the lobby below and boldly walked right up to meet Raquel. In fact, she liked Raquel so much, Page followed her back down the hallway! She also loved Angela, who took advantage and got in some puppy cuddles!

Of course, I brought props and treats to take advantage of an audience and a new training situation. Page showed off in style, and the audience didn't bother her one bit. She did her sit, stand, back up, tug and pivot on her perch. For some of her tricks, Pete the Planner was in the "audience," and he thought Page was way smarter than his baby daughter.

After our socialization and a nap for Page, we went back out to the building to tape all of Page's training so far. In the first clip, you can see Page sit on command. This is followed by me asking for a kick back stand. That didn't go so well; I only got a couple that I really liked (I figured out why later). Next I did some agility groundwork or worked her in circles on both sides in a loose "heel" position followed by some front crosses. Finally, I asked Page to back up using the command "beep, beep."

Next we did some perch work. This is probably Page's favorite game (and mine, too). First, she puts her two front feet on the perch to the command "feet." Next she spins around using her rear legs to walk herself around in a circle. The command I use here is "dance." Page is better in one direction than the other!

Next I asked for something very hard, to switch to toy/play drive from food drive. I also asked for playing in the same area that I just fed her. I used a high value sheepy tug toy (thank you Agile Gold for finding this toy for us, because it's Page's favorite). In this game, I'm waiting until she gives me a sit and I want her to stay until she's released with a verbal "OK, Tug." 

I'm very pleased to see her learning curve increase with this game. In these clips you see she stays while I move and even take a step or two. This is real progress, as is her "give" when I take the collar and ask for the toy back. She does get distracted by the food on the floor once, but I like how she came back and worked for me.

This last clip is of a hand touch that I will soon move to a target. In reviewing these videos, I had the "AH HA!" moment why she wasn't getting her kickback stand today. I'm presenting the same picture to her in the kickback stand as I am the hand touch. I need to move the kickback stand to my side anyway, so there's no time like the present!

Homecoming of a wild goose

On Wednesday, we were up and out of the hotel early, headed to HYBAR for an obedience lesson with both girls. Before we headed out, Page made me laugh by sitting in front of the TV and watching the Weather Channel. She was probably hoping for an end to our rain! 

At HYBAR, Devon spent an hour working on open and utility exercises, with Linda showing me the progressions so I could work ahead at home. I can't wait to continue working Devon's heeling, fronts and finishes and moving on to some additional exercises. After an hour, it was Page's turn.

Luckily we could skip the proprioception exercises since I already know how to do them from agility. We did go over a useful "settle" command that will translate well into any venue. We then went right to learning proper ways to sit, down, and stand for the obedience ring. I also learned how to teach her puppy go outs, puppy recalls, foundation for heads up heeling, finishes, and fronts. We also talked about starting scent articles now, before she does pile work for field. Pile work is one of the few things that contradicts her obedience work, since in pile work the dog just needs to bring back any bumper and with scent articles they need to search the pile for the right article. 

After 50 minutes, we called it a session. I was really proud of this little one working so hard with me, when she had only been with me less than 48 hours. We have a lot to work on over the coming weeks!

And after all the driving the day before, both girls got back in the SUV and fell fast sleep as we headed toward Columbus. The photo at the top of the post is what Page looked like during most of her time in the SUV! After a stop for gas and a stop to visit "Uncle Dave," we were finally headed home. I told Linda this poor puppy probably thought she'd been placed with a homeless woman who just drove around all day and slept in hotel rooms!

Finally we arrived home! The girls had a grand time in the back yard, then they watched as I unloaded the SUV. After looking at this video, I have a feeling I'll get questioned if these two are mother/daughter!

Outside, Page showed what a great job Lise and Gayle did with teaching them proprioception. How many other 9 week old Goldens are this good with stairs?

Devon took the time to show Page where the toys where after the house was cleaned. Devon's such a good big sister!

 

And then it was time for dinner before she met the boys.

I decided to introduce Page to the boys on fairly neutral territory, at my parent's place. I got the added bonus of having Reece around to meet her too. As expected, Connor thought she was pretty neat on first inspection. He didn't play right away with her, but he did like her. Next, I brought out Reece. He is really great with puppies. And remembering Devon's reaction to seeing a black dog with pointy ears for the first time, I thought I'd get Page introduced to him before Ian. As the clip below shows, Reece really liked Page!

Finally, I held Page on my lap as I sat in a chair and we let Ian out. I was most interested/concerned about Ian's reaction to Page. When I introduced him to Devon, I expected him to be thrilled with a girl in the house. Instead he was terrified of her, and Devon quickly learned he'd run from her. Being chased by this strange creature Ian terrified him more, so they had to be separated for several weeks. 

However, I was pleased with Ian's initial reaction. He remembered what puppies where from his terror 3 years ago, and he had his ears up and tail wagging as he met her. He danced away and didn't want to stay long, but it was a much better interaction than his first meeting with Devon!

We ended our Wednesday with me cutting and repackaging Bravo in approximately 1 pound chunks for easy feeding. Page watched and commentated from her crate in the kitchen as I talked with Kathy of Agile Gold and updated her on our trip home. Kathy can testify to the tenacity of this litter to BARK! 

There's nothing like hearing a puppy bark for most of 90 minutes to make you thankful for a good night's sleep. It must have been the barking that wore her out, because Page slept from 10:15 p.m. to 5 a.m. this morning. Aaaaaahhhhh! The benefits and joys of sleep are never overrated!

Bringing home a wild goose, part 2

Tuesday was to be a long day of driving for all of us. I was to leave New York and drive to northern Ohio, where I'd spend the night. After making the trip to Gaylan's several times from central Indiana, now call Pennsylvania the "never-ending state" of Pennsylvania. With a 9 week old energetic puppy known for barking, I was thinking I'd have a lot of new names for Pennsylvania by the time I was out of it.

Even with the new feeding schedule and a new puppy to monitor, I was impressed we made it out of the hotel within 90 minutes of getting up. This included play time for Page and having both girls walked long enough to "do both." 

Luckily, Page was ready for a morning nap when she was loaded in the car. She didn't even move when we stopped for gas about 45 minutes out. In fact, she slept for about 2-3 hours before waking up and getting interested in her surroundings. She barked a few times, but soon decided that wasn't going to faze me. She tried to poke Devon through the crates where they overlapped, but she got the same response from Devon she'd gotten the night before - she was ignored!

Finally, she discovered one of the Styrofoam coolers that held her frozen raw dog food. Now this was interesting! She began to nibble on the lid. Great, I'm going 70 mph down the Interstate with no exit in sight! How was I going to stop this! Well blessings come in all shapes and sizes!

Two days earlier as we were cleaning up from our Golden Retriever club meeting where we have a pitch in lunch, Jim asked if I wanted to take some of the fruit he brought in my cooler as I was traveling. I jumped at the chance for a healthy snack as I was driving! I had the cooler open and a gallon bag of fresh fruit open beside me on the seat, and I was using a fork to skewer fruit as I drove down the road. 

To distract Page, I skewered a piece of cantaloupe, reached back and dropped it into her crate. Bingo! She turned and wondered what manna was falling from heaven. Wow! The angels gave her a slimy orange toy! Soon I heard, "bark, bark, bark!" I glanced back to see her chasing this piece of fruit around the bottom of her crate, pouncing and playing with it. The cooler destruction was long forgotten! I only wish I had video for you!

Page was a trooper and the girls made it within 78 miles of Ohio before we stopped for gas and a potty break. I gave Page "lunch" of two kongs filled with Bravo and grain-free kibble. This kept her busy until the road put her to sleep again. Before I expected, but one more cantaloupe play toy later, we were rolling into our hotel in Ohio.

Once we were checked in, the girls and I had play time. Believe it or not, after 24 hours Devon decided maybe Page was an OK kid after all. Devon waited until I seemed distracted, so I was very quiet when I took these videos of their first play sessions. Once Devon saw me watching, she got a little more aloof again; she didn't want to let on that maybe this puppy was kind of neat!

After 1.5 hours of play, Page crashed. I took this opportunity to load them in the SUV (yes, again) and head to HYBAR to watch obedience classes. I take private lessons from Linda MacDonald of HYBAR, and she had said to come watch if I had time. I was really glad I did because I got to see more advanced work and proofing. Pauline and her Golden boy Blue was also in this class, so it was fun to see them work since I have not seen them do obedience. Page got to come into the building to say hello to some of the Golden crowd after the class. 

As we headed back to the hotel, I ordered carry out, fixed a quick dinner for the girls, walked the girls and got my food. They watched me eat, then enjoyed evening play time. We also did another couple of sessions of clicker training before we went to bed. 

Page didn't sleep as well this second night, probably due to lots of sleep and little activity during the day. She got me up 2 hours after we went to bed, and I did take her out. However, when she wanted to go out again 3 hours after that, I told her "quiet" and she didn't fuss much. I got up around 5:15 a.m. to take her out, and she did go. However, I did notice a damp spot on the towel in the crate. I think I misread the earlier request to go out and she had her first accident. My fault, but we'll both live through it. 

Bringing home a wild goose, part 1

On Monday I left Columbus, Ohio, headed for New York and Gaylan's Golden Retrievers to "fetch" Ms. Page, soon to be officially known as Gaylan's Wild Goose Chase. Devon, unaware of what was to come, was riding with me. Page was the last puppy to be picked up, due to Devon's library duties last week and hosting the local Golden Retriever club's April meeting at my house on Sunday.

After checking into the hotel, we pulled into Gayle and Andy's driveway, announced by Una, Dreamer, Risk and Corey. Ms. Raspberry (Page) was alone in the puppy pen, sitting on an elevated bed. As Gayle walked out to greet me, Ms. Raspberry started in with lonely barks, ending in a pitiful wail. Gayle chuckled, and I asked if she was the last orphaned puppy that no one wanted (which was the furthest thing from the truth, talk about a drama queen!). Apparently that's what she thought when all the Game Birds flew away, including Lise and Drake (Mr. Red) that morning. Page had been barking and protesting her alone-ness by even putting her teeth on the expen and pulling on it!

We decided to take Page and Devon on a short woods walk to hopefully give me some sleep and stretch Devon's legs. Devon promptly took a time out to take care of some private business, but Page wanted to meet her new friend. The look Devon gave Gayle and I clearly communicated, "Seriously, I'm trying to have a private moment here, can one of you DO something about this?" After that pit stop, Devon promptly ran off ignoring Page completely. Instead, she stuck by Gayle and I as we walked and talked "strategy" for how I was to train this new little one in my life. I'm so lucky for all the wealth of information Gayle has from training with so many of the dogs she's bred. Those insights are invaluable. Of course, I think the email lines to Donna to ask questions about Bizzy will be hot! Everyone says Page is similar to her mother's personality.

Devon did decide to play bow at Page toward the end of the walk, causing Page to drop to the ground and show her belly. Devon tried again with similar results; both girls acting totally appropriately. Then it was off to give Devon dinner and warm Page up inside as Gayle and I did paperwork and chatted.

As we loaded Page and her food into the SUV, the look on Devon's face isn't fit to reproduce in words! Devon was NOT amused that the small fur ball was coming with us. This was NOT in her plans! Gayle could only chuckle as she said goodbye to both her girls and wished Devon good luck.

At the hotel, Page got used to walking on her leash with us and did a great job of pottying outside. I had treats and a clicker with me, so we did a couple of short sessions of clicker work. Boy, this was grand fun for Page! She go a piece of cheese every time she looked at me! She was so impressed by the cheese in just a couple of short sessions, she was sitting and giving me eye contact. What a smart girl! Devon also got cheese for staying on the bed and quietly watching the session.

After some play time, primarily by herself since Devon still wasn't acknowledging her presence, we headed to bed. I put Page's crate on the second bed in the room, facing mine. Since it was still pretty early, I decided to wait Page out for barking in the crate, knowing this would be a problem. Once the lights were out and I was still in bed, she only barked for about 1 minute before giving up and going to sleep. Round 1 to me!

Page slept for about 3.5 hours, then woke up and entertained herself in her crate for another 30 minutes. She started to whine, and since it had been 4.5 hours since her last out, I took her outside where we had success. Now for the dilemma: it was not 1:30 a.m., and I didn't think my neighbors in the hotel would like me letting Page bark. The "earthquake" method of shaking the crate to get her to stop barking was creating a nice game of her being successful with negative reinforcement. What were we going to do?

Then, I had a brainstorm. I turned out the lights and laid down in bed. When she started to bark, I took a bed pillow and softly "thunked" it against the crate (I didn't throw it 90 mph at her). The barking stopped and the pillow fell back at me. She started barking again, "thunk" and a pause in the barking. A third time she started to bark, "thunk" and this time after a pause, she mumbled and laid down in her crate and slept until 6:30 a.m. Yippee!! Round 2 to me!

Here's a video of her first meal of raw food, prepared by me! 

Field drills are coming together!

I'm glad I challenged myself to give Devon a variety of field drills and not to repeat any drills two sessions in a row. This was a fun challenge, and I think it's helped her training. I know it's made me review my resource materials!

Yesterday, I went back to working "overs," but this time I isolated them and only worked "overs." I set two piles on either side of a tree, with both piles being 30 yards from the tree. I brought Devon out and sat her in front of the tree, and I walked back 15 yards. I identified the left pile, then sent her to it. She did great. I did the same with the right pile and we had another success. 

I sent her to each a couple of more times, then started to add a little distance away from her. She broke down and came right into me instead of going to her right over pile. I still don't understand after going to that pile three times how she could suddenly get confused. However, since she cannot verbalize her thought process, I decided not to even dwell on it and just fix the problem. I re-identified the pile and she was successful.

For the next 20 minutes I worked on getting farther back from her and still having her be successful on the over piles. It was nice she figured out her tree spot, because I was able to send her to the tree on a back and then sit her in front of the tree. 

The right over is clearly harder for her. She wanted to bow into me a lot, and one time I had to call her back in three times in a row because she continued to bow into me. However, we were able to work through it without her shutting down or me getting frustrated (I'm fully aware one leads to another). We ended with her being successful on both over piles with me 30 yards back from the over line. I was very pleased!

This morning, I got up early to race the rainy, stormy weather coming in to put in a track and do a field drill. This time I repeated the Three in a Row drill, but I used stakes with streamers on them instead of white buckets. I was curious if the moving ribbons on the stakes would bother Devon. I also did the drill in a different location than the last time.

Devon did fantastic when I sent her to each pile the first time. The streamers never bothered her; in fact I think she liked the new posts. She struggled only a little when she was working on the left side of the line and only got sucked into the middle bucket twice. However, when we were working the right side of the line, she really struggled with the middle pile sucking her in.

Once again I kept my frustration in check and we just worked through the drill. Devon showed some avoidance behavior by wanting to mark my discard pile and then got distracted by ducks quacking in the area when she failed three times in a row. After a couple of incidents of this, I took the tab on her collar and heeled her forward a few steps. She hates me grabbing her collar like this, and it was enough of a figurative "kick in the pants" to get her attention. She focused in and worked the drill, finally working to success!

Devon only really struggles with the suction of the middle pile when she's running this drill from the right. I finally found if I over compensate slightly to the left of the blind line, she was successful and didn't bend in to the middle pile. At first I thought I wasn't lining her up correctly, but I could clearly see she was bending the line to cut into the middle pile. 

I think these observations I'm learning are the teamwork we'll need when running tests. If I know there will be suction in a certain direction, I might want to line her up to the left of the line knowing she'll curve in slightly. The same is true of the over drill I did on Saturday. I learned to read her head to tell me when she was only bowing in slightly but would commit to the over and when she was coming into me too much and won't go to the pile. 

Going forward I'm going to focus on learning to read her versus trying to make her perfect to the drill. In clicker training, you move forward with an 80% correct behavior rate. It's interesting how we tend to want the dog to be perfect. However, most of the times the best lessons are learned when we aren't perfect. And my goal is for Devon and I to learn lessons that lead to more success in practical application!

Becoming a children's reading dog

Devon passed her Delta Society Pet Partners evaluation last  year shortly after she turned 2 years old, and I completed my testing shortly after that. We've been searching for a way to use Devon's abilities as a therapy dog. She is especially good with children, so I was hoping to get involved that way.

Well, instead of waiting for a program to come to us, one day on a whim I asked at my local library if they had a program. Turns out, they were wanting to start one and didn't know how to find a dog! In 2 weeks Devon will launch the library's program to improve children's reading skills. Based on advice from the Gaylan's family and especially Anita, Devon and I are preparing for her first session. 

Here's what we're doing:

1. I'm shaping Devon to lay on a special blanket. My mom got Devon a very cute blanket that was handmade by one of the ladies in her church. It's quilted fleece, and it is red with black paw prints on one side and a variety of dog themed fabrics on the other side in white, red and blue. Devon figured out very quickly that she was to lay down on it, after first trying to sit and then (you guessed it) use her paws to paw at it. Anita also says that the blanket alerts Devon to what is expected and that only Devon and the child share the blanket. I think this will go a long way to cuing Devon she's supposed to settle and go into therapy mode.
2. Teaching Devon to nose touch the book. I'm teaching her to touch the book so when a child points out something in the book to Devon, she will nose touch the book as if she's looking at what the child wants to show her. I'm shaping this with me pointing to the book. I hope to be able to say to the child, "Show Devon the (an object) on the page" and have the child point to the book and Devon nose touch.
3. Anita also suggests that I not be afraid to interrupt and lean over as if I'm listening to Devon and say, "Devon doesn't understand what (such and such in the book) is. Can you explain what that is to her?" Or I could say, "Devon thinks it's funny when you make that sound, can you do it again?" I think I need to be careful it's not the sound of a motorboat, or Devon might sail into the puppy zoomies!

As Anita said, the goal of the program is to make reading fun for the children. Studies show reading to an animal can improve children's reading ability. Based on Devon's skill with children, I think she's going to really enjoy this!

Tomorrow I'm hoping to take the blanket and book to a new location and practice. On Saturday, Devon will take her first tour of the library, and we'll take our blanket and book and practice where she will be doing the program. Next week we're practicing with a few children, before the first formal program on National Library Week.

So, get out a good book and read to your dog! Devon recommends Blue's Clues!

Maybe if I just hit the chair harder....

Last week I posted about Devon foot touching the chair for cookies at the kennel club. This week we did the same routine of obedience practice, I teach for an hour, and then Devon has her class. Devon did great obedience work, even sending to a foot smack to a white lattice ring divider. 

Toward the end of Devon's agility class, I was once again sitting in a chair wanting Devon to lay down as the other dog on our side was working. Once again, little miss industrious started foot touching the chair. I decided not to reward, since it wasn't what I wanted and I was starting to get visions of Devon foot touching everything expecting a cookie (really not a bad thing, but...). 

Without the reward, Devon decided that I clearly just wanted her to smack the chair harder. So she set to work smacking the legs of the chair so that her toenails were ringing off the metal chair. It was really funny, and since she wasn't looking up at me I was smiling. Then I looked over and another person in our class who was waiting on her team's turn was watching Devon and laughing. I can only imagine what Devon looked like with her head stuck under this metal folding chair as she was smacking the bar across the back legs with all her might. She said, "What is she try to get under that chair?" I laughed and explained what was happening. Devon is not a stupid dog. Finally we had another turn, which ended the abuse of the chair!

We had the AKC Agility Nationals Finals course set up for our class. The advanced and intermediate classes ran the course, but the novice dogs (Devon's class) did not. Because of adjusting for a doorway in the building, the tunnel/dogwalk discrimination wasn't as hard because the jump prior to the dogwalk had to be shifted so it gave a much better entrance to the dogwalk. 

Devon had another fantastic evening of practice. She never missed her discrimination and drove through all her sequences. She easily nailed the ending half of the course with the two jumps to the weaves. In fact everything we threw at her with the weave poles she did perfectly and she worked hard all the way through them. I was really proud of her!

A good attitude leads to success

Last night we went to the kennel club for agility class. I got there early so Devon and I could practice obedience in the practice ring before the class I help with. Devon did a great job. She was prancing in her heeling and really having fun. I switched treats last night and used small pieces of string cheeset, and she really loved it. 

Since things were going so well, I decided to ask Devon to "smack" the wall (this is an intermediate step in teaching a go-out). She has really struggled to foot touch things, and I finally realized why last night. I believe this goes back to the very first time she put her foot on the teeter board (low) and it moved and banged. That really frightened her, and she doesn't like to foot touch anything that might move. The wall has been hard when she sees my shadow moving on it.

But now, Devon has figured out the foot smack on the wall. In fact, she climbs up the wall with her front feet she's so proud of herself. I was sending her to the wall and she was climbing up it and I was giggling at her. She just thought she was so funny to make me laugh, I'm not sure she really needed any treats. 

She "smacked" several walls and then we called it a session. She went into a crate while I helped with the intermediate agility class. An hour later she came out and did her novice agility class. The first thing we worked on was a sequence involving the weaves. It was jump, chute, 12 weaves. I was sure she could do it and she did! She flew through those weaves to a big reward. Everyone was proud of her since they knew we'd been struggling with weaves.

We repeated the sequence, this time with a rear cross at the weaves. Devon handled this just fine, but she popped out at 10 when I got too far ahead of her. I told her she was silly and she must do all 12 poles, and we repeated them with the rear cross. This time she was successful. She was strong all the way through all three times at the poles and just looked fantastic.

The rest of the class went really well for Devon. She never hesitated at the teeter which was surprising since she had trouble with it the previous two weeks. This was my first clue that being successful was leading to more confidence to be successful. 

Toward the end of class we were sitting in the observation area while the 24 inch dogs were sequencing. I had asked Devon to lay down and relax, but she kept getting up. Finally, I realized she was "shaping" me to be responsible for her position. I decided to turn the tables on her. I just looked at her and waited her out, and pretty soon she realized she was supposed to lay down and that would earn her a treat. 

Well, Devon has this shaping thing well in mind. Hummm, if I offer more behaviors, I might get more treats. She backed up, and I ignored it. She got up and went to the back of the metal chair I was sitting in. As I turned my head out of the corner of my eye I saw her foot touch the chair. I started smiling! She wanted that cheese in my pocket so badly, she was giving me her toughest shaping behavior! 

I asked her what she was doing, and she heard the smile in my voice. She gave me a foot touch of the chair, and I gave her cheese! Then I decided if she was still going strong after 45 minutes of agility class, we'd see what she could really do. I got the clicker and more cheese (this got her attention), and I went to the ring gates near the practice ring. It was quiet over here and I knew I could shape her. 

She gave me a nose touch of the ring gates and got thing. Then she reached forward and smacked her foot on the ground below the ring gates. That earned her a piece of cheese. A second foot smack just under the gates earned her another piece of cheese; but then I upped the requirement. The next foot smack on the ground didn't get her anything. Hummmmm ... and the foot went out and barely tapped the gates - jackpot! She gave me several more foot touches of the ring gates, and I laughed and gave her cheese and told her how brilliant she was on each one. What a girl!

Last night reminded me that you can either spiral up with your dog or down. If you're in a rotten mood, the training session tends to go badly and everything starts to spiral to the bad. Last night, I just enjoyed my dog. I had fun training and she made me laugh. This set the mood for the whole evening. It led to our confidence and success in the weaves and on the teeter, and eventually to the success of the foot touch of the ring gates.

Attitude is everything, and you must have a positive outlook on each and every training session. You choose your attitude. I heard in a sermon one time about a man who said he didn't think he loved his wife anymore. A counselor told him every day to do something for his wife as if they were newlyweds and act like he was in love with her again. This man brought home flowers for her, did chores around the house, spent time listening to her, etc. After a couple of weeks, his attitude changed and he fell in love with his wife again. His attitude and feelings followed his actions even if his heart wasn't in it at first.

This story has stuck with me, because I think it is a good parallel to our training. Do I always want to train? Not really. But if I act out a positive attitude in my training session, my session will be successful and positive - and fun. If I continue to tell my dog he or she is brilliant and smart, the dog will act that way. 

Let the games begin!

Today I met with Debbie and her 6-month-old puppy Amazing Grace. Debbie and Grace and Devon and I worked on Crate Games. We had a lot of fun, and the best thing was seeing Debbie get so excited over Grace's success! I know Debbie didn't think Grace could get all the way through to Stage 3: Yer In, Yer Out, but Grace just blossomed with the shaping and was successful immediately on the first attempt. It was really impressive and a testament to how smart this little girl is to watch her work through that she was to sit when mom opened the crate. What a cutie! And Debbie should have had her own "treats" for what a great job she did.

I think we have another convert to the world of clicker training! Way to go girls!