Well, Cooper's official last day of training is tomorrow. He has come a long way from the pulling, nipping, out of control fellow who was dropped off 9 days ago. He and I have become good buddies but he will be happy to be back with his family. He still gets a little nervous sometimes, especially when he knows he made a mistake but it is definitely mistakes he is making. He is not being defiant on purpose, most of the time he is trying to anticipate what I will ask him to do and he just guesses wrong. When I have to correct him for this he gets a little squirrelly and nervous. The solution is simple, I ask him to do something easy, that he knows, and then I praise him for it. The affirmation that he got something right perks him right back up.
Tomorrow I am going to work on the one behavior that is still coming up now and again and that is his occasional hesitation to come when called. It never happens on walks, but sometimes when he is out playing in the yard and he makes a mistake that requires a correction (like chasing the cat) he will then drag his feet when called to me. I am going to work tomorrow on him understanding that it is ALWAYS a good thing to come when called and that he won't ever get in trouble for approaching me. The remaining goal is simply to perk him up a bit about the Come command after a correction. He takes correction personally and so gets a little sulky when he is called. I want him to be happy about recall all the time. This will be an important thing to continue at home. Luckily, it has sunken in with him that he can't simply run away.
I like how far this little guy has come. He has been a joy to work with and though he is still a shepherd with shepherd instincts he now has the foundation for his owners to build on. If they use the tools (correction and praise) I have given him and them properly he will blossom from freshly trained puppy to a reliable dog as he grows up.
Tomorrow I am going to work on the one behavior that is still coming up now and again and that is his occasional hesitation to come when called. It never happens on walks, but sometimes when he is out playing in the yard and he makes a mistake that requires a correction (like chasing the cat) he will then drag his feet when called to me. I am going to work tomorrow on him understanding that it is ALWAYS a good thing to come when called and that he won't ever get in trouble for approaching me. The remaining goal is simply to perk him up a bit about the Come command after a correction. He takes correction personally and so gets a little sulky when he is called. I want him to be happy about recall all the time. This will be an important thing to continue at home. Luckily, it has sunken in with him that he can't simply run away.
I like how far this little guy has come. He has been a joy to work with and though he is still a shepherd with shepherd instincts he now has the foundation for his owners to build on. If they use the tools (correction and praise) I have given him and them properly he will blossom from freshly trained puppy to a reliable dog as he grows up.
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