This morning we welcomed Copper the Weimaraner to the Farm. He is an absolutely stunning dog whose color is, I believe, considered Silver. His physical beauty seems to be matched with a truly wonderful disposition. He has immediately made friends with not only the whole family but the other dogs he will be staying with while he is here. This includes Kylie the Akita, Ted the Shepherd mix, and Helo the Rhodesian mix who is here for a 6 day board and train.
Copper is here for 10 days to learn off-leash obedience. We will be using a Dogtra IQ Yard Trainer later in the week but for now we are teaching him the basics using a classic slip chain and pinch collar. The pinch collar he had on when he was dropped off was a large and was too big so I am going to use a size small during the first few days just to teach him the basics and also teach him how to listen and learn. It is important he understands the word "No" and what praise means before we start using an electronic collar. This will avoid any confusion and will minimize the possibility of the collar frightening him.
Today we worked on Heel/Autosit. He picked up Heel quickly but still needs reminding sometimes not to pull (afterall, it IS only day one and his pulling habit would impress a Husky). His Autosit is not "Auto" yet. He needs a verbal command right now before he sits but this will become automatic over the next few days. Tomorrow we start Down, Implied Stay, and if he gets Implied Stay early in the day we may go ahead and start Recall. If he struggles with Implied Stay we will put Recall (the "come" command) off until day 3 to avoid burn out.
So far I am really liking this dog's attitude. He is people oriented and curious. Being a bird dog his natural state is nose to the ground and tail in the air. But he also loves praise and so is constantly trying to figure out how to get it.
This is another dog I may have to exercise next to the bike. My experience with Weims is that they have 2 speeds. 0 mph and 30 mph. So far Copper has been more or less polite in the house but I can tell he would like to run off some of this nervous energy he has built up from the stress of his first day. A good jog next to the bike tomorrow might help him to relax and really get into learning mode.
That's all for now! He has a big day tomorrow so I hope he is sleeping well tonight.
Copper is here for 10 days to learn off-leash obedience. We will be using a Dogtra IQ Yard Trainer later in the week but for now we are teaching him the basics using a classic slip chain and pinch collar. The pinch collar he had on when he was dropped off was a large and was too big so I am going to use a size small during the first few days just to teach him the basics and also teach him how to listen and learn. It is important he understands the word "No" and what praise means before we start using an electronic collar. This will avoid any confusion and will minimize the possibility of the collar frightening him.
Today we worked on Heel/Autosit. He picked up Heel quickly but still needs reminding sometimes not to pull (afterall, it IS only day one and his pulling habit would impress a Husky). His Autosit is not "Auto" yet. He needs a verbal command right now before he sits but this will become automatic over the next few days. Tomorrow we start Down, Implied Stay, and if he gets Implied Stay early in the day we may go ahead and start Recall. If he struggles with Implied Stay we will put Recall (the "come" command) off until day 3 to avoid burn out.
So far I am really liking this dog's attitude. He is people oriented and curious. Being a bird dog his natural state is nose to the ground and tail in the air. But he also loves praise and so is constantly trying to figure out how to get it.
This is another dog I may have to exercise next to the bike. My experience with Weims is that they have 2 speeds. 0 mph and 30 mph. So far Copper has been more or less polite in the house but I can tell he would like to run off some of this nervous energy he has built up from the stress of his first day. A good jog next to the bike tomorrow might help him to relax and really get into learning mode.
That's all for now! He has a big day tomorrow so I hope he is sleeping well tonight.
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