The Official Blog of Jasper's Journey

This isn't a typo and no I haven't gone crazy and yes I want your dog to learn how to make mistakes, encouraged to make mistakes, and I want you to feel amazing because when you watch your dog making a mistake, you just proved that you get it, you just proved how well you are doing in encouraging the development and training of your dog.

Let's backtrack for a moment.  

Imagine for a moment that you are playing charades and that the goal is not for you to guess what they are pantomiming, it is your job to do what they are telling you to do, but there is a catch, but all of the clues will be spoken in Chinese.  And you don't understand a word of Chinese!

So there you stand not understanding, what do you do? 

Discipline isn't the answer. Knowledge and clear unambiguous communication that makes sense to the dog, the time and training you have put into the dog is.

Discipline isn't the answer at least not discipling the dog. The discipline is for you.   You need to be consistent in your handling, you need to react to every situation as a leader, as someone who makes the wise, right choices in their reactions and interactions with your dog. You must not fail him. You need to never lose his trust. You need to become a wise leader that knows the right thing to do, each and every time.

Sweet tan/grey/blonde Molly. New to our world and after living her first year of life in an aquarium, she came to us from a pet store we just couldn't walk away from her, she seemed to be lost in the concept of language. Her training was non existent and if it wasn't for the fact that she was such a sweet soul, and keyed on Pepper our black lab golden retriever cross we would have been lost on how to train her. But by following Pepper's example about everything, she in essence trained herself in the end.

But we had our own fumbling attempts at training. And of course where else but to start with the sit command.

Warm, smoky, hazy day, and mom took me out for a walk anyways.  Thankfully it was one of my favourite spots where I can jump in the ditch and enjoy the cool water.  Actually don't tell mom, but the real reason it is one of my favourites is that I am determined I am going to catch something here.  There is a virtual Capricornia of wildlife here. My hunter instincts from my mom's dog side insists that I can do this!  So in I slip between the bulrushes and into the cool water and I start moving slowly through the water, my ears pricked, my nose quivering.. I sense something... WOW a duck! Splash! I can get it mom!  Hey this one isn't flying away, too cool.  Now for sure I can get it!  What's that?  Why the heck is mom calling me out, I am on the hunt here!  Can't you see how awesome I am?  She is mumbling something about 'baby ducks' and how there is only one reason for a momma duck not to fly away.  Like I understand what the word 'baby ducks' means.  Strange, though, because for some reason I think I have to listen to her... I think she is a little surprised that I am willing to break off the hunt and yes a few months ago, I probably wouldn't have, but the bond between us is growing, and what is important to her, is becoming important to me, even more so than my very strong hunting instincts, from the Norwegian Elkhound side of the family.

Training Tip from Jasper:  You know this one even surprised me.  The bond there is now compared to a year ago between me and my mom.  It takes time, time for the bond between dog and human to deepen and become stronger. It isn't something you can make happen. My mom takes me whenever, wherever she can and takes me for daily walks even though I live in the country and I have oodles of space to run around in and explore.   My instincts are really strong almost overwhelming at times, and amazing that the bond can grow to the point that I care more about what my mom wants, even when I am not sure why she is asking it.

Training Tip 2: You know my mom called me and then starts explaining things to me as if I understand English.  But somehow it is this talking to me as if I understand that somehow makes a difference.  She explains to me why this one time, she doesn't want me slipping back into the water.  Somehow in the time she spends explaining it all to me, it calms me, and let's me know I did the right thing even if I don't quite understand why she wanted me to do this.

Note require images, from the day.  July 2nd 2015 plus could use images from ducks from previous years.

We try to share skills and strategies that are effective and will help you with your dog.  And with these skills and strategies in mind hopefully when the dog does a specific behavior you will stop and look at it not as if he is a good dog or a bad dog but rather what the behavior is and try to figure out why he is behaving that way - look at the different knowledge base and strategies you have learned that might effectively and kindly change that behavior to one that you want.

Just imagine the change in the relationship with your dog when you calmly observe him doing something he wants and realize this is just a behavior that you don't want. That this is not a struggle to force the dog not is it as challenge to your authority. It is a challenge to your brain.

Just get on with it. Give it up.  Don't let your emotions cloud your judgement or your relationship with your dog.

Okay so they just swallowed your engagement solitaire.

Peed on your favourite pair of shoes.

Chewed up a one of a kind priceless text.

Pulled you down the stairs unexpectedly, when you told them to stay, and you hurt!

Sorry react appropriately and then it is done.

No grudging allowed.

And we humans are experts at grudging. And the more it hurts the better we are at it. And that is just too bad.

Once it is done. It is done.

You might think that your puppy completely understands how upset you are especially as they cower before you, looking all so guilty. They will try to appease you.

Because the reality is they don't understand why you are mad, 5 or 10 minutes after the fact. Not even 2 minutes later.

They just see that you are upset, and that you are yelling. And the more you yell, the louder you yell, the angrier you get, the more submissive they will become.

Their submission is not about understanding and saying sorry no matter what you think. It is saying hey you are the leader of the pack and I am being submissive so you won't hurt me, I am being submissive so you will accept me back into the pack.

Doesn't matter if it was serious, doesn't matter if you still really hurt.

The grudge has to go. Really if we were perfect it should never happen.

The yelling, the name calling, the anger…  think about it, if they don't understand, all you are doing is being a bully and damaging any trust between you. Not only for today but for the future.

So how is this different then the two minute concept? That is a teaching mechanism, to help develop a specific skill. To assist with focusing. You might be think well is the puppy not focused by my yelling? By how upset I am?  Oh definitely. But the focus isn't on what he did, it is a focus on what you are doing.

Because he feels threatened. Think about the yelling. The intent behind the yelling. The message behind the cursing. The anger. And there is always a threat. Veiled or otherwise.

"But damn that hurt."

I feel for you. I really do. Been there.

And I am sorry but…

From a training, communication perspective was your response relevant, proportional, appropriate?

The dog really doesn't care about a shoe, but you do.

The message is supposed to be don't touch anything that isn't yours to touch, eat or play with. Obviously the training isn't complete, you need to revisit that training and you might need to do some puppy proofing in your home. If you have not finished the training, that you can trust him, then what the heck were you doing not watching him to make sure he would behave, and how silly were you to leave your shoes where he could get to them.

"Well what about him tripping me on the stairs?"

Not good, definitely needed a verbal reprimand. Quick, sharp and commanding. Perhaps he needs the "talk".

It is about communication, training, and trust - not punishment.  This is not about making them feel bad, it is about making sure that they do what we designate as right.  What we tell them should be their behavior.  We want our choices to become their choices. This is not about bad or good, it is about them fitting into our lives and acting the way we want them to behave.

What impressed me the most was one that he found it and of course that he found it!!!!

I was so impressed!!!

It had all started as a game a way to give the little one a little more exercise on lonely snow covered grid roads that go on endlessly but when snow is so deep that any side roads into ditches and fields is impossible as he sinks up to his belly and beyond unable to walk through the thick blocking snow, he is left with running up and down the roads only which in no way is enough exercise for this dog. A mile, two, -30 below and it is never enough exercise.

So what to do?

How to put on a few extra miles?

It started with the dog playing tug with a wine colored scarf,