Warning: Long post! Im so proud of Keeper. Yesterday we went to writers group, and she fetched a pen I dropped with a distraction 3 feet away, then we went to Applebees. I made a mistake- trying to send her under the booth with her pack on. She didnt fit, and she didnt trust me that shed fit once the pack was off. She sat and turned her back to the booth, thinking that I was wrong, and she wasnt going to be wrong a second time. Took a minute to convince her to try again. She was very stressed that I was asking the impossible of her. I need to try to set up failure situations where I change it and then she wins through, to keep her frustration tolerance going, and to build her trust that I *wont* ask the impossible of her, that Ill help her through the difficult stuff, and that she should try again. She does recover quickly. Went to the bathroom, came back to the booth and she scooted right under on the first send. Today was another big day, multiple stops. Started with her in Moms car as we dropped off my car at the dealership for an oil change. Headed to a friends to drop off reflective fabric for new patches for Keepers new pack. From there, on to Natural Grocers. Pleasantly surprised that she didnt sniff for food, followed Mom and the cart, and maintained decent pull in the harness. High rate of reinforcement for her work, as I could see the wheels turning and wanted to reward the thinking and considering. Bobble in the check out lane. She felt a little too constrained and spun to check behind her. Straightened her out and she waited until we finished check out. On to HyVee, where we did a bit more searching and shopping and Keeper and I struck out on our own, because I didnt pack enough treats this time for the amount of thinking she was doing and the extra behaviors I was asking for- I had dog treats enough to get through this store, but none after that. We grabbed some Cheez-its to get through the rest the day. Keeper loves her cheese, so she thinks those are fantastic. She got a lot of good practice on tuck which is my cue for her to slide in between me and the shelves and sit so shes out of the way. She was a bit unnerved by a couple loaded stock carts with looming boxes that headed straight for us, only to turn aside at the last moment. Many, many more people and carts than Natural Grocers, and she got braver about cart traffic, and less interested in sniffing everyone she passed the more we walked around. Did have to verbally correct her because she wanted to sniff the next checkout lanes cashiers butt. Keeper didnt actually touch her, but thats not a habit I want her to develop. Other than that, she was really wonderful. She seemed curious about the conveyor belt carrying the food items along. We sat in the car as Mom ran a return in to Home Depot, then went to Michaels again. They still had their scarecrow display up. Wed only done the one desensitization run with the two I bought, but I figured Id see what she thought of them today. I pointed them out, same as I did on Sunday when she spooked. Today, she looked at them, then moved forward to nose-poke them, as thats what I asked her to do with the two we have at home. So very proud of that. Went in, looked around for tri-fold back boards for the flower show, couldnt find them, so I asked a worker. He led us right to them, and she got to follow him, then deal with me as I picked them up in my free hand (which also meant no treats for a while.) She didnt bat an eyelash. Went to checkout, and she stood just fine- much wider checkout, and no one close enough to distract her. Went and picked up my car at the dealership and transferred Keeper from Moms car to mine, then Keeper and I went to the local mechanics. First time in a lobby with car repair smells, the sounds of pneumatic wrenches and clattering metal. Spent a little time with the front desk lady, whos a great person (and she asked after Duncan.) Keeper sniffed her a little, but mostly hung out. Thought to do a few generalization checks with Keeper- shell grab and return the leash handle, sit, down, etc. all with an air compressor hose hissing a dozen feet away. A bit distracted by a man walking a dog in the dog shelter parking lot next door, but not too bad. Keepers green, and her unsure response is to spook first, but she recovers, learns, and sorts things into the no worries pile really quickly when I remember to go at her pace. I think a lot of people who owner-train settle for less than perfect dogs because they love the dogs they have. I think Keeper will be as skilled as Duncan- maybe not the exact same skills- and in some ways shes a lot easier to work with. I believe, once shes exposed to more and understands more, shell hit the tipping point where there will be much, much more in the no worries pile than the whats THAT? pile. Yes, I love her, but Im trying to be honest and fair about her abilities. Shes working in harness, and doing retrieve tasks in public. Were covered under the ADA as a service dog team, and I value her help more than words can say. Weve still got a lot of things to see and explain, but its getting easier the more we go out. Im really, really pleased with her. Three days of work in a row, at least one new location every day, a total of seven locations (Michaels twice) and today she saw and did not react to her biggest spook trigger from Sunday after one short session on desensitizing. Shes really coming along. Thursday we go to the vet for her OFA x-rays. Hoping for good news there.
Posted on: Wed, 08 Oct 2014 02:22:51 +0000
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