Day 11

Hops had another shaping lesson with the small crate this morning. It took about a minute of waiting before he made a motion toward the opening of the crate (he did offered other things). When he finally looked into the crate I clicked and rewarded inside the crate. I released him and after sitting for a moment he walked all the way in. He offered to go in a dozen times, the last 4 without offering a sit first and I said kennel as he was going in the last 4 times. Next I did a dozen short recalls. When he came I held my hand down by my leg and when he got to it I touched his collar then rewarded him with the other hand. I want him coming all the way in, not sitting out of reach, and I want collar grabs to be a good thing. Then we did a dozen position changes, saying the position, clicking and treat when he got into it. I ended with having him put his nose through a head collar 6 times. I am having it rest on his nose while he eats then removing it right away.

I had to leave Hops home for a few hours today. I exercised him before and gave him chewies and food toys in his X pen. Dillon was in the crate next to the pen. He seemed just fine when I returned and was of course very happy to see me! We ran around the backyard for a little while then I picked up the yard. He is getting much better about not trying to bite the pooper scooper! Yuck!

In several ways, Hops is showing himself not to be a Labrador ; ) The tally so far is, he stops eating when he is full, he stalks the other dogs, he is very smart, and he does not automatically return a tossed toy. On that note, Hops needs work on retrieving! He will always go get the toy, but sometimes he lays down and chews on it or runs away with it, neither of which I want. So I brought a rug into a hallway (so he would not slip) and blocked off the open end with me and a crate so he had nowhere to run with the toy. (Side story, when I started to move the rug Hops was a little unsure. His second thought however was that riding the rug while it was moving was fun!) I started by tugging and when he lost the toy I waited for a sit then said release and tossed the toy down the hall (about 8ft). He grabbed the toy and with a little coaxing (tapping on the ground, saying pup, pup, pup) he ran back down the hallway with the toy. I would like to say he brought it to me, but I am pretty sure he was just looking for a way out and I was close enough I was able to grab the toy : ) We played tug again then repeated. I intermixed live toy/dead toy so he retrieved different toys. He did about 15 retrieves, a few of which I think he actually brought the toy to me. I think we will need to work hard on this!

 

Hops had his first preschool class today! He was a confident puppy, not afraid at all when the bigger puppies came up to him to play. He easily got on all 5 of the different balance disks and did well with the impulse control exercise. He was happy to see both of his sisters, Love and Coleen and was extra happy to see Elinda: ) He had wonderful focus, being able to pay attention to me even with other puppies running around. Jeremiah was the one to work him through the exercises and he did wonderful for him as well. Fun class, we are looking forward to next week!

Hops ended the evening with a major play time with Rice. We though we might have a flattened puppy but Rice was *mostly* gentle and Hops is a tough puppy!

Day 10

Hops started his morning with a crate shaping lesson (using the i-click). I began with the large crate I used last night. He started offering to go in right away and would offer sits and downs while in there. I started closing the door then opening it and rewarding him for remaining in. He only tried to get out before being released once out of 8 times (when he got up I just shut the crate door then waited for him to sit before I opened the door again). We then switched to the small crate. It took a few clicks for him to offer to go all the way in but then he got it. After he had offered to go in six times I started to close the door. Well he had a lot more trouble staying in this crate when I opened the door. When I released him he was much more distracted by his surroundings and did not offer to go back in the crate right away. Because of his behavior I think I moved too far too soon and should have rewarded more for going in. This crate is more difficult because it is the one he has had to stay in. We then did sits and down. With the sits I added the cue right before I knew he was going to sit and he sat every time. With the downs I said down right before I lured it (I lured because I wanted the down from the stand, otherwise he would sit first. We played some tug to end the session.

Who needs to get the toys out of the basket to chew on them? Not Hops!

Before we left for work I did a bunch of recalls in the yard by running away and rewarding him when he came to me. He always came. I did this until he started slowing down and then he was wonderful at work in the afternoon, he slept the entire class : )

Once again, before we left for work again I did a bunch of recalls in the yard by running away and rewarding him when he came to me.He was once again tired and slept through the first 3 classes. He went potty outside, was passed around and got to walk around between classes. He is getting braver with bigger dogs and of course loved all the people. He was awake for about half of my last class. He did some great recalls and heeling with me, following me around to set bars. He was passed around, had a short play time with an adult aussie, and met a couple of the other dogs in class. He was a very good puppy. I also weighed him before we went home. In one week he put on 1.7lbs! That makes him a solid 10lbs now!

When we came home Hops went to the door because he had to poop! First time! I put his leash on and out we went. I kept him on a 10 foot lead but followed him and he went without complaint. Good puppy! When we came in Hops had a short play time with Dillon, a long play time with Rice, a short play session with me and then a long play time with himself, ripping through the house, growling at toys, going crazy! He was so funny! Definitely a side of him we have not seen before!


 





He is now sleeping soundly in his favorite sleeping spot!

Day 9

Hops pooped while on leash for the first time today! I put him on a long light line so he could still move away to poop. Hops then came inside and played for a little while with Rice before I took the boys to their trial. Hops spent the morning at home then Jeremiah brought him to the trial for a visit. I was very happy with how Hops handled the environment. The noise did not seem to bother him one bit, he was happy to meet every new person, and he remembered people he had met before! He also met his first little kid (2-3ish) and was calm with him. Everyone loved him and he was a big hit!



When I came home from the trial we moved the dog walk and Hops played on the down ramp (on the ground). He loved walking across it and had no problem with the tip at the end or beginning!

We clipped and filed Hops's nails again today and he was fussier than the first time though he would settle down. We then gave him his first bath. He did not mind being in the bath tub, did not mind a little bit of warm water in the tub, showed some interest in the water coming out of the shower head, but he did not like being bathed! He was still pretty well behaved, just a little whiny and he tried to get out of the tub a a few times. He looked cute and pathetic at the same time!

When I tried having him poop while on leash tonight when I knew he had to go, I gave him less leash (10ft) and he threw quite the tantrum! After fussing for quite a while he finally went. We definitely need to put him on leash more!

We played tug with many different toys tonight but only did one formal training session, shaping Hops to go into a crate. He is so smart that it only took 4 clicks for him to understand I wanted him to go into the crate. The first click was for looking at the crate (he first offered a sit), the second click was for moving toward the crate, the third for getting his front feet in and the fourth for getting all the way in. After each click I rewarded him in the crate then released him out. I also rewarded him for coming out of the crate when I said release. He offered to go into the crate 6 more times before loosing focus (it was late and he was only a little hungry). I did nothing other than look at the crate. Shaping is so much fun with such a smart puppy! Also, I did this first lesson with a big crate that he has not been left in.

Day 8

Hops had a short cuddle session with me this morning then he stayed with Jeremiah for the morning while the boys and I went to a trial. Dad says he was a good puppy.

Hops was very excited to see me when I came home. He was in his Xpen so I used the moment as a training opportunity and waited for a sit (it took a few moments he was so happy) then I let him out and loved on him :) We went outside next (of course!) and after all the dogs had pottied we all ran around the yard together. Hops came after us whenever we changed directions and boy can he run already! When we went inside we hand wrestled for a few minutes then played tug. Every time he lost the toy I waited for a sit before releasing him back to it. As the game went on I started moving the toy away from him once he sat. If he stayed I released him to come play, if he got up I raised the toy out of his reach. By the end of the session I was able to put the toy on the ground before releasing him. He also immediately got up to get the toy every time I said release. I was working in a room with no other distractions but if he made a few mistakes in a row he did not have a very long attention span. I was easily able to reengage him however. When his puppy brain allowed him to focus you could see him thinking. Very cool.

A little later I did a shaping lesson (with the i-clicker) with balance disks. At first I was not getting many behaviors to click, I clicked a couple of nose touches to the disk but did not want that to be the end behavior so I did not continue to click those. He was offering sits and downs and looked pretty sleepy. I almost bagged the session when I remembered I can manipulate the environment. So I surrounded myself with balance disks so he would have to interact with them to get to me. He quickly started offering to put his paws on the disks and I was soon able to move the disks further away so he could reach me without touching them and he still interacted with them. I clicked for him putting his front paws on the disk, treated him on the disk then released him and tossed a cookie on the ground to reset him. At this point he was immediately returning to the disk and putting his front paws on it. At the end of the session I did not release him off when I rewarded the front paws and he offered to put all four paws on it! He got all four paws on four different times. Amazing puppy!

After a potty and chase mom around the yard break Hops had his first tie down lesson. Being able to be calm and quiet on a tie down (crate/car/down stay etc) is a very important behavior to me. I put his harness on so he would not hurt himself if he threw a fit but he was very calm. He sat at the end of the tie down for a little while, putting light pressure on it and looking quite unhappy, but he was quiet so I was happy! I rewarded him when he stopping pulling and he soon fell asleep and stayed asleep while I did a sink full of dishes. Good puppy!

Hops was left in the Xpen when we went out to run a couple of errands (Rice and Dillon were home with him). He once again seemed fine wen we come back and his food toys were empty so that is a good sign as well. He had two more tie down sessions, one while I did laundry and another while we ate dinner. Both times be pouted a little then chewed on his toys and fell asleep. I did have to spray the tie down with bitter apple as he was chewing on it.

Later I did another clicker lesson. First we heeled around the house, doing pushes and pulls, he is getting really good at heeling. Then we played with the balance disks and this time he was all over them. Then we did downs to stands to downs to stands etc. Next was some it's your choice and hand targeting then we ended with a long game of live toy/dead toy with 5 different toys. He showed no preference which is great.

I also did some more body handling. I had Hops upside down in my lap, fiddling with his feet, tail, ears, eyes and mouth. He became very fussy at times but relaxed pretty quickly and I treated him when he did. He was also brushed for the first time today and did fairly well. Handling is something we need to spend more time on!















Hops had one more training session, showing off his it's your choice, hand targeting, balance work and body handling for Jeremiah and his camera. He put on a good show!

And then, Dillon played with Hops! Woohoo!

Day 7

Hops made the quite the fuss about being on leash to go potty this morning but I held my ground and when he finally peed I took the leash off and all 3 dog had a walk/play time in the yard. We played some tug then I gave Hops two food toys and left him in his Xpen to go grocery shopping. He was quiet when I returned so hopefully he was quiet the entire time.

Later Hops had his first clicker training session. We did 3 rounds of name click/treat (10 reps per round) then 10 reps of puppy pushups, clicking and treating for the position changes. I was using an i-click. I had tried a box clicker a few days ago and it seemed too loud for him for now.

Hops was well loved at the party : )

Hops had his Puppy Party today! 15 people, 3 adult dogs and 4 puppies came to play today. What fun we had! Hops loved playing with his sister Love and was sooo excited to see Elinda! Hops did great with all the dogs, played very hard and was happy to see every new person. He got to meet a variety of dogs, the adults he met were a large german shepherd Jazz, an aussie/bc mix Casper, and a goldendoodle named Sarah. The puppies he played with were his sister Love, an 8 week of great dane puppy Ali, a 5 month old small mix breed Finnigan and a 5 month old lab/shep mix Taffy. There is nothing quite like watching puppies play! Hops was able to show off his sits, downs, hand targeting and it's your choice games too. He had no trouble focusing with the new people and puppies around. I think the party was a success!

Peak-a-boo from under the dog walk!

The bigger dogs nicely frame the puppies playing in the middle!

Hops and Finnigan showing off their sits.

Hops was so tuckered out by the end of the party!

 

Day 6

Hops started his morning with a walk around the yard. Dillon definitely likes him more when there is more space. Hops is brave enough to go pretty far away from me but comes running as fast as he can whenever I call him.

When we came in we played tug sit tug, adding a little It's Your Choice. Once he sat, I slowly moved the toy away from him (only about a foot or so), pulling it up if he got up and releasing him to play if he kept his sit. Then he and Rice had a good game of tug too.


I little later we played It's Your Choice with kibble. We did 24 reps, 18 in a sit, 6 in a down. I was able to get my open hand about 1.5ft away from him. He kept position 75% of the time and released on the 1st cue 100% of the time (I rewarded him in position about 1/2 of the time). The only verbal cue in this game has been release. After a small break we did 24 reps of hand touches. The first 12 were done without a cue, just my hand presented and he touched it right away 11 times out of the 12 times. For the last 12 I added the cue touch when I presented my hand. He touched all 12 times. I was sure to vary where my hand was and which hand I used. He had no problem turning away from me to touch, the only one he missed was high and he was sitting. When I represented a little lower he got up and touched it. A friend asked how I keep track of reps, one way I do it is to count out the number of treats I am going to use. If he gets one wrong and does not get a treat I set that treat aside. How many treats I have left over is how many failures there were.

I think it is just as important if not more so, to be training in "real life" not just in training sessions. For example while I was stuffing kongs today, all 3 dogs were doing very nice, calm and quiet down stays, all getting small licks of the stuffing every once in awhile. I have also been starting to wait for a sit before letting Hops out of his Xpen, out the backdoor (when he does not really have to pee :), before getting on the couch and for being picked up. On the potty training front, Hops is making few mistakes and is going quickly when we take him out. I have been saying "hurry" his potty word while he is going potty all week and have started to say it as soon as he hits the grass when I know he has to go. Something I need to do more of is to take Hops potty on leash. He will pee when on leash but can get quite fussy if he does not get to run around before he poops!

Before we left for work Renee and Taffy came over to play again. Hops was super excited to see both of them! They played and played and then I had a tired puppy that slept at work!

Hops had another big day at work with me. He is much braver with big dogs now. He even held his ground when a huge (and sweet!) berner ran toward him to say hello. He is getting more comfortable with big barks was again able to sleep though a lot of noise. He was passed to many new people and once again was happy to see them all. He showed off his new It's Your Choice, hand targeting and push up skills and even did a recall to heel demo! Wow! He slept during the 1st 3 classes then was awake for the last class. He was pretty good though about lying down and chewing on his food and chew toys.

When we got home, Jeremiah did a touch lesson with Dillon and Hops. Dillon is getting very good at touching Hops! Hops got the last of his dinner in food toys while we had our dinner. I have been putting him in his Xpen a little bit more so he can get used to not always being where he wants to be. He is already getting less fussy about it.

Day 5

Hops started his morning by playing tug and climbing on stools and disks.Then we went to work and he played on a bosu ball for the first time. He easily got all four feet up on it and was able to keep a sit on it. Hops once again loved all the new people he was passed along to, there were around 2 dozen. He got to meet a couple friendly adult dogs. is favorite was the BC Eli. He once again did great during classes, sleeping in his crate or chewing on toys in it. Before we left work I did a bunch of recalls with him, running away, calling him and rewarding him in heel. He came running every time. I also did a little heeling and he did great, offering lots of attention. After work he went to the vet for his first shot (did great for the exam and shot) and we did a bunch of pushups and hand targets on the metal vet table while we waited. He then was carried into the bank to say hello and carried into Mudd Bay to get more canned food. He did great in each place.

When we got home from work Hops and I played a little tug then he was out!

When Jeremiah got home we had a posing session, having Hops climb on stools and 3 different types of balance disks. He was also able to get all four feet in and on a plastic bowl. If he fell off anything he just got right back up again! We both then took turns playing tug/sit/tug and live toy/dead toy with him. 

 What focus!









 Hops is fearless. He looked at Rice, looked at the stool, looked at Rice, looked at the stool, backed up, jumped on the stool, then used it as a launching pad to jump all the way on top of Rice! Luckily Jeremiah was there to catch him when he fell off! Crazy puppy!

I was writing this blog when Hops came over and invited me to play (brought over toy, play bowed and sat, wow!). So we played! We played tug, then had a long session of rewarding Dillon when Hops interacted with him. Then Jeremiah started teaching Dillon to touch Hops for a treat. Dillon picked up on the game pretty quickly! While they played that game Hops and I played It's Your Choice. I started with the treat in a closed hand, waited for a sit, opened it, closed it if he got up, etc. Pretty soon he was making very few mistakes. I continued to alternate rewarding him in the sit and releasing him to the cookie. He is really understanding the release word now, getting right up to get the cookie with no prompting. Smart puppy! I raised criteria by starting with an open hand, then by adding some distance (up to 6in), then by lowering my hand toward the ground (I got about half way down). He was quick to pick up on the changes and keep his sit until released. I then changed to sit-release-sit, adding the cue sit for the first time since he was offering it so quickly. Out of a dozen reps he sat 11times when cued and released all 12 times when cued. So smart! We then did some hand targeting. He moved to and touched my hand 11 out of the 12 times I offered it. We then did some more tug for the video camera.

Here is a video of live toy/dead toy. By the time we took the video Hops was running out of steam but you should get the idea. He is usually much more into it!




As the night progresses, it seems we may have created a monster with teaching Dillon to touch the puppy for a treat. He just woke Hops up by nosing him then wanted a treat! : )
At the end of the night, when Hops was very tired, we clipped his nails for the first time. I held him upside down in my lap and clipped and filed while Jeremiah fed him. He was a very good puppy, a little fussy but not much. He is sleeping soundly now.