May 18, 2011
When working on commands, my pup knows when I do not have a treat for him. Will I need to use a prong collar when he gets older?
Full Question:
Hello Ed,I have you 8 weeks to 8 month and the Basic Obedience Video as well as other videos I bought in the past.
I have a quick question though my puppy is going to be 18 weeks old and he is very Food Driven. I am training him as per your videos rewarding him right at the moment he performs the action, but I see a huge difference in how he follows the 'Sit', 'Come', and 'Down' commands when I don't have a biscuit to reward him. He quickly knows if I have or not a treat for him.
Will I have to correct that at an older age with the prong collar?
Regards,
Andres
Ed's Answer:
Once a dog reaches this age (18 weeks) you can start to add time to the exercise before the reward is given.
This means you have a MARKER – probably GOOD when you give the reward. When GOOD is said and the reward is given the exercise is finished.
You can add a second word like “THAT’S RIGHT” to add time before the “GOOD” is given. If the dog gets up you simply say “Nope” and no food and no correction. Simply repeat the exercise. The process usually starts by only extending for a few seconds but builds on experience. The goal is not to extend through correction but extend through teaching the dog what he must do to get his reward. They do pick up on this as long as the dog has good food drive, your are consistent and you don’t add too much pressure.
Simply say “nope” and turn away and have him do it again. Keep the sessions short.
Hope this helps.
Kind Regards,
Ed Frawley
This means you have a MARKER – probably GOOD when you give the reward. When GOOD is said and the reward is given the exercise is finished.
You can add a second word like “THAT’S RIGHT” to add time before the “GOOD” is given. If the dog gets up you simply say “Nope” and no food and no correction. Simply repeat the exercise. The process usually starts by only extending for a few seconds but builds on experience. The goal is not to extend through correction but extend through teaching the dog what he must do to get his reward. They do pick up on this as long as the dog has good food drive, your are consistent and you don’t add too much pressure.
Simply say “nope” and turn away and have him do it again. Keep the sessions short.
Hope this helps.
Kind Regards,
Ed Frawley
No ratings yet
Was this Q&A helpful? Let us know!
Can't find what you're looking for?
No ratings yet
Was this Q&A helpful? Let us know!
