I have been assigned a five year old shepard and have been on him since July. I have noticed several issues with him. I don't know if it is a rapport issue or a dominance issue. His old handler was all compulsion corretion which I think plays a part in this. He does not like to out his toy (play) or kong (detection). I have used the two kong reward system and he has no interest in the other kong. I even give him the reward back after finding an aid sometimes to variable it up. He is still slow to out. I have used a toy to help conduct obedience to make it fun. He is reluctant to out it also. He knows he is going to get it back then why the reason to not out it. His other issue is that he will not final when left alone to find an aid. He will stop and stare and wait for the handler to approach before giving final response. What can I do about these issues????

It sounds like everything the dog has learned and been taught is by reactive not active methods. And considering his age he may never change. You need to be patient and wait for the dog to give the behavior you want, then reward it. With this dog that may take a while but if you want to change behaviors wait for the dog to be active. Start with just one behavior first and work on it until the dog figures it out; one problem at a time. I would start with the alert on the aid, stopping and staring at the handler should not receive any behaviors by the handler. Let the dog figure it out and learn. The same could be said for playing two ball, just stand and wait until he drops the other ball; it could be a long time but you won't overcome five years of compulsive learning quickly.

Brian,
As far as the dog not indicating correctly during an off leash search...you will have to back the training up a little and begin with the basics. It sounds like you inherited some problems which the other handler created. Apparently the former handler let the dog do what he currently does, then walked up to the dog and paid him for the find. All the dog knows is that he was getting rewarded for this behaviour and thinks it is OK.

As far as the dog not playing the two ball game...he is happy with the ball he has. He knows when he gives it up it is going to go away. Try making him sit and get the toy from him by pushing on the back of his toungue with your finger to make his gag reflex kick in and give the ball up. As soon as you get it dont take it away from his immediate area. Instead, keep the ball in very close proximity to his face/head and even rub it on his snout or chin. Give the toy back to him and start over. He should be in physical contact with you during this so kneel next to him. He sees that the toy is no longer in his possession but it is still there and he will get it back again. I had a similar problem with one of our new dogs and it worked quite well. We of course did not use the dogs' favorite toy when we first started. After a short while he would give up even his most favorite without a fight. there are plenty of other ways to do this but for me this was a good exercise because it was all positive and it didn't teach the dog that being close to the handler while the dog had a toy was going to result in a correction or theft of the toy.

Howard

Thanks for the info. I applied the gag reflex and he instantly outed the toy. When I started to stick my finger in there the second time before I could do anything he outed the toy. The third time he hid his tongue from me. I put him in the heel then and kneeled down beside him. He was still slightly reluctant to out it but did sooner than usually. I never thought of applying this before, but when doing center line drills and I would stay standing he would slow down when he got close to returning to me and creep forward. When I knelt down on his return he would run all the way into me. The other problem I just thought about is when I stop during a detection problem and he has his reward he will come up behind me and stand in between my legs and not move. He also will jerk his head to the side to stop me from grabbing the string.

"The third time he hid his tongue from me"

Thats funny...and smart. It appears he has no problem being next to you with his toy. I believe he is jerking his head side to side to A: prevent surrender of the toy and/or B: wants to play. I have seen alot of handlers not take the time to properly praise a dog and play with them after the dog has done a good job for them. Not saying that is what you are doing, and if you are, not intentionally. Remeber, scent work is all about the fun so...have fun with him.

Howard

he will now give up his toy, but you can forget about his reward. I even give it back after he finds an aid. I have to give one compulsion correction in the beginning of every detection problem and then he outs every time but only after the first compulsion correction which isn't sever at all. He goes right back to work though right after the correction.

Brian,

Explain a little more. I'm somewhat confused. The goal is not to use compulsion at all. No compulsion in odor work keeps things light and fun. I dont know your dog so I may be wrong here. If I crack my dog at all during bomb training there is a somewhat noticeable decrease in drive at the start. Verbal praise and direction brings him back up. He is soft, correction-wise so its an issue with him. Your dog on the other hand may not give a flip. If it doesn't hinder his work and you're happy with that, then fine. If he's not a hard dog then do more of the out drill so that the physical correction isn't needed.

Howard

As far as the “attention issue” goes with the alert. I would back up your training and put him back on an odor box or wall and work him on primary rewards. Given his age and experience it should not take long to get a real nice focus on the reward and not on you.

Some dogs are not taught to be “independent” on their searches. The leash becomes an umbilical cord with the handler. My own dog had this issue when he was younger. Again, you are going to have to back up your training to address this. Perhaps place finds on a chain link fence and have him locate the find from down wind. Once the dog realizes the can locate odor without you, the dog will learn to search independently very quickly. I have seen a lot of handlers turn their detection work into an obedience routine for the dog, eliminating the dog’s ability to work through his searches.

Will the dog out his toy if you bring him into another search?

Matthew,
What took you so long? I knew someone would quip up on the alert issue. I would have been disappointed otherwise.

Howard

 Quote:

Matthew,
What took you so long? I knew someone would quip up on the alert issue. I would have been disappointed otherwise.

Howard

There’s nothing I like better than a passive dog with a terminal stare! <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />