Julie,

Are you taking classes with this one? Honestly it's going to get much nastier around the bratty pre teen stage 6 months - 9 months old.

OMG..that was funny and I really needed the laugh.

Well...we just got back from a walk. The treats were a hit. No leash biting except one time and he dropped it really quick. He was actually pretty good. I am actually still in a good mood.

I am going to leave his leash on in the house for awhile too. I will pick it up every so often. He sure can be a bugger but not at the moment, he is sleeping.

I have read and listened to lots here..trust me! This is my only source of information on raising him.

You know something? I may sound like a complete idiot but I am putting this out there anyway. Besides you don't really know who I am or will ever see my face. lol I am not grasping the whole "marker" thing. Does mark mean using a word? Like "No" for example? If that is the case then I understand it. If not? Then I am an idiot, but an idiot in training right? Oh my poor dog.

Thanks Randy!!!!

 Quote: randy allen

He is hopeless Julia.
No two ways about it, he'll never come around. Just save youself the trouble and send him on to me.

Before you do that though, could you at least teach him no?
If you have a need to find out how thats done, check out the teaching the marker threads.

If my dog isn't learning, I'm doing something wrong.
M&M Enterprises

Ok, now I did not not need to read that Melissa!

It was so much easier with older dogs.

No, we are not in any classes. We don't have lots of money and any classes that are not expensive you hear bad stuff about. I am going off what I read here.

Let me say this much about Maximus(and me).
1. He will be 5 months old May 9th.
2. He knows how to sit
3. Lay down
4. Stay and he can stay for awhile
5. When he is walking good by my side he walks really good.
6. When he is walking and I stop, he stops and sits every time.
7. He is an excellent game player when we play with treats..gosh I forgot the name of the game. It is like the shell game and he has to wait.
8. He seems to be completely housebroken and has been for awhile.
9. Loves his crate!
10. He accepts his grooming really well.

I hope..just hope I am doing something right with him.

 Quote: Melissa Thom

Julie,

Are you taking classes with this one? Honestly it's going to get much nastier around the bratty pre teen stage 6 months - 9 months old.

Julie,

You are not an idiot. But, I don't think you have grasped marker training. Marker training is the greatest thing since toilet paper on a roll.

I, however, am a true idiot and I finally caught on to it and figured out what it was. It makes the difference between a good dog and a GREAT DOG!

I'm probably not the best to explain how to do it, but there are about a blue million threads about it plus the free vids and explanations on the Leerburg site and in this forum. Just plan to read everything. (I know, I know, it's a lot, but that is your obligation to your dog.)

Every one on here stands ready to help, too, but it will be easier for you and the rest if you read all this crap first.

Good luck, you'll get it.


(randy, I wouldn't want to put you thru a GREAT DOG, so if she must get rid of him, I'll just forward her my address. lol)


another ps:

My dog "comes" now. La-ti-da!

 Quote: julie anderson

lol I am not grasping the whole "marker" thing. Does mark mean using a word?

Your marker can be a clicker or a word. For example, I use "yes." (You want to choose a word that you don't already use a lot with the dog, so for me, for example, "good" wouldn't have been an appropriate choice.)

What your marker means to the dog (after you "load" it) is "Correct! Reward coming!"

Oh that was one I forgot to mention. Not only does he come when called, he RUNS when called! lol

I have read and watched. I am missing the point. Helppppp

I would hate for you or Randy to have to put up with him. LOL

I am beginning to think puppy owners are saints.

In order to load that marker, you mark and reward (click-reward or verbal-mark-reward).

So you might spend a while with a pocket or baggie of high-value (but tiny) treats. M&M-size bits of real cooked meat will work. (I'm trying to get it across that you could actually start by loading your marker any time -- no "shopping" needed. )

You would say your marker or click your clicker (and that could also be the kind of ballpoint pen that clicks for point-out, point-in, or an empty mini stapler). As soon as you mark, you give the dog a treat. You would do this close together at first: You want the dog to comprehend that the marker means "Reward is on the way."

You would know that your marker was loaded when you gave the marker and the dog looked expectantly for the reward.

Later, you would vary the time between mark and reward, but not yet.

When you start using the marker in training, what it does is snapshot for the dog exactly what he was doing the second he earned the marker. That is, think of how long it takes to fumble out a reward when the dog does a desired behavior. By the time the dog receives the reward, who knows what he's doing then, and what he perceives as the behavior that earned the reward.

The marker will allow you to show him exactly what the behavior was that earned the marker. For example, say you are teaching "sit." The second his butt hit the ground, you would mark. He would know "butt on ground = delicious reward" because when you loaded the marker he learned that the marker meant "Reward coming."

Hi Connie, I was typing at the same time as you. So I am going to go read what you wrote. Then respond.

 Quote: connie sutherland

 Quote: julie anderson

lol I am not grasping the whole "marker" thing. Does mark mean using a word?

Your marker can be a clicker or a word. For example, I use "yes." (You want to choose a word that you don't already use a lot with the dog, so for me, for example, "good" wouldn't have been an appropriate choice.)

What your marker means to the dog (after you "load" it) is "Correct! Reward coming!"

A word or a click.

OMgosh..it is all in the timing.

So I think I might be getting it.

I will explain in my words. Baby steps..sorry about that.
Have lots of yummy treats, smaller ones.
Ask him to sit
When he sits, use the clicker and click
Then give him a treat

Lucky for Maximus my husband eats meat!