Quote: Lori Jacobs

.... As far as scheduling goes do you train every day? Should I come home take him on his walk and then train? By that time I imagine he would be really ready to eat his supper? If I train before I walk I lose daylight? Am I overthinking this?

I do train every day, but in several short short sessions. Leave him wanting more -- not bored or frustrated. (You too.)

As Jennifer says, on the walk is a good venue (depending on what you are working on).

If your dog is not really food-driven, then before supper might be best. If the dog goes wild for food, after supper is probably fine.

I use a tiny notebook too. Before we start I jot down everything I can, and after we finish I add the results while it's all fresh in my mind.

Dear Lori: The best walks I have with my dogs is when I integrate walking and review of their tricks. We review, sit, wait, (heel of course), down, wait, touch (they love to jump up at my hand to touch it, and I put it in different positions). Bindi knows how to wave, spin, so I ask her to do those behaviors. THey love it. THen when we begin to learn something new, I add it after they have pretty well got it down inside the house. this keeps their walks interesting, and like you I don't have a lot of time. I have three dogs and so need to train, play, brush, and just play with each of them individually as well as all together. So, this works well for me. I keep it fun and light. THen we go into our local Lowe's and the garden center workers love to say hi to them. This gives us time to practice just sitting while I talk to someone.

Sometimes I have felt as if I am not spending enough time with them in training and walking, but I try to incorporate training into every day living. They seem to enjoy it, and it takes the pressure of "Training time."

I know your schedule will work out. It just takes a little juggling. Maybe train for about 5 minutes before feeding, and then feeding can be part of the reward for good behavior.

May God bless your time with your pups.
Sharon

Sharon thanks for the tips. I guess we do..do a little training on the walk because at each crossroad I tell him to wait before we cross the street. If there are many cars coming I do have him sit but mostly I keep him at a steady brisk pace. Honestly I'm still a little unsure of handling myself if we encounter other dogs so I do tend to keep it fairly fast paced to just get the walk in. I know that may not sound very good but believe me I have developed a whole lot more confidence in the last several months. I did not walk him at all for the past 4 years. Please no yelling I know the disservice that I did to him very well. I had zero confidence in my ability to handle his outbursts with other dogs. Had I known then what I know now I would have done the opposite of what I did. I would have had him out there leading him through the things that he wasn't sure of but instead I isolated him and made the problem that much worse.

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try to remember to carry a super duper reward in a separate pocket for such situations.

That is a great idea... now my coat can smell like stinky dog treats . But seriously now I will have gloves, tissues, chapstick AND dog treats in all my coat pockets

Lori, good for you for realizing a mistake. Bring treats every time you walk and mark the correct behavior. When you encounter other dogs IGNORE them, continue on and if she goes for them, give her a pop. Then mark good behavior. Another option is hold a treat/toy for focus as you pass the dog so 100% attention is on you, not the other dog. Remember the pack leader says when to and when not to fight. I say this from experience .

 Quote: Jennifer Skeldon

 Quote:

try to remember to carry a super duper reward in a separate pocket for such situations.

That is a great idea... now my coat can smell like stinky dog treats . But seriously now I will have gloves, tissues, chapstick AND dog treats in all my coat pockets

Ta-da!
http://leerburg.com/baitbag.htm

And the top left one (my personal fave) has a pocket in the front that will hold a key, kleenex, chapstick ....

It can be closed until you snap it open, and then it stays open until you snap it shut.

Mine lives in the 'fridge and has little treats in it to grab and go. It's lined with vinyl, too -- simple to wipe out.

It fastens around the waist like a belt, with the bag in front or in back or on the non-dog side.

I love it.

I got one of these bait bags! I love it. My kids not so much - my son said why do you have on a fanny pack?

That is what I try to do - ignore them! I do keep my eye on them but mostly I watch him so that I can give a correction at the proper time. I also carry the Counter Assault just in case. But do you or anyone else know where I can get one of those walking sticks?