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Friday Focus

he world of dog training can be a blur.
 
So we're going to attempt to help bring things into focus for you with our Friday Focus!
 
Firstly, as we all do, we tend to look at this huge picture on what issues we may have and rather than break them down into manageable chunks we'll either attempt too much at once and fail, or we'll just give up.
 
This week I'd like to bring in a very basic bit of training.
 
Reflex to Name
 
This is really simple but one we tend to easily forget about.
 
How many times a name do you say your dogs name?
 
Do you always say their name for it to mean something fun and enjoyable?
 
Do you just say their name a lot with not a lot for it so you end up sounding like a nagging spouse?
 
What we call forget is we need to ensure that our dogs have value in their names so that when we give them a cue for sit, down or recall etc...do we even have their attention before giving them a cue?
 
Think about that clever (or rather annoying) magic speaker you may have at home...lets call her Perplexa!
 
If you say..."Perplexa...add apples to the shopping list" her little light will spin and then she'll confirm the addition of apples to the shopping list.
If you just say "Perplexa" and nothing else her lights will spin and then with no more cues she'll just switch off or say "Sorry, I didn't understand that!"
 
If you just say "add apples to the shopping list" then Perplexa will not even know you're speak to her...although she may be listening...she doesn't know that it applies to her.
 
Therefore, think about ensuring that you're not over using your dogs name, and that when you are using your dogs name it is being followed by something that is reinforcing for them.
 
Whether you're just charging up their name first thing in the morning by saying their name and then giving them a treat so they remember that their name is worth listening to.
 
Or whether you're saying their name with a cue after such as "name...sit!" if you've trained your sit enough your dog will know that following a sit cue will come a "good" and a treat.
 
Basically...remember that your dog is not a robot...no matter how many times you say "Perplexa" to your magic speaker she will not get fed up of hearing her name. If you keep using your dogs name with nothing worth it at the other end for them...well why would they even switch their lights on to listen to what you're going to say next.
 
I hope that bit of waffle helps, if not...you know where we are and get yourself onto one of our classes so we can help you with any perplexing behaviours your woofer may be doing.
 
Stay waggy
 
Team Mojo
 

Date: 28/10/2022
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