Vocal at Line Correction, My Version

[cakaiser]

I wanted to add...the sooner you address this issue, the better
Even in a puppy..

It's always easier to shape good habits, than to break bad ones.

[PhilBernardi]

One note, if I may. Make sure there's sufficient time between praising and the next mark.

Praising can increase neural firing, very easily I might add.

Simply wait until the dog is calm before continuing.


Carry on.....

[Kasomor]

I have subsequently learned to praise him all the time, he is my boy!!

But during that process it was after mark & return.
If he was quiet he got praise.

Couple things;
When I release him, you might maybe hear a yelp

This process changed my whole approach, he gets praised all the time, at 6'4 and 225# I get odd looks yellin "GOOD DAWG!!!", but he makes me happy, why shouldn't he be happy!
These animals live to please, let them know when they do!!

RK

I learned to yell "GOOD DAWG" from Evan Graham. Accent and all.

[Labs R Us]

Thanks for sharing your experience and tips, Team Elvis. It'll be put to good use.

[PocketLab]

Stan, very nice job and very nice post.

[Larry Thompson1]

Well done. I have seen different methods of trying to cure this and think you came up with a whopper of an Idea. I will put this in my memory bank for future use if I should need it. Thank You.

[windycanyon]

Thank you-- I too have a "work in progress" and agree, most of it is anxiety, and much of it IS genetic. It's really obvious when you double up on the darned gene.

Just recently someone told me to simplify everything in training. Do boring marks. Use bumpers, not birds. The rest of what you say just makes a LOT of sense because my 2 that I ran at JH recently were never noisy in training, just at the tests where everything was so much more amped up (and the waits in the holding blinds were sometimes agonizingly long). Now that we are doing doubles, oh my. Both girls finished their their Open obed titles at barely 2 in very few trials, so their formal obed isn't too shabby, but well, they just have a lot to say at times. Thankfully neither are "alpha types" at all, but I'm still thinking it may be 2 yrs before I enter a SH!

[ripline]

Nice post Stan!
I am sure it will make many of us who have vocal dogs think about what we are doing.
And Kudos to your training partners for the patience to allow you to work on Team Elvis's issues!
Well done!

[Matt Weberpal]

Awesome post Stan, I too have a vocal one. It's an ongoing process and usually my main goal at training is line manners. Singles are very common when we're on the line.

One thing to add to this. If you have a vocal dog, don't do honoring drills with 4 other dogs, duck calls and everything else. Don't ask me how I figured that one out.

[BellesDad]

Great job and great detailed explanation of how you worked it out.