[BHC]

How do y'all handle this? Mine isn't so much no going as she is getting distracted mid retrieve. Today we went to a park to train. We were in between some soccer and baseball fields, with ppl walking their dogs around the track. A couple times she would take off after the bumper, but get there and run a couple steps toward some other ppl... I'd say no and she'd start sniff around... Then I'd say no! Fetch! Walking toward the bumper, she would then run grab it and come on back...
Should I not be training in such a distracting environment? My thoughts were to train in as many different types of places with lots of different distractions.. But it is frustrating when it messes with our sessions...


as as for where we are in training she is older but she knows all her commands- sit& remote sit, heel, down, stay, kennel, whistle for sit and here, as well as hand signals for sit, stay, down, and several other commands.. She has been somewhat FF, however I am a ameteur and decided in FF that we should go back and reinforce all the commands. So she knows the concept of eat pinch and hold but were are going to FF more thoroughly when we get there.. We are about to introduce collar pressure probably tomorrow. She has been wearing it for a couple weeks..
Just frustrating when we are working on kennel/place and whistle work, expanding the distance and I decide to give her some up n up bumpers and this happens..

 

[BJGatley]

How do y'all handle this? Mine isn't so much no going as she is getting distracted mid retrieve. Today we went to a park to train. We were in between some soccer and baseball fields, with ppl walking their dogs around the track. A couple times she would take off after the bumper, but get there and run a couple steps toward some other ppl... I'd say no and she'd start sniff around... Then I'd say no! Fetch! Walking toward the bumper, she would then run grab it and come on back...
Should I not be training in such a distracting environment? My thoughts were to train in as many different types of places with lots of different distractions.. But it is frustrating when it messes with our sessions...


as as for where we are in training she is older but she knows all her commands- sit& remote sit, heel, down, stay, kennel, whistle for sit and here, as well as hand signals for sit, stay, down, and several other commands.. She has been somewhat FF, however I am a ameteur and decided in FF that we should go back and reinforce all the commands. So she knows the concept of eat pinch and hold but were are going to FF more thoroughly when we get there.. We are about to introduce collar pressure probably tomorrow. She has been wearing it for a couple weeks..
Just frustrating when we are working on kennel/place and whistle work, expanding the distance and I decide to give her some up n up bumpers and this happens..

You have to ask yourself a question...am I in it for me only? What can I do to understand and what can I do to relay that understanding? Being frustrating is because I don't know how to show what I want and have dog understand what I want. Take a deep breath and realized you need to step back. Relax and be patient on what you want from your dog.

 

[captainjack]

If you have alternative places to train, I'd use them. You want to train in less distracting environments first, then you can go proof it in the park. You certainly don't want to get into a situation where you are burning the dog and/or ear pinching with the kiddos and soccer mons watching.

I would add that until you finish your yard work, you should be encouraging the delivery to hand but not trying to enforce it with ear pinch or collar pressure. If the dog drops the bumper near the line, just pick it up yourself and move on. If they are running around playing with the bumper, dropping it 1/2 way back to the line, chomping/chewing or otherwise mishandling the bumper or bird, just stop retrieves until through FF.

 

[Gun_Dog2002]

Too much distraction. Simplify and focus your sessions

/Paul

 

[DarrinGreene]

This one might get some discussion... Get rid of the NO command and tell her to do something she knows how to do. Without seeing it, we can't tell for sure but it sounds like she's having an avoidance reaction when you yell NO!

Lay off the pressure, shorten the marks and let her have some fun. If she makes a mistake be thoughtful and patient and give her a command she knows.

NO is one of the most confusing things you can say to a dog. It sounds like she may just be going into a form of cowering when you yell NO!

 

[BonMallari]

How do y'all handle this? Mine isn't so much no going as she is getting distracted mid retrieve. Today we went to a park to train. We were in between some soccer and baseball fields, with ppl walking their dogs around the track. A couple times she would take off after the bumper, but get there and run a couple steps toward some other ppl... I'd say no and she'd start sniff around... Then I'd say no! Fetch! Walking toward the bumper, she would then run grab it and come on back...
Should I not be training in such a distracting environment? My thoughts were to train in as many different types of places with lots of different distractions.. But it is frustrating when it messes with our sessions...


as as for where we are in training she is older but she knows all her commands- sit& remote sit, heel, down, stay, kennel, whistle for sit and here, as well as hand signals for sit, stay, down, and several other commands.. She has been somewhat FF, however I am a ameteur and decided in FF that we should go back and reinforce all the commands. So she knows the concept of eat pinch and hold but were are going to FF more thoroughly when we get there.. We are about to introduce collar pressure probably tomorrow. She has been wearing it for a couple weeks..
Just frustrating when we are working on kennel/place and whistle work, expanding the distance and I decide to give her some up n up bumpers and this happens..

training in a busy place like a park is a recipe for disaster,its a distraction for you and for the dog, wait till you have to correct your dog and see how fast some tree hugger turns you in to the park ranger...

As for your comment about your dog "knowing all her commands"....knowing a command and having the dog execute a command ON DEMAND, are two very different things..even the best FT dogs in the country have been known to give their handler a refusal during the heat of competition...

There are also different types of refusals...1) the dog is flat out being defiant and giving you the proverbial business or ....2) the dog isnt sure what is expected of them..its hard to correct a dog until you know which one it is

 

[miketuggle]

BHC, how old is she?

 

[Mary Lynn Metras]

training in a busy place like a park is a recipe for disaster,its a distraction for you and for the dog, wait till you have to correct your dog and see how fast some tree hugger turns you in to the park ranger...

As for your comment about your dog "knowing all her commands"....knowing a command and having the dog execute a command ON DEMAND, are two very different things..even the best FT dogs in the country have been known to give their handler a refusal during the heat of competition...

There are also different types of refusals...1) the dog is flat out being defiant and giving you the proverbial business or ....2) the dog isnt sure what is expected of them..its hard to correct a dog until you know which one it is

I am assuming this is a pup & she/he is probably not sure of what is expected. Repetition, shorten marks & less distractions at first. Good luck to you.

 

[BHC]

She is two, I got her as a pup and she learned her basic OB, but we slacked off on "real" training due to life events.. But were on track and doing well. My problem is my yard is only about 30 yrds long in the longest stretches. I've found some fields we go to near my neighborhood, but don't have permission to use them, no one has given me any grief over it yet.. That's what made me think I might should try the park.. It was kinda awkward, with ppl walking there dogs by etc. ever so often... I've tried to contact the two local retriever clubs near by, but haven't gotten a response yet.


i guess as a new trainer one of my biggest obstacles is understanding how to be calm assertive, yet not allow her to decide when she is going to do as I say. That is without just repeating myself 3-4 times sometimes. She never just blatantly refuses to obey me period, however she does maybe look around with that nose pumping and make me say a command 3-4 times. However I noticed today I sent her to place 30-40 yrds, then gave a recall whistle and she didn't acknowledge my call, not even looking at me. I didn't do anything and in probably 5 seconds it was as if she said oh yea he called me.. And came bouncing to me..
Shes a super intelligent dog and catches on to things very quickly. She's also very eager to please. And in the house if you speak to her she looks straight into your eyes as if she is trying to figure out what your saying. But outside she wants to look around, and her nose is going all the time. Maybe this is due to her age and the indipendece she gained prior to doing formal OB. I think it was just to distracting at the park. Because the day before she was making 80 yrd retrieves flawlessly from a remote sit in the field near my house..

 

[J. Walker]

How do y'all handle this? Mine isn't so much no going as she is getting distracted mid retrieve. Today we went to a park to train. We were in between some soccer and baseball fields, with ppl walking their dogs around the track. A couple times she would take off after the bumper, but get there and run a couple steps toward some other ppl... I'd say no and she'd start sniff around... Then I'd say no! Fetch! Walking toward the bumper, she would then run grab it and come on back...
Should I not be training in such a distracting environment? My thoughts were to train in as many different types of places with lots of different distractions.. But it is frustrating when it messes with our sessions...


as as for where we are in training she is older but she knows all her commands- sit& remote sit, heel, down, stay, kennel, whistle for sit and here, as well as hand signals for sit, stay, down, and several other commands.. She has been somewhat FF, however I am a ameteur and decided in FF that we should go back and reinforce all the commands. So she knows the concept of eat pinch and hold but were are going to FF more thoroughly when we get there.. We are about to introduce collar pressure probably tomorrow. She has been wearing it for a couple weeks..
Just frustrating when we are working on kennel/place and whistle work, expanding the distance and I decide to give her some up n up bumpers and this happens..

I am going to disagree with some here. Training around distractions is an integral part of obedience training once the dog is very familiar with the commands. Doing so solidifies your training. However, you must be able to control the level of distraction by location and absolutely be able to control the outcome. If your dog has never done recall or stay work on a 15' lead without distractions and then with increasing distractions over time, it's unrealistic to expect your dog to be obedient in that setting with or without retrieves. I proof my training by doing heeling, recall, and stay work around duck ponds, beside bike paths, outside busy stores, etc. They get lots of this before I would even think about doing retrieves in a similar setting. The setting you describe definitely isn't ideal for retrieving work but obedience work around that setting can really help your field work in other areas. Once you've gone through that, collar conditioning fits well since the dog has the solid foundation of work on short and long leads in distracting environments.

 

[jrrichar]

I am going to disagree with some here. Training around distractions is an integral part of obedience training once the dog is very familiar with the commands. Doing so solidifies your training. However, you must be able to control the level of distraction by location and absolutely be able to control the outcome. If your dog has never done recall or stay work on a 15' lead without distractions and then with increasing distractions over time, it's unrealistic to expect your dog to be obedient in that setting with or without retrieves. I proof my training by doing heeling, recall, and stay work around duck ponds, beside bike paths, outside busy stores, etc. They get lots of this before I would even think about doing retrieves in a similar setting. The setting you describe definitely isn't ideal for retrieving work but obedience work around that setting can really help your field work in other areas. Once you've gone through that, collar conditioning fits well since the dog has the solid foundation of work on short and long leads in distracting environments.

Exactly how I train my dogs. Distractions are required as is control at all times by me. Two 5 month old pups nearly through formal OB proofed to many distractions in many different settings. Once I have complete adherence in the field with moderate (severe would be too high at the age) distraction the collar is introduced. IMO too many people use the collar as a crutch to solve OB problems when faced with distractions. My physical presence (not abuse but voice, body movement, response, etc.) and a choke/prong collar, lead, and whistle are all that are needed to formalize OB in a distraction-based setting. I am the leader. My actions go a long way in telling the pup no or yes. You should know when your dog is starting to tune you out, their focus is wavering, they are thinking about running over to that dog before they do it! Words should be used for commands and be meaningful. Praise and correction need to be given at the right time not all the time.

Someone asked about heeling not to long ago and a pro trainer posted a very short video of himself teaching heel to a dog that week which I thought was very good. He doesn't speak at all....watch his movements with the dog and the correction (there is only one). I am sure there are other videos but you get the idea. Your presence is your best tool. The ecollar is an add on accessory. Make sure you are able to get OB in the dog with distractions with these elementary supplies listed above before you move to the collar. It will benefit both of you!

 

[DL]

The original question was more specific to what to do with the dog being distracted on a retrieve. I have a similar issue of sorts with my dog getting distracted or being overly sensitive to the here command after collar conditioning on that. My dog has been collar conditioned and has been force fetched but I have not gotten to force to pile yet. Lets say the answer is to switch to less distracting enviroments or stop retrieves until after force fetch. I basically switched to less distracting enviroments, and haved walked the dog out to bumper and had him fetch it and walk back to the line. Is that the normal way to handle the refusal? After lets say I get past force to pile and into the double T, I would be able to blow a sit whistle and cast to the bird or bumper? That is how I plan to address it if it continues to be an issue.